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TThey definitely would have been dancing in the sunny streets of Penzance, honestly. Yet even without a crowd, this was one of Cornwall’s best rugby days of all time, more than worth a sea shack or two when the local pubs can reopen. For anyone who has ever felt that English rugby mandarins should pay more attention to those outside of the Premiership, it was just as sweet. Cornish Pirates 25 Saracens 17. Let the score settle for a while.
What an announcement for the Championship it was and what a resounding message it sends to those who would cut the second tier with cash problems on their knees.
After the final whistle, with the sun setting over Mounts Bay, Pirates co-coach Alan Paver described it as “an iconic moment” in terms of what it said both about his team and about the league. “People have to respect what the Championship is about. We have to keep it going and we have to invest in it. Today it just shows that we can do it, that we are valuable to rugby. “
His counterpart, Mark McCall, took a different tone, describing it as “a very difficult and humbling day,” but he openly acknowledged the Pirates’ superiority on the piece set. The stubborn of the Saracens, Vincent Koch, has a world champion medal in his collection; suddenly a front row sponsored in part by a local confectionery was pushing him back.
Several of this Saracen lineup have also won European titles; here they looked very average every time the great local captain, Tom Duncan, had the ball.
Sometimes the only thing that kept the Saracens in the game was their defensive organization. Otherwise, the Pirates, down 10-8 at halftime, were good value for money and mostly had the visiting scrum in a toast.
Jay Tyack, Dan Frost, Marlen Walker, Fa’atiga Lemalu, John Stevens, Josh Caulfield, Danny Cutmore, once from Saracens academy, and Duncan aren’t household names, but they gave their opponents a review.
It wasn’t even as if the Saracens were being ambushed by a fit team. This was the club’s first league game in a year and their preparation included a preparation match against Jersey last week.
“The guys weren’t in shape,” said Paver, the architect of the Pirates’ flashy scrum dominance. “They were probably fine for 60 minutes, but it was all about sheer desire and passion.”
Which is precisely what makes rugby, on days like this, so wonderfully appealing. Who cares if you’re from the big city or how big your name is?
“It will be a revelation for them,” said the club’s executive director, Rebecca Thomas, before the start. “Nobody likes to come to the Mennaye.”
As it turned out, the weather was wonderfully mild, but the Saracens still ran aground. “Welcome to the championship,” said Paver. “They are the badlands. If you mess up on the 23rd, the men will beat you up. That’s the beauty of it. “
It was a joyous throwback for those who enjoy rugby in its purest and most unspoiled form. Cornish veterans who have seen them come and go believe it to be the most surprising result this evocative terrain has seen in the professional era. You have to go back to the 1950s, when the best Welsh teams like Cardiff were defeated, to find something with a similar national resonance.
The Pirates’ three top scorers, Duncan, Dan Frost and Rhodri Davies, and their kicker, Luke Scully, certainly deserve more respect than has come from Rugby Football Union and Premiership Rugby of late.
As the Pirates’ main benefactor, Dicky Evans, has made clear, moves to protect the first division and divest funds to championship teams ignore the potential benefits the league has to offer.
In France, for the sake of comparison, the top three leagues will benefit from an excellent new deal among the top 14 televisions worth three times that of the Premiership. Here, there is only myopia and, as recently as Friday, not a shred of regret for the 75% funding cut this season.
“The money subsidized the losses and it was not a good investment for the game,” said an RFU spokesman.
Seriously? As shipwrecked Saracens now understand, the world of English rugby does not begin or end in the Premiership.
