Despite an horrendous list of injuries and absentees, that forced them to field a pack containing just 1 member of the 10 forwards in the squad who had seen Cobham beaten for the only time this season back in October, and he in Mark Osei-Tutu being fielded in an unaccustomed position of lock rather than in the back row, London Cornish still returned from Portsmouth with a comfortable win to reinforce their 2nd place in London 2 South-West on Saturday. That they did so, owed much to some decent debut performances from a few 2s regulars, some of whom have put their hands up for future 1s selection.
A hazy day had seen any morning mist burnt off and the Portsmouth pitch was in great condition, clearly having dried out plenty in the past 24 hours. Cornish gave debuts to Jamie Saunders and Matt James (who had appeared off the bench in recent weeks) in the back row, and welcomed back prop Oli Low to start for the first time this season to partner Rory Ling either side of stand in Skip Will Carew-Gibbs. On the bench Ian Dowie was to be given his debut in the front row and there was also a rare appearance for fellow prop Rich Fisher. Even greater rarity was the selection of Matt Hakes as potential back row cover, and he was to appear far earlier that anticipated, though few would have guessed the centre had never played senior rugby there before! Thankfully for Cornish, a very strong back line also included fly half Phil Dale, now restored to availability for the rest of the season.
Cornish played towards the clubhouse end in the opening half, and were on the board in the first few minutes after the first of a series of bullocking runs by Tom Jeffery saw the home sided pinged for in at the side, Josh Allison converting. When the Hampshire side attacked, they were twice foiled when in good position by Saunders winning pens on the floor, a key reason for his selection. On 9 minutes Portsmouth missed a kickable penalty to the left of the posts, and when they returned to the 22 a few minutes later, lock Pete Calvert pinched their lineout ball to help his side clear their lines. On 20 minutes affine passage of play saw Jeffery and Dale twice involved to fire into the home 22, and when play was switched across the 22 Osei-Tutu took a fine line to spin out of a tackle and dive over right under the noses of the home support on the balcony, their mood not lightened by an excellent conversion from Allison. Cornish made a change now, rotating on Rich Fisher for Low, and sometime after Dowie for Fisher. Chris Anstey had taken a blow to the head and he too was replaced, bringing on Hakes at 6. With the momentum behind them, it was Saunders to next make a break, steaming straight through a ruck and then winning a penalty on the 22 right hand side, the attempt flying across the face of the posts. Portsmouth struck back on 30, a Cornish scrum wheeled and the ball shot out the home side’s way. Before the visitors could respond, a half break turned into a full -scale break out, finished with aplomb by the Portsmouth right wing and converted by their fly half. However, 5 minutes later order was restored when Carew-Gibbs took one against the head, and Craig Chatley crashed the ball up before Hakes powered to the 22 and gave a basketball pass to Jeffery. The giant wing needs no second invitation, driving through a home forward to score wide right for a try also converted by Allison. There was time left in the half for Portsmouth to attempt a rolling maul, but Cornish drove them into touch 5 out for the whistle to sound for the break, the visitors 17-7 to the good.
Portsmouth began the 2nd half like men possessed, claiming their own restart and twice held up after great hands between their forwards had seen moves kept alive. With Saunders and Osei-Tutu manning the barricades round the fringes, and Carew-Gibbs continuing his fine form, the home side went wide and when they knocked on, Cornish lost a back to the bin. This was soon followed by Portsmouth creating a 3 on 2 wide left and sleight of hand saw one of their backs dive over for an unconverted score, the deficit down to 5. The next score would be crucial and Cornish got it, Allison converting a long range penalty after James had made great ground following another steal against the head by Carew-Gibbs, and Portsmouth had been penalised for not releasing. Now the home side started chasing the game, and when their restart didn’t make the distance, Cornish worked room at the scrum wide left following a break by Joe Donnelly only to be called back for a forward pass. On 59 minutes the exiles put the game to bed as a contest – Chatley intercepted a loose P’s pass on halfway, and Ed Atkin and Dale sent the underutilised Stefan Duda (pictured) away down the blind side. Rounding his opposite man, the Bude flyer shimmied past the full back with a fine step to sprint away for a try to the left of the posts, the conversion attempt slamming into the near upright and down on the wrong side, but Cornish out to 25-12 lead. Low, who had been taken off late in the 1st half with a cut, now returned to the fray with his head strapped up. 2 minutes later Chatley and Duda combined again, and as Atkin spun the ball infield, P’s were caught offside for Allison to extend the lead to 16 points. When Portsmouth kicked a penalty dead on 65 minutes, there was a sense that the game was slipping them by. Low produced a shuddering tackle on 70 to force a knock on, but saw his side give up great field position when losing a lineout 10 out from the home line with 8 to go. On 75 minutes, and with Cornish chasing the bonus point, Dale spun the ball to Duda on his own 22. Taking off in a carbon copy of his previous score, Duda rounded his man again but this time the cover had learned from the previous effort and guessed right to bring their man to the ground inside the home 22 and win a penalty for holding. For the remaining 5 minutes Portsmouth huffed and puffed in their favourite spot underneath the balcony, and though Cornish lost a man to the bin, the entire team can take great credit for repelling repeated attempts to roll mauls and battering rams round the fringes, eventually forcing the knock on that heralded the end of the match following the scrum.
Portsmouth had beaten Cornish in the reverse fixture, and may well have harboured hopes of landing the double given the unfamiliar pack that faced them. They are certainly a hugely improved outfit compared with previous seasons, and there was a real sense of achievement that they are no-where near a relegation battle this season after a few years that have seen redemption claimed only on the final day of the season. Theirs is always a warm welcome in the clubhouse, and there are decent relations between the two clubs only enhanced on this day.
This was a fine response to the previous weeks defeat, and the Cornish coaching team were delighted with the impact that the less experienced members of the squad made on the day. This further demonstration of squad depth bodes well for the remaining matches of the season.