TRIBUTE South West One (West) side Launceston have confirmed the signings of Adam Collings and Will Morton to their first team squad at Polson Bridge.

Collings, 28, rejoins his boyhood club from Tribute Western Counties (West) club Wadebridge Camels where he’s been captain for the last two seasons, while flying winger Morton makes the move from Saltash after scoring 33 tries in all competitions in a season which saw them win promotion from the Tribute Cornwall and Devon League and make the final of the National Senior Vase at Twickenham.

Collings is a well-known figure at Polson Bridge having worked his way up through the Minis and Juniors and Colts sections, as well as making a number of first team appearances either side of two stints at the Camels.

He left Launceston at the age of 20 and has spent six of the last eight seasons at Wadebridge either side of a two-year spell at the All Blacks in between.

However with the Cornish outfit looking to climb back up the leagues, the scrum-half admits that the chance to return home was impossible to ignore.

He said: “The opportunity to work with Westy (Ryan Westren) and Goldie (Ian Goldsmith), coupled with the chance to play at the club I started with was too good to turn down.

“Launceston are also going back to being a community club and with them putting together a really good squad, I wanted to be part of it.”

Such was his influence at Wadebridge, he’d been made captain for the past couple of seasons, and Collings believes he can make a difference.

He said: “I’ve developed myself as a player and I’ve gained more experience which I can hopefully bring to a young side and help us push for promotion and get Launceston back into National League rugby.

“I played against them in the Cornwall Cup last season and I could see they had potential and playing against old mates made me want to get back involved.”

Collings was also quick to praise his departing club, adding: “I’ve been at Wadebridge for the last three seasons and captain for two where I’ve played every game. They’re an awesome group of boys and I wish them the best of luck for next season.”

Talking about his new recruit, joint head coach, Ryan Westren, said: “Adam is Launceston through and through. He’s already played some games for the club.

“We were looking for an experienced nine and he’ll add another dimension for us. He was a thorn in our side down there last year and he was highly thought of down there being the captain.

“He’s also a leader and with us being a young side, he’ll bring a hard edge to him and when times get tough he’s the sort of person you want. We want ability and people from the local area and Adam fits the bill.”

While Collings is already well-known, try-machine Morton might not be.

An out and out winger, who’s spent his entire career at Saltash, Morton broke into the Cornwall squad at the end of last season and at the age of 27 wants to help the All Blacks move back up the English rugby pyramid.

He said: “It was a tough decision to leave Saltash, but having had a few training sessions with Cornwall I realised I wanted to see if I could play at a higher level.

“I was approached by Launceston at Christmas, but I didn’t want to leave midway through the season while they were pushing for promotion. However I recently had a chat with Ryan and Ian and they were both really positive, so I decided to join.

“I’ll hopefully bring a lot of tries as well as a bit of speed, a bit of flair and some good counter attacks.”

Westren was again delighted to get his man and believes that Morton’s ambition could make him a standout player.

He said: “Will is a natural try-scorer and the move helps us and helps him.

“He wants to play for Cornwall, so it’s a bit of a two-way street. He brings a try-scoring edge.

“Compared to last season’s top-two we were a little bit off when it came to try bonus points so that’s an area we were looking to improve. The more firepower you have at your disposal, the more likely it is that you’ll take your chances when they arrive.”

With the rest of last year’s backline currently staying at Polson Bridge, competition for places is going to be fierce.

Westren said:?“You need strength in depth and to be able to change the dynamics, but we’re now not actively seeking to add anymore backs.

“You have dips in form as well as injuries and unavailability so you need it, but there’s going to be some serious competition for places and that’s what we want.

“For example, last year Shaun Crawford did a fantastic job considering he’d never played at nine before, but it’s a key position and with Adam and Shaun as well as Dom Mulberry, who’s a really good scrum-half in his own right and has come back from travelling, there’s lots of competition for places just for that shirt.”

While the backs look settled, Westren and Goldsmith’s attentions now turn to the pack with at least two new forwards on their agenda.

Westren said: “We’re actively looking for a couple of forwards if they’re a suitable fit but we’re not going to break the bank in doing so and we’ll wait until they become available.”

One area Westren is likely to be targeting is the front row.

Colossal tighthead-prop Zac Cinnamond missed the last couple games of the season to focus on his accountancy job in Bristol and has now moved out to Hong?Kong.

He’ll be joined by his younger brother Rory, who is also a prop, after the first couple of games.

Westren said:?“Although Rory going out to Hong Kong isn’t ideal for us he’s not going out until October which is good for us as Rikki?Bentham is currently out playing in Australia and is going to miss the first couple of games.”

Throughout the summer, Westren has been putting the players through optional conditioning sessions, which have been well attended, while pre-season training gets underway on Tuesday, July 3, at 6.45pm.