Matt Blakeston, a dynamic, athletic back rower was skipper for the 2006-07 season, with Stuart Quarterman filling the role of club captain and highly effective club spokesman, supplying the Evening Herald with plenty of copy. Semi-retired Phil Morgan was elected chairman of the club taking over from Paul Venkort.
In the league there was once again some incremental improvement on the previous season with the Chiefs finishing 7th out of the 9 teams in Devon Two. With a very similar points tally to last season, Argaum’s 4 wins came courtesy of a double over North Tawton (17-0 and 19-17), an away win at Torpoint and a home walkover against Ilfracombe. This match was in fact won after an appeal by Argaum despite losing the match 13-10 on the day. Scrums went uncontested because the visitors did not have enough players, an area where the home side had been in total control.
It was certainly felt that the league points haul should have been more with an extremely frustrating 14-18 loss at home to bottom side St Columba Torpoint after leading 14-8 into the second period. There were also narrow defeats at Plym Vic (8-9) and perhaps missed opportunities at home to Old Techs (8-17) and 2nd placed Topsham (7-21).
In the Combination Lockie Cup there was an agonising last gasp penalty by St Columba Torpoint to take that tie 9-8 whilst in the EDF National Cup earlier in the season there could be no complaints when another visitor from other the Tamar, Callington, came away with a 24-0 victory.
On the friendly front there were 3 fixtures against DHSOB II/III with Argaum prevailing in all to add to a 15-10 home win against Saltash II. Two sides were fielded in November when the Chiefs entertained Old Techs and the Wanderers likewise to Bodmin III. This was testament to the club’s effective recruitment drive in adding to what was a pretty talented squad. The pack, minus Stuart Quarterman (injured for a large part of the season), could nevertheless field some very effective strike runners with Matt Matthews, Dom Waites, Andy Jones, Tony Polo-Matus, Jack Jeffrey and more occasionally immediate past Chairman Paul Venkort. Such was the back row riches that Blakeston and Jeffrey were found more often in the centre as the season progressed. Toulouse-born student Sylvan Loubet provided some Gallic flair in the back division with Jamie Stormont providing most of the points from the boot. As is so often the case, getting a more regular side out each week was the challenge and this limited the club’s competitive ambitions.
Nevertheless, with plenty of back up within the squad, there was no danger of conceding any walkovers, even for the daunting Ilfracombe trip. On Saturday 23rd December, never the easiest date for a rugby match, Liskeard-Looe were very grateful to the club for sending down a side to celebrate the 50th Anniversary of Liskeard Looe’s inaugural fixture against the same opponents in 1956!
On the junior front, the fixture list showed sides running from Under 8 to Under 16. The challenge, for a junior section that had expanded so rapidly, was providing each of these teams with the necessary resources and coaching. After some coaching reshuffling the Under 16s received the benefit of former club coach and captain and St Boniface’s teacher Howell Phillips tutelage. This was the start of Phillips’ gradual return to the club’s coaching scene.
On 1st April, the Under 15s hosted a French touring side, Auray/Pontivy from Morbihan in Brittany. After a competitive match an excellent after match meal was put on with both sides socialising together. Perhaps most impressively, the Argaum skipper, aptly Tom French, gave the welcoming speech in both languages!
Over the May Bank Holiday, the junior section hired a couple of coaches for a trip to Twickenham to watch the Army v Navy encounter. Players and parents from across the age groups were in attendance.
