It was a typical end-of-season game with nothing at stake for either side but it perhaps sums up why City finished in fifth position in the league.
City manager Gary Bellamy was philosophical about the defeat explaining: "It epitomises our season - we hit their crossbar twice, failed to take our chances and then lost because of one defensive error.
"On top of that we again suffered from bad refereeing on a bad pitch which have both been too common this season," he added. "But it has been a learning curve for the youngsters and now we need to build on this and be more consistent next term."
Struggling for a full strength side, City more than held their own in the first half with Ian Cambridge seeing his early chipped shot rebound off the bar only for Tesfaye Bramble's follow-up shot to be blocked on the line.
Cambridge's free-kick right on half time also came back off the bar - indications that it was not going to be City's day.
Three minutes after the interval, Witney scored what turned out to be the winner - the first time they have ever beaten City in the 20 matches between the clubs.
The unmarked Caffell headed home and despite a late rally the home side held out.
Chelmsford City : Catley; Coburn, Sutton, Darton, Shirley (B Girling); Greatorex, Lakin, Berquez, Strong; Cambridge (Benterman), and Bramble. Unused substitute: Parker.
Converted for the new archive on 19 November 2001. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereComments are closed on this article