Teignmouth achieved yet another bonus-point victory Paignton Saxons,

The performance was a carbon-copy of the first match of the season, with the Teigns dominating the first half and then taking their foot off the gas in the second, before tying up the points in the final minutes.

The combination of the first home match at this level, and the first local derby for many years, resulted in a large crowd basking in the autumn sunshine. They saw plenty of try scoring action, but also some early season carelessness; the referee was particularly busy as both sides struggled to remember the intricacies of the offside laws.

As so often in recent times the home side take control early when vice-captain Chris Tidman scored in the corner on 10 minutes. Dan Force took over the kicking from Mike Saxton this week, and added the conversion and also a penalty to give Teignmouth a 10-0 lead after a quarter of an hour.

There followed an unsatisfactory period of play with both sides guilty of wayward passing, careless handling, and infringements. Saxons’ skipper John Clare reduced the arrears on the half hour, but then the Teigns managed to get their act together and run in a couple of tries through youngster Joe Woolnough and last year’s top scorer Will Sowden to give them a 23-3 half-time lead.

Last season veteran skipper Colin Aldworth made a habit of scoring important tries, and he opened his account 5 minutes into the second half to secure a bonus point. However, the home side then handed the initiative to the Saxons, which resulted in a Brendan Campbell try under the posts in the 50th minute, which Clare again converted, and suddenly the visitors felt they were still in the game.

Some stout home defence kept Paignton at bay, and on a rare excursion out of their own half they managed to win a penalty which Force converted.

However, the Teigns began to tire in the last quarter, and an extended period of injury saw them conceding a succession of penalties; the result was two late tries from Josh Boaler and Jake Stirling, the second of which Clare converted. Teignmouth only felt safe when flanker Luke Pattison scored his second try of the season in the last minute.

Coach Simon Morrell was pleased with the result and especially the first-half performance, but felt that the side had not learnt from their experience against Okehampton, and that they could not afford to rest on their laurels once a decent lead has been built up.

This weekend Teignmouth face a stern test of their credentials as they take the long trek down to Penryn for a match against one of only two other clubs with a 100% record so far.

Photo: Colin Aldworth
Copyright: Lorna Gray

Report By Paul Williams