St Ives 18 Teignmouth 14

St Ives completed the double over their main challengers for the league title, but Teignmouth remain top of the league thanks to their superior Bonus Point record and the Cornishmen’s 5 points deduction for failing to fulfil a fixture last year.
This was an eagerly-awaited encounter and the Teigns had some very vocal backing from a large number of travelling supporters, but apart from an early Dan Force penalty the visitors were on the back foot for most of the first quarter. Indeed, they were lucky that former Cornish Pirates fly half Ceiron Thomas had left his kicking boots at home; nevertheless, by the 20th minute the Hakes had opened up an 8-3 lead with a penalty from Thomas and then a powerful drive which ended with Richie Humphries touching down.
After these setbacks Teignmouth’s forwards started to take control, but they were constantly frustrated by a succession of infringements from the home side. On another day the referee Mr Billing may well have lost patience and used the sin bin, but his cards stayed in his pocket and the only reward for the Teigns was another Force penalty.
The second half continued in much the same way as the first had ended, with the Devonian pack piling on the pressure. Force and Thomas exchanged penalties to take the score to 12-9 in the Cornishmen’s favour, but then their backs finally got the chance to stretch their legs as Sam Heath off-loaded to centre Tom Nicholas who ran in under the posts from 40 metres out. Thomas’s conversion seemed to have set the seal on the win.
However, Teignmouth’s heads never dropped and with 5 minutes remaining replacement Luke Pattison reduced the arrears in the corner. There was still time for Will Sowden finally to make an impact and the Teigns’ top scorer very nearly broke though the St Ives defence with the final play of the match.
But it was not to be for the visitors, despite a heroic effort, especially from Force and prop Paul Scott who both finished the match despite suffering injuries. Force’s seemed particularly serious as he was twice flattened in tackles only to resume after lengthy treatment and continue to put his body on the line for his team.
Coach Simon Morrell and skipper Colin Aldworth both spoke proudly of the commitment shown especially by the forwards, but admitted that having constantly to chase the game had resulted in some poor decision making and unforced errors. Morrell felt that the league title was still achievable, but recognised that there was still a lot of hard graft to do before the season’s end.
That hard work begins this Saturday with a visit to Withycombe; the Exmouth outfit have been a bit of a thorn in the Teigns’ side in recent years, so a big performance will be required to set the promotion ship back on course.