Following the visit of Leicester Tigers, the Cornish
Pirates are eagerly awaiting their second pre-season game at the Recreation Ground,
Camborne, this coming Saturday 18th August, kick-off 5pm. The
match against Newport Gwent Dragons should provide another marker to gauge the
strength and ability in the Cornish Pirates squad, which certainly impressed against
the might of the Tigers. Having faced the fire of the Dragons
on four previous occasions, and losing on each, it is perhaps time for the Pirates
to exact revenge against their Welsh opponents , but it won't be easy. Despite
losing the services of Kevin Morgan, Ceri Sweeney, Michael Owen and Colin Charvis,
who have been selected in the Wales Rugby World Cup squad, Dragons head coach
Paul Turner still has at his disposal eleven internationals in the group of players
he is bringing to Cornwall, including Camborne-born lock Luke Charteris. Also,
of course, it'll be a welcome return home for former 'Pirate' Joe Bearman, who
overcame injury problems to play a vital role for the Dragons in last season's
campaign, which was his first representing the Welsh regional team. A
number of Cornish Pirates who were unavailable to play against Leicester Tigers
will likely feature this weekend, including prop Johnny Williams, back-rower Chris
Cracknell, and former Manawatu centre Nick Buckley. Alan Paver, who was carried
off against the Tigers with a leg injury, is making very good progress but is
likely to sit this one out. The Dragons beat the Cornish
All Blacks 16-12 at Polson Bridge on Tuesday evening, before moving to Penryn
for a training camp ahead of their match versus the Cornish Pirates. Admission
at Camborne is £5 for the terraces, including seating in the new temporary
stand at no extra charge on a first-come first-served basis, and £10 for
the main grandstand. Accompanied children under-16 are admitted free. | 
