Prem Review - 6th Jan
By Zippy
January 7 2007
A review of the action in the Principality Welsh Premiership from Saturday 6th January. Bridgend lost to table toppers Ebbw Vale and Ponty moved up to 2nd with a win at Llandovery.
Ebbw Vale 37 Bridgend 25
Wales on Sunday
A LATE three-try burst by Principality Premiership table toppers Ebbw Vale earned them a deserved if rather flattering victory over Bridgend Ravens at Eugene Cross Park.
In a cracking game to welcome in the new year, a mass brawl at the first scrum proved the only real problem, with both sides showing enterprise in the sticky conditions.
Vale held the upper hand in the scrums and were awarded a 12th minute penalty try by referee Hugh Watkins - a harsh decision as the scrum appeared to have turned through 90 degrees. But the try stood and outside half Sam Mills duly converted.
Full back Gareth David kicked a penalty for the Ravens, with Mills answering with two of his own for the Steelmen.
Then Ravens flanker Gareth Williams charged down a Mills kick and looked certain to score. He was illegally tackled but winger Will Kershaw-Naylor grabbed the touchdown and David's conversion made it 13-10 to Vale at the break.
The lively Simon Hunt came into the line to help create a 50th minute try for Vale and Mills' successful conversion stretched the home side's lead to 10 points.
But as the pitch dried out the Ravens found their feet, with young scrum half Rhys Webb opening up the Vale defence to send David over for a try. The ensuing conversion and a penalty on the hour levelled it all up.
But some enterprising moves by Ebbw Vale's full back Andrew McLaughlan, helped by Hunt, and superb inter-passing brought a try for left winger Andrew Bevan - even though there was a hint of a forward pass in the move.
Four minutes later, a neat kick out of defence by player/coach Patrick Horgan was collected by Hunt and passed to the supporting Miles, who just made the line.
David kicked his third penalty for the Ravens, who were still in with a chance until a kindly bounce allowed Hunt to send lock Rhodri Dicks away for Vale's fifth try. Replacement outside half Dai Langdon's conversion was the last kick of what turned out to be a thrilling game.
| Ebbw Vale | 37 - 23 (13 - 10) |
Bridgend | |
| Tries: Miles 2, Bevan, Dicks, penalty |
Tries: Kershaw-Naylor, David |
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| Pens: Mills 2 |
Pens: David 3 |
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| Cons: Mills 2, Langdon |
Cons: David 2 |
Llandovery 19 Pontypridd 27
By www.PontypriddRFC.co.uk - Rygbi Pontypridd - Official Website / Y Wefan Swyddogol - The Valleys' Premier Team.
It would be nice to be able to write a report only about the second half of the game against Llandovery. Then we could tell a tale of three excellent tries and some good goal kicking bringing a victory by 24 points to nil. Unfortunately the first forty minutes or so saw the home side knock up nineteen points against a poor Pontypridd team. We could only respond with a measly penalty goal.
The day began badly for Pontypridd when hooker Richard Emms turned up with a very heavy cold, and was unable to play except in the direst emergency. Leighton Davies not only started, but knew that he would have to play for the whole eighty minutes. Not only did he last the whole game, but he also scored a very good try late in the match. At least the sun shone for most of the time, although a fairly stiff breeze was in Ponty's face as the game started.
Llandovery began with the sort of powerful forward performance that we have come to expect from them. Once again we had no answer to their dominating play, and Pontypridd were thirteen points down after fifteen minutes. First of all the home stand-off, Jon Elrick, finished off a period of Llandovery pressure with a well taken try, and converted it himself. Pontypridd errors and indiscipline contributed greatly to the two penalties which Elrick then kicked to give his side a big lead.
After about twenty minutes Neil Burnett kicked a good penalty against the breeze to make it 13-3, but we were rarely getting into the opposition's half, and doing little when we got there. Chris Dicomidis went off with a shoulder injury at about this time, and was replaced by Damien Welch.
Twenty-five minutes into the game Llandovery refused a kickable penalty to go for a lineout instead. Given their forward effort so far, this looked like a sensible decision. However, Ponty defended the lineout well, and seemed to have cleared their lines. Instead we gave away another penalty, and this time Elrick lined up a kick at goal. He mis-hit it completely, and the ball seemed to be going under the crossbar. Instead it bounced off the bar and went over to make it 16-3. The gods were now conspiring against Pontypridd, and after another Elrick penalty as the half came to an end, all seemed lost with the score at 19-3.
It must have been hot in the Pontypridd dressing room at half time, because the team looked glad to get out of there as the second half began. Whatever Simon King said to them, it worked. With the breeze now at their backs, and with Dai Flanagan on for an injured Gavin Dacey, Ponty played with a great deal more conviction and control. First of all Dai ran in a good try under the posts after a long period of pressure, and a Neil Burnett conversion and penalty goal made it 19-13 with about fifteen minutes of the half gone.
Pontypridd were now dominating all phases of the game except the lineouts, which were as bad as ever. The play was almost entirely in the Llandovery half, and we launched attack after attack. However, it took about another ten minutes before Dafydd Lockyer was able to breach the home defences. A patient build up, with possession retained for a long period and the ball going through many pairs of hands, ended with the big centre crossing the line on the left, and running towards the posts to ground the ball for a super try. Burnett kicked the conversion, and Pontypridd were in the lead for the first time at 19-20.
It was all over now for Llandovery. With Ian Poley on for Stuart Williams and Nick Eaves for Ryan Harford, our forwards gradually battered them into submission in the final ten minutes. It was fitting, therefore, that the happy hooker cropped up on the left wing to take a difficult pass and sprint about twenty yards to the line. Talking to Leighton in the bar afterwards he swore that the run was at least from the halfway line, and that he had to dummy his way past ten defenders. Whatever. It was an excellent try, and the Burnett conversion ended the game with a win for Pontypridd by 19-27.
It would be nice to be able to write a report only about the second half of the game against Llandovery. Then we could tell a tale of three excellent tries and some good goal kicking bringing a victory by 24 points to nil. Unfortunately the first forty minutes or so saw the home side knock up nineteen points against a poor Pontypridd team. We could only respond with a measly penalty goal.
| Llandovery | 19 - 27 (19 - 3) |
Pontypridd | |
| Tries: Elrick |
Tries: Flanagan, Lockyear, Davies |
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| Pens: Elrick 4 |
Pens: Burnett 2 |
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| Cons: Elrick |
Cons: Burnett 3 |