There was a real chance of a cup upset as Rochdale Mayfield from the Premier division of the National League made the six and a half hour journey to Cornwall to take on the Betfred League One side who managed just one win in their league competition last season.
It was Cornwall´s first time in the competition after they failed to enter last season, Rochdale Mayfield were looking to emulate their performances from last season when they eventually lost to Doncaster in the third round after beating Wigan St Pats and West Hull.
Rochdale opened the games scoring on eight minutes when a barnstorming Samuel Wright crashed through the Cornwall defence to dive over the line and ground. Devlin Long added the conversion for 6-0, the National League side off to the best of starts.
On fourteen Cornwall suggested that they would make a game of it when Tom Ashton took a Rochdale defender over the line with him to score in the corner. Adam Rusling was unable to add the conversion, his side still two points adrift.
Shaun Penkywicz (now 40 years old) lost the ball on the line for Rochdale on twenty when he really should have scored. Cornwall had weathered the storm and were looking to build on their start.
There was very little to choose between the two sides, both making mistakes but unable to capitalise when their opponents slipped up.
Two minutes from the interval a nice passing move from right to left in broken field saw Wayne English take the pass to go over on the wing for 10-4. The kick was wide of the uprights, but Mayfield took a six-point lead into the interval.
Within seconds if the restart Mayfield got their third, Travis Long benefitting from a great break from Declan Sheridan to go in under the posts. The giant killing was now definitely on the cards as Long added the extras for a twelve-point lead.
A beautiful passing move over seventy metres saw Cornwall grab themselves a lifeline as three great breaks, the first from Harry Aaronson through the line, and the ball ending up in the hands of Cameron Brown to score under the sticks and give Rusling a simple conversion for 10-16.
Nathan Cullen was somehow held up over the line on seventy-two and when Mayfield spilled the ball two tackles later the ball was moved left for a summersaulting Aaronson to somehow get the ball on the ground by the corner flag. The kick was a long way wide of the posts to leave the home side still two adrift with just five minutes left on the clock.
The game was over on seventy-six as Rochdale extinguished the Cornwall fightback after a Long break from his own thirty saw him through the Cornwall and putting Harry Sheridan free to sprint to the right corner and ground as he evaded the tacklers. The kick was wide from Long, the margin six points.
Cornwall´s awful record continues as they have still been unable to win a home game, Rochdale Mayfield mounted the giant killing which in all honestly surprised very few. Despite a one-man revival in the shape of Harry Aaronson it was Rochdale Mayfield who held on and whose name will be in the hat for Monday evening´s draw.
Cornwall: Whitton, Carter, Nichol, Ashton (T), Aaronson (T), Brown (T), Rusling (G), Boots, Collins, Hartshorne, Cullen, Dimech, Lloyd. Subs: Singleton, Howe, Mitchell, Prisk. 18th Man: Bodman.
Rochdale Mayfield: Butterworth, McDaid, Tolhurst, English (T), Wright (T), Long (T, 2G), McVeigh, Dash, Penkywicz, Mills, Metcalfe, Long, Talatoka. Subs: Sheridan D, Hargreaves, Taira, Sheridan H (T).
Half-Time: 4-10.
Full-Time: 14-20.
Score Progression: 0-4, 0-6, 4-6, 4-10 : HT : 4-14. 4-16, 8-16, 10-16, 14-16, 14-20 : FT.
Lead Exchanges: Rochdale.
Referee: Matthew Rossleigh.
Attendance: 1,061.
