Survival, a trip back home, and the Falmouth Marine
Band - Harvey cracks a smile
Jersey DoR Ben Harvey is a serious chap most of the time,
certainly when he's on duty, but he's had trouble keeping a smile
off his face this week.
Firstly his team earned a crucial win against Doncaster to put
them on the brink of Championship survival, an achievement
confirmed - after a couple of hairy moments - when the Yorkshire
side were defeated at Bedford by 38-26.
Ben's excitement levels were high anyway as the final game of
Jersey's Championship campaign approached - a return to his native
Cornwall, to the club where his father Brett played for many years.
Ben's been back to the county in a playing and coaching capacity
before, but has never been i/c of a visiting team at the Mennaye.
He could almost taste the pasties, the Cornish ale, the Jelberts
ice cream...
Sedatives were then rushed to St Peter as Ben received two further
pieces of news about the game: no, not the live streaming on
Twitter (not his thing), but, firstly, an invasion of aunties and
great aunties are travelling from across the SW to the game,
including Auntie Jan, well-known for her acting work, especially in
Howard's Way. And secondly, to cap it all, the Falmouth Marine Band
will be playing ahead of kick-off. So if anyone in the Jersey camp
wants any sensible advice from their grinning DoR, they might be
best to seek it before the legendary musicians strike up at
2.40pm.
The FMB on a recent outing, perfectly in time as
ever
Harvey clearly has a lot of time for his home county's premier
club, and the respect appears mutual, with Pirates Head Coach Ian
Davies saying this week he saw Jersey as a top-half team next
season ("mark my words," he added). This isn't guaranteed to
translate to a thrilling game, but with the pressure off (Pirates
play-off hopes having been ended by a recent run of poor form amid
a challenging fixture schedule), and the sun out (albeit an
unseasonal 11c), perhaps some end-of-season flair may be served up
for what should be a decent crowd.
* late-breaking musical news. The Cadgwith Singers will be
there as well!
News from the Jersey camp
Although illness and injury denies him four of the players from
the team who played Doncaster, Harvey has selected a strong XV
composed of front-line participants in this season's
campaign.
In the pack, Sean McCarthy gets that start at loose-head; Richard
Barrington is ill, although the reality is that the pair have
interchanged throughout the season. There's no place for
Leeds-bound Nathan Hannay in the engine room, while Joe Buckle
starts at flanker against the team where he also spent time on loan
earlier in the season, with Charlie Walker-Blair unfit.
Scrum-half Nicky Griffiths is denied a return trip to the club
where he played in 2008/09 by injury, so Dave McCormack (above)
returns to the breach. The fourth enforced absence from last
weekend is injured full-back Barry Davies, whose place goes to
Glenn Bryce. James Copsey drops to the bench, with Max Stelling
slotting in at centre.
Jersey's bench includes two players who could make their
Championship debut - prop Myles Landick (above) and scrum-half Joel
Dudley have had injury-plagued seasons but returned to action in
the B&I Cup two weeks ago.
Jersey squad, sponsored by Locate Jersey and
jersey.com
1 Sean McCarthy
2 Elvis Taione
3 Jon Brennan
4 Rob Anderson
5 Dave Markham
6 Fred Silcock
7 Joe Buckle
8 Guy Thompson
9 Dave McCormack
10 Michael Le Bourgeois
11 Ed Dawson
12 David Bishop (capt)
13 Max Stelling
14 Mark Foster
15 Glenn Bryce
Replacements
Myles Landick
Dave Felton
James Gethings
James Voss
Joel Dudley
Donovan Sanders
James Copsey
Any Previous?
The two clubs met at St Peter on the first day of September, a
sunny summer Saturday where a crowd of 2,470 (most of the 470 were
from Cornwall) watched the division newbies take on the previous
season's finalists.
After Jersey trailed just 3-8 at the break, Pirates pulled away
to finish 6-20 winners with Matt Evans scoring a hat-trick (he
remains top of the try-scoring pops with 14). See HERE for a full
report.
Pirates in 2012/13
The men from the Mennaye started the season well with success in
Jersey and a home win in the local 'cream tea' derby against Devon
rivals Plymouth (the two counties disagree, among other things, on
whether you should put the cream on your scone before the jam, as
in Devon, or afterwards). Anyway, it was 19-17.
A dip in form, including an 18-18 draw at Doncaster, and the
first B&I window (Pirates eventually won their group before
succumbing narrowly to Munster 'A' at home in the QF of a
competition they take more seriously than some others), meant
Pirates didn't register another league win until defeating Leeds at
home at the end of October.
Pirates then had another away draw, 9-9 at Mose, went down 32-6 at
Bedford, but had a rollicking 53-12 home win over Rotherham and a
grittier 11-10 success against Nottingham. Home form has remained a
key factor, with seven wins from 10 so far. On the road, the only
success in 11 attempts since winning in Jersey was in completing
the derby double - clotted cream on top - against Albion with a
narrow 5-9 Boxing Day win.
The opening months of the New Year saw Bristol defeated handsomely
at the Mennaye, where Doncaster were also despatched on February
10th, leaving Pirates sitting pretty in the play-off race. But
since this time their form has dipped - just one home league match
in 10 weeks (why do people complain about the fixture scheduling
exactly?!) in which Moseley were defeated 17-14, but six league
defeats in that period to end any prospect of a top-four
place.
To be fair to Pirates, the six defeats included visits to the four
likely play-off teams, including 50-3 at Kingston Park. Last week,
in the space of five days, they made trips to Rotherham and
Nottingham, taking part in two try-fests where the line was
breached 19 times in all in scorelines of 41-28 and 28-26. Perhaps
this factor, and the prospect of a dry day this Saturday, with the
pressure off to some extent, indicates we may have another
high-scoring affair on our hands? /*sits back and waits for
dreary 6-6 draw to unfold*/
The Pirates squad for the game will be announced on Friday morning
on the club's website and added here later in the day as travel
arrangements permit. Here it is now!!
There will inevitably be a range of emotions felt about the
Mennaye Field, with it already known that prop Paul Andrew is off
to Worcester Warriors and flanker Phil Burgess is joining the
England 7s squad. Also on Saturday it will be a 136th and last game
in a Cornish Pirates shirt for Wes Davies, who will receive a warm
applause as he emerges first out of the stand tunnel and onto the
field. Prop Ryan Storer, who last week made his 100th appearance
for the club away to Rotherham, will also be shown worthy
appreciation when he gets his call off the bench in front of the
home crowd.
Cornish Pirates: K. Moyle, W. Davies, T. Riley, S. Hill,
M. Evans, K. Hallett, G. Cattle (capt), B. Maidment, P. Burgess, J.
Tyas, G. Johnson, D. Lyons, P. Joyce, D. Semmens, P. Andrew.
Replacements: R. Storer, W. Tanner, M. Maidment, L.
McGlone, A. Cheesman, T. Kessell, B. Mercer.
Referee: Tom Foley (RFU) Assistants: Jonathan
Healy & James Minards
Cornish Pirates history
The early days of rugby in West Cornwall saw Penzance and Newlyn
as rival clubs who waged some feisty battles on the pitch to
determine local bragging rights. Penzance, formed in 1876 and
Newlyn, who started in 1894, actually stopped playing each other
from 1929-32 because of public order concerns. Food for thought
with the annual Jersey v Guernsey encounter just around the
corner!
However the entente became rather more cordiale towards the end of
the 1930s and in 1945 the clubs merged, playing their first game
against Guy's Hospital on September 22nd of that year (odds on a
Channel Islands' merger - anyone?!).
The 1950s was a golden era, with crowds of 5,000 or more not
uncommon, and two P&N players, John Kendall Carpenter and John
'Ginger' Williams being capped for England in the 1951 Calcutta
Cup.
In 1969 the legendary prop Brian 'Stack' Stevens (above) made
his England debut, going on to earn 25 caps including a try in the
incredible away win in New Zealand in 1973 - worth seeking out on
Youtube.
The Pirates (the nickname was upgraded to a proper name in 2005)
have continued to have a sprinkling of internationals, although in
recent years it's been a more cosmopolitan affair, including Victor
Olonga (Zimbabwe), Villi Ma'asi (Tonga), Heino Senekal (Namibia)
and Stan McKeen (Canada). Hooker Rob Elloway, was twice capped for
Germany, the land of his birth, in 2009-10.
When league rugby began in 1987/88 the Pirates (P&N) were in
the Cornwall and Devon League, but the club had a steady run of
success culminating in their arrival at level two in 2003. So far,
that's as high as they have reached, although there remain great
ambitions to emulate Devon neighbours Exeter and establish a
Cornish presence at the top level of the English game.
Building a stadium is a key factor in the Pirates top-level
ambitions, and after a long campaign the Stadium for Cornwall in
Truro was granted planning permission earlier this month. There's
still a long way to go, but it is hoped that the green light from
planning authorities may help the club clear the major financial
and other hurdles which remain.
In the meantime, it is hoped to upgrade Mennaye Field for the
remainder of its time as the Pirates' home, including floodlights
which are now lacking at only two Championship clubs (Rotherham is
the other). The changes are being spearheaded by Chairman and
long-time benefactor Dicky Evans, alongside the former England
international Josh Lewsey (55 caps for his country and three for
the Lions), who recently joined the club as CEO & Performance
Director (and is pictured below).
The Championship this Saturday
Main interest focuses on the lower reaches of the race for
play-off positions. Bedford, Leeds and Bristol are fighting over
two remaining slots, with the team finishing highest (i.e. 3rd)
having the benefit of avoiding Newcastle in the semi-finals. Jersey
still harbour hopes of overtaking Moseley, and perhaps even
Plymouth, but this would involve getting a win over the
Pirates
Leeds v Nottingham; Moseley v Bedford; Doncaster v Plymouth;
Rotherham v London Scottish; Newcastle v Bristol (all KOs at
3pm)
Home Tweet Home
A new innovation by the RFU will see the first ever live streaming
of a game via the social media site Twitter, supporters of the two
clubs having joined forces to ensure the match topped the RFU's
poll, claiming 29% of the votes.
Those people who've been scratching their heads about how you
watch a rugby match on Twitter need not be embarrassed - it's never
happened before!
Fortunately, according to the RFU at least, it shouldn't be a
massive technical challenge. The following information may
help:
* Setting up a Twitter account is straightforward via https://twitter.com after which users should
find and follow @rfuchampionship
* A video player will be embedded at the top of the
@rfuchampionship page on which the game will be shown, with the
usual tweets and other information beneath
* The broadcast will start at 2.45pm with pre-match interviews and
team news; commentary will be provided by former radio journalist
Mark Stevens, now the Exeter Chiefs' press officer, with summariser
Chris Morgan, the injured Pirates flanker
* Towards the end of the game there will be an opportunity to vote
for the man-of-the-match - instructions will be provided - and to
send questions to the teams' coaching staff, to be answered after
the final whistle. Use the hash-tag #rfuchamplive if you want to
get interactive
* As with any other issues involving internet access, a reliable
and fast broadband connection is likely to be the single biggest
factor in ensuring a good quality picture.
Following the game
Don't forget that, as well as Twitter you can keep up-to-speed
with news from Jersey v Pirates through the following
channels:
• Preview on BBC Radio Jersey from 5.30- 6pm on Friday, and live
commentary on Saturday afternoon (available online and on your
transistor-wireless device
• Preview in Friday's JEP, and full match coverage on
Monday
• TV coverage on the Channel TV website, and on local (CI) ITV at
around 6.15pm on Monday
• Scoreflashes on @jerseyrfc Twitter and the 'Rolling Maul' rugby
forum
• Match report on Channel 103 FM soon after 5pm on Saturday, plus
updates during the match
The Pirates' website is well worth a look including
a preview from their perspective and lots of info including an
extended history.
And Finally
Maybe it's end of season excitement, but there are loads of 'and
finallys' jostling for position this week. To hell with it, let's
use 'em all!
It's the Junior Siam Cup weekend, with all age groups from
under 7 (is that months- or years-old?) to Colts taking on their
Channel Island rivals Guernsey, who this week mounted a virtual
takeover of Saturday's Condor sailing with a booking for 405 people
for the return trip to Jersey. Games will take place throughout the
day with more details of the Siam festival, sponsored by Ronez, on
the Academy website.
Three adult games of note in Jersey over the next few days - a
touring side from Huddersfield will take on both Banks (Saturday,
2pm at Grainville) and LQ (Sunday, 12noon at St Peter), [pls
note amended, correct times] while next Wednesday there is an
evening match at St P, Banks playing Jersey Athletic in the Sugden
Cup semi-final (winner plays LQ on May 8th)
One Jersey supporter, anticipating a landmark occasion, rang
during mid-season to ask about availability at the pre-match lunch.
When told that space for individual bookings was fully occupied, he
changed tack, and subsequently part-emulated the late great Victor
Kiam, who liked Remington razors so much he bought the company.
This explains why the official match-sponsor of Cornish Pirates v
Jersey will be Mike Edmunds' 60th Birthday - have a canny birthday
Mike!
Let's hope that match referee Tom Foley wraps up warm, we wouldn't
want him emulating last weekend's official. International ref
Andrew Small took charge of Jersey v Doncaster, but was taken ill
later in the day and subsequently hospitalised and diagnosed with
pneumonia. Happily 'Sir' was well enough to be discharged on
Wednesday and was scheduled to fly back to England today
(Friday).
A healthy contingent of Jersey fans is expected at the
Mennaye, the fixture was one that many were looking out for once
promotion was achieved 12 months ago this weekend, and with a late
season slot and more than 10 months' notice, it became a must. Some
plans were affected, tho' we hope not drastically so, by the
cancellation of Thursday's Condor ferry from Jersey to Poole, so
perhaps Clive Pearce's option wasn't such a bad idea - the loyal
fan and unofficial brand ambassador for Liberation Ale was heading
to St Malo with his motorbike, riding to the western Breton port of
Roscoff and crossing to Plymouth before heading over the Tamar into
Cornwall.
Whether you're following on Twitter, cheering on Jersey's juniors
against the old enemy, or heading to the Mennaye...
Enjoy your weekend's rugby! (can you tell I'm
excited?!)
Tom Innes
