Bishops Stortford aiming to extend winning feeling

For all the talk about Chinnor and the Old Elthamians over the last few weeks, Bishops Stortford have gone about their business superbly well and now find themselves right back in the title race.

Andy Long’s side have won their last six matches which now leaves them just two points off league leaders Chinnor heading into Round 12 of the season. The next challenge which awaits them is a trip to fourth placed Redruth as the men from Silver Leys look to continue the winning feeling.

Chinnor and the Old Elthamians will be hoping that winning feeling will be back with them this Saturday as the early frontrunners both suffered surprising defeats last weekend to put a small dent in their promotion ambitions.

Elsewhere, the Redingensians will be looking to extend their unbeaten run to seven matches when they host Chinnor’s conquers Canterbury, while Taunton Titans are in need of victory to stay with the promotion chasing pack.

Down at the bottom, Barnstaple will be aiming to keep up their excellent form in November when they travel to Bury St Edmunds while Barnes and Henley Hawks both have home games which they will be eager to win to begin moving away from trouble.

Chinnor v Clifton

League leaders Chinnor suffered their first defeat of the season in Round 11. Prior to their trip to Canterbury last weekend, Matt Williams’ side had won all 10 of their matches in National Two South in a run that included some strong victories over the likes of the Old Elthamians and Redruth. That sequence of results gave them a six point lead at the top the division, but now their advantage is just two points after losing out to Canterbury six days ago.

That was Chinnor’s third loss in 19 National Two South matches and it will be interesting to see their reaction after tasting their first defeat of the campaign. The perfect antidote would be a seventh straight home win which would no doubt put Chinnor’s title challenge back on track.

Clifton’s season hasn’t been plain sailing thus far. The Lavender and Blacks currently sit ninth in National Two South and would’ve been disappointed to see their four game winning streak come to an end last weekend. However, that run of victories has certainly been a turning point for Clifton who began the season with just one win from their first six games.

So, it is clear that Clifton have the quality and they will now have to pick themselves up from their narrow defeat at home to Redruth last weekend. They head to South Oxfordshire in search of their sixth win of the season and their third away victory in a row. With Chinnor potentially licking their wounds from their first defeat of the campaign, Clifton may feel they can capitalise on their misfortune.

Redruth v Bishops Stortford

Redruth are performing strongly once again in National Two South. The Reds finished fourth last year, but were never really in with a shout of breaking into the top two, so this year they’re looking to take that extra step as well as building on their excellent performance of last season.

Marek Churcher’s men have certainly started like a team that is capable of challenging. Eight wins from their 11 games leaves them in fourth place, but I feel like they are further behind the front runners than they would’ve liked to be. The Reds sit eight points adrift of second placed Bishops Stortford after ending a run of two straight defeats last weekend away to Clifton. However, a sixth home victory over Stortford tomorrow would certainly launch themselves back into the thick of the promotion hunt.

Bishops Stortford are a side well in truly in with a shot of a top two finish this season. Stortford currently sit in second place after 11 games following a run of six straight victories and it is fair to say that confidence is certainly flowing among the squad as they head to the Recreation Ground this Saturday.

It has been quite the response from Andy Long’s men. They suffered back to back defeats against the Old Elthamians and Canterbury at the end of September / start of October which saw them drop out of the top two, but they have been in scintillating form ever since and have worked their way back into the promotion places. This trip to Cornwall will not be straight forward for the men from Silver Leys, but with the mood they are in at present, Stortford will feel capable of beating anyone in this division.

Exmouth v Old Elthamians

Exmouth have been struggling to adapt to life in National Two South so far this term. After 11 games, the newly-promoted side sit bottom of the table and they welcome the Old Elthamians to Devon on the back of a three game winless run although we have seen what they’re capable in of in certain games, including a win over Barnstaple and draw against the Redingensians.

The two aforementioned results were the start of a number of positive recent displays from Jon Hill’s side. Since the win against Barnstaple and the late draw against the Rams, Exmouth have been narrowly beaten by Barnes and Bury St Edmunds while they put in a spirted performance at Cinderford last week. However, Exmouth need to start turning those performances into victories as they currently sit six points from safety and they may feel that is possible this weekend against and out of sorts Old Elthamians side.

The Old Elthamians remain firmly in the hunt for promotion in National Two South, although they are currently going through a mini blip in form. The OE’s had begun the season superbly winning their first nine matches, but their unbeaten run came to an end in their early top of the table clash against Chinnor in Round 10.

It didn’t get much better for Gavin Lach’s side last weekend as they were outplayed by the Redingensians at home as they suffered their second defeat on the trot. The OE’s now sit third in the table, but only five points off Chinnor, so they will be keen for a positive reaction this Saturday against bottom of the table Exmouth.

London Irish Wild Geese v Taunton Titans

London Irish Wild Geese are battling to keep their place in National Two South this season. Wild Geese were promoted from National Three London and South East in May and like any new side taking the step up into the next division, they are finding it challenging so far as they currently occupy 12^th place, with just four points separating the club from the relegation zone.

The men from Hazlewood have won just three of their first 11 games at this level, two of which have come at home. So far this term, the Wild Geese’s victories have come towards the end of each month so they’ll be hoping the pattern continues this weekend when they host Taunton Titians.

Taunton Titans are seriously struggling to keep themselves in the National Two South promotion race this season. With 11 games on the board, Andy Yapp’s men find themselves fifth in the table and nine points off the top two places. It might not sound that bad but their current form has seen them slip out of contention for now.

The Somerset club have won just two of their last six games after beginning this season with five straight victories. A defeat to newly-promoted Barnstaple last week, was their second away defeat on the spin and with them being back on their travels again this Saturday, the Titans need to return to winning ways here if they are to keep themselves in with a shout of promotion.

Redingensians v Canterbury

Other than Bishops Stortford, the Redingensians are the form side in National Two South at the minute. The Rams began the season with just one win in their first five, but they have bounced back to form in fine fashion since then. They are currently on an unbeaten run of six matches which includes five victories as they prepare to welcome Canterbury to Old Bath Road.

The confidence is clearly flowing in Mike Tewkesbury’s squad as last weekend, they ended the Old Elthamians’ unbeaten home record which certainly shows the quality this side has. They currently sit sixth in the table and 16 points off the promotion places, but for now the Rams are just fully focused on extending their winning run, starting with the visit of Canterbury.

It won’t be a walk in the park for the Redingensians though. After stating before Round Nine that Canterbury were one of the most inconsistent sides in National Two South, they have completely ripped up my theory over the last three weeks as they have won three games on the trot to propel them up to seventh in the table.

In fairness to the City Men, they had shown glimpses of what they were capable of earlier in the season when they beat Bishops Stortford and their recent victories have highlighted their quality. A thumping win over Henley Hawks has been followed by sensational triumphs over Redruth and Chinnor and now Canterbury are looking to upset the odds once again this weekend as they aim to end the Redingensians unbeaten streak.

Bury St Edmunds v Barnstaple

Bury St Edmunds have certainly suffered their fair share of ups and downs after 11 games this season. Following four straight defeats in October, the Wolfpack were nervously looking over their shoulders at the relegation zone, but since the turn of the month, Gavin Hogg’s side seem to have turned a corner.

Bury currently sit eighth in the table and that is largely down to the two successive wins they have achieved in November. Victories against Exmouth and Barnes have been crucial in order for Bury to move away from danger and now they are looking up the table rather than down. They are once again at home this weekend where they have won four of their five matches this term so they’ll be confident of adding to that tally when Barnstaple visit The GK IPA Haberden.

Barnstaple shocked everybody who follows National Two South last week following their impressive victory over Taunton Titans. The newly promoted side not only overcame one of the promotion candidates six days ago, they also extended their unbeaten run to three matches which is their best spell of the season since making the step up to this level.

Life in the fourth tier of English rugby was a turbulent one for Barum in the opening weeks of the season. The Devonshire club won just one of the first eight games which left them bottom of this division, but victories of Worthing and the abovementioned Taunton as well as an excellent draw against Barnes leaves Barnstaple just two points adrift of safety. A trip to Suffolk is next on the agenda as they look to continue their excellent recent form.

Henley Hawks v Worthing Raiders

Henley Hawks’ return to National Two South has been something of a disaster so far. The Hawks were relegated from National One in May and after their title winning season at this level in 2014/15, they may have been considered favourites for an immediate return to the third tier.

However, that simply hasn’t been the case. A number of injuries haven’t helped but in this still young National Two South season, Henley currently sit in the relegation zone having recorded just three wins from their first 11 games. Henley currently have the worst form in the league as they welcome Worthing Raiders to Dry Leas tomorrow  and they will have to put that right sooner rather than later otherwise alarm bells could start ringing in Oxfordshire.

Worthing Raiders are still looking to find some consistency to their results, but their win over the London Irish Wild Geese last weekend could be the catalyst they need to achieve just that. The Raiders currently sit in 10^th place after 11 games of the National Two South season.

Six days ago, the Raiders secured that 26-22 victory against the Wild Geese which put an end to a winless streak that had stretched over four matches which included a disappointing away defeat to Clifton and an even more disappointing loss on the road against Barnstaple. Can Worthing secure back to back wins this weekend when they travel to a Henley side low on confidence?

Barnes v Cinderford

Barnes welcome Cinderford to South-West London on Saturday, but the home side could do with a victory in National Two South. With only one win in their last six matches, it’s unsurprising to see Barnes still around the relegation zone after a difficult start to this season.

Last weekend, a two game unbeaten run came to an end away at Bury St Edmunds which leaves Barnes just two points clear of the bottom three as things stand. A home victory this weekend over Cinderford is certainly required to bring some confidence back to the side and they certainly do have the quality to turn this tough start to the campaign around.

Cinderford are a club looking to build their way back to National One. After the disappointment of relegation from the third tier of English rugby, the men from Dockham Road have not taken to National Two South like a duck to water as yet.

The Gloucestershire outfit have been very inconsistent this term due to a number of injuries they have had and some below par performances. They currently sit in 11^th place having won five of their first 11 matches this term with two of those victories coming in the last five weeks including their win over Exmouth six days ago. Cinderford have won twice on the road this season and a third victory tomorrow would achieve back to back victories for the first time since the start of this campaign for Paul Morris’ side.