GAMES do not come much bigger than Devonport Services’ clash with Topsham at the Rectory on Saturday.
With just four games of the Regional One South West campaign to go, this weekend’s clash between the top two could turn out to be a winner-takes-all affair.
Services go into the top-of-the-table fixture just two points ahead of their Exeter area rivals.
If Devonport could win then they would have the luxury of being able to slip up in one of their final three matches against Launceston away, Marlborough at home and Sidmouth away.
However, if Topsham take the spoils this weekend, then they would be the one in pole position with home matches against Exmouth, Matson and Launceston to finish with.
“It has come down to this weekend,” said Services head coach Ben Russell.
“Although it still won’t be over as there will still be three games to go.
“It should be a cracking game on Saturday.
“Hopefully, there will be a big crowd and there will be a cup final feel about it, as it is a bit of a winner-takes-all game.
“It would give us a bit of a buffer, if we did win, but we’ll see what happens.
“I think the lads are up for it.
“We can’t get overawed by thinking about it as a possible winner-takes-all game. We just have to play the game we play. If we deserve to win; we deserve to win it and if we don’t; we don’t.”
When the sides met at Bonfire Field in November, Topsham had been 24-10 up at half-time, but Services came back and snatched a 31-31 draw with a last minute try and conversion.
“I think Topsham have been absolutely brilliant this year,” said Russell.
“They will know that deep down they should have beaten us at their place and I’m sure they will take some confidence from that.
“But we know we were nowhere near it on the day and had a load of boys missing.
“Hopefully, this week we can have near to our strongest team possible.”
Services should have the same forward pack out to the one that they fielded last weekend in their 26-18 win at Exmouth.
However, they might have to change their backline as they are waiting to see if Dan Lilley and Matt Neyle are available. Lilley could be working, while Neyle came off last weekend with a sore back.
George Pooley is available again this weekend and is likely to start, while Harrison Coonick could be back in contention after making his comeback from a long-term hamstring injury as a replacement for the second team last weekend.
Services’ second team are also at home as they entertain Crediton II on Stonehouse Creek with a 2pm kick-off.
REGIONAL TWO SOUTH WEST
SIXTH-placed Ivybridge are expecting a ‘tough game’ when they host unbeaten league leaders Weston-super-Mare at Cross-in-Hand on Saturday.
The Bridgers feel it is a game where if they pick up anything it will be a bonus as they will be big underdogs against a side that has won 18 out of 18 league games this term.
Ivybridge are also likely to be missing a few players, including centre Adam Lilley and fly-half Shay Taylor.
“It is a bit of a free shot really,” admitted Ivybridge head coach Steve Atkinson.
“We are expecting a tough game and we do have a lot of unavailabilities.
“We’ll just have to see what they turn up with. But I’m sure they will probably come with a full strength side as they have travelled well all season.
“But our boys want to play and we are not playing against New Zealand. They probably could be beatable on their day.”
Ivybridge lost 35-0 away to Weston back in November.
“When we went up there, they kind of blew us away in the first 20 minutes,” said Atkinson.
“The middle third wasn’t bad, but we just couldn’t finish. I don’t think the scoreline really reflected the game as we probably played about 35 minutes of good rugby.
“But they (Weston) do play a really good brand of rugby, to be fair to them, and I think they will do all right next year.”
Ivybridge’s unavailabilities have presented them with a bit of a dilemma as their second team have a vital match away at Tavistock on Saturday and so they will not want to weaken that side too much.
“We are obviously thinking about Tavvy as well,” admitted Atkinson.
“I don’t want to flood the twos with first team players just to possibly win every game and stay up as I’m not that type of coach and it wouldn’t be fair on the second team lads, but this week we do need have a careful think due to availability.”
Matt Grieveson is likely to return at fly-half for the first team.
COUNTIES ONE WESTERN WEST
IT IS another big weekend in Western West with the battle to avoid finishing in the bottom two places hotting up.
Clubs in the division will have been boosted this week by news that the RFU are now indicating that there will only be a maximum of two teams going down, instead of the three they previously suggested, while it is still possible that no sides are relegated. How many clubs drop out of the league will depend on outcomes of promotion and relegation issues in leagues above.
The goal for both Saltash and Plymstock Oaks is to try and avoid finishing in the bottom two.
Oaks gave themselves a massive lifeline last weekend by snatching a 29-27 home victory over Saltash with the last kick of the game.
That moved them up to ninth in the standings, eight points clear of the bottom two, although they have played more games than the three teams below them.
Saltash stayed at the foot of the table after their heartbreaking lost last weekend, but they could move level on points with third-from-bottom Torquay Athletic if they could beat them at Moorlands Lane on Saturday.
With second-from-bottom Penryn facing a tough match against third-placed Barnstaple II and Oaks facing a tricky trip to seventh-placed St Ives, the bottom of the table could look completely different again at 5pm on Saturday.
Saltash insisted after last week’s loss that they are certainly not giving up hope of moving up the table, but they know they could do with a win against Torquay on Saturday.
“It is a huge game,” said Saltash player-coach Lewis Wells.
“Unfortunately, our pitch has taken a bit of a battering recently, but it had a week off and the weather is looking better.
“And we are getting a few regular faces back, which is always a help. Any depth at this level helps.
“There have been a few changes at the club, and we are certainly not going to give up.”
Saltash are set to be able to field virtually the same squad that out-scored Oaks five tries to three last weekend, but prop Liall Honey is missing after he picked up a nasty-looking knee injury in the closing stages of the game at Horsham Fields. Fin Jones does return to the matchday squad on the bench after missing much of the season with a broken wrist.
Oaks will be looking for revenge when they visit St Ives after the Hakes beat them 46-12 at Horsham Fields in November.
“We gave them five tries in the first 20 minutes at our place,” said Oaks coach Mike Lewis. “You are never going to win a game of rugby if you give a team a five-try start. The rest of the game was pretty even and we cancelled each other out.
“They had a fantastic scrum and put us under a lot of pressure there, but line-out and mauls we were on top and around the park was pretty even, it was just that first 20 minutes.
“It was just one of those that we just didn’t get right at the start.
“But we are capable of beating them, for sure.”
Last week’s last-gasp win over Saltash has given Oaks an eight-point gap from the bottom two, although they have played more games.
“It is in our own hands,” said Lewis. “We are in control, but we have to make sure we do it.
“We have got games against teams around us like St Ives, Newton Abbot and Torquay.”
Lewis admits last week’s win, which ended a run of three consecutives losses was really needed.
“The players loved it and the supporters loved it. It is all they have talked about all week,” he said..
“It was like a cup final win because of the players we had missing, the occasion, the team we were playing against – just everything.”
Oaks are likely to have a similar looking side to the one that beat Saltash last weekend, but they are likely to be missing front-rowers Josh Breed and Josh Waters.”
COUNTIES TWO DEVON
THERE is a crucial game towards the bottom of the table as Tavistock host Ivybridge II at Sandy Park.
Tavvy boosted their hopes of staying up last weekend by beating OPMs 38-12 at King George V Playing Fields.
With Ivybridge II surprisingly slipping up at home to previously winless Dartmouth, it moved Tavistock eight points clear of the bottom two places and three points clear of third-from-bottom Crediton II, who play leaders Devonport Services II this weekend.
Both Tavistock and Ivybridge II know this Saturday’s clash is one they both need to try and win if they hope to stay up.
“There’s nowhere to hide this week,” said Tavistock head coach Leigh Puttock.
“If we want to win, we’ll have to earn every inch and win every battle on the original Sandy Park pitch.
“We’re hoping our home crowd will bring the noise and be our 19th man.”
He added: “There is a real buzz around the place after last week’s big performance, but this week the focus has been firmly on getting our feet back on the ground.
“We know the hard work is still to be done, and if we’re going to pick up more wins they have to be earned.
“Ivybridge are a massive club compared to us and there is never an easy game against any of their sides.
“We know we’ll have to do the basics well and keep the physicality at the absolute maximum for the full 80 minutes.”
Ivybridge II know they need to win and they did beat Tavistock 21-12 at Cross-in-Hand in November.
Ivybridge head coach Steve Atkinson hopes his team did learn a lesson last weekend against Dartmouth.
“I watched the video of the twos last week and we just didn’t turn up for the first half but in the final 20 minutes they played really well,” he said. “Maybe it was a bit of complacency.”
The Bridgers do have a number of unavailabilities and have delayed naming a side.
Tavistock, meanwhile, are boosted by the return of Calum Baker, Chris Watts, Toby Teague and Andrew Schuttkacker.
Puttock says the experienced Schuttkacker will ‘help bring cohesion and leadership to the pack’, which will also include fellow veteran Martin Budden.
Tavistock are able to name a strong front row of Charlie Charlton, Hammy Kerswill and Richard Cann.
There is a place in the matchday squad for colt Rory Cox.
“Rory has earned a place on the bench,” said Puttock. “He has been selected ahead of more experienced players purely on the strength of the work he has been putting in – it has not gone unnoticed.”
OPMs have got dragged into the bottom half of the table scramble. They dropped down to ninth last weekend after losing to Tavistock, but they are due to receive five points from their game against Dartmouth that was ended early by the referee.
That will boost them a bit, but they will need to start picking up a few more wins to stay away from trouble.
The Old Boys do face a tough trip this weekend when they head to Exeter Saracens, who have a good home record.
Only Topsham II and Devonport Services II have managed a win at Exhibition Fields this season, but OPMs will take confidence from the fact that they beat Exeter Saracens 42-26 at home in November.
“Hopefully, we can do the double over Exeter Saracens on Saturday,” said OPMs head coach James Digweed.
“We do now have to pull our finger out if we want to aim for a top six finish.”
Devonport Services II will be looking to extend their lead further at the top of the table.
Services II are six points clear of second-placed Bideford with a game in hand.
This week Services II host third-from-bottom Crediton II, while Bideford have a tricky trip to South Molton.
Devonport’s second string really took command of the division last weekend by beating then second-placed Topsham II 82-12 at home.
“The team have to back up last weekend,” said Services head coach Ben Russell.
“But I would like to think we do have too much fire-power at the moment.”
COUNTIES THREE DEVON SOUTH & WEST
OLD Techs have been left frustrated after Totnes handed them a home walkover on Saturday.
Techs were also handed a home walkover in their last scheduled fixture at Weston Mill by Salcombe.
“Totnes have said they cannot raise a side this week as they have so many injuries and unavailabilities,” said Techs’ Shaun Bedford-Smith.
“It was not something we were expecting, and it means we have not had a home game since January 10 as Salcombe also cancelled.”
Seventh-placed Tamar Saracens are on the road this weekend when they visit fifth-placed Torquay Athletic II.
The sides have yet to meet in the league as their fixture at the Parkway was called off just before kick-off in November when Sarries’ posts fell down. That game is pencilled in for May 2.
“Torquay is always a tough place to go, but we’ll see what happens,” said Tamar Saracens captain Adam Corbett. “Hopefully, we’ll have good availability and we can go up there and put another performance in.”
Fourth-placed Plymouth Argaum will be wary of second-from-bottom Kingsbridge II, who will arrive at Bickleigh Down on the back of their first win of the season.
Kingsbridge II ended a long run without a victory by seeing off Plymstock Oaks II 29-0 at Horsham Fields.
It will be the first meeting of the clubs as Kingsbridge II did hand Argaum a walkover in November.
Argaum will go into Saturday’s game boosted by their last-gasp win over The Medics in the Lockie Cup last weekend.
Plymstock Oaks II are likely to have availability problems again as they host the inconsistent Salcombe at Horsham Fields.
Oaks II are third-from-bottom and have lost their last eight games.
Bottom side Plympton Victoria have a massive test on their hands this weekend as they visit runaway leaders Brixham II.
Plym Vic, who have recently lost Jordan Blair to Ivybridge, are still waiting for their first win of the season while Brixham II are unbeaten at home.
In Counties Three Cornwall, Saltash II, who have won their last two matches, are due to host St Ives II.