Chieftains near title with double

Two wins on consecutive nights against title rivals Vectis Tigers edged Chelmsford Chieftains closer to the ENIHL Division Two South title.

The Chieftains began the weekend with a 13-4 defeat of their in-form Isle of Wright opponents at the Riverside.

The scoreline was closer at the away leg on Sunday, but the Essex side still secured a 5-3 win on the south coast.

The Chieftains have dropped just one league point this season and could secure the title by mid-February.

In the Saturday encounter, the Chieftains had built up a three-goal lead in just over 10 minutes, but were pegged back to 6-4 by the midway point.

But the home side scored seven goals unanswered in the final 30 minutes to seal an important psychological blow.

Darren Brown hit three goals for the Chieftains, Danny Hammond and Ross Brears a brace each, whilst James Ayling, Sean Easton, Richard Whiting, Lee Brears and Jerry Pavlus all contributed to the goal tally.

The game was much tighter on Sunday, with the home side trailing the Chieftains 3-2 after half-an-hour, but a hat-trick from Rich Whiting and goals from Ross Brears, Easton and Whiting were enough to pull the visitors clear.