Having preserved their National Division One (ND1) status thanks to a victory on the last day of last season back in April, the Tigers turned their attention to preparing for the 2008-9 campaign.

However, Pertemps Bees, who finished second from bottom and were therefore relegated, appealed against the decision made by First Division Rugby (FDR – ND1’s administrators) to dock Cornish Pirates three points following the meeting between the two clubs when Pirates won 27-23 – part of the game featured uncontested scrums due to Pirates having insufficient front row cover.

Bees claimed the decision to punish Pirates rather than reward them went against precedent and told FDR they should be awarded all four match points. That would have seen the Bees kicking off the new season in ND1 and not the Tigers.

The matter was then passed back and forth between FDR and the RFU, with the sport's governing body finally bringing the matter to a close when it rubber-stamped FDR’s original decision and dismissed the Bees’ appeal in a meeting on Monday night.

The Bees are therefore relegated to National Division Two, not the Tigers.

“It’s what we expected, to be honest,” said Tigers’ team manager, Geoff Roberts: “but it’s nevertheless a pleasing result.

“Now we can get on with preparing for the new season, with first and second team training beginning next week.”

The Tigers have added a second pre-season friendly that will see them take on Sale at Edgeley Park.

They will face the Guinness Premiership side’s second string in a curtain raiser to the Shark’s own friendly with relegated Leeds Carnegie on Friday, August 22, time to be announced.

The championship-winning second team will then play Macclesfield in a curtain raiser to the first team’s opening ND1 fixture of the new season against Rotherham on Saturday, August 30.

Last but certainly not least, prop Gerallt Evans, who missed last season with a knee injury, is back in training and could challenge for a first team spot sooner rather than later.