Devon League 2 North Tawton 14 Torpoint/St Columba 0 THIS was the return fixture in the league programme between these two sides. Previously in Plymouth the result had been a rare 0-0 draw; both sides were looking to improve on that result. Although short of players, Torpoint/St Columba had honoured the fixture in a show of good sportsmanship. They could so easily have cancelled and saved themselves the journey. North Tawton kicked off through full back Ross Lawrence, one of the regular team who have been playing well over the last few weeks. There was a welcome return on the left wing for Adrian Grimshaw, with Alfie May also returning at outside centre. Torpoint started well, determined to make the most of the early play. Their Number 8, Raj Seru, was soon making his presence felt, stepping out of a tackle from Tawton captain Kevin Avery as he broke off from the back of the scrum. An injury to Torpoint scrum half Kev Toms would probably have brought on a replacement in normal circumstances but he had little choice but to play on. Tawton put themselves under pressure with offside and ruck ball penalty decisions going against them. Fortunately for the home side, Torpoint did not have a strong kicker, and Tawton were able to weather the attacks into their 22 metre area and push the visitors back. Playing with six men in the pack gave Torpoint a problem in the set scrums and several times they were pushed off their own scrum ball. What ball they did receive was put to good use by their three-quarters, notably strong running from centre Damien Chambers. Their line-outs were also failing as they did not seem to compensate for the shortened line and over-threw to the back. This gave Tawton?s back-of-the-line men the chance to dive onto the loose ball and set up decent second-phase possession. From one of these situations Tawton got a penalty and a quick move between scrum half Martin Friggins and his back row allowed Phil Wonnacott to catch Torpoint off-guard and gain good ground. Having moved into the opposition half Tawton were determined to take advantage of their efforts and after 25 minutes they tried a penalty move in which prop Richard Gould ran a looping line and nearly broke through, only to lose the ball in a tackle. Repeated scrums on the 5 metre area brought out the best in the Torpoint defence and their hard-working six-man pack. The deadlock was finally broken when a penalty was awarded to Tawton in range for Ross Lawrence to convert the kick. This gave Tawton their first 3 points. Both sides were having problems with their handling and a number of passes were fumbled or failed to go to hand. The scrum count was rising which was bad news for Torpoint, and Tawton were able to penetrate the defence again as the match approached half time. A neat move off the back of one of the scrums close to the Torpoint line gave Tawton fly half Paul Fewings the space and line he needed to break through for the first try, assisted by good running off the ball by winger Dell Matravers which helped open up the gap. The conversion was missed, but North Tawton went into half time 8-nil ahead. The second half found Torpoint under considerable strain as the numerical superiority of the home side began to tell. Most of the first 20 minutes were spent in the Torpoint half, though North Tawton only came away with a further 3 points from a Paul Fewings penalty. Richard Nye came on to replace Tawton captain Kevin Avery, and the home team was starting to exploit the gaps more effectively. The ball was still not being controlled well, however, and seemed to be bouncing about between players eager to make a run at the opposition. It was only the continuing efforts of ?The Torpoint Six? in their pack that kept the visitors in the game. Indeed it was a strong break Torpoint?s Seru from a tapped penalty which got his side back into the home side?s half for the first time in the half. The riposte was immediate, with a neatly judged up-and-under from Paul Fewings clearing the advancing Torpoint players. This was caught by centre Zac Matravers under challenge from the opposition full back, Matt Grieve. Rapid re-cycling of the ball released Alfie May to break down the left wing; he was stopped but the second phase sent the ball back across the park to the right wing where Dell Matravers was nearly put through for a try. Both sides were now attempting to keep the play close, as conditions and tiredness dictated, which meant the number of knock-ons decreased. North Tawton?s final replacements took the field, with Gary Dennis coming on for Andy Poole and Dave Quick on for Ross Lawrence, and in the closing minutes of the game North Tawton were given another penalty, again converted by fly half Fewings. This arose following another good break from Alfie May who ran a weaving, mazy line past several players before being tackled on the 22 metre line. Although North Tawton won the match much credit must go to Torpoint/St Columba for their efforts to keep the score to 14-nil. North Tawton need to show more ruthlessness in going for the big win when the opportunity arises. This week?s home fixture is against South Molton.
