SCRUM-half James Cantin darted across for four tries in the 44-26 win over Penzance & Newlyn that lifted Ivybridge RFC into the South West Two play-off places.

The Pirates chipped away at a 29-19 half-time deficit to get back to 29-26 behind with 15 minutes to go.

Two tries from Cantin – he already had a couple by then – put fresh wind into Ivybridge sails and they went on to close out a memorable win.

Victory took Ivybridge up to fifth place at the expense of Crediton, whose seven-match winning streak ended with a 45-22 defeat at Okehampton.

Ivybridge are one of four teams deadlocked on 56 points behind runaway leaders Weston. They have games in hand on all of them except Tiverton, which they will hope to cash-in on as the play-off race unfolds.

Steve Atkinson, the Ivybridge coach, said one look at the team-sheet prior to the match told him all he needed to know about the 80 minutes ahead.

“Penzance came with a full-strength side, so we knew they were coming to play,” said Atkinson.

“Penzance had a good game plan of hard running, but I think they just threw the kitchen sink in the last 15 minutes and ran out of steam.

“There was a period of nerves on the sidelines while Penzance had a decent go at attacking our line, but we held out and finished them off in the last 10 minutes when we got another two tries.”

Penzance put the first points in the board with an interception try that caught Ivybridge off guard.

Tries from Cantin, Owen Alp and Adam Lilley, plus a couple of kicks from Charlie Teague, helped the Bridge into a 22-7 lead.

Having been caught once by an interception try, the Bridge bench was disappointed to be caught a second time.

“We tried to make some adjustments due to their line speed but they didn’t seem to get through to everyone and we got picked off again for another interception try,” said Atkinson.

“Penzance had a really good period and we had to defend hard.”

Cantin added a second try before the break – that was the bonus-point score – and the kick opened-up a 29-19 lead.

After Penzance has reduced the leeway to three points, Ivybridge were glad of a Teague penalty for creating a six-point cushion. Cantin’s try double sealed it.