Pontypool Storm It

The rain that Derek Brockway had promised finally arrived just as we got to Pontypool Park for the match against Cardiff Metropolitan University. This was a vital match for the home side as they badly needed to get back into winning ways after two consecutive defeats that had made their third place in the Championship look precarious. A bonus point win was what was required but the lively students’ team and the conditions might make that difficult. A wise executive decision was made to watch the game from stand rather than the windswept and sparsely populated Bank.

Pontypool played up the slope in the first half with the strong wind more across the field than anything. Cardiff Met started in fine style with crisp passing and good interplay between forwards and backs. It looked like something from a coaching manual and Pooler were unable to get their hands on the ball in any meaningful way for almost ten minutes. It was no more than the students deserved when they took the lead when their forwards drove over for a try. The conversion failed but the home crowd were restive. Pooler needed some inspiration from somewhere as the away side’s confidence grew.

The inspiration came from Brooks who got his hands on a miss pass and used his pace to outfox his opposite number for a fine try. The conversion failed but Pontypool had a foothold in the game at 5-5. The rest of the first half was eminently forgettable as the conditions worsened and both sides resorted to kicking as a first option. There were mistakes galore from both teams but neither side managed to break the deadlock. The Pontypool scrum clearly had the edge but far too many scrums had to be reset with the referee not making any allowances for the slippery conditions under foot. With the game tied at half time, it was all to play for.

During the half time interval, the wind picked up and the rain got even heavier. The wind now was blowing down the pitch and, with the slope in their favour as well, Pooler would have a significant advantage in the second half. After the rather mediocre first half performance, the home team must have had a good mentoring at half time. I don’t know if the air turned blue in the changing room but Pooler emerged with a clean set of blue jerseys and clear intent to get down to business.

Pontypool soon established a grip on the game as the forwards carried strongly. The lineout which had malfunctioned in the first half improved and with the dominant scrum there was plenty of possession. The ball was like a bar of soap but eventually the home side struck when Quick surged over the line for a try near the posts and the successful conversion gave Pooler a 12-5 lead. Pontypool were now well on top and powerful work by the forwards led to a converted try from Sparks (19-5).

The home side seemed to lose concentration from the kick off and failed to get hold of the ball. Some smart play by Cardiff Met resulted in a try but the conversion was missed but the gap lead had been closed to 19-10. The students were not done yet.

The introduction of Mills had improved the quality of the home side’s kicking game and he pinned them back with a variety of kicks. The pressure was bound to tell as Pooler went in search of the vital bonus point try. There was a sigh of relief when Lewis barged over for the fourth try. The conversion from Gullis left the score at 26-10 and the victory all but secured.

Pontypool were not done yet and, as the benches were cleared of substitutes, they were in command. Substitute prop Popple showed up well with some strong runs and Gullis added another converted try to make the score 33-10. Shortly afterwards the lively Hurley seized on a Cardiff Met mistake and won a kick and chase for a cracking solo try in Goff’s corner (38-10).

A cameo appearance by tight head prop Edwards before he departed with a yellow card gave the students numerical supremacy and the last few minutes were spent in the Pontypool 22. In the dying moments, the students got a deserved try close to the posts which was duly converted to leave the final score at 38-17.

I think everyone breathed a sigh of relief after the excellent second half performance. It has been a tough few weeks and hopefully we are back on track. Good news came from Port Talbot where Tata Steel beat fierce rivals RGC 1404. This only goes to show how easy it is to slip up against lower ranked teams from the Championship. Bargoed had their expected bonus point home win against bottom side Llanharan. The table now looks like this:

Team              Played             Points

Swansea          22                    96

Merthyr             21                    93

Pontypool         21                    78

Bargoed            20                    72

RGC 1404        20                    71

Our friends in the North’s unexpected loss had given us a bit of breathing space – but not very much! There is little room for any slip-ups and it really does look as if it is going to come down to the last couple of games. In the meantime, Swansea could do us a big favour by beating Bargoed (A) and RGC 1404 (H).

For Pontypool the next fixture is a home game against Glynneath and we need to focus on that. There is no such thing as an easy game from now on.

Come on Pooler!