Rugby
RUGBY UNION: Chippy lose 100 per cent record
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| QUICK BALL: Chippy's Meryck Royce goes wide as fellow centre Aaron Tustin offers support |
Berks, Bucks & Oxon Premier Division
Chipping Norton had to put their title celebrations on ice after losing 10-9 at home to Bicester.
Bicester's victory ended Chippy's 100 per cent league record, but they only edged the points by the width of a post.
A try from hooker James Davies gave Bicester a 10-9 lead with eight minutes of normal time remaining.
But, with stoppage time approaching, Chippy's replacement fly half Jamie Lakin saw his 40-metre penalty hit the left-hand post and bounce clear.
Chippy could argue they deserved victory in terms of territory and possession, but they were never able to open up a committed Bicester side, who scored the game's only tries.
Indeed had lock Dan Spencer remembered his kicking boots from the previous week, Bicester could have won comfortably.
On the kicking front, Chippy could point to losing regular fly half Adam Smith to a foot injury.
The strong cross-wind was never going to produce a fluent, open game of rugby, but there was still plenty of drama.
Full back Tom Hall made the early difference for Chippy, running the ball into Bicester's 22 after nine minutes.
Bicester were twice penalised for illegal tackles, the second resulting in a yellow card for prop Rob Thurlow, and Hall slotted the penalty.
The visitors struck following a driving maul on 26 minutes.
As the ball went inside, Ward set up full back Paul Leverton to dive over after breaking a tackle.
Chippy centre Meryck Royce was a lively runner throughout and Leverton got back well to intercept his pass.
The hosts should have made more of a chance engineered by flanker Matt Dawson's break in stoppage time, but looked well-placed with the wind advantage to come after half-time.
Lakin succeeded twice where Spencer had failed, slotting two penalties to make it 9-5 on 53 minutes.
The latter saw Bicester lock Mark Malins sin-binned and Chippy had all the momentum.
Bicester centre John Rollason was came close to scoring on 59 minutes as he chased a bouncing ball, but it rolled dead before he could reach it.
The otherwise impressive Hall wasted a decent chance at the other end when he should have passed to wing Sam Townsend, but the game swung on 71 minutes.
Dawson was sin-binned as Bicester poured forward and they took full advantage.
Malins secured the lineout ball and hooker James Davies finished off an excellent driving maul to cap a fine personal performance.
Spencer couldn't convert, so Chippy could win it with a penalty.
But Lakin was twice off target and even when they went for the corner in stoppage time, Bicester No 8 Martin Linstrom stole the lineout ball.
f=Helvetica s=6Chipping Norton: Hall, Korszewski, A Tustin, Royce, Townsend, Smith (Lakin 18), Naish (capt), L Tustin. Waldron, Holland, Griggs, Chapman, Gillett, M Dawson, Hancock. Reps not used: Pope, Warner.
Referee: K Latham (Oxfordshire)
Chippy man-of-the-match: Royce.
8:54am Wednesday 12th March 2008
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