Upper Clapton 45 Old Brentwoods III 5

Eastern Counties stalwart and Upper Clapton veteran Alan Chinn- Shaw put on a virtuoso performance on Saturday to steer the Extra A to a convincing win against Old Brentwoods III. Chinny rolled back the years as he more than ably stepped into the gap left by regular Old Boys’ Fly Half, Mr Potato, who was absent this week after bruising his face last time out. From the moment Chinn-Shaw pulled on the number 10 shirt the morale of the whole squad was lifted as seasoned veterans and awe struck youngsters alike silently anticipated what was to follow.

OBs looked like a decent side during the warm up but Clapton’s 6 try onslaught during the first half put paid to their aspirations as Chinn-Shaw controlled every aspect of the game. This Clapton side has a reputation for playing the No. 10 deep in the pocket but Chinn-Shaw surprised his opposite number by standing flat, immediately cutting down the space and time available to his adversary. And with the wealth of possession generated by Clapton’s pack he was able to orchestrate wave after wave of attack demonstrating a range silky skills in the process: a shimmy here, disguised pass there; a well weighted chip that played on the breeze or the siege gun boot of old? Chinny unleashed them all just when each was needed in a dazzling display Fly Half play rarely seen at this level. Indeed when OB’s did have possession of the ball Chinn-Shaw’s defensive skills came to the fore as he worked with the back row and outside backs to snuff out the away side’s threats with aplomb.

As ever though, great performances start with the pack and Clapton front five was dominant all day. The front row of Mr Elmer, Vern and Humpty has around 85 years of playing experience between them – and almost as many stones in weight – and it was clear from the off that with Kenty and Big Kev providing the engine room, the Club’s scrum was only moving in one direction. That freed up the relatively youthful back row of Smelley, Shields and Jordan to wreak havoc all afternoon. All of which meant young Mr Norris guesting at scrum half could get loads of ball to “The Shaw”.

In fact Chinn Shaw had a hand in just about every point scored by Clapton. Precision in the pass, excellent support running (despite picking up what looked like a serious thigh injury early in the game), a gentle hand of encouragement on the shoulder following an error, and impeccable leadership all helped keep Clapton’s score ticking over. Recognising that youth should be given the chance to flourish he passed up the opportunity to kick the conversions in favour of the impressive Young Mr Norris. Chinn-Shaw’s altruistic approach gave Norris the chance to make his mark which became indelible as he kicked 5 conversions from 7 attempts, all of which were from out wide or into the teeth of the fearsome breeze.

With his work done “The Shaw” stepped aside for Sprolley in the second half but not before Piggy (3), Kenty (2) and Tom Plane (1) had added the final touches to his masterful work by crossing the OBs line. During the second period Chinn-Shaw’s influence remained clear as Sprolley added Clapton’s final try of the day to the 6 scored in the first period to leave OB’s training by 45 points to 5.
The MoM award went to the architect of Clapton’s success on the day –Alan Chinn-Shaw taking the honour.

Next week the Ex A take on last season’s Under 17 squad in a game designed to give the younger players an insight into adult rugby. With Chinn-Shaw in the form of his life, and confirmation that Owen Coyne will be looking to tear the 10 shirt from him, things are looking rosey for the old boys in that half back position.

Team: Elmer; vern; carroll; kent; Kev; Shields; Elmer; Kelley; Norris; CHINN-SHAW, Plane; Stacey; Norris; Walker; Full Back. Rep: Sprolley; Ed Lobbo; Ronaldo; Ericson; some others?