Pirates into last eight with Hartpury victory

FACED with an unexpected 400-mile round trip, caused by a waterlogged pitch in Cornwall, the Pirates shrugged off the inconvenience by handing Hartpury their biggest and most emphatic defeat in recent memory.

Pirates will now progress to the knock-out stages of the B&I Cup, while Hartpury will be looking to regroup ahead of next weekend’s all-important Championship fixture with Nottingham.

Most of the damage was done after the break, as the Hartpury defence began to wilt under sustained Pirates pressure.

The first half had been a more even affair with tries from former Hartpury student Alex O’Meara and scrum-half Alex Day giving the visitors a 10-point lead at the break.

But it was one-way traffic in the second half. Tom Duncan and Day, again, extended the lead before the 50th minute and had Will Cargill had a better day with the boot, the damage would have been even greater.

Hartpury deteriorated further and the normally solid defence began to lose its shape. Pirates were in no mood to take it easy, centre Nic Coronel finished well before a lightning break by replacement Mike Pope allowed Tom Cowan-Dickie to score.

Tom Duncan’s second try completed the rout, as Hartpury barely mustered an attack in the second half. Pirates will now face unbeaten Ealing Trailfinders in the quarter-finals instead of Yorkshire Carnegie.