A hat-trick from Shae Nixon late in the game was not quite enough to rescue a match for Hinckley which had seen them deliver as poor a performance in the first half as has been seen at Leicester Road for a long time, and then force their way back into the game in the second half to the point where they should have snatched it at the death. A last-minute penalty, which full-back Joe Wilson would have nailed in his sleep nine times out of ten, sailed just wide of the posts to the immense relief of a Henley side who must have thought they had won the game with ease after 50 minutes but who finished the game clinging on by their fingernails.

Ultimately, it was a disappointing end but for much of the first period it seemed Hornets would be on the end of a resounding thrashing. Three tries conceded in a dreadful first half through a combination of sloppy play and silly mistakes left Hinckley with just a little too much to do although they came mightily close. One can’t help feeling that the fact Hornets had not had a game for four weeks may have been the telling factor.

DOR Scott Hamilton conceded the point after the game. ‘We were dreadfully rusty in the first half. Our defence was poor, and we gave away three tries. It’s difficult to pull back from that but credit to the lads, they almost did it and we should have won it at the end. On any other day, we would have scored from the series of pick and goes right at the end, and normally Joe would have got that penalty with ease. It just didn’t quite run for us although I do question whether we deserved to win after our first half performance. On the plus side, Shae Nixon has put his hand up for the rest of the season and couldn’t have chosen a better time. With 17 games to play in consecutive weeks, we are going to be testing the depth of the squad in the coming weeks, and Shae has shown he can be a major influence.’

The game started in a depressingly familiar way for Hornets when Toby Baldwin was penalised for being in front of the kicker at a restart to give Henley an early line-out a few meters out from the Hinckley line. A nicely worked catch and drive and Henley were five points up before Hornets had even warmed up. Fullback Cail Cookland made it seven with the conversion.

Joe Wilson pulled three back a couple of minutes later, but Hornets found themselves 14-3 down with only eight minutes on the clock when a Hinckley line-out on halfway was overthrown, allowing Henley to tip the ball back to scrum half Will Crowe who ran unchallenged to the line for a very soft try. Cookland again converted and Hornets were looking a ragged shambles.

Wilson, who had an immaculate day with the boot until the last-minute aberration, again kept Hinckley in touch with another penalty from in front of the posts on the 22m line but the horror story continued for the rest of the half with Hawks stealing line-out ball at will and the Hornets scrum looking far from secure until David Peck came on to replace Oscar Harper.

On the cusp of half-time another soft try just about summed up the half for Hinckley. With Hornets in possession, poor control on halfway saw the ball bobbling around allowing Crowe to collect the ball and set winger Reuben Norvill on his way to the line. It was a depressing end to a depressing half. Henley’s play was far from perfect, but Hornets were making it easy for them.

It didn’t get much better at the start of the second half Baldwin went close before a high tackle brought the move to an end but from the subsequent penalty scrum Hornets made a hash of the move and Henley cleared their lines.

Baldwin was again involved just a couple of minutes later, this time for the wrong reasons, when he was carded for a deliberate knock-on near the line and a penalty try was awarded. 6-26 with just over 30 minutes to go and the game seemed dead.

Then it all changed! The arrival of Luke Coltman, skipper Alex Salt, and Shae Nixon seemed to be the catalyst but for whatever reason, Hornets began to assert some control around the park, and it was Henley’s turn to feel the heat. First Rory Vowles chipped a ball over the top of the defence from 35 m, the ball was allowed to bounce, and Nixon collected for his first try. Wilson converted.

A penalty to Henley appeared to have restored the order of things but Nixon popped up again on 68 minutes to collect a ball just inside the Henley half and set off for the line, shaking off a couple of attempted tackles on his way.

Nixon grabbed a third minutes later when turnover ball gave him the chance to break the defensive line and streak to the line. Wilson’s conversion brought Hornets within two points with five minutes left and it was game on!

It was all Hinckley from then on, but the scriptwriters got the ending wrong. A series of pick and drives on the Henley line, after the Hornets pack had pushed Henley off their own scrum ball, didn’t quite make it but when Henley were penalised, it seemed a racing certainty that Hornets would pinch the match. But it wasn’t to be and the collective groan as the kick went wide, and the referee blew for time, could probably have been heard in the town.

Next week, Hornets travel to Old Albanians for what looks a distinctly winnable game. It’s a shame they could travel on the back of a famous victory.

Nick Robinson