Wellington 8 St Austell 6

St Austell succumbed to a narrow defeat at Wellington in a game they dominated territorially for long periods without ever finding the guile to cross the try line. The Somerset side are unbeaten at home this season and it is not hard to understand why; a tough, resolute and well drilled pack lay the foundations for a back line content to play the percentages and let their excellent line out deliver possession in pressure areas. It is a winning formula and although the Saints pushed hard right to the very end Welly managed to hold on.

The recent heavy rain had passed through giving way to a pleasant autumn afternoon so it was perhaps surprising both sides found handling difficult. Coupled with the high penalty count from Referee Mr Phil Curd, a remarkable 19-9 in favour of the home side; it created a stop start encounter that never really hit the heights as a spectacle. After 10 minutes of cagey forward exchanges the game burst into life with two great back line moves. First Welly sucked the Saints defence in around a well worked catch and drive line out on the visitors 22m. The ball was delivered to fly half Matt Parsons whose clever diagonal kick to the far right corner was just too long for winger Konrad Breese. Saints responded with quick ball off a line out of their own, excellent inter play between half back pairing Matt Shepherd and Andy Ashwin let winger Ben Chenoweth come in on a looping run only to be hauled back with the try line beckoning. Saints kept the pressure on and hands in the ruck allowed Shepherd to put the visitors ahead. The home side responded with vigour and it was the Saints turn to defend their line from a series of driving mauls. After being penalised three times in quick succession flanker Sean Haren was shown the yellow card. Saints defended four consecutive 5m scrums before the extra man told and Parsons was able to ghost through a blindside gap for an unconverted try. Saints showed real mettle in their response to finish the second quarter well on top but the well organised home defence never buckled and the visitors had to be content with two penalty attempts. Shepherd slotted one over on 32 minutes but just failed on the stroke of half time with the second when his standing foot slipped and the 40m kick fell short. Saints were 6-5 ahead but knew that Welly would now be playing down the slope towards their supporters in the Clubhouse corner.

Saints defended the onslaught well and although Welly continued to use their lineout extremely well they could not find a way through the Cornish defence. There were some close calls especially against the home side’s rolling maul when twice it threatened to breach the Saints line. On each occasion flanker Paul Winterbottom, magnificent in the loose exchanges all afternoon, ripped the ball out of despairing Welly hands to allow Saints to clear their lines. On the hour came what turned out to be the pivotal moment of the game at a Welly scrum on the Saints 40m line. A strong surge by the Cornish eight forced the ball to become trapped at the feet of Welly number 8 Lloyd Willocks. Thinking the ball was out Shepherd dived in attempting to turnover possession only for the Referee to penalise the Saints scrum half. Crucially the mark was moved forward 10m after complaints from the frustrated visitors and full back Matt Nichols hit the 3 points to put Welly in front. Ian Venner, back after 6 weeks out with injury, replaced injured centre Curtis Newberry and made an instant impact with a trademark tackle bursting run before passing to the supporting Haren who was held up despite crossing the try line. Saints continued to apply pressure but were just unable to finish some excellent approach work. With a minute to go a Welly transgression provided an opportunity to win the game but Shepherd’s kick just drifted wide of the posts. There was still time for one last roll of the dice and Saints again drove Welly back to their try line. With red and black shorts pouring over on the Saints side the visitors were convinced they had secured another penalty when the whistle blew. To their dismay the Referee signalled game over and the match was lost.

Saints travelled to Somerset as league leaders and with that comes a weight of expectation not to mention the inspiration it gives to good sides like Welly. The Cornishmen can hold their heads high as they competed well against a strong side with an excellent home record. Saints were unable to find the tempo and fluency that their game requires and a lack of discipline at key moments ultimately decided the game. The single bonus point will prove valuable and the Saints will be champing at the bit to bounce back next week against Exeter Saracens (KO 2:30pm, Saturday 10 December 2011, Tregorrick Park).

Match Stats:

St Austell: Noott, Grigg, Martin, Pearce, Haley, Haren, Winterbottom, Jeffs, Shepherd, Ashwin (Captain), Chenoweth, Taylor, Newberry (Venner 60), Orton, Evison Unused Replacements: Knott, Morcom

St Austell: Tries –
Cons –
Pens – Shepherd (13, 33)

Wellington: Tries – Parsons (22)
Cons –
Pens – Nichols (60)

Yellow Cards: St Austell: Haren (18) Wellington:
Red Cards St Austell: None Wellington: None

Referee: Phil Curd (Somerset RS)

Saints Man of the Match: Paul Winterbottom