THE Saints withstood a late comeback from the Devonians to secure a hard-fought five points on Saturday.

On a day when blue skies made a rare appearance, the Saints crossed the Tamar in anticipation of a tough examination at the iconic Blackmore fields in Sidmouth.

The home side have been in good form in 2026 as they battle to untangle themselves from the relegation play-off slots. It was no surprise then that the Saints had one of their toughest games of the season and in truth were glad to hear the final whistle.

The opening quarter was a cagey affair largely played between the two 22s. Both sides enjoyed prolonged periods of possession that were matched by disciplined and resolute defence.

Sidmouth broke the deadlock on 18 minutes when they were awarded a try after a pile of green shirts crashed over the line for a converted try (7-0). The Saints started to test the home side who found themselves trapped in the Heydons Lane corner.

Twice Sidmouth were penalised for collapsing the maul, with advantage being played on a third infringement. The half-backs released the ball and full-back Ben Saunders timed his incursion into the backline perfectly to finish a flowing move in the opposite corner (7-5).

The visitors shifted through the gears, and the two wingers Ben Navas and Ben Plummer combined to create the space for number eight Kyle Marriott to glide over, converted by Matt Shepherd (7-12). A glorious 50:22 kick from Shepherd provided the Saints with an attacking platform on the cusp of half-time.

The Cornish forwards pounded the Sidmouth try line forcing the home side into a string of penalties, eventually leading to a yellow card for flanker Shaun Malton. Kyle Marriott used all his experience to crash over, Shepherd’s successful conversion brought the half-time whistle (7-19).

Despite being down to 14 men, Sidmouth started the second half with renewed vigour and determination. Their endeavour was rewarded when prop Haydon Down forced his way over, Lewis Tose’s conversion put the home side within touching distance (14-19).

The next score would be crucial, and it came on the hour mark when flanker Adam Powell burst clear from a driving maul to storm over from 15m (14-26).

The Saints extended their lead when Mark Vian went on an exhilarating run to take play to the edge of the home 22. The skipper’s deft offload found Saunders in support and the full back breezed over for his second try of the day to make it 14-33.

The home side finished strongly scoring two tries from catch and drive routines to delight of the home supporters (26-33). With nerves jangling, the Saints managed to regain their composure to see out the final five minutes to secure a hard-fought bonus point win on the road.

The Saints host Royal Wootton Bassett in a 2.30pm kick-off at Tregorrick this Saturday.

St Austell: 1 Matt Boothby, 2 Pete Harris, 3 Scott Pearce, 4 Mark Vian, 5 Tom Daniel, 6 Adam Tyndale-Powell, 7 Cameron Taylor, 8 Kyle Marriott, 9 Daniel Tyrrell, 10 Chris Ashwin, 11 Dan Navas, 12 Jamie Stanlake, 13 Matt Shepherd, 14 Ben Plummer, 15 Ben Saunders.

Subs: 18 Max Bullen, 19 Arthur Fletcher, 20 Hector Bright.