Falmouth RFC head coach Graham Whitmore believes his side are finally getting the rewards their hard work has deserved.

The Eagles had won just two of their first 13 games as their Tribute Western Counties West campaign reached the halfway point shortly before Christmas, leaving the side in the relegation zone.

But an upsurge in form has seen the Eagles secure back-to-back home wins against Wadebridge Camels and Bideford, before winning 20-15 at Chard on Saturday, with a defeat at leaders Wellington in between.

That run has seen them move up tot ninth, just one place behind local rivals Penryn, and, more importantly, eight points clear of the bottom two in the relegation zone.

Whitmore said: “We’ve been showing form but we just haven’t had the rewards for our hard work and we knew that we were very close to getting the performances just right and over the last month we’ve been showing some form.

“We’ve beaten three of the top five sides in the last month with Wadebridge, Bideford and Chard, and we’ve shown we’ve certainly got the capability of competing in this league and that it again goes to show that, on their day, any side in the league has the ability to beat the other team.

“It’s a small step forward but the side are growing in confidence and we look forward to some important games coming up.”

Saturday’s win at Chard was the Eagles’ first away from their Recreation Ground home for just over a year.

Whitmore reflected on the landmark win, saying: “We came into the game with huge belief and were confident we could win, and also know that we would have to be somewhere near our best to do so.

“Chard are having a good season, third in the league, and the game proved to be a real arm wrestle, but I was delighted with the efforts of the players, the forwards in particular, who really stood up yesterday [Saturday] and reaped the rewards of that.”