Otley defeat Chester to go back to fourth in league

After a break of three weeks Otley returned to the field to play Chester, a side they had narrowly beaten 22-24 last October.

Chester kicked off towards the Chevin, and had the chance of an early three points when James Hampson was tackled in the air although the attempt was just short.

They continued to press but a wayward pass flew out of play in front of the grandstand. Elliot Morgan quickly found Joe Rowntree, who returned the favour just inside Chester’s half, and he then ran to the line to score in the corner after four minutes.

Five minutes later, with Chester encamped on Otley’s 22, they took the first of two penalties, a deliberate knock-on, to reduce the deficit with a Liam Reeve penalty.

Otley then moved wholesale into Chester’s half, getting a penalty which went into the left hand-corner. The initial driving maul failed to make the line, and so the ball went across to the other side of the pitch with Callum Irvine going for the line.

He didn’t make it and neither did Luke Cole, but Ben Waddington coming in at speed was able to breach Chester’s defence. Rowntree converted close to the line on Chester’s 22.

Having gained a penalty at the scrum, Rowntree took advantage of a later penalty for side entry on Chester’s 10m and slotted the ball through the posts. After a spate of ping-pong Otley got another penalty closer to the posts, Chester had failed to retreat sufficiently, and Rowntree was again on song on 22 minutes.

Solid defence by Otley kept Chester on the home side’s 10 metre line, before they were bundled into touch.

From the lineout, Otley moved the ball left with Gavin Stead bursting through the Chester line and delaying his pass to Irvine until the final moment who ran the remaining 25 metres scoring in the left-hand corner.

Sam Taylor’s initial run down the left set up a series of attacks before Otley were bundled into touch in the right hand corner. A penalty, followed by Sean Green’s run, took Chester into Otley’s 22 but they were forced into touch. From that line-out, Otley moved the game forward up the pitch reaching the left-hand corner.

They then moved the ball right, Charlie Morgan breaching Chester’s line with Billy Nicholls’s pass to Eddie Crossland setting up Otley’s bonus point converted try.

With less than a minute before half time, Chester got a penalty which went into Otley’s 22 from where they attacked Otley’s line.

Otley conceded three penalties defending their line picking up a yellow card, before scrum-half Tom Holloway found a gap to score which Reeve converted eight minutes into stoppage time.

Otley kept Chester penned in their own half for the opening five minutes, eventually getting a penalty for a high tackle from which Rowntree took his tally to 10 points.

Shortly afterwards, Harrison Vare’s run from his 10-metre line to Otley’s 22 had the home side in trouble and after two further phases Otley gave away a penalty.

From a line-out on Otley’s 22, Chester’s pack got them another penalty but they continued moving the ball left with Vare touching down and Reeve converting.

Now within two converted tries, Chester stepped up the pressure with Otley getting a second yellow for a high tackle.

Having got into Otley’s 22, they stayed there for some 10 minutes and, try as they might, they could not find a way to breach Otley’s defence.

The pressure was relieved when a cross-field kick went into touch. Otley conceded a penalty close to Chester’s line only to return for Cole to be held up over the line. Charlie Morgan then calmly returned the goal-line drop out with a drop goal.

Chester got the restart and forced their way forward, getting a penalty which went to the corner.

Their pack didn’t get over and so the ball the ball was spun out, centre Charlie Craven going over with Reeve converting with some 10 minutes to go.

In sight of a bonus-point try and getting within seven and Otley down to 14 after another deliberate knock-on, Chester threw everything into the game. The game ended with Chester’s 12-man maul failing to cross the line.