Ivybridge U14s 5,

Newquay Hornets 24

Newquay emerged victorious in a battle between two reigning county champions in a tight game that might have gone either way until two Newquay tries in the final five minutes.

This was a bruising encounter between two powerful sides. Strong defence was evident throughout but New­quay’s power and control in the final minutes was just enough to see them home.

To improve teams have to play the best teams and so Ivybridge have looked to extend their fixture list by playing opposition from further afield.

The Ivybridge scrum looked solid, with the front five dominant, but line-outs continue to need some work with the uncontested element, now a feature of U14s rules, needing careful interpretation.

Newquay opened the scoring after winning quick ball and finding space out wide.

Ivybridge came back quickly and having been camped in the Newquay 22 for several minutes they were able to move the ball through the hands to Archie Bryan, who touched down.

The second half opened with another Newquay try, their excellent number eight making the most of space and uncertainty in the midfield.

The rest of the second half was nip and tuck, but just as Ivy­bridge were building up a head of steam unforced errors crept in and the pressure on the Newquay line was relieved.

In the dying mo­ments Newquay’s tall centre was able to burst through twice to extend Newquay’s winning margin but in reality this game was closer than the score suggests.