COACHES THOUGHTS FOLLOWING CORNWALL UNDER 20S GAME WITH CORNWALL FIRE SERVICES
It was a steep learning curve for the Cornish youngsters against the Cornwall Fire Services XV which boasted several players with senior experience.
The final score of 52-14 to the Firemen under the Hayle floodlights was perhaps a little harsh on the lads who stuck at it and showed plenty of promise.
Speaking after the game Cornwall coaches Josh Lord and Richie Kevern gave me their thoughts. Josh felt that the lads could take a lot of heart from their performance. “There were masses of good points to take from tonight’s game, a lot of new boys coming into the squad and putting their hat in the ring for the nest trial game.
Josh acknowledged his side was up against it especially at scrum-time. “We were up against a well-drilled and solid pack with a lot of experience, at this level you would expect them to dominate against a fairly young pack that had never played together before. I do feel that we adapted to the challenge as the game wore on and we can take a lot of credit out of the game.
“We had a good chat at half-time we set out some goals for the second forty and I felt we accomplished what we had planned, we looked a better unit and played some good rugby when we moved the ball.
Josh confirmed that the preparations are going well with training sessions at Truro College on a Sunday morning. “We are building for the opening championship game against Devon at St. Austell (Sunday 3rd Feb kick-off 2 pm). We will be building up our training ahead of our next trial game against Culdrose in January.
Josh acknowledges that the expectations are high following last season’s run to the final. “After tasting getting to Twickenham last season the boys want to go one better. I felt the score-line last year flattered Yorkshire in some ways, no complaints on the result, but we went out in the second half determined to play and not try to damage limitation. I am convinced that it’s a mindset thing as opposed to an ability thing, if we believe then we can achieve.”
Richie Kevern expressed how pleased he was to be involved this season. “It’s been great to come in and be involved with a great bunch of lads. We’ve got some exceptional talent coming through with the right attitude and they want to play, have a go.
“You saw that at times today when they move the ball they create chances and look dangerous, it’s just that final pass or offload we need to work on to complete the puzzle.
Richie was also full of praise for the attitude of the players at training. “Top draw I have to say, there is a huge buzz around the squad after last year, numbers are good at training and they all want to make the squad, it’s a great credit that they turn up having played a game on Saturday but are still keen on a Sunday morning. Josh and I are going to have a hard job picking the squad because so many boys are pushing their cases for inclusion.”