The home side had plenty of opportunities to win this encounter so it will be another game filed under the “should of; could of” variety. The Saints forwards dominated the scrum but poor kicking from hand, especially in the first half, all too often ceded the initiative to the opposition. When the home side did carry the ball they looked a totally different proposition and exerted long periods of pressure in the visitors’ 22 in the second half. Cully for their part were well marshalled in defence and looked after the ball well when in possession with patient and precise build-up play the hallmark of their attacks.

Cully arrived at Tregorrick Park in second place and in an excellent vein of form. So, it was no surprise that they got off to a confident start playing with a real rhythm and verve in the opening quarter. Fly half Alex Brooks slotted a neat drop goal after just 3 minutes and the Saints were having to work extremely hard to keep the Devonians at bay. The breakthrough for the visitors finally came on 20 minutes when a well worked team try was finished off by centre Thomas Harold, full back Ross Toms added the extras (0-10). The Saints finally got a foothold in the opposition half and demonstrated this was not going to the be one sided encounter the opening quarter had suggested. Direct running from centre James Martin and second row Adam Kellow were punching holes in the Cully defensive line as the Saints gained the momentum. The Ashwin brothers combined, with fly half Andy’s sublime pass allowing centre Chris to slip over the line (5-10). The home side were pegged back by a long-distance penalty from Toms (5-13) and although they exerted plenty of pressure on the visitors’ line in the closing stages of the half, Cully held firm.

The home side held sway in the second half but found the Cully defence a hard nut to crack. The Saints pack were now totally dominant in the set piece, a penalty award at a scrum allowed full back Liam Freeman to claw back 3 points (8-13). A series of 5m scrums set the platform for number 8 George Knowles to crash over, Freeman’s touchline conversion put the home side in front 15-13 and with the pendulum swinging the Saints’ way it looked at this stage they would go on to win. The Saints failed to press home their advantage and a miscued clearance kick was to have a calamitous impact on the contest. What should have been a routine kick sliced horribly and in the ensuing panic, the Saints’ were not only penalised for offside but lost talisman Kellow to a clash of heads. Toms slotted the penalty to put Cully ahead (15-16) in what was their only sustained visit to the Saints’ red zone in the second half. The Saints had opportunities to win the game, the best coming from Hector Bright making his debut as replacement for the injured Kellow. The teenager had already played a half for the Sinners, where he had scored four tries against Bodmin IIs, when he was a late call-up to the Saints due to an illness during the warm-up. He almost scored his fifth try of the day when he burst through the Cully defence only to be stopped just short of the try line by an excellent covering tackle by full back Toms. In the final minutes Saints missed two penalties, one at the post and one to the corner and with them went the game.

This is third game of the season so far that Saints have lost by a single point; in fact, they have picked up losing bonus points in all five of their defeats. This underlines the fine margins that are defining the outcomes of the games. Cutting out unforced errors and converting the periods of ascendancy during the game into more points will see the tide turn. The Saints travel to Plymouth next week in search of a morale boosting win at Devonport Services (KO 2:30pm).

Man of the Match: George Knowles – Excellent second half display from the number eight at the base of a dominant scrum. Some good carries and was rewarded for his hard work with a try.

1 Hugh Noott; 2 Miles Davey (Capt.); 3 Mark Martin; 4 Adam Kellow; 5 Adam Pearce; 6 Jack Nelson; 7 Ian Venner 8 George Knowles; 9 Dan Jane; 10 Andy Ashwin; 11 Ben Chenoweth; 12 Chris Ashwin 13 James Martin; 14 Sam Kendall 15 Liam Freeman

Reps:
CJ Boyce; Hector Bright; Andy Inch

St Austell:
Tries – Chris Ashwin (26) George Knowles (62)
Cons – Liam Freeman (62)
Pens – Liam Freeman (55)
Drop Goal –

Cullompton:
Tries – Harold Toms (20)
Cons – Ross Toms (20)
Pens – Ross Toms (33, 72)
Drop Goal – Alex Brooks (3)

Yellow Cards:
St Austell: None
Cullompton: None

Red Cards:
St Austell: None
Cullompton: None

Referee: Mr A Robinson (Cornwall RRS)