Holmes Chapel continued their season long winning streak at the weekend with a well-deserved win over Port Sunlight in round 2 of the Lighting and Building Services Plate. Due to Port Sunlight’s pitch being waterlogged, the fixture was instead played at Wirral RUFC, a short drive down the road. Proceedings began in less than familiar circumstances, with both teams being forced to change in the car park rather than indoors.
After showing off their physiques in the car park, it was time for Chapel to show off their rugby on the pitch and the game began at a frenetic pace. Due to handling errors from both sides, there were many first half scrums in what was a heavily forward orientated first half. Deadlock was broken when Lock Mark McEnaney capitalised on a poorly executed line out from Sunlight and crashed down underneath the posts. Scrum half Andy Davies added the extras. This seemed to be the turning point that Chapel needed and they began to take control of the game. Pressure from set pieces led to the team in blue and yellow spending long periods of time in the opposition half. One particular phase of play resulted in prop Will Mitchell thundering over Sunlight’s try line for a score. The seemingly infallible Davies once again successfully kicked the conversion.
The first period of the second half was arguably Chapel’s best period in the game, with the ‘away’ side’s back line particularly clinical in attack. Cross-field kicks from fly-half Mike Lightfoot expertly finding winger Harry Jeanes for a rather impressive 5 points, who for once did not need to run through/over any players on his way to the try line. Chapel looked very dangerous from the restarts, with Tom Chambers running the full length of the pitch and placing the ball down under the posts. Chambers, spent from his full pitch sprints, was replaced by the youthful flanker Callum Grant-Smith who followed suit by putting adding another try to the score sheet. Mark McEnaney completed his hat-trick and the game ended Port Sunlight RUFC 0-63 Holmes Chapel RUFC.
Despite a number of fine displays from both the pack and backs, the man of the match award was given to hooker Neil Almond for an impressive display in the loose, playing more like a back rower and rolling back the years. Skipper Chambers remarked after the game, “This is a great victory to put us into the 3rd round of the LBS plate, but we have got the biggest game of our season on Saturday at Crewe and Nantwich and the lads need a lot of support. We are 12 from 12 now and we will not stay undefeated by becoming complacent. Supporters get yourself down to the game and players get yourselves fired up for it. Up the Chapel.”.
Chapel would like to thank their hosts Port Sunlight who were a great set of lads, and would like to wish them best of luck for the rest of the season.