Penryn and Old Dunstonians match on 88th tour of Cornwall

On Good Friday Penryn gave a very warm welcome to our friends from Old Dunstonians who were making their annual tour to Cornwall, writes Jonathan Plummer.

This was the 88th tour of Cornwall for the Old Dunstonians, which is an incredible feat and only the Second World War and the pandemic has stopped them from travelling down.

The Old Ds first played against Penryn in 1930 and this was the 71st time Old Dunstonians have visited Penryn.

Before the match the two captains laid wreaths at the Memorial Gate and a minute’s silence was held to honour the players from each team who lost their lives in the wars.

The Penryn team was led out by Rob Banks, who was making his 100th appearance for the Borough; congratulations to Rob on this fantastic achievement.

Penryn had the best of the play in the first half and scored four tries through Mike Fittock, Will Tanswell and Jack Bailey.

The fourth try of the day and the by far the biggest cheer was for Martin Testard who sprinted in from 30 metres out, the Frenchman scoring his first try for Penryn chiefs.

James Salisbury converted three tries to give the Borough a 26 nil half time advantage.

Penryn and Old Dunstonians lay wreaths at the Memorial Ground (Image: Jonathan Plummer)

The second half was a lot more even as the Old Dunstonians got the long journey from Kent out of their legs and started to get more territory and possession. They scored their first try midway through the half, following good work by hooker Gareth Wills.

Penryn did score three more tries by Ollie Mount, Mike Fittock and Jack Truen, Salisbury converting two.

It was the Old Dunstonians who had the final say as they scored a try under the posts after a break by centre Andrew Seviour, to conclude the scoring, and bringing the final score to Penryn 45, Old Dunstonians 14.

Players and supporters from both teams retreated to the warm bar, as singing and drinking went well it the evening.

Penryn would like to thank the Old Dunstonians for continuing on their great tour of Cornwall each Easter and certainly hope you had a great weekend and look forward to welcoming you on the 89th tour in 2025.

This Saturday Penryn will play their last league match of the season away at Tiverton and will have a say in the league title.

A win for Tiverton against the Borough will secure them the league title and promotion, although any slip ups though could let Paignton secure the title.