Pontypool have made an excellent start to the season
and were out to lay down another marker in this classic east v west encounter at
Narberth. It was The Beast from the East v The Best in the West in an important
Championship clash. The visit to Narberth has proved to be one of Pooler’s most
testing fixtures over the last few years and so it was a real challenge for
Pooler following on from the previous week’s demolition of Neath.
It was a dank, drizzly day but with no wind and the
pitch in good condition we hoped that the rugby would brighten up our afternoon.
The first ten minutes of the match were really scrappy with lots of errors by
both teams as they felt each other out. The Otters made marginally less errors
and as a consequence did most of the attacking. They were rewarded with an
unconverted try by Gale in the left corner when the Pooler defence for once
looked porous (5-0).
Pontypool certainly didn’t panic and having won a
penalty a few minutes later kicked for the corner. The subsequent driving
lineout bore fruit with Ieuan Jones touching down. Meek converted and Pooler
were in the lead at 5-7.
The Pontypool forwards looked to have an edge at
lineout and in the loose but the scrum was proving more difficult with the away
side conceding a few penalties to the front row’s usual bewilderment. Narberth
seemed to be content to kick the ball as their driving play was receiving short
shrift from the Pooler defence. Walsh at full back for Pontypool looked assured
in defence and was ever ready to set up an attack from deep if it looked on.
Powell at fly half for Pontypool controlled the game well with a blend of siege
gun kicking and well-timed passes.
As we entered the second quarter, great interplay by
Pontypool between Leonard, Powell and Coundley following a lineout created a
gap for Ieuan Jones and the No 8 galloped over for his second try. Meek converted
and Pooler had opened a significant lead at 5-14.
Another scrum penalty conceded by Pontypool, followed
by an indiscreet remark to the referee, allowed the home side to reduce the deficit
with a penalty by Gale (8-14). Nevertheless, you began to feel that Pooler were
beginning to get a level of control over proceedings and were looking the more
likely team to add to their score. We didn’t have to wait long – Meek made a
break in midfield and found Leonard in support. The scrum half sped the twenty
five metres or so to the Narberth try line for Pontypool’s third try. Meek
converted and Pontypool could be well satisfied with their work in the first
half. Half time score Narberth 8 Pontypool 21.
Pontypool started the second half with a bang. From a lineout
in the Narberth twenty two, Matthews peeled around the front and fed Leonard
who darted over in the right corner for his second try and secured Pooler’s try
bonus point. The conversion missed narrowly but Pontypool’s lead was beginning to
look formidable at 8-26.
Narberth began to look deflated despite a series of substitutions
by both sides. An injury to a Narberth prop meant that it was uncontested
scrummaging. Pontypool were in complete control and were keen to rack up as
many points as they could. The last quarter became a bit of a try fest as the
away side cut loose.
Meek who had moved to full back fielded a Narberth kick
on halfway quite close to the left touchline. He beat the kick chasers with a
combination of footwork and power before setting off down the touchline at
pace. He didn’t need support as he ran the fifty metres or so to score a
brilliant individual try in the corner. The conversion missed but the score had
now moved on to 8-31.
It was time for Lloyd Lewis to get in on the act. The
speedy winger scored two tries in almost as many minutes when he was given some
room to work in by good passing from his team mates. Both tries were converted
one by Powell and the other by Meek. The score was mounting alarmingly against the
dispirited home side and was now at 8-45.
It was left to prop Coundley to put the icing on the
cake for Pooler when he powered over for their eighth try bringing up the half
century of points. The conversion missed but at the end of a highly
satisfactory afternoon Pontypool had run out comfortable winners. Final score Narberth
8 Pontypool 50.
Another fabulous victory for Pontypool who on current
form are looking even stronger than last season. The worrying thing for the
rest of the Championship is there is still room for improvement as the new
squad members continue blend in with the old. Of course, there is no reason for
complacency as there are still plenty of strong teams to lock horns with as the
season progresses. But what a brilliant
start!
No action for Wales this week in the RWC and no real
surprises as the fancied teams have won reasonably comfortably. I must confess
I haven’t watched a huge amount of it as it has taken a while to recover from
the Wales v Australia epic. There is no doubt in my mind that Fiji are going to
give Wales a really hard game in mid-week. Wales should pick their strongest
team and will have to be at their very best if they are to win. They cannot
afford to let the Fijians run at them that is for sure. I just hope that it isn’t
as nerve-racking as the Australia game!
The next match for Pontypool is the visit of Trebanos
next Saturday. Another team that certainly cannot be taken lightly.
Come on Wales!
Come on Pooler!
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