They weren’t supposed to stand a chance. In 2021, A second-tier Cornish side took on a team of international giants. But in one unforgettable afternoon, the Cornish Pirates tore up the script and stunned Saracens in one of the greatest upsets English rugby has ever seen.

“Don’t give them a bonus point!” Beating Saracens by more than seven points was not something current captain John Stevens was expecting to ever happen. “Surreal” was the way he described it. “You’re playing Saracens, and you’ve managed to get yourself to a situation where you’re almost not giving them a bonus point; it was quite funny.” But that was the position they found themselves in. Lowly second-division side, the Cornish Pirates were leading one of England’s most successful clubs, Saracens, by eight points with seconds left on the clock.

Eighty minutes of pure grit and determination had put them within a few minutes of one of the biggest upsets in rugby history.

The year is 2021, and the world is beginning to recover from the effects of the pandemic. Although it is returning in a reduced schedule and without fans, club rugby is making its comeback for the first time since March 2020. This, however, was not the only talking point ahead of the opening game of the Championship season.

English giants Saracens had been relegated to the country’s second tier of professional rugby as a punishment by the RFU for breaching rules around the league-wide salary cap.

Expecting to breeze through the lower league, the three-time European champions were predicted to win every game and return to the top flight unscathed. However, the Pirates didn’t read the script.

The build-up to the season wasn’t simple for the Cornish side. All the speculation and uncertainty surrounding Saracens, as well as abiding by lockdown rules, gave them minimal preparation. “There was such a long build-up to that game for us, especially because they were our first game of the season.” Says Stevens. “We only had one warm-up game against Jersey the week before, and we beat them and did alright; it was only a preseason game.

“Then you get into that actual week before, and we had a centre go down with an injury. Patteson ruptured his ACL in training, so that wasn’t ideal preparation for him and the team; we were a bit mixed and matched.”

Despite this, there was a positive feeling among the players. “I think you’d call it nervous energy and, probably, on my part, excitement. No nerves. We went into it thinking they wouldn’t enjoy coming down here. We went out there before the game, and you think, We’re winning this. We’re going to give it a good go, and we’ll show up, leave it all out there, and see what happens, basically. It was a feeling of nothing to lose.”

Confidence high, the Pirates found success in their scrums and lineouts. “We got the ascendancy with set pieces; we just managed to get on a bit of a roll, and I don’t think they ever found their rhythm; we never allowed them to, as we had that set piece dominance and managed to scrap it out.”

However, despite their dominance with the forwards, it was the Saracens’ backs who struck first. “Early on, they scored out wide. At that point, you’re a bit like, oh, here we go.”

The game went on in a blur for Stevens. “I bashed my nose, so I went off, and when I came back on, I think Tom Duncan scored. When you’re in it, it’s hard to remember, but they never got away.”

The try for Tom Duncan under the posts rewarded the Pirates’ forward dominance, and with a couple of penalties for each team, they went into the break behind by only two points. Cornish Pirates 8 – 10 Saracens.

Already, this could be considered a success. Two points behind after 40 minutes, the Pirates had weathered an early Saracens storm to find themselves with a chance of history. The dominance in the forwards, with some big hits and successful set pieces, had given them a foothold in the game, allowing them to work their way back into it. “Marlen Walker put a massive tackle on Barrington, which was a big momentum changer, and we got a turnover off of that.”

Morale in the team was high going into the second half. Their competitiveness in the opening half had removed the illusion of invincibility surrounding Saracens. “They weren’t as outstanding and unbeatable as people thought they were. Actually, the gap between the teams was not that much different.

“Without the internationals, maybe they struggled for a bit of direction; they were looking for someone to step up for them, and no one did. We managed to keep the momentum going. Their momentum and maybe their bravado was gone.”

The second half saw a step up in intensity, with both sides scoring early, but it was Pirates’ scrum half, Rhodri Davies, who delivered the final blow. Pouncing on a loose ball, he had a clear run in under the posts to send the Pirates into dreamland. Eight points up with only minutes to go, the win was secured. After almost 80 minutes of pure focus, Stevens felt himself relax, knowing the result was all but secured.

“Without the buffer of being more than a try-up, you’re still thinking one moment, one missed tackle, penalty, make it to the corner, that’s game over. They’re still in with a chance, one mistake, and they’re scoring, whereas I think it’s just the relief, realisation that we’d done it. “When Rhodri scored, everyone went mental.

“It was just quite a funny last two minutes. It was funny knowing you’d beaten them. We were all there smiling and laughing, knowing we’d won.”

Stevens went on to be named player of the match. The bloodied flanker, from his blow to the nose early in the game, accepted it on behalf of the effort put in by all the forwards on the day.

The final whistle blew, and they’d done it. Defying all the odds and expectations, the Pirates had done the impossible. Cornish Pirates 25 – 17 Saracens.

However, it wasn’t all ideal. “A little bit was taken away because it was COVID. You didn’t have the fans, and it wasn’t a proper league season. My mum wasn’t able to go, and things like that would have been nice for them to see.

“Not having fans was a shame, but it was also a positive. It pushed us all together, and we spent the whole night together.”

Four years later, Stevens still considers this the highlight of his career. “You get the odd few who ask what’s your favourite memory, and it probably was beating Saracens because it was such a shock. I remember seeing it in all the sports newspapers. You get the odd person now who asks what’s your best game, and we say, oh, when we beat them.”

A day which is remembered as the best result in Cornish Pirate history. They were the only side to beat Saracens that season, and despite the rest of their campaign being mostly disappointing, they provided fans and players with memories and emotions they will never forget.