Despite outscoring their hosts Aylesford Bulls by 4 tries to 3, London Cornish were narrowly knocked out of the Intermediate Cup at the last 16 stage at The Jack Williams Ground near Maidstone on Saturday. A decent game during which both sides enjoyed periods of dominance was settled by 2 goals, a try and 5 penalties to 4 tries and 3 penalties in favour of the home side, the result bringing an end to the season for the visitors after their late season resurgence.

Cornish arrived at the Kent sides ground in decent time, and found a paddock in decent nick considering the time of year. A very still day saw gradually lifting cloud ensuring both sides would have their fitness tested in full by the warming temperature. The Bulls boast a fine home record this season not having lost there since their opening fixture, and having finished runners up in London 2 South-East, they will be facing Trojans, the side Cornish beat in the previous round of the competition, in the play-off for promotion to London 1 South once their Cup exploits are over. Both sides had absentees, but neither would have reached this point without some depth to their squads so it would be disingenuous for either to use that as an excuse on the day. With the RFU deeming the game worthy of a team of 3, and a decent crowd fuelled by a healthy lunch, all was set fair.

The exiles played towards the motorway end in the opening period and attacked from the off, a great scrum on 3 minutes inside their own half seeing scrum half Dave Madigan snipe blind at pace. He arrowed a pass to full back Nick Harlock wide left, whose line took him inside the wing and away from the cover until he drew the full back and slipped a pass to supporting left wing Robin Heymann to race clear for a try half way in to the posts, a stunned silence only pierced by a few whoops from the handful of visiting spectators. Any thoughts the home side had that they were in for an easy afternoon were now quickly dismissed, the conversion attempt flying across the posts but the visitors 5-0 to the good. Unable to rely on the normal dominance of their scrum and indeed under real pressure in the tight, the Bulls had a very useful plan B in the form of a siege gun boot of their 10, who launched a series of howitzers high and long downfield toward an exiles back 3 looking into the by now bright sunlight. The first of these caused havoc as it was misfielded and only a fine covering Harlock tackle on 9 prevented real damage down the left flank. With the front 5 continuing to prevent the Bulls from being able to launch their dangerous no 8 into space, and the home hooker struggling on his throw in, Cornish remained on top and twice fly half Conor O’Daly launched attacks down the right flank in front of the massed ranks of home support, Tom Burns crashing his way upfield before the ball was knocked on. Gradually, and having pinched some key lineouts when inside their own 22, Aylesford worked their way into the game, their 10 continuing to use well flighted kicks to gain field position. Suddenly, and with little prior warning, their 8 burst from the base of a scrum well inside his own half and fended off 3 unusually weak tackles to clear away seemingly all the way to the posts until he was downed by the covering Harlock in the shadow of the posts, a Cornish player binned immediately at the ruck for killing the ball, and the home 10 reducing the arrears to 2. Now the Bulls were in the ascendancy, their 10 seizing upon the reduced number of exiles backs to ping kicks left and right, but it was Cornish who had the next chance of scoring when they won a penalty at a scrum for an illegal bind as loosehead Hamish Cuming had his man under pressure. The kick was fairly central but was pulled right of the posts. On 26 another home kick bounced cruelly for the visitors until it was bravely fielded just yards from his own line by centre Iain Short, who was driven over the line for a scrum V. At the scrum and much to his horror, the Bulls no 8 had the ball stolen from him by Madigan for O’Daly to clear. A minute later, and Cornish conceded another kickable penalty in front of their posts after a poor decision to try and run out of defence was taken and a player pinged for holding. The kick was good and deficit now just 1. Continuing to deploy a predominantly kicking game, the Bulls took the lead on 31 when a visiting player hit a ruck from the side, this kick heralding the return of the binned exile, whose 10 minutes had seen his side concede 9 points. Now the visitors responded again, Harlock threading a grubber down the left touch and into the Bulls 22. With Pete Calvert and Phil Ridsdale preventing much clean ball being won at the lineout, the home backs were scragged in midfield and a penalty won by the exiles at the next ruck, O’Daly finding his range to reduce the arrears to 9-8. Back came Aylesford, the game becoming a real thriller of attack and counter attack. They won a penalty for a stupid exiles offence at a maul the visitors controlled in their own 22, but after the home side kicked for the corner and won the lineout, they were pinged for accidental offside. With just a minute left in the half, and having not really looked like breaking through the Short/Graeme Smeaton defensive line all game to this point, the Bulls worked a backs move right to left across the Cornish 22 to send their left wing over for a try, which was improved by their 10 to make the score at the break 16-8.

Conceding a try just before the break is galling enough, but within 60 seconds of the restart Cornish conceded another when they simply failed to organize their defence, 3 passes all it took to send a home back scooting over under the posts from an attack launched just inside their own half, the conversion giving Aylesford a 15 point lead. Cornish made a change now, bringing on Mark Osei-Tutu for Miran Serdarevic at 6, and within 4 minutes O’Daly had converted a penalty for another scrum offence, as Cuming, Will Carew-Gibbs and Skipper Dave Theobald did not let up in their dominance of a tiring Bulls front row. Osei-Tutu brought some much needed dynamism to his side, his ball carrying seeming to ignite the likes of no 8 Andrew McEwen, who now saw more of the ball. On 49 Cornish won another penalty for offside at a lineout, and O’Daly split the uprights with this too to make the score 23-14. Another exiles change on 55 saw James Turnbull on for Cuming, the latter having started back to back matches for the first time since October. Cornish gave 3 back on 58, the offence not releasing and the unerring boot of the home kicker continuing to find its target, the difference back out to 12. This crucial passage of play saw Smeaton and Heymann combine down the left only for the ball to be knocked on in the tackle, and within 5 minutes, Cornish had fallen further behind. Aylesford spun a cutout pass left to right across the Cornish 22, and one of the exiles number nearly intercepted it but his jumping out of the defensive line was all it required for the Bulls full back to gather the ball in and dash over wide right, the home kicker finally missing one but the lead seemingly unassailable at 31-14. Cornish brought on top points scorer Rich McKeown for Burns, Harlock moving to the right wing and McKeown moving to full back. With the pitchside temperature remaining high, the younger visiting pack began to demonstrate a fitness edge, and on 65 minutes they hammered their way into the Bulls 22, McEwen, Chris Alder, Turnbull, Calvert and Theobald all making hard yards. Finally, Carew-Gibbs tunneled under the defensive line to plant the ball on the line for the try, the conversion smacking the post and bouncing wide. To the intense frustration of all of the exiles, a penalty was conceded at the restart smack in front of the posts inside the 22, the gift of the 3 accepted by the tiring home side, who now had a 15 point lead with 10 left. Still Cornish would not give it up, and after attempting a couple of long range break outs, Madigan launched another from just outside his own 22 on 75, his pace sucking in the defence before hitting Harlock on a great line to break through a tackle, step the cover and sprint away to score wide right, this kick also sliding wide. A final change saw Rich Fisher on at loosehead for Theobald, Turnbull switching to his favoured tight head side. Cornish sensed their moment and threw caution to the wind, no semblance of accepting the season was over just yet. Carew-Gibbs and Osei-Tutu combined down the centre of the pitch to send the latter into space only to be called back for a forward pass. On 80 Madigan countered again from inside his 22, his snipe linking with Heymann to side step upfield leaving exhausted Bulls in his wake to link with Harlock, who hit the supporting Short on his shoulder, him wrong footing the cover to score by the posts, a scintillating long range try. With the referee indicating time would be up after the kick, a rushed drop goal was attempted as the conversion, but it hit the post and fell dead for the final act of a breathless match to be completed.

Aylesford were great hosts post match, and two sides who had never played each other before demonstrated the value of this competition in the convivial atmosphere of the Bulls clubhouse; we wish them well in the Quarter-Final and hope to play them again in the not too distant future. The watching Trojans coaching team will have learnt much from the match, and it will be a very close encounter between the two sides when they meet, though the Hampshire side will have to wait an age until that day as the Bulls also have a league match to play to determine who hosts the play off. Cornish end their season in really good form, this a game they could have won but one in which the points they conceded either side of the break proved crucial, the 29 points conceded by the Bulls here the most they have conceded at home all season. This new exiles side has begun to gell at last, and in beating the Champions of London 2 North-East and the Runners Up in London 2 South-West before giving the Runners Up in London 2 South-East a real run for their money in this competition, the exiles have demonstrated that they are capable of the sustained level of performance required to push on next season. They will still need to add more depth to their squad in certain positions and will hope to hang on their key players in the off season, but there was plenty of promise in the way in which the side finished the season and there is much to build on.

LCRFC – Nick Harlock, Tom Burns (Rich McKeown), Graeme Smeaton, Iain Short, Robin Heymann, Conor O’Daly, Dave Madigan, Andrew McEwen, Chris Alder, Miran Serdarevic (Mark Osei-Tutu), Phil Ridsdale, Pete Calvert, Dave Theobald (Capt.) (Rich Fisher), Will Carew-Gibbs, Hamish Cuming (James Turnbull).