| At Home With The Pirates At Last | |||||||||||
|
Cornish Pirates 20 Nottingham 8 YORKSHIRE clubs may currently hold the monopoly at the top of National League One, but the Cornish Pirates are determined they will be among the division frontrunners come the end of the season. Yesterday's 20-8 victory over visiting Nottingham was not pretty, in fact it was more of an "arm wrestle" insisted coach Jim Mckay at the final whistle.
However, the Pirates racked up league win number 18 with a purposeful first-half display, which they really should - and could - have built on in the second period. The fact they did not was based on a number of reasons. Number One: The howling downfield wind, which ensured both sides were always going to find it tough to force their way into enemy territory. Number Two: Nottingham - buoyed by that same wind - were a much improved outfit after the interval. Number Three: Referee Gareth Copsey ruined what could have been a free-flowing encounter with some endless whistle-blowing, which would have been better suited in the Camborne showers afterwards. The fact that it took until second-half stoppage time for him to finally make his mark - he did that by issuing four yellow cards in as many minutes - ensured this encounter was never going to be one to write home about.
Not that you would have thought that would be the case early on. From the outset, the Pirates started with a real swagger to their play. Fly-half James Moore - the hero of Doncaster the week previous - netted two early penalties to set the home side on their way, before then obliging with the extras to the first of Rhodri McAtee's try-double. McAtee's opener came on 19 minutes when he made the most of a knock-on by visiting full-back Rohan Nirmaldandran on halfway, before scooping up the loose ball and scorching to the line from halfway.
The 'Welsh Whippet' added a second six minutes later, this time latching on to a pass from Moore, who had made the break following some good approach working involving the inspirational Tim Cowley and skipper Gavin Cattle. Sadly Cattle's involvement ended just minutes later, the Pirates scrum-half forced from the field with a hyper-extended elbow. It meant an early introduction for Cattle's Welsh compatriot Rhodri Wells. For Wells it was the chance of some much-needed game time. He, like Grant Anderson, Nick Makin, James Inglis, Chris Cracknell, Matt Evans and Steve Winn, gratefully took the opportunity to press their claim for a more regular slot in the Pirates starting XV.
With crunch clashes against Rotherham and Plymouth Albion to come in the next fortnight, they all did enough to give McKay and his backroom staff plenty to ponder this coming week. However, having swept into a 20-0 cushion, the Pirates then took their foot off the gas as half-time approached and it allowed Nottingham a slender lifeline back into the game. A line-out move in the right-hand corner finally paid dividends when on-loan Harlequins flanker Luke Sherriff was assisted over the line a minute after Cattle was forced from the field. Unfortunately, former Pirate Tom Barlow was unable to convert, firing his effort wide of the left upright. Fly-half Barlow atoned after the break, however, this time slotting a 50th minute penalty from 20 metres out to make it 20-8. After that, using the wind to punch them downfield, Nottingham continued to offer a genuine threat in attack. The Pirates, though, had other ideas and with Cowley leading by example with some bone-crunching hits, the visitors were unable to add to their tally.
At the other end, the Pirates did have chances of their own - particularly in the final quarter - but had they been a touch more patient, then probably the points would have flowed.
Even when the visitors lost Nic Rouse to the sin-bin late, quickly followed by team-mates Joe Duffey and Tim Stannard, plus Pirates lock Heino Senekal, there was still no way through. "I thought it was a real arm wrestle out there today," said McKay at the final whistle. "I thought the wind was more than a 20-point wind, so I was a little bit nervous at half-time that we perhaps didn't have enough points on the board. "Second half, though, we controlled the ball pretty well and we didn't allow Nottingham to get too much. It was very difficult playing into that wind, but we still managed to create some chances. The fact we didn't take them was disappointing because had we done that, it may have been a bit more comfortable for us in the end." Next on the agenda is this Sunday's televised clash with second-placed Rotherham, who themselves warmed up for their visit to the Duchy with a hard-fought victory over Plymouth Albion. "Next week will be a big occasion for the club and for Cornish rugby," added the Australian. "But our focus has to be on Rotherham and nothing else." Cornish Pirates 20
Tries - McAtee 2; Conversions - Moore 2; Penalties - Moore 2
Nottingham 8
Try - Sherriff; Penalty - Barlow
Pirates:
Replacement (not used): D Bell, J Hylton.
Yellow Card: Senekal.
Nottingham: Replacement (not used): N Stenhouse.
Yellow Cards: Rouse, Duffey, Stannard.
Referee: G Copsey (RFU)
Attendance: 2,362
|
