Chester 10Rossendale 21
TIM Doig lamented a “bad day at the office” after watching promotion-chasing Chester slump to a rare defeat at Hare Lane on Saturday.
The hosts were without a clutch of first-teamers due to injury and their problems worsened on the morning of the game when influential back-row Ross White was ruled out due to flu.
Rossendale took full advantage and Chester director of rugby Doig admitted the visitors deserved the win.
He said: “I think the injuries caught up with us and it turned out to be one of those days.
“The harder we tried, the more things seemed to go wrong. It was a bad day at the office.”
The match was originally due to take place at Rossendale but their pitch was waterlogged so Chester agreed last Thursday night to switch the fixture to Hare Lane.
Doig has no regrets over the decision.
He added: “I felt we needed to play. You don’t know what’s going to happen a month down the line so we agreed to the request.”
Chester conceded a penalty from the kick-off and Rossendale’s decision to run the ball paid off as they crashed through a couple of missed tackles to score. A well-struck penalty then made it 8-0.
The hosts dragged themselves back into the contest with some fine rugby which put star man Tom Foden – playing despite suffering from flu – in to score.
A yellow card for Johnny Piggott hindered Chester’s progress and they conceded again, Rossendale scoring to go into half-time 15-5 up.
After the break, Chester managed to cut the deficit with an unconverted try. However, the hosts could not close the gap further and a brace of late penalties saw Rossendale become only the third away team to win at Hare Lane this season.
The only positive Doig took from a disappointing afternoon came from the valuable experience gained by the second XV players who made the step up to first-team level.
“Some of the lads admitted it was quicker than what they’re used to in the second team,” said Doig, who expects to pick from a stronger selection hand when Division Three North basement boys West Hartlepool visit Hare Lane this Saturday.
