Front Row: Hoppa returns to Cornish Pirates.

Hoppa returns to our old stomping ground, from last season, and becomes a Pirate for a day. Thanks to all at Cornish Pirates, especially Wolls for the match report and Simon Bryant for the picture.

Cornish Pirates 54 Rotherham Titans 12

RFU Championship Round 9

Sunday November 11th 2012
Mennaye Field Penzance

Woll's Match Report

It’s been a while, but you won’t hear many complaints from the home faithful after a blistering performance from the Cornish Pirates delivered their bonus point win of the season.

Eight tries and a fifty plus tally; including a hat trick from Burgess and a pair from McGlone, did the damage; on an afternoon in which the Pirates increasingly grew in confidence. In the process they leapfrogged their opponents in the Championship standings up to 6th, and stretched their unbeaten run to five

There had been an early set-back within 90 seconds, as Law nailed the first of his two drop goals of the afternoon. But from the moment Penberthy leveled things four minutes later, the visitors had little to offer to deflect clear Cornish irresistibility. True, their well publicised injury woes may have figured highly in their eventual demise on the day; but their last outing at home had produced a comfortable win, in an emotional local derby, to begin the post Bester era. YoWas this then, the perfect antidote to balking at Billesley a week earlier? It would seem so.

McGlone’s first dot down in the ninth minute, after some good pressure from his compadres in the pack, appeared to light the blue touch paper. Hereon in, there was predominantly only one team in it. And it wasn’t the Yorkshiremen; who were consigned to heading back up north wi’ nowt; as Leeds had been a fortnight earlier.

Indeed, such was the intensity from the Pirates in all areas of the game; the only surprise come half time, was that only Elloway and Burgess had added to the try tally. Some of this may have been down to some ‘’baggage still lingering, but the signs were looking good.

u can only play…etc

Was this then, the perfect antidote to balking at Billesley a week earlier? It would seem so.

McGlone’s first dot down in the ninth minute, after some good pressure from his compadres in the pack, appeared to light the blue touch paper. Hereon in, there was predominantly only one team in it. And it wasn’t the Yorkshiremen; who were consigned to heading back up north wi’ nowt; as Leeds had been a fortnight earlier.

Indeed, such was the intensity from the Pirates in all areas of the game; the only surprise come half time, was that only Elloway and Burgess had added to the try tally. Some of this may have been down to some ‘’baggage still lingering, but the signs were looking good.

Thus at the break the Cornish side were able to head in pleased with their efforts and a 22-9 lead. Law had added another drop and a penalty, whilst Penberthy added some extras here and there and missed a couple of penalties of his own too.

The sun was still shining in every meaning of the phrase, as the Pirates picked up from there’d left off, after an interval that would been unlikely to involved any hairdryers on this occasion.

Pointer squandered an early chance to add to the score with the line crying out to be crossed. But this was quickly erased from the memory banks as the pack took charge with a succession of penalties in the Newlyn Gate Corner, which promised a resumption of try scoring.

One particular scrum seemed to have done the trick as the Titan Eight found reverse at a rate of knots; and a Pirate combination of McGlone and Maidment gave further display of some cultured footwork within back row ranks. Mr. Meredith quite inexplicably blew up for a reset just as the ball was grounded.

Any thoughts from the home crowd of the official doing just that himself, were quickly extinguished as Burgess calmed any rebellion in the ranks with the bonus point try immediately afterwards.

The Pirates appeared to be in total command now, but had enough in reserve to succumb to a 14 man maul effort from the visitors that Stagg emerged from the bottom of; to claim the first of a personal brace. Law duly converted the difficult touchline kick but this did little to stem the overall tide.

McGlone’s second and a first try since his return to the Pirates for Fatialofa kept the scoreboard ticking inexorably towards the half century of points and ‘bat-raising to the pavilion’ time. These five pointers sandwiching a mirror image score for Stagg in the Clubhouse Corner.

Freeman was close to making it three Titans tries soon after, but for a magnificent tackle into touch by Mercer. With it, went any hope of an important bonus point that would have retained sixth spot for the Yorkshiremen.

The Pirates in the meantime maintained their pacey tempo and rounded the afternoon off with two more scores of their own. Mercer finished off a fine move in the Old Western National Corner to claim his first try in Pirate colours. Whilst Burgess claimed his third off some sloppy Titan play on halfway, to gallop in from 50m.

Hallett brought proceedings to close with a simple conversion in front of the posts. The supporters, in the meantime could enjoy their post-match sing song with a little more gusto.

There should also be time to reflect on such a poignant day such as this. Lest we forget.

Cornish Pirates
15 W. Davies (20 T. Kessell 71) 14 G. Pointer  13 T. Riley  12 Jnr Fatialofa (22 A. Cheesman 69)
11 B. Mercer  10 A. Penberthy (21 K Hallett 71)  9 G. Cattle (capt)  8 L. McGlone  7 P. Burgess  6 B. Maidment  5 G. Johnson  4 D. Lyons (19 D. Barry 53)  3 B. Prescott (18 P. Joyce 53)  2 R. Elloway (17 D. Semmens 69)  1 R. Storer (16 A. Paver 65)

Replacements: all used

Tries: McGlone 2, Elloway, Burgess 3, Fatialofa, Mercer
Cons: Penberthy 4, Hallett
Pens: Penberthy

Rotherham Titans
15 F. Mulchrone  14 P. Homan  13 L. Blackett  12 J. Gill  11 M. Doneghan  24 G. Law (Capt)  9 C. Mulchrone (22 J. Williams 54) 1 S Cahill (17 M. Gadd 48)  2 D. Baines (16 T. Stagg 28)  3 R. Davies (18 G. Denman 48) 4 T. Freeman  5 D. Sanderson  6 A. Rieder  7 J. Ellyatt (20 E. Taylor 61)  8 C. Kirwan (19 N. Dacres 63)

Replacements: un-used 21 E. Styles

Tries: Stagg 2
Cons: Law
Pens: Law
Drops: Law 2

Yellow: Freeman

Match Officials
Referee: John Meredith
Assistants: Shane Lewis, Chris Sharp

Attendance: 1763
Man of Match: Gary Johnson