Cheshunt 1XV Lose Out To Hitching

Another opportunity to get some points on the road, slipped through the fingers of a Cheshunt side, who matched their opposition in all areas of the field, except, crucially, converting territorial advantage into points. Hitchin only paid 3 visits to the Cheshunt 22 during the first half and scored twice, despite spending long periods in the Hitchin danger zone, the Green and Whites failed to trouble the scorer.

The opening exchanges were restricted to the half line until a penalty enabled Reece Shoobridge to kick down the line, several phases 20 metres out didn’t make much ground and frustratingly Cheshunt turned the ball over. Alex Clark charged down the clearance kick and was first to collect the loose ball, his path to the line was covered, but his inside pass to the supporting forwards was again lost in contact. The forwards won the ball against the head just 5 metres out and then gave the ball back when they let the home side off the hook with an unnecessary penalty. C’s continued to have the positional advantage for a further 10 minutes, but rarely looked like creating a clear cut chance, when they gave away further penalties, Hitchin were able to get down field, then a break in the middle of the park, saw the quick thinking scrum half dart through a gap 30 metres out, he was too quick for the covering defence and went in under the posts.

Cheshunt came straight back, Shoobridge failed with a long range penalty kick and when C’s were awarded a further penalty they decided to go to the corner, but once again the Hitchin defence easily coped with an impatient Cheshunt attack and again were able to win the ball back. A speculative kick in the middle of the pitch was poorly dealt with by the Cheshunt defence, Hitchin reacting quickest and in loose play always looked threatening. Another penalty put them in the corner and after a short period of sustained pressure were able to cross the whitewash again when the fly half chipped through for the left winger to collect and dive over, Hitchin went into the break with a 12-0 advantage.

The visitors started the second half strongly, Adam Chantler coming into the line from Fullback to send Jack Gutteridge down the left wing, once in the 22, Cheshunt this time kept the pressure on and after a series of scrums near the line, Shoobridge picked out Gutteridge with a nice miss pass and he touched down in the corner, to reduce the margin to 7 points.

It was now the home teams turn to squander some chances and only a forward pass, a dropped pass and a Ben Hounslow interception save C’s from going further behind. After weathering this storm, Cheshunt then had the chance to level the match but a spilt ball 20 yards out gave the home side a chance to counter attack, they kept close to the left touch line and after a number of phases got over near the corner flag, an excellent touch line conversion doubled their advantage.

The game was put beyond doubt almost straight from the re-start, Hitchin attacking through the middle until the scrum half again noticed a big enough gap to dart through and again from 30 yards out, went in under the posts unchallenged. The conversion of the bonus point try gave the hosts an unassailable 26-5 lead and the game offered little in the last ten minutes to keep the crowd warm.

C’s have little time to get back to winning ways if they are to avoid relegation, they will have to register victory this coming weekend at home against Imperial Medicals to have any chance of climbing out of the danger zone.

Martines, Girdlestone, Phillips, Donnelly, Mason, Clarke, Reynolds, Hounslow, Ewing, Shoobridge, Gutteridge, Thorne, Corcoran, Boulton, Chantler. Replacements:- Short, Linsell. S, Bryce