From the position Blackheath were in, with just a minute played of the second period, the end result of this contest could be seen as something of an achievement for the Club.
Chinnor full-back Richie Simpson had just glided across for his side’s fourth try, the successful conversion from fly-half Liam Richman giving the host club a 13-point advantage, and with the visitors a man down after a red card for Ed Scragg prior to the break, an avalanche looked likely.
The fact that didn’t happen is to Blackheath’s credit, but in the end the 14 men just couldn’t hold possession for long enough to build pressure during the final quarter, and the Club left rural Oxfordshire empty-handed with a seventh defeat of the Champ season.
The shame of it was that Blackheath had started so well and had Chinnor on the rack in the opening 20 minutes.
Moving the ball wide, and kicking behind the defence to keep it turning, they forced the hosts into coughing up five early penalties, one converted into three-points by Sam Morley, and twice seeing Billy Harding driven over for a 13-0 lead, the hosts losing second-row Harry Gilson-Fox for ten minutes.
They were also aided by two Chinnor restarts going out on the full, but the third was cleared poorly, and a slick move saw Ben Currie across out wide, before opposite wing Jack Metcalf added a second, after the pack made ground off lineout, both tries scored while still a man down.
Hooker Luke Thompson was driven across, giving Chinnor a 19-13 lead, but Zak Farrance disrupted opposition lineout ball, and a penalty for a high tackle also put Blackheath back on the front foot, only for Scragg’s retaliation to end in the second-row’s dismissal and turn the game.
As the sky began to darken on what had been a beautiful autumnal afternoon, Simpson’s try, straight from the restart for the second period threatened increasing gloom for Blackheath.
Nevertheless, as they seem to have done in almost every contest this term, the Club fought back, this time through the outstanding Harding, with their skipper and hooker powering over twice more to bring them within three-points of their opponents.
The lineout continued to function, despite the loss of their set-piece general, and on another day a dominant scrum, with Archie Holland back at loose-head and a fine debut from Biyi Alo on the tight-side, might have given more reward.
Harding and Noah Sloot made turnovers in defence, but small errors hindered the visitors from gaining another foothold, and although the bench enabled them to match Chinnor’s forwards, their depleted backline allowed the hosts enough space out wide for Metcalf to score his second try, and secure the win.
Blackheath return to The Utilita Well Hall next Saturday, when Rotherham are the visitors. Kick off is at 3.00 pm.
Chinnor
Tries: Currie 22, Metcalf 26, 65, Thompson 30, Simpson 41
Conv: Richman 26, 30, 41, 65
Blackheath
Tries: Harding 14, 19, 44, 54
Pens: Morley 9
Attendance: 1,975
| 15 | . | Iwan Price-Thomas |
| 14 | . | Tom Kendrick |
| 13 | . | Luke Pollock |
| 12 | . | Ronnie Du Randt |
| 11 | . | Jake Hennessey |
| 10 | . | Sam Morley |
| 9 | . | Jordan Burns |
| 1 | . | Archie Holland |
| 2 | . | Billy Harding (Capt) |
| 3 | . | Byi Alo |
| 4 | . | Zak Farrance |
| 5 | . | Ed Scragg |
| 6 | . | Archie Smeaton |
| 7 | . | Noah Sloot |
| 8 | . | Nick Cook |
| 16 | . | Archie Bourne |
| 17 | . | James Cornish |
| 18 | . | Andy Boye |
| 19 | . | Tom Everard |
| 20 | . | Josh Smart |
| 21 | . | Kieran Curran |
| 22 | . | Taitusi Qaniuci |
| 23 | . | Ed Dunford |
Photo courtesy of Chinnor RFC
Graham Cox
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