Wests Warriors And Cornwall RLFC Partnership
Wests Warriors are delighted to announce that the club have entered into an exciting partnership with League 1 side Cornwall RLFC.
Based in Penryn, the Choughs were formed in November 2021 and began life in the professional ranks the following year.
And despite winning just one match in their debut season, a 24-4 win over West Wales Raiders in Llanelli, Cornwall averaged an impressive average home attendance in excess of 1,000.
Last year, 2023, the club entered the Betfred Challenge Cup for the first time and in front of the BBC Sport cameras and another four-figure gate, were narrowly defeated by National Conference League powerhouses Rochdale Mayfield.
But any disappointment of an early Challenge Cup defeat did not have an adverse effect on the South West outfit as they picked up five wins in the league and only missed out on the play-offs by four points.
They achieved a number of firsts last year which included a maiden home win, first ever league double, back-to-back triumphs and, in their final regular game of the season, victory over a heartlands side when Rochdale Hornets were defeated 18-12 at the Memorial Ground.
“By having an affiliation with Cornwall we can then provide a direct pathway for our players to League 1,” enthused Warriors’ head coach and co-founder Kim Parkinson.
“We can then encourage players who contact our club seeking to play a higher level of rugby league to contact Cornwall, this gives the player a chance to fulfill their goals as well as help Cornwall to continue to grow, and become even more successful.
“As affiliates we can also identify local home grown talent in the London leagues who we believe could have the potential to be great additions to the Cornwall squad, we can relay that information directly to the club.
“I also believe a partnership between the two clubs would give both more positive exposure and benefits.”
Meanwhile, Cornwall RLFC head coach Mike Abbott, added: “There are multiple benefits to partnering with Wests Warriors.
“Obviously, there is the possibility for players at each club to move in the opposite direction.
“We can give their boys professional exposure and experience in Betfred League 1 and some of our lads can go the other way. We will be running with a bigger squad than we have done over the past couple of years and whilst that will leave me with some really big selection headaches, I know some of the lads will need game time when we can’t give it to them.
“There are off the field benefits too as we can help raise the profile of a forward thinking club that, like us, is growing the game outside the heartlands. Wests can also help raise our profile in a huge sports market like London.
“Since I took this job I’ve been really keen to swap ideas with fellow coaches and after speaking with Kimbo, I know this partnership will continue to grow and foster my relationship with my peers.”
