LONDON 3 SOUTH-WEST
26/01/08
GUERNSEY v LONDON CORNISH

Guernsey 19 - London Cornish 9

Two late tries settled an absorbing London 3 South-West encounter in favour of the home side at Foote's Lane, Guernsey on Saturday, the match amply demonstrating the giant strides being made by the exiles who were outclassed in the reverse encounter back in October. The Channel Islanders won by 2 tries and 3 penalties to 3 penalties.

The match was played on a beautiful almost spring like day on a perfect surface in front of a crowd of a few hundred packed into the Garenne Stand at the Sarnians National Stadium, the facilities the best Cornish have encountered in any season since your correspondent has been reporting. The exiles could count on plenty of support too, since their Vets numbered some 30 strong and all of them needed a seat after having played for at least 10 minutes in the equivalent encounter! Cornish made a couple of changes from the side that had coasted through the previous league match, Chris Milne returning at no 8 after a couple of weeks off, and Jim Strover coming in on the wing for Mike Harvey. The exiles began the match the sharper and, by common consent, the quality of the rugby they displayed in the opening half was the best seen by those watching during this or any other season. Attacking with verve at every breakdown, the exiles were on the board within 5 minutes when Dan Pollard nailed a penalty from some way out as the Sarnians were caught offside. With the set pieces even, it was in the loose that Cornish had the early edge, Rod Petre closing down the home 10 and forcing handling errors in the backline. With fellow back row Milne and Mike Allewell joining the fray on the floor, territory and possession was dominated by the visitors in the first quarter, the lead doubled on 12 minutes when another indiscretion at the breakdown was ruthlessly punished by the boot of the former Truro back. Almost immediately from the restart, scrum half Mike Dardis burst from the base of a scrum on half way. He outsped the cover and chipped the ball over the full back who seemed to impede him as he ran by. As the ball rolled toward the tryline Dardis knocked on in the process of picking it up and scoring and the ball was scrambled to touch. However, on the quarter hour the first significant blow for the visitors in the match saw hooker Will Carew-Gibbs rupture medial ligaments in his knee to end both his game and possibly his season. Allewell switched to hooker and former Skipper Tom Thirlwall came on at blind side. The long delay in treating Carew-Gibbs and carrying him off the field took some of the sting out of the exiles game, and the home 12 began to demonstrate his reportoire of tricks to gain territorial advantage. He slotted a penalty on 24 minutes to reduce the arrears and only a superb cover tackle by Thirlwall prevented a home back from putting his side ahead. Skipper Rob Aird gathered his troops at a break and the effect was immediate, Cornish going very close when Strover was bundled into touch just yards from the line down the left flank after a fine break by Henry Mitchell had given his side precious go-forward ball. With Allewell hitting Pete Calvert and Milne at lineout time, Pollard was able to mix his game up to keep Guernsey guessing, and on 32 minutes he was able to extend the exiles lead when a stamping offence saw a stern lecture for a Sarnian forward from the referee, who can consider himself to have had a good game. Cornish were playing a wonderful brand of multi-phase rugby much to the delight of the travelling support. Now 9-3 down, Guernsey began to force the game and they had also lost their influential 12 to a facial injury some time before the break, the reshuffle definitely not helping the fluency of the home backs. With a few minutes left on the clock in the opening period, Allewell took a crunching knock to the head and required treatment. Though the home side pressured hard in the closing minutes, they were kept out by resolute defending, the diminutive Tim Mucken setting a shining example with a series of low tackles to fell runners twice his weight and size. Cornish were by far the happier side at the break, the 9-3 scoreline a fair reflection of their first 40 minutes work.

Both sides will have been aware that the opening score in the second half would be significant, for if Cornish could get it they would be more than one score clear, and Guernsey had demonstrated that they do make mistakes when forcing the game. However, much to the relief of the Sarnians it was they who struck when the exiles conceded a needless penalty for offside after having been turned over at a ruck, the home kicker slotting the pen to reduce the arrears to 3. Turning over a couple of lineouts when the throw missed its target, it quickly became clear that Allewell could not continue, Ben Shribman coming on in his stead and Ben Wheeler switching to hooker, the exiles fortunate to have included 3 frontline hookers in their 19. This further disruption to the exiles front row also reduced the options available to the visitors to bring on fresh legs up front in the last quarter, a fact to prove vital in the final analysis. Cornish continued to probe, Keith Thompson making a break on 51 minutes to the brink of the Guernsey 22. Further battering drives by Thirlwall, Aird, Calvert and James Turnbull forced Guernsey back to the shadow of their posts. Unfortunately, as Cornish won a ruck at the base of the posts the wrong option was taken, the ball turned over and cleared when right wing George Bramble was in acres of space out wide. At this point, and having been off the field for some 20 minutes, the Guernsey 12 was allowed back on having recovered from his blood injury. Within minutes Guernsey were level when Cornish fluffed a scrum on half way and a knock on was harshly awarded the wrong way, a back stepping up offside to concede the penalty that levelled the match at 9-9. With around a quarter of the match left, the Sarnians began to finally make inroads into the tiring Cornish set piece, scrums being wheeled and lineouts not cleanly gathered. The pressure forced the exiles to defend deeper and deeper, clearing kicks often made under some pressure. Cornish brought on Graham Dodge for Thompson in the backline, and it is a measure of how the game had turned that he barely saw the ball in open play in the remaining minutes. Bravely, Cornish nicked a lineout five yards from their line on one occasion, and turned over a home back as he went in too high on another, but when Cornish did have the ball panicked kicks merely presented it back to the oppo. Finally with 10 minutes remaining, after a multi phase attack drove the exiles deep into their own 22, the defensive numbers simply ran out for Guernsey to score out wide. Though the conversion was missed, a very tired Cornish needed a herculean effort to pull this game out of the bag. A final change saw Adam McVicar come on for Dardis. Cornish again moved into Guernsey territory, a penalty kicked into touch on the home 22. Though the ball was won, it was turned over at the maul and sent back into the visitors half. A lost lineout later and a Guernsey forward found space to break through and score under the posts, the conversion amazingly being pulled wide but the score now out to 19-9. The referee brought a close to a titanic encounter, both sets of players awash with sweat after a great game played in excellent spirit by two sides trying to spread the ball.

Guernsey are clearly an ambitious club and, though there is a 5 point gap between them and the top 2, still have to play host to both the sides above. They have a greater variety to their game than the top two, but have shipped a few away games and much may depend upon which players they have available on those days since they are capable of fielding the largest side in the division on their day. What a pleasure it is to be able to enjoy amateur rugby of this standard in such exalted surroundings as the Channel Islands. Cornish had made this a long weekend staying 2 nights and will have learnt plenty should the two sides remain in the same division next season. Having lost the home game by 28 points, the exiles have made tangible progress to compete on such even terms, both coaches and players thoroughly enjoying the challenges of rugby at Level 7. All will be aware that only the bounce of the ball prevented Cornish from extending their lead in the opening half, the ability to score points when dominant a key factor in this game. A tired and emotional touring party returned to Gatwick on Sunday afternoon, the singing in the Guernsey clubhouse still ringing loud in plenty of ears...

LCRFC – Tim Mucken, George Bramble, Keith Thompson (Graham Dodge), Henry Mitchell, Jim Strover, Dan Pollard, Mike Dardis (Adam McVicar), Chris Milne, Rod Petre, Mike Allewell (Ben Shribman), Rob Aird (Capt.), Pete Calvert, James Turnbull, Will Carew-Gibbs (Tom Thirlwall), Ben Wheeler.


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