Cornwall's Shepherd ready for 'magical' Twickenham

Long-serving Cornwall back Matt Shepherd says returning to Twickenham for the eighth time is still as "magical" as his first game there.

The 36-year-old will start on the wing for Cornwall as they prepare to face Lancashire in the County Championship final.

He has featured in all seven of Cornwall's visits to Twickenham since 2013 - winning titles in 2015, 2016, 2019 and 2022.

"It's amazing to play there once, and I'm lucky enough to have played there eight times as a player and then one as a coach; it's pretty special.

"It's a childhood dream, and dreams never change. It's magical, and I think everyone says, 'You've done it so much, does it feel the same?'

"It feels the same every time, if not more special, because it probably could be your last; it potentially is going to be my last time, so even more special."

Cornwall are back at Twickenham for the first time since 2022, having thrashed three-time reigning champions Kent 129-33 on aggregate after their two-legged semi-final.

The Duchy reached six out of seven finals between 2013 and 2019, but this visit to Twickenham represents just their second in the past seven years.

St Austell's Shepherd is one of seven non-Camborne players in the Cornwall starting XV.

The Cornish side won the National Two West title this season and provides more than half of the squad.

Shepherd hopes that their winning mentality will help Cornwall get the better of Lancashire at Twickenham - the red rose county has won three of the four finals played between the sides since 2013.

"There's no there's no shock that we've got 13, 14 Camborne lads in the in the final squad for Saturday.

"I think bringing in the boys, moulding them around those guys - it's infectious when people win, and we've just got to get on top of that and get on the back of that and go through it."

Leading the side out will be Camborne's Fiji international forward Sam Matavesi.

It is a return to representative rugby for the 34-year-old, who helped Cornwall beat Cheshire to win the 2016 title before having a career with the likes of Northampton and Lyon.

"I watched Cornwall play at Camborne and back when I was a youngster," he explained.

"So to have the opportunity to play for Cornwall, let alone be captain of Cornwall, is a massive achievement and pretty special.

"It's very similar to playing for Fiji.

"I think that culture, that whole other aspect of life, and for my dad - Cornwall's where mum's from, obviously my dad came over, so it's a chance to represent the place where I was born, grew up, and somewhere that I'm very proud of."