Bicester 2nd XV 31-38 Saxons
The Chiltern Saxons arrived at Bicester on Saturday under considerable pressure to get a result, having let themselves down in previous outings this season. A much altered team from that marked down at selection on the previous Thursday that brought in several new faces, and a fair few positional changes, meant that the Saxons would have to be at their very best.
However, the Saxons need not have worried. The desire to get a result and avenge our previous defeats ensured that Chiltern matched the hosts with a strong physical presence from the start. At scrum time, the effort from the tight five ensured that the Bicester scrum retreated and wheeled at a rate of knots, allowing Chiltern to assert some early psychological dominance. It wasn’t long before this translated into points. With the backline the Saxons fielded, running the ball was always going to be a strong aspect of our attack. When Jerry collected a clearance kick from Bicester, he made a strong run through their defence, breaking several tackles, and managing to offload to Pete Johnston. Pete carried the ball on against the broken defence, drawing two defenders before passing to Liam on the outside, who stepped back in to touch down next to the posts. Teddy converted, and the Saxons were 7 points up. The Saxons believed that they had doubled the score shortly after when Pete chipped through, tackled the Bicester 15 (possibly off the ball) allowing Dan to scoop up the loose pill and run in a try. The referee awarded the try, only to then reverse his decision and call it back for being in touch.
A bit of indiscipline allowed Bicester the chance to come back, but they missed their penalty opportunity. Meanwhile, at the other end of the field, a great scrum from the Saxons allowed Captain Schrauwers to pick off the base, draw the defenders, and give the easy pass for Teddy to score in the corner. 12 – 0. Bicester then woke up a little and increased their attacking verve, but strong defence kept them out until a mix up at the base of the scrum, and a fortunately unsighted referee, allowed their eight to collect his own knock-on and run in a try. 12-7. Chiltern, however, responded in kind, and Cope crashed over and through several defenders to score the Saxons’ third try. 17 – 7.
Loose mistakes by Chiltern allowed Bicester to gain territory and points, but the Saxons still went in ahead at half time. In the second half, Chiltern conceded a soft try immediately from a Bicester lineout, but came back strong. The play moved up and down the field in hot conditions, but a great bust up the middle from Tim Bond, followed by a smart off-load to Liam, allowed the latter to run in his second try. Bicester then threw everything at the Saxons, and were repulsed only by excellent defending, until the line was breached by the Bicester wing, who’s try was awarded despite having been a metre in touch. The supposed honesty of the Saxons was not reciprocated, but it mattered little. The Saxons turned to both the boot of Luke Johnson to keep them in front, knocking over three consecutive penalties, and some big defence to keep Bicester out, forcing them to kick for goal when they needed to score tries. When Matt Wall put Pete into space with a neat pass, the victory was virtually secured with this try, though Bicester did manage a final try from their Fijian winger, well worked, in to dying moments of the match.
Congratulations to Bicester for playing a great match in a great spirit. For the Saxons, it was an excellent performance all round, particularly from Matt, Nick and Chris in the front row, and Pete Gibson and Gareth in the second row. Schrauwers also led from the front with some big carries, but all the players contributed to an important win.
Saxons 38 - 0 Maidenhead 3rd XV
The Saxons arrived back at Weedon Lane fresh from a morale-boosting win over Bicester to take on a Maidenhead side placed a considerable number of places above them in the league after some good results of their own. For the Saxons, there was a new captain for the day, Luke Donnebaum, and several positional changes from the previous week, but in reality these probably made the team stronger, particularly at half back. After a strong team talk from Pete Gibson, the Saxons took to the field fired up and aiming to secure a second consecutive win.
The Saxons started well, playing into a strong wind while exerting some early pressure through the tight five at the set piece and breakdown, and the backs looked dangerous with the ball in hand. This pressure soon told as Carty crossed for his first try before too long. The conversion, kicked into a very strong wind, only missed by a whisker. The Saxons very nearly conspired to let Maidenhead back into the game shortly after by bungling the restart, but luckily the defence held firm.
There was probably a slight over-exuberance from the Saxons that led to lots of running rather than necessarily taking the contact and recycling. Still, it was clear the patterns were working and the mid-week training had paid off, as Donnebaum was able to cross for a try after a good driving maul. The Saxons scored again shortly after, Jerry scything through the Maidenhead defence and sidestepping the full back on his way to the line, a score which Dave converted. Maidenhead began to get frustrated, and this boiled over into an act of petty violence by one of their front row, committed against Tommy, and he was despatched to the sin bin. The Saxons profited from this by notching up another score, Tom Smalley profiting from a good carry from Stewart and his own outrageous dummy to cross the whitewash and dot down under the posts, which Dave converted.
The second half began well for the Saxons, Smalley making good use of the wind to pin Maidenhead back. Still, the Berkshire side kept on coming at the Saxons, who continued to defend well. Excellent handling by Smalley found Ed in support, who broke several tackles before putting in a great kick ahead. Pete Johnston won the foot race to the ball to score the Saxon’s fifth try. The Saxons believed they had scored a sixth soon after, when Carty showed good strength to power through a tackle on his way to the corner, but the play had already been called back. The second Maidenhead prop had clearly taken offence to Tommy again, possibly because he’s ginger, and Stewart had rushed to his defence with a slap or two. Both players were sent to the bin. [I believe the Saxons scored another try shortly after, but I'm not 100% certain who it was. Own up and I'll edit the report accordingly - and I know it wasn't you Donnebaum]
The Saxons were unable to add to their score as a nasty injury to the Maidenhead centre resulted in his being immobilised on the field with a suspected broken leg. Play was stopped immediately as medical attention was called and drove onto the field. The plan to move onto the 3rd team pitch was vetoed by the referee due to its lack of markings, and with no other pitch to turn to, full time was called with 16 minutes to go. It was a great result for the Saxons, mired slightly by the injury suffered by a member of the opposition. We wish him all the best in his recovery, and hope to see him when the sides meet for the return fixture sometime next year.
1, Morrison 2, Rogers 3,Bourne 4, Thornton 5, Craggs 6,Price 7, Buller 8, Donnebaum 9, John 10, Smalley T 11, Johnston 12, Bond T 13, Johnson 14, Carty 15, Rice 16, Bailey 17, Gibson
Amersham and Chiltern Saxons 29 - Bicester II's 5
A much needed win for the Saxons which will hopefully be the catalyst for a strong finish to the season.
A bad start to the game with a try for Bicester in the first minute, but Chiltern kept their composure well and replied with two tries before half time, one coming from an exceptional run by Jack Kenyon towards the end of the half.
HT 10 - 5
The second half is when Chiltern began to dominate the set pieces allowing for some good running rugby.
The pressure paid off when Tom Smalley set up Lewis Culverhouse for a good finish under the posts, Dave John converted.
Two of Chilterns substitutes then made an immediate impact with Duncan Price firstly finishing off a good team move, and Chris Smith scoring under the posts after a great break from Dave John and supporting run from Liam Gilhooly.
The game with 10 minutes remaining was cut short due to an extremely unfortunate injury for Chris Smith as he turned over on his ankle.
The injury is hopefully not as bad as first thought and we all wish Chris a quick recovery to be back playing again before the end of the season.
FT 29 - 5
The Saxons will need to work hard at training in the week as they face a tough game away to High Wycombe next week.
Team Manager - Huw Thomas
1. Dan Telford
2. Stuart Rogers
3. Chris Morrison
4. Colm Gilhooly (c)
5. Dan Pettinger
6. Chris Sitzburger
7. Mike Shaw
8. Yogi Schraewers
9. Dave John
10. Tom Smalley
11. James Carty
12. Dave Neale
13. Lewis Culverhouse
14. Jack Kenyon
15. Liam Gilhooly
16. Chris Smith
17. Duncan Price
18. Aaron Bailey
Tries -
Dave Neale
Jack Kenyon
Lewis Culverhouse
Duncan Price
Chris Smith
Conversions -
Dave John x2
Chinnor 3XV 12-12 Saxons
The Saxons continued their rise up BBO Premier A with a frustrating draw away to Chinnor 3XV.
In the opening minutes Chiltern looked hungry and sharp, but the early loss of Rogers at Hooker forced a reshuffle with Tim Bond moving to the pack and Mike Perera replacing him at 12. With no obvious replacement to throw for Chiltern at the lineout, Chinnor repeatedly kicked for territory in an attempt to exploit a potential weakness. This tactic accounted for a scrappy first half, including Chinnor being awarded a ‘try’ which had quite clearly been dropped by the ‘scorer’ before the line. Coupled with a missed penalty kick, frustration steadily grew. That said, toward the end of the first period, the Saxons managed to regroup and test Chinnor’s resolve.
Following sustained pressure from the forwards, the Saxons created a platform inside the Chinnor 22 from which to attack. Buckler alerted Fletcher of the overlap on the blindside, and so the skipper opted to pick-and-go and charge for the opposition line. His first effort fell just short, but as the Chinnor defence struggled to reorganise, Fletcher charged again with success picking up the opening Chiltern try.
HT: 7-5
The second half began in similar fashion to the first. Chiltern experimented with various options and combinations at the lineout to find a successful formula, but continued to struggle without Rogers. It must be emphasised however that the pack worked tirelessly all afternoon and were successful in the scrum and in attack. The backline did create a few opportunities, but the stop-start nature of the contest often contributed to shortcomings in execution. Chinnor were unfortunately able to capitalise on a mistake and extend their lead with an unconverted try about 60 minutes into the match. Moments later, Bailey was introduced on the left wing, replacing Lothian who suffered a knock to the ribs in the first half, and Johnson moved to 13.
Action for the back three had been extremely limited all afternoon, but in the closing stages a chance to level emerged. Chiltern pushed up the pitch into the Chinnor half but could not avoid being turned over at the breakdown. This was spotted early by Buckler, who warned Rice to adjust position for an impending kick back into the Saxons half. Chinnor then inevitably pumped the ball over the top to Rice just inside the away side’s 22 with some open pitch to attack. Rice has consistently been a menace to opposition defences throughout the season thus far, and once again he did not disappoint. Finding some space in the midfield and on the left, Rice embarked on a solo mission, weaving through and past defenders all the way to the Chinnor line scoring just behind the posts. Davies converted, giving the Saxons a well deserved, if not disappointing point to push them to fourth in the league.
FT: 12-12
Chiltern can be proud of their performance, and hope to return to winning ways next week against Wallingford 2XV. Fletcher can welcome back several players and will also be hoping that the knee injury sustained by Rogers is not too serious.
Saxons Team
1. Telford, D
2. Rogers, S
3. Pettinger, D
4. Bourne, G
5. Gibson, P
6. Shaw, M
7. Price, D
8. Schrauwers, P
9. Fletcher, T (c)
10. Davies, J
11. Johnson, L
12. Bond, T
13. Lothian, T
14. Buckler, M
15. Rice, J
16. Perera, M
17. Johnson, L
Tries: Fletcher, Rice
Conversions: Davies
Saxons 41-13 High Wycombe 2XV
Following a comprehensive display against Witney, the Saxons were the only senior side competing for points over the weekend. Competition for starting berths has been fierce this season, but the majority of players retained their places after excellent performances a week prior. Dan Sumnall and Pete Johnston joined the squad to help bolster experience in the backs.
Unlike against Witney, the Saxons began with less gusto and allowed the visitors to settle. Despite a strong showing again at set pieces, Chiltern were less decisive in open play and were at times slow to the break down. This allowed High Wycombe to put some phases together and take advantage, scoring an unconverted try and later kicking a penalty. There were some positives in defense, where a combination of strong tackles and better organisation prevented Wycombe from extending their score. However, For Chiltern to really take a grip of the game, they needed to up the work rate and get the backs firing on all cylinders.
HT: 0-8
At the interval, head coach Matt Allen rallied the squad and calmly demanded more from his charges. The response from the players in the second half without doubt warranted every cliché about games and two halves. In the opening forty minutes, the Saxons flattered bottom of the league Wycombe, but like in their previous outing they blitzed their opponents in the second half with a flurry of tries.
Tommy Thornton was first to carry over, following some powerful play in midfield by the pack. By upping the tempo, the forwards created clean ball for Fletcher to dispatch, thus allowing Dave John to orchestrate some flowing backs moves. A second was added by recent debutant Mitchard, again using his pace and agility to overcome the opposition defense. Next was the turn of the skipper, taking advantage of a mismatch to pick-and-go and score under the posts. Throughout the second period, High Wycombe did build some good opportunities, but the front row worked together to overwhelm their counterparts and there were some excellent try saving tackles from Fletcher and Rogers to deny Wycombe a platform.
As the Saxons were able to absorb any pressure thrown at them, Mitchard was able to score again to cap off a memorable man of the match appearance. Shortly after, Buller collected in the middle of the park and used his power to carry the ball in for Chiltern’s fifth try. Wycombe in response were able to string together some phases and were rewarded for not completely capitulating with a try about 50 minutes into the game. So to ensure the Saxons maintained their dominance, Allen made some changes over the following ten minute period, hoping to regain momentum. Dan Pettinger provided the pack with some power in the front row, Luke Johnson added some extra pace at centre and Mike Buckler was introduced on the right wing to try and add salt to the Wycombe wound. The impact was almost instant, as minutes later Jeremy Rice collected the ball in midfield and embarked on another of his mazy penetrating runs. Not a single Wycombe player was able to effectively halt his progress, and from about 15 yards from the line Rice picked out Buckler who ran in for Chiltern’s sixth try and his first touch of the game. The Saxons, determined not to allow Wycombe any respite, completed the rout shortly before time with another deserved Thornton try to send their local rivals home still winless.
FT: 41-13
Credit goes to the entire squad for turning up the heat in the second half. George Mitchard and Tommy Thornton worked hard for their braces, whilst the young front row defended and competed well throughout. Allen will be working hard in the week to ensure the Saxons come out of the blocks faster next weekend, but he was rightly impressed with their second half efforts and the manner in which they dominated in attack.
Saxons Team
1. Telford, D
2. Rogers, S
3. Morrison, C
4. Thornton, T
5. Schrauwers, P
6. Buller, E
7. Price, D
8. Donnebaum, L
9. Fletcher, T (c)
10. John, D
11. Mitchard, G
12. Sumnall, D
13. Lothian, T
14. Johnston, P
15. Rice, J
16. Pettinger, D
17. Johnson, L
18. Buckler, M
Tries: Mitchard (2), Thornton (2), Buckler, Buller, Fletcher
Conversions: John (3)
Saxons 44-9 Witney 2XV
The early season concerns had been diminished. For on the back of some strong individual and team performances throughout the last three matches, the Saxons were back. With an encouraging blend of youth and experience, Amersham & Chiltern welcomed Witney 2XV to duel at Weedon Lane.
Several debuts were handed out including George Mitchard (11) and Tristan Lothian (13), whilst Elliot Ketteringham entered the fray as a replacement. The Saxons also welcomed back Michael ‘Shakira’ Buckler (14) following a string of unfortunate injuries. Without any recognised centres, the entire back line with the exception of David John (10) was comprised of players who typically play in the back three. Clearly an exciting prospect for attacking phases, but a challenge laid waiting in defence. With a strong showing of supporters and a desire to avenge the 1XV opening season defeat, the scene was set.
Chiltern appeared to begin the match as if continuing straight from the last home game that was abandoned against Maidenhead. The forwards were impressive at set pieces, particularly in defence, and the backs began to unleash the abundance of pace at their disposal. Some excellent line breaks by Jeremy Rice (15) along with some power running by the forwards helped provide a platform for Mitchard and Lothian to give Chiltern a deserved lead. Later in the half, Rice was able to dart unstoppably through the Witney line to score an excellent solo try. In response, Witney were only able to kick their way into the game. Their most dangerous approach came late in the first half following an extremely dubious line out decision that caught the Saxons off guard. Chiltern defended well however, and prevented any tries to take a comfortable lead into the second period.
HT: 25-9
After the break, the Saxons really began to turn the screw. The outstanding forwards led well by Donnebaum at the back relentlessly pushed Witney back on multiple occasions providing good ball for the salivating backs. Luke Johnson and Lothian at centre were certainly up for the challenge, and Witney were inevitably unable to hold out the siege. Following some excellent build-up play, a quick backs move was finished well by Buckler in the corner and was superbly converted by John. Shortly after, an altercation between the sides resulted (rather unfairly) in the referee putting Price in the bin, but even the number disadvantage could not stop Chiltern. Captain Tom Fletcher took advantage of some good ruck play by Buckler, and carried the ball through several Witney defenders to score again in the corner. The rout was almost complete. In the late stages, Johnson collected from John and through some strong power running was able to crash through the Witney line and score Chiltern’s sixth try.
FT: 44-9
Greatest praise must be heaped on the forwards for defending well and providing the backs with clean ball throughout. The debutants in Mitchard, Lothian and Ketteringham were impressive, and Johnson also performed admirably at centre. Man of the match Jeremy Rice again demonstrated how invaluable the Chiltern youth system is with another dominant performance. Dave John made a great contribution with 14 points off the boot, and the skippers in Fletcher and Donnebaum led well throughout. A final mention goes to the supporters who always make a significant impact. Your presence would be greatly welcomed in next week’s derby at home to High Wycombe 2XV!
Saxons Team
1. Pettinger, D
2. Rogers, S
3. Telford, D
4. Thornton, T
5. Schrauwers, P
6. Buller, E
7. Price, D
8. Donnebaum, L
9. Fletcher, T (c)
10. John, D
11. Mitchard, G
12. Johnson, L
13. Lothian, T
14. Buckler, M
15. Rice, T
16. Shaw
17. Ketteringham, E
18. Bailey, D
Tries: Mitchard, Lothian, Rice, Buckler, Fletcher, Johnson
Penalty goals: John (2)
Conversions: John (4)