Redruth U11′s v St Ives

Posted under Under 11's by admin on Wednesday 27 February 2008 at 12:00 am

The under 11′s played away at a dry St Ives on Sunday. Playing on a small pitch the game got under way with the hosts kicking off. it wasn’t long before the reds got the first try of the day with Harry C making a break and just getting in. The conversion was kicked by PJ. Next on the score sheet was Big G who bulldozed his way over, this time Harry C kicked the conversion. Harry was soon scoring again after the reds pack won a scrum Harry dived over after making a break up the blind side.The conversion was kicked by George.

George got the next 15 minute period on the way by scoring a try which Ryan converted. Kiwi got the next try for the reds with William A added the extras. The last try of the period was scored after Raffe inched his way over with at least 4 St Ives players trying to tackle him. Zennor added the conversion.

The final 15 min period saw the reds score another 3 tries. The first came from Aaron who picked a loose ball at a ruck and broke through the cover defence to touch down. Big G adding the conversion. Kiwi got his second try of the day after some more good work by the forwards. Joe kicked the conversion. The last try came from Josh (mini me!!) who dived over in the corner. Jack added the extras.

Overall score for the three periods

St Ives 0 Reds 63.

St Ives played there part in an entertaining game and they kept going the whole time. For the Reds there was some good points to take from the game but as always there will be areas that need to be covered during training.

Last weekend saw the Reds play the combined team of Camborne/Helston. I wasn’t there so I don’t know who scored but the reds outscored their hosts during the morning 96-0.

Chris Jose


Redruth U9′s

Posted under Under 9's by admin on Wednesday 27 February 2008 at 12:00 am

Redruth U9s V St Ives U9s

After the excitement of the local derby against Camborne last week this Sunday saw the boys travel to St Ives, again on a cool and dry morning.

St Ives proved to be a tough outfit and provided the boys with their first real test in recent weeks. Hard running by both sides was stopped by equally hard defence. Eventually the continued pressure of the reds paid off and the tries started to flow


David Penberthy Weekly Update 26th February

Posted under Director's Commentary by admin on Tuesday 26 February 2008 at 12:00 am

Firstly apologies for no notes last week, I was in Germany on business and just did not have the time to get anything down on paper, plus my laptop decided to crash and left me in all sorts of trouble ….. but you are not really interested in all that crap so I’ll crack on …..

A good afternoon all round on Saturday I think! Blaydon contributed fully to a rip roaring game and it was pretty physical stuff out there. Lots of good things to build on for our run in and hopeful survival at this level.

It was good to see a number of players returning following injuries and also the arrival of Jim McKay to help and advise Nigel for the rest of the season. I was asked many leading questions by numerous people on Saturday about this……the bottom line is that Jim brings a wealth of experience, knowledge and know how and how can we not benefit from that …. a bloody good catch I say!!!

Also I would like to mention Nathan Pedley. As you all know Peds is currently under suspension following the dangerous tackle he committed at Blaydon back in October. Peds has been helping on match days since but felt, on this occassion, that it was appropraite not to be involved. I take my hat of to him, since the incident he has been devastated by what has happened and is still full of remorse. No one asked or told him not to be involved, he made the decision himself …. hopefully he will be back with the team this week. All of us here at Redruth hope that Cameron is and will continue to make a full recovery.

From all the players and Management Team, plus the Officials and others, we offer our sincere condolences and sympathy to Gordon Dodds on the loss of his wife Christine following illness. Gordon is a vital member of our team and the skill and expertise he shows in producing his DVDs for us is second to none.

I would also like to say thank you to Blaydon for agreeing to the mark of respect. I hope Nick and his team had a safe trip home and that they enjoyed their first visit to Redruth. There is a strong possibility that they could be coming this way on 3 occassions next year if we stay where we are, Mounts Bay come and The Cornish All Blacks drop out of National 1 …. mind you we face 2 trips to the North East with Tynedale now virtually sure of promotion from National 3 North.

There has been lots of talk going around about The Cornish All Blacks switching their home fixture against Northampton Saints to Franklin Gardens … I can understand the safety aspects etc with the ground and the lack of adequate lighting and the fear that the playing lights are not up to the standard required for such a prestigous match, but I think FDR may have set a dangerous precedent ….. As far as the Blacks are concerned, they should do quite nicely out of it with the Saints regularly pulling in 5 figure crowds ….. wherever the game is played it will be a very tough challenge …..

Well England certainly turned things around on Saturday night didn’t they …..

I must be honest I thought France would win by 20 points, but how wrong I was and, to be honest, I was delighted that I was wrong! I thought every player gave their all especially up front. Mark Regan was his usual nuisance self and managed to aggrivate Mark Lievremont to the point where he called him a “Provocative Clown” … alledgedly!

Jonny Wilkinson was back to his best and the 2 props destroyed the French scrum …. the backs looked really sharp and Wigglesworth, at 9, brought a lot to the game …. can they go on and win the championship …. well I think they have a real chance now…Wales have to go to Ireland and the entertain France, Scotland are out of it as are the Italians … so it looks like a ding dong battle right to the end! I’m off to Edinburgh to watch the England v Scotland game so that should be good and no doubt I will try a beer or two ….

We have a real big game again this week up at Westcombe Park. For those of you who are travelling please be reminded that it is a 2:00pm kick off. I know there was a coach planned but it has been cancelled owing to a lack of numbers. This is a real shame as it means so much to the boys to have supporters there … for those who are making the effort, and I know there are some of you maybe in a minibus, thank you!

There was another good evening in the club after the game on Saturday with Mark Bryant and Martin Weekes taking centre stage with their 2 hour act leading up to the France v England game …. a first for the club this week was the “Rugbyette” competition won by “Avo’s” daughter. She is now the proud owner of the first ever Redruth Rugbyette T shirt …. no doubt more of these will be taking place over the next few weeks …. i must say Weeksey was awesome and threw himself around the floor like a teenage break dancer … well done mate you are a star!

In National 2, it looks like Otley are just about there now and favourites to join them must be Stourbridge. At the other end Halifax look doomed but its a dog fight for the other 2 spots and we are still very much in the mix!

We have to play all 3 of the current bottom 3 in the next few week, Halifax and Nuneaton at home and Henley away … in between we have Otley away ( full supporters coach for that one already) and Manchester at home and Westcombe Park this weekend …. it’s still a tough call!

A rather bizarre incident occurred at Stourbridge on Saturday, it seems that 2 Stourbridge players collided with each other in the first minute of the game and both ended up being stretchered off …. hope they didn’t suffer too bad an injury unlike the footballer Eduardo who had his leg broken in a horrific tackle at the weekend …. it looked deliberate and the guy who did it should face a lengthy ban! Some of the pictures being posted on websites show the mess he was in …… bloody awful!

There are new regulations being issued shortly about registering Non EU players for next season. This will have quite an effect on a number of clubs playing in National 2 and 3. The proposal being put forward for approval is: From the 1st June 2008, clubs playing at Level 3 (National 2) and Level 4 (National 3 North & South) will no longer be considered predominantly amateur and therefore no club may have registered a player who holds a visa that restricts his employment in sport. Examples are Visitor Visas, Working Holiday Visas and Student Visas. The consequences of breaking this new ruling will be severe on clubs with point deductions to the fore.

So that’s about it this week, no real quotes to talk about this time round, although I did hear some rumblings about a Wizards Sleeve and it being likened to …. well I can’t really say!!!!!!!!!!

More about the Pirates decision to stay at Camborne next time….

If you are in Birmingham at anytime there is a real good Chinese just off Broad Street …. its called Me n Chew! …. PA … Am wi choo my old friend!!!!

Hopefully some of you will be at Westcombe Park, Orpington, Kent, on Saturday ….. and don’t forget it’s Mothers Day this Sunday – call the Club for the fantastic lunch offer at


Redruth v Blaydon Western Morning News Report

Posted under Match Reports by admin on Monday 25 February 2008 at 12:00 am

Mike Barlow reports:

Redruth received a double boost to their National Two survival campaign with this 25-14 triumph over Blaydon.

The game was seen as an eight-pointer by clubs lying in ninth and 10th place and the result may prove pivotal in the closing weeks of the campaign.

In addition, former Pirates coach Jim McKay sat side by side with Redruth head coach Nigel Hambly in the stand and is to assist at the Recreation Ground on a consultancy basis until the end of the season.

Both men expressed their delight at working with each other, while Redruth supporters were cockahoop at the turn of events. Hambly and his men have clawed their way out of the basement with a series of impressive results and the presence at the Rec of the highly-respected former Pirates chief can only add impetus to that effort.

McKay said: “It’s an honour to be involved at a club that is one of the heartbeats of Cornish rugby. I’m very fond of Cornwall and the South West; I’ll enjoy it and try to do the best I can.

“If I can help Nigel make the team perform a little bit better, that’s a pleasure. I believe 100 per cent Redruth can stay up and if I can pass on my knowledge to help, that’s great. There are a lot of Cornish players at the club and I think that’s important. The team spirit is very strong.”

It is thought that McKay will assist both on match days and off the field, where his hard-nosed approach to training and acumen in club organisation were so valued at the Pirates and which are likely to be sorely missed by the Division One high-flyers in the future. Pirates’ loss is Redruth’s gain.

However, both coaches admitted that Saturday’s error-strewn victory was not the finished article. Blaydon were powerful and abrasive and the Reds often looked a side under pressure. Their possession behind the ruck was frequently spoiled and there were numerous handling errors. In addition, their lineout was not always cohesive.

For all that, Redruth could have won by more: they had a try disallowed and fly-half Luke Cozens was off-target with several kicks at goal.

Redruth opened the scoring on 20 minutes following a powerful break down the left wing by Rob Thirlby. The England Sevens player scorched past the visitors’ defence before offloading to Rudolf Meredith steaming up on the inside and the Kiwi centre finished off flamboyantly. Cozens, who had missed an early penalty attempt, was off-target with the conversion attempt but booted a penalty 11 minutes later.

The Reds then endured two ten-minute periods either side of half-time which brought out the best and worst in them. They went into the break only one point ahead, 8-7 after allowing Blaydon to cross under the posts, winger Andy Fenby touching down and number 10 Michael Gandy converting.

That late lapse was a massive blow for the home team and their resilience was tested further at the start of the second period as Blaydon laid siege to their line, giant flankers Selwyn St Bernard and Eniola Gesinde the cause of all sorts of problems in the loose.

However, Redruth weathered the storm as Blaydon’s error count began to exceed that of the home side and Cozens opened the gap with a penalty from 30 metres. The crowd – peppered with a mix of highly vocal Blaydon supporters – breathed easier following the Reds’ best try of the match, scrum-half Mark Richards sprinting 30 metres into hostile territory before Lewis Vinnicombe’s superior pace saw the move finished off in the right corner, Cozens converting off the upright.

The Cornishmen were rampant and Thirlby charged 40 metres up the left wing to touch down with a try that would have sealed proceedings, but he was judged to have knocked on at the line.

No matter, hooker Glenn Cooper was mauled over the line by his fellow forwards on 65 minutes for Redruth’s third try, converted by Cozens and although Blaydon had the last word with a converted try of their own, Adam Dehaty crossing, it was Redruth’s day.

Hambly pointed to those two crucial periods either side of half-time that saw the game both slip away and then seesaw back in the Reds’ favour.

He said: “We looked jittery going in at half-time 8-7, there were a few harsh words and then Blaydon were camped on our line at the start of the second half. It would have been easy to fold and give them the score they needed but that’s we’re all about. The guys dug in, fought for each other and put in some big tackles.

“We tend to panic a bit when we’re close to our line and we did that today, but whether we’re playing 20 yards or 60 yards from our line we need to keep cool, be patient and keep discipline. Blaydon were fairly strong around the rucks and mauls and we didn’t really run with too much conviction, but you can’t be too disappointed with a win.”


Under 13′s Double Header with St Ives.

Posted under Under 13's by admin on Monday 25 February 2008 at 12:00 am

Redruth 17 – St Ives 0

Redruth 47 – St Ives 0

Redruth had a comfortable win against a plucky St Ives on Sunday with a large squad. Redruth fielded two different teams for each half. The first scoring three tries by Kieran Young,Sean Barrett and Dan Vincent with a conversion by Sean Barrett.

The second half saw twelve changes and the Reds added another seven tries by Ollie Bryant,Ryan Thomas,Jake Rayment(2),Kieran Trewin,Dirk Moodie and Sean Barrett with conversions by Ollie,Ryan,Ben Hocking,Steve Trenoweth and Scott Gregor.

Thanks to Kevin Williams for refereeing with a bad leg and thanks to the boys(Smiler,Jack,Chris and Liam) who played for St Ives.

Nigel


Redruth 25 Blaydon 14 Roger Watson reports

Posted under Match Reports by admin on Sunday 24 February 2008 at 12:00 am

Match Sponsors: Barclays Bank and Gwel An Mor Holiday Complex, Portreath

The Reds had to display their true mettle to come out on top of this spirited and hard fought encounter, played in front of a good sized crowd albeit under leaden skies.

A powerful Blaydon side, bolstered by several players with Premiership experience at Newcastle Falcons, made the longest journey in National League rugby by air, chartering a flight from Newcastle to Newquay, but flew back to the North East empty handed.

Mark Bright took on the role of captaincy in the absence of the injured Craig Bonds and an impeccably observed one minute’s silence for Christine Dodds, wife of Gordon, for 15 years the man behind the videos of DVDs on match days.

A major pre-match talking point was the news that Jim McKay, formerly Head Coach of the Cornish Pirates, has joined the Redruth coaching staff for the rest of the season.

Not so much of a talking point was the failure of the PA sustem at the start of the game for which the Club apologises. It was back at half time as the Minis Redruth v Helston Under 7s played their hearts out.

It was the visitors who had the better of the opening, nervous, exchanges of this game which was important in the context of easing the relegation concerns of both clubs, but it was the Reds who opened the scoring after eighteen minutes. Lewis Vinnicombe started the move deep in his own half by coming off his wing to link up with Rob Thirlby who showed his class with a wonderful step, a turn of pace and a beautifully timed pass to Rudolf Meredith for the touch down. Great try, scintillating pace.

Six minutes later Luke Cozens scored with a well struck penalty. The home side started to dominate territorially and looked like taking an eight nil lead into the break when with the last move of the half, 6 minutes in to stoppage time, the visiting left winger, Andrew Fenby, had a straightforward run in under the posts for Daniel Kyle to convert.

Blaydon put the Reds under pressure at the start of the second period but once they cleared their lines they were awarded a penalty in front of the posts which Cozens stroked over. A superb break by scrum half Mark Richards put Vinnicombe in for Redruth


January 200 Club Super Draw Winners

Posted under Supporters News by admin on Friday 22 February 2008 at 12:00 am

The winners of the 200 Club Super Draw are confirmed as:


Mark Richards Disciplinary Hearing

Posted under Player News by admin on Friday 22 February 2008 at 12:00 am

Scrum-half Mark Richards has been called to attend a RFU disciplinary hearing, following his dismissal in Saturday’s defeat at Wharfedale. Mark, who is charged with striking contrary to Law 10 (4)(a), will attend the hearing at the Bristol Filton Holiday Inn on March 3 (7pm).


Redruth Development 17 Launceston 15

Posted under Match Reports by admin on Thursday 21 February 2008 at 12:00 am

In a very close and hard-fought encounter on Sunday, Redruth edged out their Cornish rivals by the slenderest of margins in this Tamar League game. It was the Reds first win over the All Blacks for 2 seasons in senior rugby and also saw a very unique event – the first time that all three Thirlby brothers had taken the field for the same side. Grant, Paul and Rob are pictured below.

Redruth opened the scoring when Neil Corin swept over after 20 minutes following sustained pressure from the Reds forwards. The conversion was ably charged down by the All Blacks.

Neil Douch added a second try as half time approached, converted by Grant Thirlby, whilst Sam Hocking and Adrian Foster added two unconverted scores for Launceston, with another conversion again charged down – 2 rarities in the same game.

Half time saw the sides stay on the pitch with the Reds 12-10 up – a brave move under clear skies but a biting easterly wind.

The second half sparked to life with an electric break from Reds and Combined Services scrum half Dave Pascoe, setting up a Rob Thirlby touchdown in Hellfire Corner.

Sam Hocking replied in the scoreboard corner to make for a tense finish at 17-15, but the Reds held on, with all those returning from injury lay-offs coming through unscathed as the first team look towards next weekend’s crucial encounter with Blaydon.

Redruth – Rob Thirlby, Brett Rule, Paul Thirlby, Simon Peters, Matt Bowden, Grant Thirlby, Dave Pascoe; Neil Douch, Ben Taberer, Ben Greening, Neil Corin, John Martin, Josh Morgan, Steve Wood, Ben Fox.

Redruth tries – Corin, Douch, Rob Thirlby. Conv – Grant Thirlby.

Launceston scorers – Sam Hocking 2. Adrian Foster.

Referee – Ian Pengelly

Touch Judges – Austin Chapman and Sean Maddern

Report – David Thomas


Wharfedale report Western Morning News – Ed Bawden

Posted under Match Reports by admin on Wednesday 20 February 2008 at 12:00 am

Lack of discipline was a problem for Redruth on their travels to Yorkshire. Some lax play meant that they lost their National League Two match with Wharfedale 17-10, and they also had scrum-half Mark Richards shown a red card for his part in a fracas as injury time beckoned.

“I’m disappointed with the result,” said Redruth head coach Nigel Hambly. “I thought we were good enough to come to Wharfedale and win given the form we’ve been in.

“We shot ourselves in the foot, Wharfedale probably deserved it because they took their chances and we didn’t.

“It is the discipline that has cost us today. Discipline all round: discipline not to give away penalties, discipline to play to the pattern. We gave away numerous penalties around the red zone and they have kicked us to death.

“We know when you go away from home you are not going to get too many calls, we get them when we are at home so it’s swings and roundabouts. You have got to be a bit smarter when you are away from home.

“A couple of times we tried to run from our own 22 when we have got a guy who can kick it 60 metres, we try and run get turned over and we are back in our 22 under pressure.”

After a Lewis Vinnicombe try in the 58th minute converted from the touchline by Luke Cozens, Redruth were just a point behind, at 11-10, going into the final quarter.

Wharfedale skipper Andy Baggett kicked a third penalty to open up a four-point lead with ten minutes to go. The Reds, however, were still in with a chance of victory as they twice turned over possession in the Wharfedale 22.

“At 14-10 I thought we were on the front foot and had lots of field position, but then we would go and do something silly like pick up and go on our own and get turned over,” said Hambly. “We practice this week in week out at training and it disappoints me when we do not do it.”

Wharfedale came out the of traps at breakneck speed with some adventurous rugby, full-back Adam Whaites and Chris Malherbe prominent in several attacks as Simon Horsfall went in for an unconverted try in the left-hand corner after five minutes.

For most of the opening quarter the Redruth defence was tested by the running and passing of the home backs. But in a rare Redruth attack Cozens was just wide with a penalty attempt to the left of the posts.

Baggett, however, three minutes before the break, nudged the home side into an eight-point lead with a penalty in front of the posts for a back foot offside.

At the start of the second half Vinnicombe, making a welcome return to the Redruth side, was pushed into touch at the corner flag.

A penalty against Damien Cook for coming through the middle of a ruck in front of the posts after 50 minutes gave Baggett another penalty chance from in front of the posts and saw the Redruth vice captain receive a yellow card from Nigel Higginson.

From the restart, Glen Cooper gathered the ball and looked to be in for a try before a deliberate knock down by Dave Muckalt brought a yellow card for the Wharfedale flanker and Cozens kicked the penalty from close to the posts to get the Reds on the scoreboard.

The home side tried bold passing moves to try and crack the hard-working Redruth defence, but when one move broke down in midfield PJ Gidlow hacked on for Vinnicombe to touch down in the corner.

With everything to play for the home side went into their shell and played through their forwards, raising hopes that Redruth could steal the result.

In injury time, though, Richards appeared to disrupt a heel by Wharfedale at the back of a scrum. Then in the disturbance that followed, he was singled out by touch judge Steve Bradford as the culprit and Higginson had little option but to show the Redruth scrum-half the red card.

Baggett kicked his fourth penalty from in front of the posts with the last kick of the game.

With Henley winning at Halifax and Blaydon upsetting Stourbridge in the north east, Redruth are now back into the relegation battle and the pressure is on for their game with Blaydon at the Recreation Ground on Saturday.


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