Cornish Bounce Back to Form With Bonus Point Win!

London Cornish threw the form book out of the window when they completed the double over Aylesbury in Buckinghamshire to snap a 7 game losing streak in their 6th straight away game at Ostler’s Field in Regional 2 Thames on Saturday. The hosts came into the game having won 6 out of their last 7 and that defeat to league leaders Hammersmith & Fulham so in horse racing terms this result might have seen the trainer of the winners called before the stewards to explain the sudden improvement in form! The answer lies partly in the fact that Cornish actually train on a 4g surface and have already demonstrated their aptitude for them having run the leagues form team Cobham to the final play at Fairmile Lane on the 4g just before the festive break. The exiles were also able to select a balanced squad for this match for the first time in ages and did not lose anyone to (all very plausible) late drop outs as has affected them in each of those last 7 defeats.
On a still, dry but overcast day the game began on Aylesbury’s very sizeable pitch at their picturesque ground, Cornish warmed up wearing their new Premium Podiatry sponsored drill shirts before opening up playing towards the clubhouse. In a foretaste of what was to follow, the exiles stole the ball against the head at the opening scrum and then won a scrum five out. From the set piece, George Jackson sent a reverse pass to Robbie Mackay, who sliced through the A’s d and arrowed away from the cover to score to the left of the posts, George Kimmins giving his side a lead they would not relinquish in the match, the visitors 7-0 up with a mere 3 on the clock. Cornish countered whenever they had the opportunity in these early minutes, and on 8 they added to their lead when a Kimmins chop tackle out wide gave Mackay the chance to win a penalty on the floor, his Skipper lifting the penalty between the posts to extend the lead by 3. The Bucks side needed to respond to ensure the deficit did not get away from them and they did just that with their first attack of note on 16 minutes, a maul brought down 5 out and quick hands sending their right wing over for an unconverted score in the top right hand corner. Any semblance of a comeback was scotched 4 minutes later when the home 10 was pressured by the exiles d on his own 22 and as he juggled the ball Mike Edworthy pinched it and angled away from the cover to score an opportunists try also improved by Kimmins. Aylesbury’s main source of attack is their rolling maul and on 22 minutes they manufactured another only to be held up over the line under the posts. On the few occasions they did enter the exiles territory in the second quarter of the match, they found Tom Carr in imperious form, him constantly disrupting their lineouts much to the chagrin of the home hooker ably abetted by Ed McCord who pinched a few lineouts of his own. On 28 minutes an Aylesbury offload on the exiles 22 fell to ground and was fly hacked on down the left wing by Ben Boorman. The former Redruth flyer raced past most of the cover and won a penalty 5 out as the home full back held on. A quick tap and a couple of phases later, Mackay sent a pass to Kimmins to angle his run outside his man to score 10 in from the left hand touchline. Though this try was unconverted Cornish had raced out to a 22-5 lead with a mere half hour gone. On 33 minutes the visitors lost a man to the bin for dropping a maul but huge exiles defensive hits forced knock ons as Aylesbury attacked in the 22, Kimmins packing down to ensure his pack could give Edworthy the space to clear long. On 37 minutes Jackson, who enjoyed a fine game at 9, sniped and won a penalty as the tackler played the ball, Kimmins stretching the lead to 20 points. With time nearly up, an Aylesbury back produced a prodigious kick to give his side a 50/22 on the tree lined side of the pitch. Though the maul was repelled, a patient attack saw the home side use the extra man well to send one of their number over wide right for a well converted try, the home side probably sensing this score was vital as the whistle went at the break with Cornish 25-12 to the good.
At the restart, the visitors transgressed and Aylesbury kicked the penalty to 5 out down the right hand side in front of the clubhouse. A decent crowd roared on the maul, which was quickly sacked by Cornish. However, the home side recycled the ball and sent the extra man over wide left for another unconverted try, the deficit down to 8 points, though Cornish back up to full numbers straight after. On 46 minutes the exiles won a scrum penalty as Dave Theobald continued to give his opposite number a torrid day at the coalface, Cornish kicking to 5 out. The lineout was called not straight and As surprisingly elected for the scrum. A huge effort by the Cornish pack saw the home side driven off their ball and Mark Osei-Tutu, another enjoying a return to action and form, picked up and drove over for the bonus point try (pictured), converted by Kimmins. Back came Aylesbury, another 50/22 won and their 8 on hand to twist his way over for his second try and his sides bonus point, this one also improved to make the score 32-24 to Cornish. The physical nature of this match saw a series of home players injured from this point on and your correspondent lost count of the rotations they required to cover for these – we hope all are fit to fight another day and the rest week for A’s should be pretty timely. The match was now finely balanced, Cornish hooker Ciaran Slater enjoying his best match this season, winning a penalty with a great piece of jackalling on his 22 as A’s sought to close the gap on the hour mark. 2 minutes later he won another ball against the head on halfway and Jackson sent Boorman gliding into the 22, but an Aylesbury forward was hurt in the action and the match was halted for him to be treated. Following the scrum Niko Mirosevic-Sorgo drove over the gainline, then Pete Brogden drove towards the posts and as Cornish went for quick ball a cheeky A’s hand scooped the ball back on the blind side of the referee for the danger to be cleared. The momentum remained with the visitors, Dan Phoenix linking with Mackay on a switch to take play back into the A’s 22 on 66 minutes but the exiles pinged for holding on, then another Boorman break seeing A’s kick the ball out on the full on 70. David Chalkey claimed the lineout and Joe Lynch crashed his way to 5 out, the game halted again for a head knock to a home player. This time Cornish won a scrum penalty and Kimmins sensibly elected for the points, his kick taking the lead back out to 11 points with 6 left, Osei-Tutu earning a well earned rest for Conor Pearce to come on in his place. In the remaining minutes of the match Aylesbury attacked from deep but the exiles d held firm, Brogden and Slater given an early break for Kieran Rodda and Ryan Abraham (on debut) given brief runs. Though the visitors lost a man to the bin in the closing 60 seconds, his side forced a knock on as A’s tried one last time to earn another bonus point, but when the whistle went the scoreline was a fair reflection of the difference between the teams on the day.
Aylesbury’s stated aim at the beginning of this season was to ensure they remained at Level 6 next season as this is the highest level at which they have played. They have landed their no 1 goal and now wait to see in which league they will be placed next season as they are at the extremity of this one. You get the sense that theirs is a burgeoning club with a great set up both on and off the pitch, and we hope to have the opportunity to lock horns again in 23-24.
Cornish stop the rot and in no uncertain terms, this performance in stark contrast to some of the other recent defeats. With 4 games at home in the remaining 6 the exiles will seek to ensure they are in the Level 6 mix for next season as soon as possible and this shot in the arm should do the sides confidence the world of good!