A try in the 7th minute of injury time deprived London Cornish of the win their second half performance had seemingly pinched as they slipped to 5th place in London 2 South-West, Trojans winners by a goal, a try and a penalty to a goal and two penalties in a match not short of controversy. Of additional worry to the exiles is the loss of a further 4 players to injuries, the mounting injury list now accounting for an extraordinary 17 1s squad players with a huge variety of ailments.
With myriad changes to the starting line up with the back 3 from the previous week all injured in that game, debuts were given to two new signings in Adam Gingell, a back from the Cup winning Cullompton RFC, and Tom Rowland, a back from Old Radleians. Though a light shower prior to kick off had freshened up the ground, the pitch looked in good condition and the weather seemed set fair. Cornish had arrived in good time and had warmed up well, and a decent crowd had ventured out from their lunch to view proceedings. Matches between the two sides in recent seasons had rarely had many points between them, and with the league so tight, this was likely to be the case again.
Trojans started at a tremendous pace, playing down the hill away from the clubhouse with a strong wind in their favour. It took them only 4 minutes to gain the lead, their kicker lifting a penalty on the wind to divide the uprights. On 10 minutes the exiles open side Chris Alder went down with a shoulder injury to be treated by the visiting physio. The referee waived play on deeming the injury not to be interfering with play, and from a lineout Trojans worked a ball into the Cornish 22. A scrum followed and still the play was waived on, Alder clearly in some discomfort and trying to return to the fray as the referee refused to stop the match for him to be treated further. At the ensuing scrum the home side simply picked up and drove through the vacant open side channel, two phases all it required to bash their way over next to the posts, the conversion a formality and the lead out to 10-0. Alder was immediately replaced by Rob Davies at 7, the former’s shoulder injury requiring hospital treatment later that day. With Cornish not at the races, Trojans won a scrum V in the bottom left hand corner on 20 minutes from where their 8 picked up and drove for the line, but he was repelled by a strong tackle from right wing Nick Harlock. On 23 minutes the Hampshire side won another tackle on the 22, a tackler pinged for not rolling away. Now their kicker seemed to catch a version of the yips, hoiking his point blank kick well left of the posts. As play restarted, Trojans 7 went down injured and with play nowhere near him, to the consternation of the Cornish coaching team, the referee stopped the game for him to be treated. A sense of injustice coursed through Cornish veins, within 3 minutes no 8 McEwen driving his side upfield supported by a surge from Skipper Rob Aird and a dart from prop George Johnson. A Trojans failure to clear the tackle area, and a penalty to Cornish followed. Up stepped Rich McKeown to drive a fine kick into the wind and between the posts to put his side on the board. This seemed to revive Cornish, and now they joined the battle, scrum half Tom Jacob sending probing passes left and right to find some room. On 34 minutes, Rowland evaded a tackle down the blind side to put Harlock in some space. He was tackled inside the home 22 and offloaded to Jacob but the ball was scrambled into touch by Trojans and Cornish then lost their scrum when the ball was knocked on at the lineout. Within minutes a virtual carbon copy move saw Rowland away again, but this time with the 2 on 1 deep inside the Trojans 22 he chose to go it alone when a pass was the better option, with Harlock in the clear out wide. When the ball was recycled the Trojans midfield was caught offside but the penalty kick flew wide of the upright, the whistle immediately sounding with the home side 10-3 to the good.
The main question at half time was how big a part was the wind playing in proceedings? It did not take long for the question to be answered, Cornish attacking from the word go after the break. On 45 minutes a Harlock break was supported by Gingell, Trojans caught offside inside their 22 for McKeown to reduce the arrears to 4 with a penalty. Rowland succumbed to calf and rib injuries now, causing a reshuffle in the exiles backline, Conor O’Daly back in action at full back, Laurie Bridgett moving to the wing and Gingell into his preferred slot at 13. Incessant Cornish pressure brought more penalties wide right inside the home half but too far out to kick. Frustratingly, lost lineout ball in key areas cost crucial ground and the Trojans d held up well in the face of the onslaught. On 56 minutes a sickening head clash saw two players felled in midfield, the exiles medical team having to scream at the referee for the game to be stopped. Cornish loosehead Hamish Cuming had suffered a very deep and nasty cut to his head, forcing a final change on the already weakened visitors. On came Alex Harris to form a very lightweight front row. Another penalty won on 58 minutes and another ball kicked to the Trojans corner, but again the ball was knocked on at the lineout. However, this time hooker Will Carew-Gibbs pinched the ball against the head and McEwen picked and drove to the foot of the posts. The ball was worked from right to left inside the home 22, but with the line gaping, was knocked on. On 65 minutes Trojans now found themselves penned in the bottom right hand corner and from a lineout, their kicker saw his clearance charged down, only just evading the onrushing exiles attack as it bobbled around to be scrambled to safety. Despite the huge concession of penalties, none were kickable and the referee deemed none worthy of a card, despite the high count. Encouraged by their strong defence, Trojans now broke out, their left wing jinking his way into Cornish territory for virtually the first time in the half. As a ruck formed in midfield, a penalty was awarded to the home side smack in front of the posts. Up stepped their kicker but his aim got worse the further into the game it went, this one spiraling away well right, Cornish still in the hunt. With time nearly up, the visitors attacked down the left flank, Ed Nimmons linking with O’Daly who sent a grubber deep into Trojans territory. Pete Calvert won the line out and Cornish worked a rolling maul infield. It was worked left to Bridgett, a hitherto peripheral figure in the match. Now he turned on the gas, twice stepping off his left foot to pierce a previously impervious defensive line to step the full back and dive over a little to the left of the posts to the obvious jubilation of his team mates. McKeown added the extras and the referee indicated that only the 6 minutes of injury time remained. Trojans were not out of it yet, and with 3 minutes up won a penalty centre field on the 22, the Cornish midfield offside. The home kicker had no confidence however, his kick once again not even close. From the drop out, Trojans worked their way back into the exiles half but knocked the ball on. Right under the referee’s nose their prop hooked the ball from the Cornish feed, from where it was worked to the Trojans 10. He forced a missed tackle in midfield and drove into the Cornish 22 for the referee to ping the visitors for hands in, and card the miscreant, a glaring lack of consistency in his game once again apparent, him having failed to do similar despite repeated penalties conceded by the home side in their 22 in the opening minutes of the half. With the 6 minutes now up Trojans were told they had time for a lineout and kicked the ball to the corner. They won the lineout and worked the ball through hands for their right wing to be the extra man, able to plunge over the line wide right to the jubilation of the home side, their kicker not making much of his effort at the conversion. Amazingly, there was apparently more time to run, but only the one phase, the ball won by the home side and understandably thumped into touch.
Trojans are never an easy side to beat at their Stoneham Lane HQ, but they may consider they got away with one here by virtue of strong defence and their never say die attitude. It’s a shame they do not publish their match reports as they used to, for it would be interesting to see how they saw the match.
Cornish have lost 2 matches by 2 points this season in wildly differing circumstances. It ill behoves a side to blame a referee for a loss, and the exiles coaching team would hear none of it following the match, but the fellow has had better days. For now the exiles are where they have been for the last 3 years, in 5th place in a fiercely competitive division, a side with the ability to beat the sides at the top of the league and lose to those at the bottom in equal measure. Consistency will only return when the injuries allow selection to be less of a lottery, but the game remains one where the best sides make their chances count, and Cornish did not do that on this day.

LCRFC – Laurie Bridgett, Nick Harlock, Tom Rowland (Conor O’Daly), Ian Keith, Adam Gingell, Rich McKeown, Tom Jacob, Andrew McEwen, Chris Alder (Rob Davies), Rob Aird (Capt.), Ed Nimmons, Pete Calvert, George Johnson, Will Carew-Gibbs, Hamish Cuming (Alex Harris).