OLD TECHS and Liskeard-Looe got their pre-season campaigns up and running on Saturday with a 55-minute friendly at Weston Mill.
Counties Two Cornwall side Liskeard-Looe overcame their Devon Three South & West hosts 31-5.
Both clubs were struggling for players due to the holiday season, but Liskeard-Looe were the more organised team on the day and made the fewer mistakes.
The Lions counterattacked well and showed some good support and off-loading play on their way to scoring five tries.
Most of their scores did come from mistakes by Techs, who struggled to get into their game after three months off.
However, for both clubs it was just about blowing off the cobwebs and getting a run-out on a warm, but windy day.
Liskeard-Looe, playing with the strong wind for the first 40 minutes, took the lead after just five minutes when scrum-half Jay Mason scored and Callum Beaver converted.
Techs did pull level five minutes later when ‘flying’ winger Phil Flowers crossed in the left corner after a good break and off-load by Billy Evans.
Liskeard-Looe though responded and scored a second try in the 13th minute when hooker Jack Badnall went under the posts after the visitors broke straight through the middle of Techs’ defence.
In the second 20-minute period, the Lions added two more tries with number eight Yestin Hutchings scoring on the left and then hooker Badnall ran in from the halfway line after Techs lost the ball attacking. That made it 26-5 at the end of 40 minutes.
With both teams picking up some minor knocks and tiring, they only played another 15 minutes, with the match ending after centre Will Cameron scored Liskeard-Looe’s fifth try.
The game did see Matt Simmonds pull on a Techs shirt again after he was persuaded to have a short run out after turning up to watch, while James Swallow and Josh Husband made their senior debuts for Liskeard-Looe.
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