Northumberland 25, Cornwall 11

Jun 2 2008 by Mark Douglas, The Journal

COMETH the hour, cometh the men. Twickenham was barely stirring at the ungodly hour that Northumberland were summoned to kick off their County Championship Shield final but it mattered not a jot to Tom Borthwick’s side as they earned their place in North East rugby history.

The Rugby Football Union decreed a 10am start to keep the final of this 100-year-old competition at its spiritual Twickenham home – an awkward albeit necessary step as the RFU looked to squeeze the game in before the money-spinning England-Barbarians showcase later in the day.

To combat fatigue, Northumberland had staged an early-morning training session on Saturday, and it paid off in fine style as they snuffed out the threat of Cornish opponents who, for all their support and bluster, looked decidedly leggy against a spirited side.

After a bruising 80 minutes, no one could say Northumberland didn’t deserve to end their season with a flourish. Like Cornwall, the Northumberland Rugby Football Union are proud defenders of the county rugby tradition and while detractors might argue the Championship has lost some of its lustre since the dawn of the professional era it remains a fiercely competitive tournament. Indeed, it required one final supreme effort from Northumberland to shake off the rigours of their punishing campaign and register the county’s first Twickenham victory for a generation. Considering the strength of their opposition it was no mean feat from Borthwick’s men, who managed to keep Cornwall at arm’s length for much of a contest that was absorbing and brutal.

Aside from some trouble at the line-out, chief coach Borthwick’s gameplan was executed with perfect precision as Northumberland matched Cornwall’s bruising pack blow for blow and then pounced with a rapier-sharp attack.

While Cornwall exerted early pressure, with lock Richard Carroll to the fore, it was never enough to put Northumberland in any serious danger. Pace, once again, was a crucial factor. Cornwall surrendered the ball and Northumberland were able to move quickly to the flank where Gavin Beasley fed Jack Smailes who raced over the line.

The lively Beasley was having a mixed day with the boot but when Cornwall denied Northumberland illegally at a scrimmage five yards out he gave his side some breathing space with a precise kick from close range. Cornwall’s influential fly-half Matt Scrivenor was more effective with his kicks and his 30-yard-penalty shortly before the half-time whistle brought the game closer to parity and gave Cornwall hope. Northumberland’s strength-in-depth saw them through their only real period of danger in the first ten minutes of the second period.

Captain Dave Guthrie had hailed his team-mates as the best collection of players the county has assembled for a decade and one-by-one they were required to step up as the weary North players began to fall. Desperate last-ditch tackles were the order of the day as replacements Andrew Murray and Matthew Fieldhouse weighed in with crucial interceptions, but Cornwall did finally breach the defence when Paul Thirlby broke through.

Characteristically, Northumberland’s riposte was brutally effective. Once again, quick feet and quick wits were important as Peter Cole burst through a pack of Cornwall shirts to latch onto a clever chipped kick and register their third, decisive try. Afterwards the skipper, sporting a nasty black eye for his troubles, pin-pointed the team’s replacements as playing a pivotal role. “We knew we had good, strong players on the bench who could make a difference if they were called on,” he said.

With the trophy secured, Northumberland will step up to the Bill Beaumont Cup next season. But with their forward-thinking coach secured for another season – and Tynedale moving up to National League Division Two – it is a challenge they will tackle with some relish. Guthrie believes the county will continue to strengthen in the seasons ahead. “The county has a very strong tradition and it is full credit to the committee for the way that they approach things,” he said. “Tom’s an excellent coach and the county side has really developed under him in the last few years. What will strengthen this squad even more is Tynedale have gone up from division three so you’ll have a big pool of players to pick from. The future is certainly bright for the county.”

YORKSHIRE lifted the Bill Beaumont Cup after winning the county championship final 33-13 against Devon.

SCORING – Northumberland: Cole (try); Smales (try); Beasley (try, pen, con); Murray (try); Cornwall: Thirlby (try); Scrivenor (2 pens).

NORTHUMBERLAND: J Smales (Tynedale), P Cole (Morpeth), B Duncan (Tynedale), P Mooney (Otley), H Smales (Launceston), Gavin Beasley (Tynedale), D Kay (Northern), J Williams (Tynedale), M Hall (Blaydon), R Harden (Tynedale), D Guthrie (Blaydon, capt), G Smith (London Scottish), T Swinson (Tynedale), G.Rastall (Tynedale), J.Smithson (Blaydon).

Replacements: P Winter (Blaydon) on for Harden; A Murray (Tynedale) on for Smith; D Whitehead (Blaydon) on for Smithson; M Fieldhouse (Tynedale) on for Hall; Grant Beasley (Tynedale) on for Williams; C Rayner (Darlington MP) on for Smales, P Southern (Tynedale) on for Guthrie.

CORNWALL: P Thirlby (Redruth); L Vinnicombe (Redruth); R Westren (Cornish All Blacks), S Perry (Cornish All Blacks), J Semmens (Mounts Bay), M Scrivenor (Cornish All Blacks), M Richards (Redruth), D Jacques (Redruth), J Salter (Mounts Bay), D Clackworthy (Mounts Bay), R Carroll (Mounts Bay), B Hilton (Mounts Bay), J Lord (Launceston, capt), A Nicholls (Mounts Bay), S Hocking (Launceston).

Replacements: R Pellow (Mounts Bay) on for Thirlby; S Parsons (Cornish Pirates) on for Vinnicombe; D Semmens (Mounts Bay) on for Salter; J Griffiths (Mounts Bay) on for Jacques; J Bolt (Cornish All Blacks) on for Carroll.