Cornish Pirates sack coach

Cornish Pirates rugby club has dismissed head coach Mark Hewitt. His sacking  comes after a run of poor displays culminating in a comprehensive 39-8 defeat on Saturday. 

Assistant coach Brett Davey has been put in charge until the end of the season. Hewitts dismissal comes one year into a two-year contract signed back in 2008.

Dicky Evans, the owner of the Camborne-based club, has released a statement on the official Pirates website.  He cites the club's inconsistent form from the start of the season as the main reason for Hewitt's departure.

The Pirates lost their opening fixture away at Coventry and have struggled to gain momentum ever since.  The team lost 39-8 at Nottingham in the EDF National Trophy on Saturday.

Evans' statement says: "Mark (Hewitt) is a good man but it's quite clear from all the signals this season that it isn't working and I wish him personally the very best but we cannot proceed like this."  

The Pirates have stated that they will be looking for new forwards and backs coaches over the summer but have so far refused to confirm that they will be looking to appoint a new head coach.

Three weeks ago it was announced that New Zealander Chris Stirling would be arriving at the Camborne Rec in the summer to take up the position of high performance director.