Dom Moss’s men made the short trip to Northwich on Saturday knowing that a win would seal an undefeated league campaign for the 2014/15 season. Moss had few injury and unavailability concerns ahead of the game and was able to name another strong squad to finish off the league season. A superb playing surface, beautiful sunshine and the slightest of breezes meant the afternoon was perfect for a game of rugby. As you would expect given Chapel’s form this season they entered the match full of confidence, however even the most optimistic among the squad wouldn’t have anticipated the performance that followed.

The game started at a quick pace and saw the home side secure good possession and territory, bringing their big ball-carriers into the game and making good ground. . Winnington saw their efforts lack fruition when Mcclean pounced to intercept a pass and race away under the posts. Chapel then kicked in to gear and straight from the restart moved down in to opposition territory scoring again with a driving maul from a lineout. A superb break from Jim Moss and even better support play from Angus Morrison saw the visitors add to the score sheet again.

Park continued to try and stamp their authority on the game. It was a couple of Chapel’s smaller players who put in some big tackles to change the momentum of the game – Jed Wragg and Callum Grant-Smith chopping and dumping the opposition attackers. Sadly, the one low point of the day for the visitors soon followed as Grant-Smith suffered an injury during a tackle and had to leave the field having lost several teeth. The youngster had been making a real impact on the game and has been an excellent addition to an already strong squad. Needless to say, everyone involved with the club wishes Callum a full and speedy recovery. Chapel refocused following this setback and registered further scores through Wragg and Angus Morison. Ollie Lawrence – on as a replacement for Grant-Smith – was having a storming game and prevented a Park try by holding the ball up over the tryline. This lucky escape served as a wake-up call for the visitors and they added several more tries before the interval with some of the best rugby produced this season.

A few changes at half-time made little difference to the level of performance and the tries kept coming. Joe Maddock was among the scorers and Ally Lightfoot chalked up his first try in senior rugby. Jack Cottam – another young player enjoying a superb game – crossed the whitewash as well. Park to their credit never even considered throwing in the towel and much like in the first half, will feel they could have scored a couple of tries after some periods of extended pressure. Chapel’s defence held out though to keep the hosts at nil points. Just to confirm it was Chapel’s day, towards the end of the match a conversion from Maddock hit the crossbar and toppled over for a successful kick.

The final score was a little harsh on Winnington Park and doesn’t reflect the part that the home side played in what was often a fiercely and tightly contested game of rugby. However, Chapel’s performance was as good as they have managed all season and the challenge now is to raise their game one more time for the Cup Final on 2 May.

Club Chairman Mike Corfield said “To win the league is a great achievement considering where we were 18 months ago, but to do it by going the season unbeaten is the icing on the cake. If we could go on and win the cup final then that would obviously be the cherry on top”.

Holmes Chapel RUFC would like to thank our sponsors Pochins, EvadX, AWE Cheshire Ltd, Reliance Vehicle Management, Bulcon and JK Ashbrook.

Keep tuning in to the Weekly Roundup for more information on the forthcoming Cup Final against Linley & Kidsgrove on 2 May.