Villi Ma-asi to Redruth

cheshire exile wrote: The question of the use of the "Cornish " name has always been a tough one; FWIW I voted against it whilst voting for the original move away from the Mennaye. However it certainly has some appeal for  exiles as the size of the away support at Worcester[2011], Croos Keys and Oxford illustrated.

 Out of interest CE, what would your preference have been? I'm assuming you would have liked to see the retention of the 'Penzance' moniker, but surely given Dickie's ambition of creating a Duchy-wide construct, the use of 'Cornish' was a given - especially so when you consider the nomadic existence the Pirates have enjoyed since the initial move from the Mennaye.
 Again, FWIW, - and putting aside for a minute all the petty tribalism - I think the choice of name was the correct one, in terms of 'brand awareness'. It certainly seemed to appeal to many casual supporters and lots of younger fans too - I know my rugby mad nephew, if it came to a choice, preferred the 'big game' atmosphere of watching the Pirates at Camborne to seeing the Reds (don't worry, I've since beaten it out of him), and I think your last point re. popularity with Exiles bears that out too.

TRUE RED wrote: I think I will have to agree to disagree on most of this.

Lost Forward, in response to your question I voted against the "Cornish" name change for 1 sentimental/ insular/stubborn reason, ie that the club I joined in my youth was called Penzance & Newlyn and  I did not want to see that disappear; I still tend to wear my 2003 Pz&N shirt to games.

Edited by cheshire exile - 09 Jul 2012 at 22:21

Redted wrote: There is no question that The Pirates are currently the top club in Cornwall.  What the team arn't though is Cornish (the club is, there is a difference).  You can't become Cornish by signing a contact to play rugby here for a bit.  We are Cornish by birthright, breeding or upbringing (is that a real word).  It is for that reason that I am against the Cornish Pirates name, I would have preferred 'The Pirates of Cornwall', which would have still promoted the clubs desire to appeal to a County wide audience.   As for youth rugby the Pirates minis and juniors are as active as most, although its nice to win, these things shoudn't always be judged on cups and shields, participation is the most important bit.  The colts seems less strong and I've always found it strange that the professional players never seem to be involved.

Can someone please clarify what all this has to do with Villi and his age, oh, what is his age?

Just getting back to Villi for a moment, he didn’t want to leave Cornwall and when he last played for Cornwall he was the most fired up and passionate player on the field – playing for his adopted country.

I think you’ll find if there is any truth in the rumour – it’s because he wants to come ‘Home’ and if the end of his playing days are looming, he has a lot to offer the younger players, having a mass of experience including the premiership.

In his last game – the London Welsh Final with the Pirates he was still a force on the field.

He’s also one of the nicest people you could ever meet – so good luck to him – it would be great to see him back in Cornwall

This photo of him with Spade boarding the bus for The EDF Final at Twickenham is my favourite.

Going back to links between the Cornish Clubs. I think you’ll find that the Pirates link with Redruth is as strong as the link with Launceston.

 Last season the Pirates travelled both to Polson Bridge and the Rec for joint training sessions. These were of great benefit to all clubs.

 I’ve heard that similar opportunities will occur during the coming season with Launceston, Redruth and St Austell.

I think the first of these sessions is on 7^th August with Launceston coming to the Mennaye and the Pirates going to train at St Austell on 14^th. The dates with Redruth will be sorted with Spade next week when school breaks up.

 I’ve also heard that in addition to this it is hoped that some Pirates players will be available to both Redruth and Launceston if injuries dictate the need to look for cover during the season.

Thank you Richard for some simple commonsense!

Er why was my post deleted it was in no way rude offensive or indeed in the 'my Dad is bigger bracket'. 

Edited by Redted - 17 Jul 2012 at 20:39

My first ever deleted post, I can now retire happy, who's this Villi guy anyway