Amersham and Chiltern earned a precious win on Saturday as they battled back to beat CS Rugby 17-13.

Richie Williams’ side trailed by five points with 15 minutes left in the match and defeat would have seen them slide into the relegation zone in National League 3 with their opponents moving above them.

But Amersham have now given themselves some breathing space after captain Tom Grammenos forced his way over for the decisive score.

The blustery, snowy conditions played a part at Ash Grove as the hosts, playing against the wind in the first half, fell behind early on.

A penalty put Rugby in front and they looked set to push on until they were reduced to 14 men after one of their centres was penalised for deliberate handball.

That caused a shift in momentum as Amersham sensed an opportunity, and they took full advantage as Pip Blake came off his wing to collect a pass before shrugging off a couple of tackles and diving over the line.

Morgan Thompson added the extras to make it 7-3 but the hosts weren’t in front for long as Matt Gilbert was caught in possession allowing the visitors to gin under the posts.

A successful conversion followed by a penalty made it 13-7 to Rugby at half-time.

Kicking with the wind in the second half, Amersham changed tactics and began to pen their opponents into their own half.

With 15 minutes left the much needed breakthrough arrived in the shape of Grammenos as he forced his way over for his side’s second try of the game.

The extra two points were added before Thompson kicked a penalty to secure the win.

Amersham are now four points above the relegation zone with a game against second bottom Guernsey to come tomorrow.