Saints Conquer Camels

In weather that you’d expect for an August pre-season with only the trees that surround Molesworth Field to remind you autumn is in full flow, Saints arrived to take on the Camels on their own turf which in the past has not been a happy hunting ground for the Tregorrick Crew.

18C and the gentlest of breezes from the South West suggested a day of quick hands and hard-breathing big units! Watching the Camels run through their pre-match evolutions they looked sharp and up for changing their recent poor fortunes. Saints seemed calm and relaxed as they listened to Head Coach Kyle Marriott’s pragmatic words, himself not playing this week due to a lingering knee injury picked up against Truro 2 weeks earlier.

Chris Ashwin got the game underway with the sun moving round to warm their backs as they played towards the clubhouse end. It was at this point that the prediction of a day of quick hands began to fall apart. Both sides tried to play to the conditions but fumbles/knock-on’s featured widely and regularly. Saints lost an early line out and Camels cleared from their half before fumbling themselves. This gave an early opportunity to see who’d be King of the scrums and this proved to be Saints all day. The fumbles, and Camels to an extent working out how to disrupt Saints line out ball evened the early exchanges out and play remained roughly in the middle ground for the first 10 minutes.

Probably one of the defining moments came at 11 minutes for Wadebridge. When Saints infringed at the breakdown in their own half Camels had consistently kicked to touch. Most would have been difficult chances for 3 points but early on some sides would have chanced a couple to get the scoreboard moving. On 11 minutes Saints infringed and a highly kickable penalty was awarded and again Camels chose territory. We thought at the time they might just regret that! Kicking to touch meant Camels lived in the Saints 22 and after a successful catch and drive Adam Kellow was judged to have infringed seriously enough to warrant a yellow. Camels chose a lineout, spun wide and fumbled so at that scrum and with Kellow off we saw Jeffs move to lock and Tregilgas to flank. George demonstrated his breadth of skills as Saints won the ensuing scrum easily and Saints cleared their lines!

Saints by now haven’t been in the Camels half for some 15 minutes and it felt like something had to give. After Boyer made some ground he was brought to ground but was penalised for a Naymar’esque quadruple movement. Camels made touch on the Saints 5m line, won the lineout and after a number of phases they got it over the line. They won the crossbar challenge with the conversion so it remained 5-0 after 19 mins. 5-0.

Saints upped the intensity after this score. Quick hands saw Plummer with an opportunity to go one on one but he’s brought down, isolated and penalised. More fumbles and knock-on’s occur as play moves more to the middle ground of the pitch. Saints turned over a Camels scrum and the crowd are lifted as the ball moves right but again it’s fumbled. Rugby tennis commences as the 10’s try to find a tactical touch with eventually Chris Ashwin finding the Camels 22 after an infringement. The catch is good and the pack got down to business. The drive takes them to 7 metres from the Camels line and roughly in front of the posts. Kellow cycles to the back, seeks and receives the ball and decides that’s enough pushing and breaks left. Camels had enough cover to stop Kellow but he had enough awareness to deliver to Tregilgas wide to his left with something resembling a spin pass. George used up the rest of the width to get over by the flag. Freeman gave the kick a good go but it remained 5-5 after 37 minutes. 5-5.

The restart forced a Saints fumble then an infringement and eventually the ball finds touch on the Saints twenty two for a Camels throw. Camels spin it quickly left and the Saints are too eager and are judged offside. This time they do go for the points and are successful. 8-5.

We had time for a restart which was gathered by Tregilgas and with Ashwin/Freeman they make some good ground before being felled. In the breakdown that followed the Wadebridge 7 infringed sufficiently to warrant a yellow. In borrowed time C Ashwin finds touch close to the Camels 5m line. The take was clean and the pack go to work. Camels could not find the horsepower to resist and Captain Miles Davey grounded the ball 10 m left of the posts. This time Freeman adds the 2 and the half ends with Saints in the ascendancy. 8-12.

Camels get the second half underway and are rewarded within 4 minutes. Their 10 broke the Saints lines and whilst brought down close to the Saints twenty-two they infringed and Camels took the points. 11-12.

For the next 10 minutes Saints make some gains in terms of turning over another scrum, Shane Johns turning over the ball in the tackle and even Freeman trying a very optimistic drop goal from approximately 8 miles out but again the fumbles dominated play. At 14 minutes a Saints lineout on the Camels 5m line should have brought more points but the take wasn’t clean so the ball was spun and Martin, with the whitewash a couple of metres away, fumbled a fairly vigorous pass and Camels cleared the lines.

Camels buy themselves a bit of relief and visit the centre of the park after a Boyer mistake gathering a clearing kick. It doesn’t last long as more mistakes from Camels gives C Ashwin a penalty and he, as he did most all of the day, finds touch midway in the twenty-two andHenry Welch comes on for Boyer. Camped roughly in the Camels half it still felt like the game could be nicked by a Camels move. Whilst their forwards struggled in the scrums their backs, when they got the chance, still looked like they could do a job on the Saints. Saints needed to keep their heads in a game that now was increasingly becoming heated with ‘handbags’ starting to break up their rhythm.

Saints kick themselves back into the Camels twenty-two and after a good lineout they pile on the pressure, picking and driving through several cycles until on 27 minutes the Camels 8 gets a yellow. The Saints ‘Massive’ pick up the volume as they sense points are in the offing with the Camels missing a vital player and they were right. A third lineout was caught and the drive proved too strong putting Venner over 10m in from the touchline. Freeman missed the conversion, possibly disrupted by a sinking but still bright autumn sun. 11-17 (29).

Still vulnerable to a converted try defeat, fresh legs were brought on in the form of Josh Phillips for Tony Knight. Play restarted and Saints advanced through Jeffs who made good ground all day and starred in the lineout. More mistakes gave Camels the opportunity to kick to the Saints 5m line. In front of where the majority of the Camels fans were standing it was possible to see their belief growing as the clock ticked down. Camels won the throw and drove, going through the phases, but Saints resist, hitting each advance with equal strength and intensity whilst keeping their discipline. Saints steal the ball and A Ashwin clears to just inside the Saints 22 but Camels quickly get the ball moving back towards the Saints line. Camels infringe 1m out but in the noise from players and crowd the Camels supporters’ thinks the ref has signalled a try until they realise the cheering is that of the Saints players self-congratulating for their disruption. Camels have one more attack before losing the ball which is then sent towards the clubhouse and the game is over.

How to summarise this? Frenetic at times, frustrating in terms of the mistakes from both sides, intense, exciting and bruising with tackling from both sides on the whole being excellent. Saints ground out this victory and whilst not the prettiest, bringing 4 points back to Tregorrick from an encounter with the Camels is never to be sniffed at.

After this weekend’s other results Wellington lost to Sidmouth (only just) and they sink from 1st to 4th just below us. Wellington will want to put things right when they visit Tregorrick next Saturday and the Saints will want make it 5 in a row and get back into the bonus point earning way. Kick off is at 3pm (the last late kick off before the clocks change) and it really does promise to be a fantastic fixture. Everyone please make the effort to join us here at Tregorrick and be the Saints 16th man in the stands!