With six players under 20, four debutants and a bench made up entirely of Colts from last season’s County championship winning side, the Saints approached the opening day encounter with a degree of trepidation. The Devonians had finished third last season and will undoubtedly go on to be among the pace setters this term. The Saints had suffered a painful relegation from SW1 West but the coaches’ faith in youth paid off handsomely as the hosts secured their first league victory since February. The home side had the lion share of possession and territory and but for some stoic Tivy defence coupled with a lack of composure in attack on occasion, the Saints could have scored more than the four tries recorded. It was a fittingly impressive and entertaining display to put on for the Club’s inaugural Ladies Day which made the Tregorrick stands look like Royal Ascot!

The match was preceded by a touching and respectful act of remembrance for CRFU President John Grindle who sadly passed away during the week. The game kicked off at a frenetic pace with the home side first out of the traps to put the visitors under intense pressure. A succession of kickable penalties were spurned as the Saints looked to gain an early try but Tiverton’s defence looked rock solid. Flanker Ian Venner was held up on the one occasion the blue line was broken and full back Darren Pellow was twice denied by excellent tackles. Winger Ben Chenoweth almost managed to get on the end of an astute kick ahead from fly half Andy Ashwin only for the ball to bounce dead as he touched down. Having weathered and repelled the early storm Tiverton started to make some headway into the Saints half and good work from their first up chasers isolated a Saints’ defender in the home 22. A penalty for holding on was inevitable and fly half Matt Down easily converted the three points with 24 minutes gone. Saints hit back almost immediately and Ian Venner finished off a classic line out catch and drive routine to put the home side 5-3 in front. The half closed with the home side again unable to turn pressure into points.

Saints finally broke through early in the second half when quick ball from a scrum gave centre Sam Rhodes space to chip over a flat defensive line, gather the ball and dive under the posts (12-3). Saints indiscipline quickly took the gloss off when first Sam Rhodes was yellow carded for dissent and then a penalty decision was reversed following some unnecessary back chat amongst the Saints forwards. Tiverton took full advantage with a catch and drive of their own allowing scrum half Jack Sampson to dive over (12-8). The home side regained their composure to stifle any thoughts of a Devonian fight back and after good work by the forwards, quick hands across the depleted backline saw Ben Chenoweth finish under the posts (19-8). Andy Ashwin nudged the scoreboard onwards after the visitors strayed offside on the hour mark (22-8). The home side now had teenagers Cavan Boyer, Max Duggan and Will Gilder on the field keen to replicate the performance of 17 year old scrum half Callum Hayne. The youngsters did not disappoint, with Boyer giving an assured display at full back and Gilder unfazed in the backrow by his experienced opponents. It was Max Duggan who stole the limelight with some barnstorming carries, one of which blasted a hole in the Tiverton defence creating the space for Sam Rhodes to glide in for his second try (29-8). Visiting number 8 Wayne Sprangle was shown a yellow card in the aftermath after some unnecessary words of wisdom to referee Andy Reynolds. The official had a fine game and was rightly consistent with his zero tolerance for back chat. The home side threatened to overrun the visitors at this stage and winger Konnor Ewudzi almost crowned a potent display with a try only to lose control of the ball as he crossed the line after a powerful 20m surge from his wing. Tiverton dug deep and scored a well-deserved try in the last minute following a spirited final riposte to make the final score 29-15.

There was a vibrancy and exuberance about the Saints’ display that put a smile back on the faces of the Tregorrick faithful to blow away the last vestiges of last season’s disappointment. With the Sinners winning handsomely at Lankelly-Fowey and the Colts beating Camborne 26-10 despite the loss of personnel to the seniors there is renewed optimism. No one will get carried away yet, this is a young side with much to learn and there will undoubtedly be set backs along the way. The learning curve will take a steep upward trajectory next week when the Saints travel to Kingsbridge. A visit to High House is never easy and last year’s runners up are much fancied again this season (KO 3:00).

Match Stats:

St Austell:
1 Peter Rowe; 2 Miles Davey (Capt.); 3 Mark Martin; 4 Josh Pearce; 5 Mark Vian; 6 Jack Grigg; 7 Ian Venner; 8 Paul Winterbottom; 9 Callum Hayne; 10 Andy Ashwin; 11 Ben Chenoweth; 12 Sam Rhodes; 13 James Martin; 14 Konnor Ewudzi; 15 Darren Pellow

Reps:
Max Duggan; Cavan Boyer; Will Gilder

St Austell:
Tries – Ian Venner (27); Sam Rhodes (44, 67); Ben Chenoweth (56)
Cons – Andy Ashwin (44, 56, 67)
Pens – Andy Ashwin (58)
Drop Goal –

Tiverton:
Tries – J Sampson (50, 80)
Cons – M Down (80)
Pens – M Down (24)
Drop Goal –

Yellow Cards:
St Austell: Sam Rhodes (48)
Tiverton: Wayne Sprangle (67)

Red Cards:
St Austell: None
Tiverton: None

Referee: Mr Andy Reynolds (Cornwall RRS)

Saints’ Man of the Match: Callum Hayne – There were many fine performances throughout the Saints 18 but one stood out. The 17 year old gave a remarkably assured display on his first team debut. Excellent distribution, tenacity at the breakdown and good decision making meant that the Saints’ backline was able to take advantage of the quality ball provided by a dominant pack.