Camborne School of Mines lost the 110th Bottle Match on Saturday despite a spirited display against a physically superior Royal School of Mines side.

The Bottle Match is a varsity game played between the Camborne School of Mines (CSM) and the Royal School of Mines (RSM).

Played at Penryn Rugby Club, this year’s game attracted hundreds of spectators, many from the Tremough University Campus, to the Memorial Ground for the 3.15pm kick-off.

The match was keenly contested in the first half but, because of the RSM’s strong forwards, CSM struggled for possession at line-outs.

However, they more than matched their bigger opponents in the scrum.

In the first 15 minutes CSM were heavily penalised by the referee at the breakdown, giving their opponents vital field positions.

However, it wasn’t until the 32nd minute that the visitors broke the deadlock when they scored a converted try.

CSM held their opponents out for much of the second half, but in the final 20 minutes the fitness of the London-based side told as they ran in three more unanswered tries.

Despite the result, CSM coach David Morgan was pleased with his side’s performance. “To a man CSM players showed magnificent resistance, with their defence at times quite awesome,” he said. “At the end they were beaten, but certainly not bowed.”

Morgan added that having lost a number of players from last season’s squad he now hoped the current team would stay together and added that, with a bit more experience, CSM should stand a better chance of victory in next year’s match at RSM.

Camborne School of Mines squad: James Lowden, Rhun Davies, Nathan Vyas, Luke Rust, Dan Phillips, Will Vamplew, Eddie Walker, Charlie Leiffer, Max Fenn, Alex Cox, Russell House, Josh Little, Ian Miller, Harry Pendreigh, James Damarell. Replacements: Tom Doy, Tom Boswell, Tom Forsey, Marc Cullen, Chris Sandells, Josh Meakin, Llyr Davies, Will Hunt, Tom Scott, Jack Coupland, Kieran Forsyth.

n The Bottle match has, in recent years, extended to other sports as well as RSM take on CSM in golf, football, squash, netball and hockey.

The results were as follows - Squash: CSM 0, RSM 5; Golf: A draw. Ladies Hockey: CSM 2, RSM 1; Men’s Hockey: CSM 3, RSM 1; Netball: CSM 39, RSM 27; Football: CSM 0, RSM 0