A cracking match, played at some pace between two sides prepared to throw the ball about, eventually saw the Champions elect of London 2 South-West Gosport & Fareham leave with all 5 points having scored 4 goals, a try and penalty to their hosts 2 tries and 3 penalties. The Hampshire side will know they had a rare old battle to secure the points, having been taken on in no uncertain terms in the front five, and having had to recover from a 20 minute assault at the start of the match when they will have been relieved to have only been 8 points down. That they managed this with something to spare once again demonstrated that they stand alone as the best side in the league.

As results at the start of 2012 have demonstrated, Cornish are gradually beginning to recover from the injury ravages of the opening half of the season, and the side reflected this on the day, fly half Rich McKeown returning from an 11 week absence, no 8 Simon Brading available to make only his 6th start of the season, and centre Iain Short on the bench after also being out since mid October. However, illness to hooker Will Carew-Gibbs caused an 11th hour reshuffle up front, and with fellow hooker George Johnson away on holiday, Alex Harris was called up from the Dukes. Gos would certainly be the toughest test of the New Year, and with relationships between the two clubs strong, the off field activity would also be keenly anticipated too!

The pitch at The Richardson Evans Memorial Playing Fields was in immaculate condition for the time of year, a credit to the groundsman considering the weather of late. Cornish played toward the clubhouse in the opening period, one of the biggest crowds of the season buoyed both by the presence of BBC Radio Cornwall, but also by a large and vocal travelling support. “The banter off the pitch is better than the banter on it!” one Gos supporter opined! The first action of note saw McKeown launch a huge up and under, which was recovered by centre Greame Smeaton for the exiles to catch the visiting backline offside in midfield. The kick was only a couple of feet inside the Gos half, but McKeown struck the penalty sweetly for it to fall inches beneath the bar. On 6 minutes, Cornish again caught the visitors offside wide left, and this time the exiles fly half made no mistake, driving his side into an early lead. A feature of the game from the off was the dominance that Cornish enjoyed in the tight, frequently driving the league leaders backwards and forcing the visiting 8 to pick up more often than not. Unable to gain any possession, Gos began to get frustrated, and were forced to defend further following a fine grubber from Smeaton on 9 minutes, though this time Cornish conceded a penalty at the lineout for the ball to be cleared. On 12 minutes, and again to their great frustration, Gos were pinged for going off their feet at the tackle wide left, but this kick slid narrowly left, Cornish in danger of not gaining enough points from this period of domination. On 17 minutes, and with their first foray into Cornish territory, Gos won a scrum on the exiles 22, but were driven clean off their own ball for the home side to clear via Smeaton. Two minutes later, the Hampshire side were under their posts. A driving run by the powerful Brading took play into the Gos half, full back Nick Harlock making a further incision before the ball was worked right to left inside the Gos 22 for Mark Osei-Tutu to crash over for a deserved score, though the conversion attempt slammed into the near upright and then wide. Few watching could have complained if the exiles were ahead more than their 8-0 lead at this stage. The mark of a Champion side however, is that they ride their luck and then strike whenever they have a chance, and Gos did exactly that, working their way into the home 22 before their excellent 9 dummied and spun out of a tackle to round the posts for a converted score on 23 minutes – under the cosh for the opening quarter of the match yet now only 1 point down. Gos continued to concede penalties, but too often lineouts were not won cleanly or the exiles plans were foiled as the visiting pack were very adept at breaking up rolling mauls. On the half hour mark the Gos hooker was pinged for a trip, which caused the start of a 10 minute period of fractious rugby, Gos taking the lead on 33 with a penalty for offside at a ruck in a central position. The visitors increased this lead on 35 when a crucial missed tackle enabled them to finish a 2 on 1 down the right flank, the conversion attempt slamming into the crossbar but falling the wrong side. Cornish had to respond before the break, and they did up their game now, open side Chris Turner winning a penalty on the floor for holding just inside the Gos half on the left hand side. McKeown drove a fine kick over the posts before the whistle went for the break, battle joined at 11-15.

Whether Gos upped their game or Cornish relaxed is a moot point, but within 4 minutes of the start of the second half, the home side had lost complete control of the match, very poor midfield defence ushering in the stocky visiting 12 by the posts for the first, and then lack of control at a ruck allowing the Gos right wing a chance to show his wheels from the half way line for the second 7 pointer in a matter of minutes, the lead suddenly out to 29-11. The result of this injection of 14 points now saw Cornish having to chase a game in which they had been competitive for so long, another Brading run on 48 supported by Osei-Tutu and then lock Dave Hill until the ball was knocked on in a good position. Gos were now on top, their 8 having a fine game in making yards even from retreating scrums, too often scrum half Tom Jacob seemingly the man left attempting to halt his progress. On 50 they worked a move across the home 22 but a strong tackle saw the ball spilt, centre Phil Francis quickest to react and the danger averted. With his tail up, the Gos right wing flew down the right flank again on 52 but saw Stefan Duda match his burst of speed to carry over for a scrum V. Once again, Cornish produced an immense scrum, Skipper Dave Theobald exhorting effort from fellow front rows Harris and Mike Bond, for the ball to be cleared. On 56 minutes Brading was withdrawn with a cut, Andrew Preston on in his place and Osei-Tutu moving to 8. On the hour mark, Brading returned but Osei-Tutu was replaced by Preston at 6, Francis also withdrawn to give Short a return. The impact of the replacements was instant, a strong Tom Stock driving run supported by Harris before Gos conceded a penalty on their 22. Brading was quickest to react, a quick tap and quick hands sending the Bude flyer Duda away to outsprint the cover to dive over wide left, the conversion sliding wide. If Gos had anticipated a quiet last quarter they were wrong, this exiles side demonstrating real fitness as they took the game back to the league leaders. On 68 Brading broke from the back of a scrum inside his own 22, dashing up the near touchline before linking with Stuart Bell on his inside shoulder. As Cornish worked the ball from right to left across the visiting 22, they caught the Gos backline offside in midfield, McKeown stepping up to reduce the deficit to 10. Gos betrayed some jitters near the finishing line now, one of their back 3 spilling a regulation punt by McKeown in acres of space, but as Cornish worked a midfield move at the ensuing scrum the ball was knocked on to great frustration all round. A final change saw veteran James Turnbull on for Bond at loosehead, and he was quickly in the thick of it, trying to twist his way over the line following another Brading run supported by a Jacob snipe on 76 minutes, only for the ball to be lost forward right on the line to be cleared by the Hants outfit. The final act of the match was a cruel one on Cornish, forwards and backs linking from deep in their own 22 only for an offload to be snapped up by a Gos back, and with everyone on the attack, he had a clear run to the line for a converted try.

This was a cracking game for Level 7, Gos demonstrating the ruthlessness that separates the top sides from those in mid table, weathering the early storm before striking three times in the 20 minutes either side of the break. They work incredibly hard to win the ball back from their opponents, have strike runners in all the key positions, and are well drilled in all of the key elements. They are always great value post match and lived up to that reputation on this day – we are not likely to see them next season as they seem certain to return to the division above, so good luck Gos and well done.

Cornish are certainly producing a more consistent level of performance in the second half of the season so far than they did in the first, this performance not far off either of the previous two. It’s a tough league where all of the sides above them have played at the higher Level 6 in the past decade, but consistency could yet see the exiles achieve their season ambition of topping their highest ever league finish of 5th in the Level 7 London 2 South-West.