Match Preview - Albion v Pirates

By Dick Straughan
April 6 2007

The Cornish Pirates have had a strange two weeks since their epic triumph against Plymouth Albion in the EDF Trophy semi-final. Plagued by injuries and beaten twice on the road, Jim McKay`s will be looking for a major boost ahead of their trip to Twickenham.

It would be churlish to read too much into the Pirates 16-10 defeat at London Welsh last Saturday, followed by a 41-10 thumping at Goldington Road just four days later. With so many of his first team squad suffering from injuries Pirates Head Coach Jim McKay was forced to effectively field a Development XV on Wednesday night.

With ex-Coventry man Paul Jones brought out of retirement, a debut for Lewis Webb, hooker Owen Hambly at Centre, and Academy boys Sam Parsons and Darren Dawiduik again featuring prominently the Pirates were always going to start as clear underdogs. Injuries to Rhodri McAtee and Heino Senekal during the game coupled with two sin-binnings made matters even worse, yet in extreme adversity the patched-up Pirates produced another gutsy display.

"We will just cop it and move on", McKay told the Press after the game. Still clearly irritated by Bedford`s insistence that the Pirates make the 720 mile round trip just 72 hours before the battle at Brickfields. However he will be hoping to be able to select from a larger pool of players for the trip just across the Tamar. With skipper Gavin Cattle, Alan Paver, Vili Ma`asi, Stan McKeen, Duncan Roke, Alberto Di Bernardo and Adryan Winnan all hoping to be fit, a much more even contest is expected.

Plymouth Albion, who won at Camborne 26-13 in December, will be pushing hard to secure the league double over their local rivals. Beaten only once at home this season and in good form since their mid-winter wobble, Albion thrashed Moseley at Brickfields last Saturday to take them within one league point of the stuttering Pirates.

Albion`s Director of Rugby, Graham Dawe, this week bemoaned the loss to injury for the remainder of the season of Argentinian Federico Genoud. With doubts over the fitness for Saturday of Tom Arscott and Wihan Neetling coupled with long-term injuries for Colin Stewart, Martin Rice and Francisco Deformes there is standing room only in the Albion treatment room as well. Tim Mathias, Nigel Cane and Danny Thomas were also missing last Saturday.

A big holiday crowd is expected at Brickfields with Albion starting as favourites. The action kick-off at 3pm.