Chinnor sign hooker Charlie Fleckney from Ampthill

The 21-year-old hooker is the Thame-based club's fifth signing of the month after joining from second-tier side Ampthill.

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Chinnor finished fourth in National League 1 last season and, after the 2020/21 campaign was cancelled due to the coronavirus pandemic, Fleckney is aiming for an improvement next term.

Charlie Fleckney has joined Chinnor Picture: Chinnor RFC Thame

Charlie Fleckney

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He said: “I made the decision to move to Chinnor as I felt I could be a valuable asset to the team, and they are the best club for me to learn and improve as a player.

“The coaching staff and team are all great and I feel they will push me to where I need to be in order to achieve my full potential.

“The whole team is very welcoming and hopefully we can fight for a Championship spot in the future.”

The 103kg forward joined Ampthill as a 13-year-old and captained the East Midlands from Under 16 through to 18 level, and again as an Under 20.

Fleckney appeared for England Counties Under 18, before playing for Maroochydore in Queensland during a year in Australia.

He returned to Ampthill last season, but after making the switch to Kingsey Road the forward is hoping to make his debut in next month’s friendlies with Rams.

Chinnor director of rugby Richard Thorpe said: “He is a tough player and accurate both at the line-out and around the park.

“I’m excited to see how he develops over the next month.”