"BRITISH & IRISH CUP"
"Welcome to Round Two of the inaugural British and Irish Cup"
"It was great to see that the tenacity of all the clubs involved in hosting Round One matches of this new competition proved stronger than the force of last week's weather. All twelve games went ahead, providing the supporters who braved the elements with some very exciting rugby."
"The four home Unions agreed from the outset that the principle of this competition was to provide the participating teams with quality cross border competition, and, even at this early stage, it appears that the clubs have embraced this with true vigour."
"It is clear that the British and Irish Cup has ignited a renewed interest in club rugby, as well as some of the traditional cross border rivalries. As we look forward to this second week of the competition, we hope that the games prove to be as strongly fought as in the opening round, and that we are witnessing the start of a truly sought-after club title."
"Enjoy the match."
"Roger Lewis"
"WRU Group Chief Executive"
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The Western Morning News of 28th November 2009 reported:-
"Albion grind out a draw in Newport mud"
"HEAVY rain in south Wales nearly thwarted Plymouth Albion's bid for a first win in the British & Irish Cup before the game even kicked off last night, but neither the elements nor Newport defeated the Devon men after a 3-3 draw at Rodney Parade."
"Albion impressed but failed to win during their opening British & Irish Cup encounter against Leinster at Brickfields last weekend, but any measure of continued progress was difficult to gauge in a hard-fought encounter lacking in quality last night."
"Skipper Kieran Hallett returned to the starting line-up, having been rested last weekend. He replaced fly-half Alex Davies, who took a seat on the bench. There was also a first start of the season for centre Matt Hopper against his former club alongside fellow former Black and Amber man Sione Tu'ipulotu."
"Gary Kingdom took the place of the injured Liam Gibson on the wing while George Porter and Darren Clayton were the only changes to the forwards, for Martin Rice and Rory Watts-Jones respectively."
"Hallett took an early kick at goal with a penalty inside the first minute, but was unable to make the distance. Newport then gained the advantage on the counter after a high tackle by full-back Mark Lee on opposition fly-half Chris Wannell. The home number ten made no mistake with the short-range kick."
"After another 15 minutes of rain-soaked attritional rugby, Albion drew level through a Hallett penalty after Newport's illegal use of the boot."
"The hosts had another penalty chance ten minutes later, but Wannell was less accurate from a greater distance on his second attempt."
"Long-range kicks hold no fears for Albion's Lee, however, and he had a chance to find his range in the 27th minute from just inside the Newport half. Unfortunately for him, he made more contact with the surface water than the ball, which flopped well short to the left of the Newport posts."
"Lee, making just his second Albion start, impressed during the rest of the opening half with his kicking from deep, but there was little else of note from either side before the break."
"The second half was no great improvement as conditions continued to dictate, with both sides reluctant to run with the slippery ball in hand. A breakthrough failed to arrive even after numerous replacements from both sides around the hour mark."
"Albion arguably went closest with a slow and patient build-up only being denied by yet another handling error as the try-line came within range midway through the half."
"Newport: G Wyatt; R Owen (M Pewtner 48) (K Barrett 56-71), R Payne, T Cooper, A Awcock; C Wannell (D Griffiths 63), A Quick; D Pattison (I Evans 57), A Brown (M Leaman 57), G Robinson; D Rosser, A Jones (A Frampton 66); R Dale (T Faletau 52), P Williams, A Coombs (capt)."
"Scorer: Penalty - C Wannell."
"Plymouth Albion: M Lee; B Mercer, M Hopper, S Tu'ipulotu, G Kingdom; K Hallett, R Cushion (K Fisilau 60); G Porter (M Rice 48), J Clark (G Dawe 80), R Hopkins; J Waterhouse (M Lewis 76), T Skelding; W Sprangle, D Clayton (R Watts-Jones 64), K Marriott (capt). Replacements (not used): A Davies, T Kessell."
"Scorer: Penalty - K Hallett."
"Referee: D Wilkinson (IRFU)."