Match Reports: Saturday 3rd September

The opening weekend of the 2016/17 season kicked off on the 3rd September with mixed results for the first and reserve teams, but with both managers coming away feeling optimistic going forward.

The first team travelled away to newly-promoted Eynsham SSC looking to stifle the top scorer in Division 1 last season John Ayres - who hit 26 goals for Eynsham. Dan Bott hit 2 goals and Mark Corbett the other as Chippy went on a to a solid 3-0 win that should have been higher given the chances they had. That being said though, manager Rhys-Warner Carter is happy with a clean sheet, three points and ending the day at the top of the Premier League. He also singled out Lee Stefanovic for praise who stepped up from the reserves and didn't look out of place.

Starting XI for the firsts

The reserves started their campaign against tough opposition in Tower Hill. The squad was heavily depleted and also saw a list of names returning for their first football in almost a decade with the likes of Darren bridge, Adam Scarsbrook, Adam Hunt and Dan Scarsbrook all starting. Few would have thought Chippy would trouble Tower Hill too much but the home side battled valiantly throughout and took a 1-0 lead after 35 minutes thanks to an own-goal that was awarded to Mikey Roberts. The weather was playing havoc with wind and rain and Chippy conceded an equaliser in the last couple of minutes of the first half to go in 1-1 at the break. Last season's top scorer Rocky Burton had to leave at half-time which meant Chippy had no more subs to use with Gary Caladine coming on to replace him. It was going to be a tough second half for the reserves.

Starting XI for the reserves

The team battled magnificently for the whole half but after another 30 minutes of tireless effort, Tower Hill finally broke through to nudge themselves into a 2-1 lead. Tower then got a third goal late on to seal the win and the three points but the players that did play for Chippy can certainly hold their heads high after the performance. Shaun Green was awarded man of the match after a string of spectacular saves and keeping the scoreline looking a respectable one.