They think it’s all over….it is now
Our season is over again and what a season it has been! It has been full of great experiences, and ones that will remain with me for a long time. Challenges have come by the score both on and off the field. I am finding that as the demands of rugby at this level are getting greater so we are having our feet cut from beneath us as far as the authorities go.
Next season we have an extra 4 league games which is great and it will be good to have new teams in the league, but funding starts to decrease by some 30% this season, we will see a further 30% next and we will receive zero funding in 2011/12 other than our travel and accommodation covered to some degree. It makes planning for rugby a mammoth task and one that would keep full time staff extremely busy. I am in the process of sorting things and it is a head banging experience. However it is something that has to be done and I hope you will stick with me, understand what I am trying to do and continue to support through thick and thin.
On the field, well what a ride! I feel so proud of the players, coaches and backroom staff for all their efforts. It will go down as one of our most successful seasons ever and certainly the most successful of recent years. We topped the table for over 20 games and had a tremendous start with 11 straight wins. People say to me it could of been so different if we had sneaked those wins over Cambridge and Wharfedale. They are right, but what I look at are the sneaky wins we had up at Wharfedale and at Westcombe Park.
It could have all been so different but it wasn’t, we finished 3rd and we need to be mighty proud of that, we played some great rugby and scored some great tries, we continued to blood some of our youngsters with a total of 23 ex Colts playing for the 1st XV throughout the season….that is out a total of 39 players used. we scored over 100 tries some of them the best we have seen at the club for many a year …… I am not going to say too much more as I will give a full report at the AGM later in May.
Saturday’s game at Birmingham was one that was won by a very good team, we have no doubt about that. What was very pleasing though was the fact that we fielded a starting backline that featured former Colts in every position. In all there were 11 former Colts in the match day 20 …. a great feat by any standards. For 65 minutes we were very much in the game and at half time certainly in with a chance, but after 10 minutes of sustained pressure against a very resolute defence we turned the ball over and the Bees went the length of the field and scored and that pretty much ended our chances.
Young Stevie Kenward made his league debut and performed very well. He has been unlucky this season as he has been on stand by on numerous occasions but has not made the final cut. The game was followed by the players end of season jaunt to Cardiff which was enjoyed by all.
Congratulations to the Under 18′s Colts who retained their Cornwall Knock Out champions title for the 4th consecutive season after a very close win over Wadebridge Camels on Sunday evening. It was a great game of rugby played in the best of spirits. The Camels threw everything they had at the Reds but the boys defended superbly and thoroughly deserved their win. There were big performances from a number of players Malcolm Hearn at No 8, Ritchie Kevern in the centre along with his co centre Sam Newman, Lewis Moyle again at flanker and lad who continues to improve Matt Bunt at no 6. James Williams scored a typically barn storming try that has become his trade mark and some lad called Aaron Penberthy converted the try and kicked 3 penalty goals 2 from near the touchlines.
All in all a great team performance and a thoroughly deserved success for Simon Blake and his team of coaches and committee. Its been a tough year for Simon, but he has stuck with it. I can’t speak highly enough of what he does for the club and I know how much this competition means to him, seriously,we as a club we not be where we are if it were not for Simon. His endless efforts and hard work has formed the foundations for our success over the last 7 years. On Thursday (tonight if I am able to get this posted) the Under 17 Colts play Penryn in their respective Cup Final. Kick off for this is at 7:00pm at Hayle.
I feel sorry for Tomas O’Leary who broke his ankle playing for Munster against the Scarlets last weekend. Not only does he miss the British and Irish Lions tour to South Africa but is also ruled out of the latter stages of the Heineken Cup.
Things like this always happen and I bet there are a few worried people at the moment, particularly the selectors and management, that with so many games left in the Guinness Premiership knock out stages and the Heineken Cup the chances are that further players could miss the trip. Munster who have a large representation play Leinster on Saturday and then Cardiff Blues play Leicester on Sunday …. in the Guinness Premiership Bath play Leicester next week and Harlequins entertain London Irish.
The final of the Heineken Cup is on the 23rd May and the Lions depart for South Africa on the following Monday. Those who were controversially left out will still have chances right up until the departure date. Nathan Hines, the Scottish 2nd row also faces a dilemma ….. He has decided to snub his club side Perpignan in favour of joining the tour to South Africa. The Scotland lock is one of five second-row forwards called up by Lions coach Ian McGeechan, meaning he will miss out on Perpignan’s bid to claim their first French title since 1955.
The Top 14 play-off semi-finals, which Perpignan has qualified for, begin on the weekend of May 23/24 but Hines will have already set off for South Africa by then. And, despite protests from some of the French club’s supporters, Hines has insisted he had very little option in the decision.
“I have a torn heart but what can I do? If I am not in London on May 18 I will not be selected by the Lions,” he said. “Last year I was a substitute for Perpignan in the play-off semi-final. Imagine if I were to refuse the Lions and the same thing happened to me? No, that isn’t possible. “Representing the Lions is the cr