Leaders rely on late blitz to seal triumph

A THREE-TRY burst in the final 15 minutes of this closely-fought contest secured leaders Elthamians a crucial bonus point victory at College Meadow.

A scrappy game punctuated at regular intervals by the sound of the referee’s whistle for a succession of penalties and unforced errors, sprung to life on 66 minutes.

With Elthamians holding a narrow 5-3 lead, courtesy of a 45th-minute James Golledge try, their pack stole a scrum against the head in the Chinnor 22, allowing Ollie Claxton to snipe around the blindside and feed winger George Perkins for the try.

Perkins turned provider five minutes later, his crossfield run releasing Dom Lespierre, cutting back on the angle, to touch down under the posts.

OEs sealed the victory on 75 minutes – Perkins and Ben Howard combining down the touchline to kick through for Golledge to win the race to the loose ball for his second try.

It was a disappointing ending for injury-hit Chinnor who were left to rue not capitalising on an impressive first-half display when, sparked by the promptings of fly-half Craig Holland and No.8 Tom Burns, they monopolised possession and territory, pinning Elthamians in their own half for long periods.

But they could find no way through an excellent home defence and ultimately had only an early Holland penalty to show.