THE Cornish All Blacks took on North Petherton in a nailbiting clash at Polson, which could easily have gone either way, but the home side clung on to secure an 18-15 victory.

Three minutes in and North Petherton were first to score when full-back Harry Roberts picked up a wayward ball and ran it over the line. His conversion attempt went wide.

In no time, the All Blacks responded and Ryan Westren went over to equal the score.

The home side came under some criticism for giving away possession by kicking the ball away, but the visitors didn’t capitalise on any advantage gained, instead, a good run by the All Blacks set up Martin Kneebone to touch down in the corner for the team’s second try. Again, the conversion was missed by Dan Pearce.

Before half-time, Roberts kicked a penalty for North Petherton, taking the score to 10-8.

The All Blacks were up against it at the start of the second-half. The visitors had a strong presence and it was hard work at times for the Launceston side. The All Blacks conceded a penalty, and after a kick to the corner, Dominik Griffin notched up a converted try.

The All Blacks needed to wake up and claw some points back if they were going to win.

A penalty in front the posts, kicked by Pearce, gave the side a much-needed boost.

The All Blacks kept moving forward, passing well and keeping their defence strong. An unconverted try by Pearce edged them into the lead, but not out of danger.

With five minutes to go, the All Blacks had to hold on, but good play by North Petherton put them in dangerous territory.

The visitors kicked to the corner and won the lineout, but were stopped from going over for a try by the All Blacks who remained steadfast. The ball was pushed out of play, giving a moment of relief, but after North Petherton were awarded a penalty, the crowd were on tenterhooks.

Roberts kicked for touch, as the game moved into injury-time. There was a concerted effort by the visitors to heave over the line, but they knocked on, and the referee’s whistle signalled the end of he game, a victory and four points for the All Blacks.

Head of rugby, Jimmy Tucker, said: "I’m really proud of our defence. It was exceptional. We showed a real will to win and we didn’t buckle under extreme pressure. The guys played with some real character, that was through the whole team. Conditions didn’t allow our dangerous backs to break free, but our work rate was excellent."

Although Tucker commended the whole squad, he singled out Marc Williams for praise, adding:?"I gave him a good talking to in the changing room. He has a lot of quality and ability, today he’s put in an 80 minute performance. North Petherton had the lion’s share of the possession but our guys didn’t panic, they kept their discipline and that was a win when it could have easily been a loss."

The Cornish All Blacks travel to Okehampton for a local derby on Saturday, but Tucker isn’t expecting to make any drastic changes, saying:?"We’re not going to reinvent the wheel."