Penryn 40, Pirates Amateurs 0

Penryn set up a juicy Cornwall Cup quarter final tie against local rivals Falmouth in the Cornwall Cup after dispatching Pirates Amateurs 40-0 at the Memorial Ground.

The Borough ran in six tries, completely shutting their opponents out in the process on a comfortable afternoon.

On what was originally billed as a free weekend the Borough were disrupted by unavailability, but were able to call on some familiar faces to help fill the gaps in the squad allowance of 20 for a cup match. Penryn also handed a first senior start in the pack to Will Paine at flanker, who normally plies his trade out in the backs.

Following heavy downpours in the morning, it was a welcome sight to all when the rain ceased just before kick off which allowed for a more open brand of rugby to be played by both sides. Few would argue though that this would suit Penryn most, and so it proved.

Following a scrappy start that saw play meander from set piece to set piece, Penryn’s possession eventually took its toll on the Pirates.

Sam Hitchens burst through a gap to power over for the first score, which Matt Horton converted. Penryn doubled their lead soon after following good vision from wing James Salisbury, who collected his own chip and chase only to be hauled down near the line. Fortunately, captain George Jones was on his shoulder to collect the pass and go in under the posts. Horton converted for 14-0.

The Borough weren’t done for the half yet and continued to press, which yielded another try, this time for Grant Randlesome who touched down virtually unopposed. Horton couldn’t convert but Penryn led 19-0 at the break.

Despite the carrot of a bonus point for a fourth try not being available, Penryn still had every incentive to continue to score and did just that. Horton missed an early penalty chance to take the lead past three converted tries, but after the miss Penryn turned their attention to tries instead. Hitchens added his second of the afternoon down the grandstand side of the pitch with another strong finish, followed by an excellent Horton touchline conversion.

Despite playing out of position Paine also managed to get on the scoresheet, showing the kind of pace at flanker he would be more accustom to showing in the backline, to finish well and take Penryn further away from their visitors. As the game drew to a close, the home side would have been just as pleased with their defence as much as the 33 points they had scored, nullifying any threat from the Pirates all afternoon.

There was still time for a final score and it was a trademark effort from Andrew Seviour, who despite the best efforts of the visitors to nearly take his head off, it saw the centre shrug off countless defenders to stroll in. Horton converted to leave the final score at 40-0 and job done for Penryn. The Borough resume league action away at Topsham this Saturday.

Penryn: Horton, Salisbury, Hitchens, Seviour, Mitchell, Vague, Peacock, Goldsworthy, Birkett, Burley, Hancock, Hughes, Paine, Randlesome, Jones reps; Cockerell, Tedstone, Uphill, Hinchley

Tries: Hitchens (2) Jones, Randlesome, Paine, Seviour

Conversions: Horton (5)