I had
returned from my holidays to find Pontypool sitting proudly at the top of the
Championship having won all of their first four games of the season. In my absence,
they had recorded a narrow victory at Trebanos (24-27) and followed it up with
convincing wins against Glynneath (47-19) and Bedlinog (24-55). The match on
offer was expected to be a stern test with the visitors, Narberth, one of the
stronger outfits in the league. I was interested to see how the team had
evolved in my absence.
It was a
grey day with rain never far away in Pontypool and the pitch looked green and
lush as we took up our positions on the Bank with our umbrellas at the ready.
Pontypool played up the slope in the first half and it was Narberth who seized
the early initiative with a bright start. The home defence, however, looked
solid as a rock and despite an early substitution due to an injury to Willliams
rebuffed all attempts by Narberth to make meaningful inroads.
Pooler
started to turn the screw in attack but found the spirited Narberth defence
equally tough to penetrate. As the end of the first quarter approached,
Pontypool broke the deadlock with a well-taken penalty by Jones (3-0). This
seemed to be a turning point as the second quarter was very much dominated by
the home side. Their defence suffocated Narberth and the attack began to find
chinks in the Narberth armour. After half an hour, Meek crossed for a try after
strong work by the Pooler pack which, with the conversion, opened up a 10-0
lead. The closing minutes of the half saw two more tries as Pontypool took
control of the match. The first wide out by Prothero following the charge-down
of an attempted clearance kick and the second by Parry from a driving lineout
close to the Narberth line. The latter try was converted which gave Pontypool a
substantial lead at the interval (22-0).
The second
half opened with Narberth attacking strongly but there did not seem to be any
way past the impressive and aggressive home defence. Pontypool looked a more
potent attacking force but despite creating a number of chances it took a
quarter of an hour before they scored their fourth try and secured a bonus
point. The try came from another driving lineout near the Narberth line with
this time the substitute hooker Jeune being the beneficiary. The conversion
sailed over and Pooler were home and dry at 29-0.
The rest
of the game was dominated by the defences with neither side able to make any
impact on the scoreboard. Pontypool created the better chances but their
handling let them down at critical moments. Pooler seemed intent on preventing
Narberth from scoring any points and their defence was as committed at the end
of the match as it was at the beginning. The final score was a resounding 29-0 victory
for the home side.
This was a
strong performance by Pontypool against a team that will surely be in the top
three or four in the league at the end of the season. Indeed, Pooler must feel
that they could have scored a further three or more tries if they had been more
accurate. The well-organised defence was the bedrock of the victory and amply
demonstrates the collective desire of the team to succeed. They have now opened
up a significant gap at the top of the Championship with every other team
having lost at least twice in the first five matches. Next week sees Beddau
visiting Pontypool Park. They have proved tough opposition in the past so
Pooler will have to be on their mettle if they are to keep the winning streak going.
I did
watch a bit of rugby on the TV and enjoyed the frenetic Scarlets v Connaught
match with Steff Evans surely pushing himself forward for a berth on the wing
for Wales. The Ospreys had problems with big cats in South Africa in more ways
than one while the Dragons managed a solid win in poor conditions against the
hapless Southern Kings. At least the pitch at Rodney Parade seems to have improved compared with
last season!
When I say
a bit of rugby I realise I also watched the second half of the pulsating draw
between South Africa v Australia – that is actually quite a lot of rugby. Well I had been away for three weekends! Wales
have lined up South Africa, Australia and the All Blacks for the Autumn series.
From what I have seen this weekend, a win against any of these teams is going
to be against the odds.
Still we
have Beddau to think about. Come on Pooler!
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