Match report: Ellingham & Ringwood beat Basingstoke 20-10 to strengthen grip on Hampshire Counties One third-place spot

Ellingham & Ringwood extended their unbeaten Hampshire Counties One run to seven after a 20-10 win against Basingstoke on Saturday.

The two sides started the day separated by one point, with the hosts trailing Ellingham in fourth place.

Ellingham broke the deadlock when the home team gave away a penalty, and Chris Frost, playing on the right wing, expertly kicked through the uprights, dealing superbly with a blustery wind to give Ellingham a three-point lead in the ninth minute.

Both sides found handling difficult at times, meaning both sets of forwards had to pack down for several scrums, which were hotly contested.

Neither side could breach the other’s defensive line. At times, Ellingham had to dig deep, with full-back and man-of-the-match winner Chris Jeffes getting the visitors out of danger several times from deep in their own 22 with some fine clearance kicks.

In the 37th minute, after some fine work from the Ellingham forwards, replacement flanker Corben Hills muscled his way over the line to score the first try of the game. Frost had a difficult kick to try and obtain the additional two points, but the windy conditions played their part and he was unsuccessful.

The second half began with Ellingham leading 8-0, but the hosts started the half well. Basingstoke number eight Soane Falekaono barged his way over the line to reduce the deficit to three points.

The try sparked Ellingham into action, and Hugo Leigh-Watts, playing on the left wing, used his pace and power to cross the try line in the 57th minute to restore the advantage.

Basingstoke did not give up. They fought hard, and within five minutes, they scored their second try of the game to close the gap once more to three points.

Five minutes later, in the 67th minute, Leigh-Watts, following some good interchange play from Ellingham’s forwards and backs, raced clear of the home side’s defence and managed to run through to score his second try of the game, giving Frost an easy conversion for the additional two points.

Basingstoke fought back, and despite Ellingham giving away several penalties in a row as the game drew to a close, they could not get back in the game. Instead, it was Ellingham, looking for a bonus-point giving fourth try, who looked more like scoring, but the vital last pass did not stick.

Ellingham & Ringwood returns to league action against Trojans on the first Saturday of January.

Ellingham & Ringwood: A. Payne, L. Reynolds, T. Sampson, D. Smith, C. Scott, T. Johnson, A. Lorton, G. Randall, S. Veneroso, T. Veneroso, D. Gollings, A. Higgins, H. Leigh-Watts, C. Frost, C. Jeffes. Subs: S. Dargan, C. Hills, W. Jenkins.