Fred Rogers, who had been with the Club since his school days became captain. The season opened with two difficult fixtures against Plymouth Albion Extra 1st and Truro and a young Argaum side was comprehensively beaten in both encounters. The side recovered from this disappointing start to wind up with 19 wins, 18 losses and 2 draws.
New ground was explored in fixtures against Yeovil and indeed, a new approach in that the side travelled to Yeovil the night before. They must have found the local hostelries to their liking, as they crossed over 13-0 in the lead with tries by Fred Rogers and Ceri Critten. The report reads “Critten weaved through his opponents almost the length of the field”.
In the Devon Cup, Withycombe were beaten 10-6 in the first round and there are no prizes for guessing who put an end to the Club’s further progress, you’ve guessed it – Devonport Services 7-13.
Both the Wanderers and Drifters had poorish seasons and the Floaters disappeared from the map. The Colts had “middling” results W8, D2, L11, but included a 6-4 win over the Royal Navy Colts. During the season, the Club came close to purchasing its own ground – an ambition yet to be achieved – in that a price was agreed and a mortgage from the RFU arranged but before the signing of contracts the Vendors suffered a change of heart.
Additional Notes (R.Belli): Fred Rogers was skipper for the 1974-75 season which was one of consolidation. After beating Withycombe in the second round of the Devon Cup it was old foes Devonport Services who proved the stumbling block with a 13-7 win albeit this time at Bickleigh Down. There was a fixture at Yeovil, which involved an overnight stay on the Friday, Ceri Critten scoring a try on the way to a 13-0 victory. The Wanderers, were knocked out of the Lockie Cup by ‘Plymouth’ Combination side Launceston! It was noticeable that Tavistock, established a few seasons now, comfortably beat the Drifters in one fixture. The colts pulled off the best result of the season beating Royal Navy Colts 6-4 at Bickleigh Down. Ex-Argaum player and millionaire Peter Blackburn was killed in a car crash; the son of former President Tom, whose widow had opened the clubhouse extension the previous season. Once again a tour was arranged to London to coincide with a Five Nations match, this time England v France in late January. Fixtures were against Old Emmanuel and Met Police Special Branch, Argaum presented their hosts with giant oggies, prepared by former club member Ron Dewdney. On the subject of tourists, Bristol-based Old Elizabethians brought two sides down to play The Chiefs and Wanderers on a Saturday with a scheduled fixture of a combined side at 11:30 the following day! Off the field developments were prominent once again when the club came close to purchasing land for pitches at Bickleigh Down, however with loans and funding in place the deal fell through.
