Ealing Trailfinders took complete control of their Championship title destiny with an emphatic 57-14 victory over an in-form Amphtill at Trailfinders Sports Club.

It took the league leaders only two minutes to lay down their marker, as heavy pressure inside the Ampthill 5-metre line allowed Matt Cornish to dive on a charged down box kick and give Trailfinders the lead.

The home side then extended their lead four minutes later through James Cordy-Redden, who ran a hard support line off scrum-half Craig Hampson to crash over the line.

A bizarre try got Ampthill back into the game, as ex-Trailfinders Academy player Brandon Jackson grubber kicked the ball twice to himself down the left flank to then set up Tom Bacon to score under the posts.

It did not take long for Trailfinders hit back however through Craig Willis, who sold the Ampthill defence with a dummy and then spun his way over the line from five metres out.

Willis then turned from scorer to provider as Trailfinders secured the bonus point 27 minutes in, making a brilliant breakaway on the halfway line as he sold the defence with a dummy again, to then pass inside to Dan O’Brien for an easy finish.

Ampthill emerged from the interval the more positive side, and they reduced the deficit through some classy work from Jackson again, who broke down the left with a burst of pace and delivered a delightful pass inside to Charlie Bracken for a simple score.

Trailfinders quashed the brief resurgence however through Richard Hardwick, crashing over the line off the back of the rolling maul.

With Ampthill unable to stop the powerful rolling maul, Mike Willemse then emulated Hardwick’s try ten minutes later to make it 38-14.

Relentless in attack, the home side continued to add on the tries, scoring their seventh through Rayn Smid, powering over the line on the right-hand side.

Next up to score was Cian Kelleher, using his remarkable pace to round the defence in the left-hand corner and dot down following a tremendous Barney Maddison breakaway.

Rounding off the game in style, Lloyd Williams finished off a well-worked team move that had two impressive offloads down the left flank to leave the final score 57-14.

Ealing Trailfinders managed to stifle a strong second half resurgence as they ran out 52-35 winners over London Scottish at Trailfinders Sports Club.

 

The home side topped fifty points through eight different scorers, with Matt Cornish, Jordan Holgate, Bobby De Wee, Craig Willis, Biyi Alo, Jonah Holmes, Ollie Newman and Reuben Bird-Tulloch all getting on the scoresheet.

 

A derby day bonus point victory ensured that Trailfinders maintained their 10-point lead at the top of the table.

 

Cornish opened the scoring on three minutes as he added to his impressive season try tally, dotting down off the back of a rolling maul. Willis added the extras.

 

Trailfinders then quickly extended their lead nine minutes later as the debutant Holgate cruised in to score under the posts, having been teed up by a delightful inside pass from Holmes. Willis converted again.

 

The early first half onslaught continued through De Wee, who used his large frame to crash over the whitewash after successive phases inside Scottish’s 22. Willis’ conversion was good.

 

Just when it was looking to be a drubbing for the away side, scrum-half Dan Nutton hit back with a well-worked team try to score under the posts. Sheppard converted.

 

The action continued at a frantic pace, with Trailfinders then scoring again through Willis, as he saw a gap in the Scottish line and darted his way over, leaving the score 26-7 at half time.

 

London Scottish came out raring to go after the half and struck with two quickfire tries within five minutes.

 

Fly-half Harry Sheppard scored and converted his own try as Scottish exploited gaps within the Trailfinders defence, with Nutton scoring his second of the day in similar fashion two minutes later. Sheppard converted both.

 

A disconcerted Trailfinders side steadied themselves as they know best, with Alo scoring off the rolling maul after repeated Scottish penalties. Willis nailed the conversion.

 

Sustaining this momentum, they extended the lead through Holmes after a well-worked move down the right flank, as he shrugged off the last man to score under the posts. Willis added the two points.

 

Scottish would just not lie down however, scoring through Will Brown and Bryn Bradley as they continued to exploit holes in the Trailfinders line, reducing the deficit to just three points. Sheppard’s perfect day with the boot continued for both.

 

It wasn’t enough however, as the home side crushed the Scottish resistance with two unanswered tries through Newman and Bird-Tulloch, leaving the final score 52-35.

Ealing Trailfinders stamped their authority on a resilient Nottingham side with a 52-26 victory at TFSC.

 

Tries from Billy Twelvetrees, Matt Cornish (3), Biyi Alo, Angus Kernohan and Jonah Holmes secured all five points for the home side to extend their lead at the top of the Championship to 13 points.

 

Twelvetrees opened the scoring with a classy interception, reading the pass with ease inside the Nottingham 22, leaving him free to saunter over the line and dot down under the posts. He converted the extras.

 

The Archers hit back as a looping pass on the Trailfinders five-metre line managed to elude three players and Ryan Olowofela was able to cruise over in the corner. The conversion was missed.

 

Trailfinders’ Richard Hardwick was then sent to the sin bin midway through the first half.

 

Nottingham capitalised on their player advantage through Beltus Nonleh, who bundled over the whitewash having been put in great territory by a slick 50-22 from Ellis Mee. Matt Arden converted.

 

The scoring pendulum swung again as Matt Cornish did what he does best, crashing down over the line off the back of a rolling maul. Twelvetrees missed the conversion.

 

Within a matter of minutes however, the away side retook the lead as Joe Woodward sliced through the Trailfinders line far too easily to score under the posts. Arden converted.

 

With the pendulum failing to halt, the combination of Matt Cornish and a rolling maul resulted in the inevitable just before half time. Twelvetrees missed the conversion to leave the score 17-19 at the break.

 

Jordan Burns ensured the home side started the second half in the ascendancy with an immaculate 50-22, and after successive penalties the referee had no choice but to award a penalty try. With the extras guaranteed, Nottingham were also reduced to 14.

 

Despite their handicap, the Archers spread the ball swiftly across the field, opening space for Dafydd Tiueti to burst down the left flank and dot over the line. Arden’s conversion was good.

 

Trailfinders response was emphatic, with Alo scoring the first five of 28 unanswered points as he bulldozed his way over the line off a stiffened rolling maul. Twelvetrees converted.

 

Cornish secured his hattrick of tries just as he had scored his first two, off the back of the unstoppable Trailfinders rolling maul. Twelvetrees converted again.

 

Trailfinders next try had a bit more flair to it, with both wingers combining beautifully to allow Kernohan to power through a gap in the line and score on his return to TFSC. Twelvetrees nailed the extras.

 

Only on the pitch for a matter of minutes, Holmes was the next beneficiary of some swift hands in the build-up as he was freed down the right flank, using his pace and strength to finish brilliantly in the corner. Twelvetrees maintained his perfect second half from the tee to leave the final score 52-26.