SO far so good was the message from the head coaches of Henley Hawks and Chinnor as they reflected on their starts to the season.

Henley top National 2 South with 50 points out of a possible 55, while Chinnor look solid in mid-table, 19 points clear of the relegation zone.

Hawks head coach Nigel Dudding took over the hot seat again last summer after Steve Barnes stepped down due to work commitments.

Dudding said: “If you had said going into mid November that we would have 50 points, we would have taken that.

“Even after the Worthing game when we lost 49-5, we were still three points clear at the top of the league.

“We have still got some tough games to come, including Redruth away next week.

“When you are on top, you are there to be shot down.”

Chinnor’s two previous forays at this level ended after just one season, but there is every reason to believe they will avoid an unwanted hat-trick.

“We have 29 points from 12 games,” said boss Jason Bowers. “That is as good as we could have hoped for. We are exceeding expectations.

“We have now got to get our heads down and work hard for the next three weeks.

“We’ll just carry on how we have been playing.

“We can have a good run now. We are delighted with the way our season has gone.”

Bowers added: “Good luck to Henley. It will be good to have another side in Oxfordshire doing well.“