His first against Mansfield ended a run of five defeats and now a diving header thrust Notts into a sixth minute lead at the Memorial Stadium.
David Pipe provided the Rushden & Diamonds loanee with a superb deep cross and Chillingworth's energetic reaction caught Steve Book in the Rovers goal cold.
Book, the club's 36-year-old goalkeeping coach, had been drafted in for his first game for Rovers when Scott Shearer had to pull out with a twinge in his back.
Book took the blame for the goal which flew over his head to leave Rovers facing an uphill task.
Rovers' coach Paul Trollope had labelled the match crucial to their play-off bid and they worked hard over a poor surface to repair the damage.
The best of their first half efforts saw a stinging long shot from James Hunt turned over the bar.
They were missing the pace of Junior Agogo, starting a three-match suspension, and the new front pairing of Richard Walker and Lewis Haldane were frequently caught offside.
Haldane, taking over from Agogo, had little to offer until he popped up with a stunning equaliser eight minutes into the second half.
As he broke down the left he looked offside and even checked his run. The flag stayed down and he picked up the pace, cutting inside to finish with a fierce cross drive for his first goal of the season.
Notts for all Chris Palmer's prompting were not finding direct shots to trouble Book.
That changed midway through the second half when Steve Scoffham replaced Andy White. Five minutes after he came on Palmer sent him on a run and the sub held off two challenges before planting his shot wide of Book's left hand.
Scoffham later picked up a booking for kicking the ball away but the win has revived County's season. Rovers, though, are fading, having won just two of seven home games.