Hartpury hold on to break years of misery at the Mennaye
By Luke Jarmyn & David Sillifant, at the Mennaye Field
HARTPURY withstood a stirring second half fightback from the Cornish Pirates to start their season with an encouraging opening day 22-21 win in Penzance.
The all red-kitted university side dominated the first half and after electric full-back Alex Morgan scored an early try, co-captain Will Crane dotted down twice while Harry Bazalgette kicked seven points from the tee.
With three of Hartpury’s team facing their former club in Crane, Bazalgette and No. Jarrard Hayler, Mark Cornwell’s men knew what was coming at them in the second-half and despite the home-side finding form they held on to end a run of 10 successive defeats when travelling to the Duchy.
Hartpury arrived at the notorious Mennaye Field ground looking to end their Cornwall hoodoo, and started well with the wind at their backs.
After stringing together some quick phases, the ball was worked out to Morgan just outside of the 22 on the left-wing and he delicately chipped through before winning the race to the try line on the eighth minute.
The visitors were on top and doubled their lead on the quarter-hour mark when a penalty was kicked deep into Pirates 22 metre area. From the resulting driving maul hooker Crane got the decisive touch to dot down and score. Bazalgette made it two from two off the tee to make it 14-0
Bazalgette added a penalty four minutes later from 22 metres out and just to the left of the posts after the hosts were done for holding on. It meant Hartpury ended the first quarter with a healthy 17-0 lead.
The hosts missed two good chances as a penalty kick to the corner from inside their 22 went wrong, before Hartpury stole a line-out close to their own try line.
On the 29th minute Pirates were penalised when inches from scoring, and were in even bigger trouble five minutes later when centre Joe Elderkin was given a 20-minute red-card for a high tackle on Ollie Allsopp, while both players look bloodied from the incident.
From the resulting penalty which Bazalgette kicked deftly to the corner, Crane once again finished off a powerful driving maul from a well worked line-out.
Bazalgette added the extras and ended the half with an ambitious penalty attempt from just inside his own half which drifted wide to scupper his 100 per cent record from the tee.
The hosts needed to throw caution to the wind in the second-half and soon pinned the visitors in their own 22.
A series of penalties ended with Pirates captain Alex Everett crashing over from a scrum, only for referee Jamie Parr to have already blown his whistle so it came to nothing.
But the Pirates got on the scoreboard on the 54th minute when full-back Iwan Price-Thomas offloaded to winger Arthur Relton to dot down. Pirates returning hero Arwel Robson converted.
The west Cornish hosts started dominating, showing that whoever was playing towards the car park end had a clear advantage while Hartpury struggled at scrum time.
Both teams started to utilise their replacements after the 50-minute mark with Hartpury introducing prop Oliver Minis and hooker Ethan Hunt to the front row.
It was game on just after the hour-mark as a driving maul from the Cornishmen ended with hooker Sol Moody crossing.
The game became scrappy, but a thrilling finale was set-up when Pirates replacement flanker Tomi Agbongbon crashed through and into the 22, and scrum-half Dan Hiscocks kicked the ball inside for Relton to dot down.
Robson’s conversion made it a one-point game and the home side had a couple of minutes to earn the most thrilling of wins, however they were penalised in the loose as Mark Cornwell’s men held on for a memorable triumph.
It means Hartpury start the season with four points and sit in the top half of the table before next Saturday’s home clash with revived local rival Worcester Warriors (kick off at 2.30pm).
Stats:
|
Cornish Pirates |
|
Hartpury |
|
13 |
Pens conceded |
11 |
|
5 |
Line-outs won |
13 |
|
7 |
Line-outs Lost |
3 |
|
4 |
Scrums won |
4 |
|
1 |
Scrums lost |
3 |
|
0 |
Sin-bins |
0 |
|
1 |
Red-cards |
0 |
Cornish Pirates
Tries: Arthur Relton 54, 78, Sol Moody 62
Conversions: Arwel Robson, 55, 63, 78
Penalties:
Drop Goals:
Hartpury RFC
Tries: Alex Morgan 8, Will Crane 15, 35
Conversions: Harry Bazalgette 9, 16
Penalties: Harry Bazalgette 19
Drop Goals:
CORNISH PIRATES: Iwan Price-Thomas, Arthur Relton, Chester Ribbons, Joe Elderkin, (Matty Ward, 55), Harry Yates, Arwel Robson, Dan Hiscocks; Billy Young (Alessandro Heaney, 67), Morgan Nelson (Sol Moody, HT), Alfie Petch (Ollie Andrews, 57), Milo Hallam (Rory Suttor, 57), Josh King, Matt Cannon, Jack Forsythe (Tomi Agbongbon, 65), Alex Everett (c).
Not used: Will Rigelsford, Louie Sinclair
HARTPURY: Alex Morgan, Keiran Clark, Robbie Smith (Will Knight, 59), Ollie Allsopp (Knight, 33 to 40), Ollie Holiday, Harry Bazalgette, Rhys Price; George Alexander (Louie Trevett, 59), Will Crane (cc) (Ethan Hunt, 58), Alex Gibson (Oliver Minis 50); Peter Paramore, Jack Davies (cc); Cameron Cobbett (Josh Gray, 72), Harry Short (Ellis Hart, 72), Jarrard Hayler.
Not used: Cai Gealy, Brad Denty
Referee: Jamie Parr (RFU)
Attendance: 1,381
Half-time: 0-22 (to Hartpury)
Star man: Harry Bazalgette (Hartpury)
