London Scottish vs Cornish Pirates – Match Report

Pirates Get That Pleasing First ‘W’

By Phil Westren

London Scottish 10 – Cornish Pirates 38

Playing their Round 4 fixture in Champ Rugby away to London Scottish on Saturday, after two narrow losses and a draw the Cornish Pirates recorded their first welcome league win of the season.

A 6-2 try count in favour of the Pirates provided evidence of their superiority at the Richmond Athletic Ground (RAG), on a day when one could mistake it being a springtime afternoon through witnessing seven daffodil-coloured yellow cards shown during the match.

The selection for the Cornish side saw just a single change in their starting XV from the one that ran out against Doncaster Knights the previous weekend. Fit again Joe Elderkin returned in the centre to partner Chester Ribbons, with Harry Yates for this one taking a seat on the bench.

An opening try for the Pirates was scored in the 14^th minute when, from dominant forward play, scrum half and skipper Dan Hiscocks chose to pass to the blind side and give his halfback partner Arwel Robson a short run in wide out left. It was a sunny afternoon, but with a tricky wind on the day Robson was unable to land the conversion.

Midway through the half the Pirates extended their lead with a try scored by winger Ben Cambriani, his first in the league, to which Robson this time added the extras.

📷Pirates' replacement prop Alessandro Heaney is about to make an impressive break. - Photo credit: Brian Tempest

A third try for the visitors, unconverted, was scored after the ball was swiftly moved from left to right, with Cambriani’s well-judged and slightly lofted pass taken by fellow wingman Arthur Relton, who dived over in the right corner.

When London Scottish threatened the Pirates defended superbly, and despite losing the services of injured hooker Morgan Nelson and then sin binned lock Josh King, they arrived at halftime with a fully deserved 17-0 lead.

It wasn’t long into the second period before Pirates’ lock Bell joined fellow second-row man King in the sin bin, and after probing close to the tryline London Scottish opened their account with a try scored by wing Murray Bellis. Former Rams and Cornwall fly-half Fraser Honey stepped forward to add the extra two points but, on this day, it was not to be.

Naturally keen to score a bonus point providing fourth try, it was shortly after once again impressive number 8 Tomi Agbongbon carried strongly, that from short range Pirates’ prop Alfie Petch used his bulk and strength to score a converted try at the posts.

Further points followed for the Pirates thanks to tries from busy about replacement hooker Sol Moody, and replacement backrower Luke Ratcliff, which was the latter’s first in Pirates’ colours. Robson converted both.

At all but the very end the Pirates did have two more personnel yellow-carded, namely replacement scrum half Will Rigelsford and Relton, whilst for the exiles team Bellis ran in his second unconverted try. However,  this was ultimately a day when the Cornish Pirates deserved their sought after victory, and with a bit to spare!

📷Man of the match Tomiwa Agbongbon has support from Arthur Relton and Arwel Robson. - Photo credit: Brian Tempest

Commenting at the end of the match which brought smiles to his team’s faces, as it did to travelling supporters, Cornish Pirates’ joint head coach Gavin Cattle said:

“This victory was one we really needed after a few close calls this season, remembering too that the Richmond Athletic Ground has at times proved a tricky place for us in the past.

“Down to 13 men twice in the game was a little disruptive for us, but our physicality in the match, and especially so just before halftime, was admirable. We showed a lot of commendable heart and spirit, and with a fine defensive effort did well to arrive at halftime with a 17-0 lead.

“It wasn’t a perfect performance, but it was an eventful and at times chaotic game that we ultimately negotiated, plus it was enjoyable for our supporters to watch.

“Some of the boys really stood out, including Tomi Agbongbon and Sol Moody when he came on, and to the credit of all in the squad everyone has been working and training hard and today was their just reward.”   

London Scottish:   15 Alec Lloyd-Seed 14 Murray Bellis 13 Hayden Hyde 12 Sean Kerr 11 Noah Ferdinand 10 Fraser Honey 9 Dan Nutton (co-captain); 1 Vaughan Bentley 2 Harry Clayton 3 Austin Hay 4 Matt Wilkinson 5 Declan Johnson 6 Marijn Huis 7 Bailey Ransom (co-captain) 8 Tom Marshall.

Replacements:   16 Jack Wright 17 Tam Lindsay 18 Ntinga Mpiko 19 Theo Vukasinovic 20 Lewis Barrett 21 Jonny Law 22 Robert MaCallum 23 Tom Wilstead.

Yellow cards:   Ransom, Ferdinand, Vukasinovic.

Cornish Pirates:   15 Iwan Price-Thomas 14 Arthur Relton 13 Chester Ribbons 12 Joe Elderkin 11 Ben Cambriani 10 Arwel Robson 9 Dan Hiscocks (captain); 1 Billy Young 2 Morgan Nelson 3 Alfie Petch 4 Alfie Bell 5 Josh King 6 Rory Suttor 7 Jack Forsythe 8 Tomiwa Agbongbon.

Replacements: 16 Sol Moody 17 Alessandro Heaney 18 James French 19 Milo Hallam 20 Luke Ratcliff 21 Will Rigelsford 22 Louie Sinclair 23 Harry Yates.

Yellow cards:   King, Bell, Rigelsford, Yates

Scorers:

London Scottish – tries: Bellis (2).

Cornish Pirates – Robson, Cambriani, Relton, Petch, Moody, Ratcliff; cons: Robson (4).

Referee:  Charlie Gayther

Assistants:   Iain Kiy & Darryl Chapman     Attendance:   906

📷You can't see him but prop Alfie Petch scores a try for the Pirates at the posts. - Photo credit: Brian Tempest