Western Counties West

Tavistock 33

St Ives 33

A WILD and windy afternoon at Sandy Park saw Tavistock face St Ives with the hosts just one point ahead of their opponents in the league.

Tavistock faced tough opposition in the form of the West Cornwall team with both sides battling to stay above the relegation zone in the league.

Due to the recent downpours the game was played on the back pitch as the first team one was deemed unplayable. The influence of the slope and the strong winds into the bottom corner had a bigger influence on the game than both sides would have expected.

The Moorlanders won the toss and chose to play with the elements and the slope against them in the first half. Tavistock wanted to start the game in better form than previous weeks where they had tended to concede early points. Unfortunately it was all too similar as St Ives were the first to cross the line, a long kick resulted in a quick turnover for the away side, they fed their second row who stormed down the wing to get their first try 0-7.

Errors in the Tavistock game gave the visitors confidence; they used the wind to their advantage and a number of knock- ons gave St Ives a scrum in the Tavistock 22. Following a mix up in the Tavistock defence the St Ives centre strolled in under the posts. An easy conversion and Tavistock were 12 points down in as many minutes.

The strong start from St Ives gave them confidence and, despite a couple of visits to their 22 by Tavistock, errors provided the visitors with the ability to break quickly and pin the home side deep into their half. It did not take long for the next points to be scored as a wide move from St Ives gave them an overlap to score in the corner 0-19.

Tavistock could not get a foothold in the game and despite some quick breaks from Duncan Law and Doug Lloyd they could not capitalise on their chances. A clearance from a Tavistock break provided the opportunity for St Ives to gain a fourth try bonus point. A scrappy line out allowed their forwards to break away from a driving mall and their number eight evaded tackles to score in the corner. The conversion was successful 0-26.

Tavistock finally got points on the board when they advanced up the field with speedsters Lewis Edwards and Danny Luffman making good ground despite the boggy conditions. The ball was worked from right to left and Rich West made a strong break and set up a maul, the ball moved to Josh O'Neill who grounded over the line. Rich West slotted the kick to make it 7-24.

Despite improved play from Tavistock including good work at the breakdown from Andrew Schuttkaker and Josh Langton, St Ives had the last say in the first half. Another line out move provided a scoring opportunity for their forwards and missed tackles from Tavistock gave the visitors their fifth try to make it 7-33 at half-time.

Tavistock welcomed the break as it gave them the opportunity to re-assess their game plan. The conditions and slope now working to their advantage gave them hope that they could get back into the game.

It did not take them long as within minutes of the half starting Mark Friend found a hole in the away side's defence and stormed through the final tackles to touch down; the try was converted by West and Tavistock pulled back 14-33.

The strong boot of West gave Tavistock good field position and a scrappy exchange led to a chip from scrum half Josh Sutton; a strong chase from Ben Hadfield and a tricky bounce allowed him to get to the ball before the covering defence to touch down. The conversion struck the post and it was 19-33.

Tavistock were constantly camped in the St Ives half with Andrew Griffiths and Villiame Masiwera using their pace and power to draw in the defence. A chip ahead from Centre Masiwera led to the next try — as the ball was collected by the St Ives full back it was ripped and spilt to allow Ben Hadfield to collect and stroll in unchallenged for his second try and a bonus point; the conversion was good leaving the game poised at 26-33.

As Tavistock played their phases well a break from the St Ives hooker led to a number of passes and their flanker saw the try line in sight, last ditch tackling from Lloyd and Edwards resulted in a knock on and Tavistock breathed a sigh of relief.

As the game moved on Tavistock continued to put pressure on the St Ives' line, a backs move created a hole in the midfield for Rich West to cruise through under the posts, he converted his own try to tie the game at 33-33.

With minutes remaining and Tavistock sensing the win, a penalty was given just inside the home side's half. They chose to have a kick at goal with the hope that the wind would carry the ball beyond the posts. Unfortunately for them the ball strayed wide allowing St Ives to make the last move of the game and clear the ball into touch. This was an entertaining game despite tough conditions.