Another Narrow Defeat for Battling Pooler

A visit to the so-called House of Pain in Pontypridd is a tough place to go to try and end the bad run that Pontypool are on. A good sized crowd had gathered for the “battle of the Pontys” on a grey afternoon with hardly a breath of wind. Pontypridd play on an artificial pitch so no worries about the condition of the playing surface. Proceedings started with the marking  of local hero Chris Dicomidis’ four-hundredth appearance for Pontypridd which is a great achievement in these days when players often flit from club to club. More inspiration for the home side if they needed any.

The first ten minutes of the match belonged to Pontypool who played open attractive rugby with backs and forwards handling with gay abandon. The Ponty defence had to work overtime to keep them out. Eventually Pooler got their just reward when Jarvis fed Matthews who bustled over the line for a try. The conversion failed but it was first blood to Pooler (0-5).

From then on, the half belonged to Pontypridd. Their powerful forwards gained the upper hand with the scrum proving a valuable source of penalties for the home side. The penalties gave them field position and put Pooler very much on the defensive. It was only a matter of time before the pressure on Pooler told and, as we went into the second quarter, Ponty opened their account. From a scrum near the Pooler line, home number eight Ward picked up and powered over. Phillips converted and Ponty took the lead at 7-5.

A few minutes later, after more intense pressure from the Ponty forwards, full back Phillips squeezed in for their second try in the left corner. The conversion failed but things were starting to look ominous for Pooler (12-5). As the half was coming to an end, Pooler’s cause was not helped by a head injury to second row Hill who had to leave the field looking decidedly groggy – let us hope for a speedy recovery.

It is not called the House of Pain for nothing as soon Ponty were pounding away at the Pooler line again. This time the home side set up a powerful driving maul from a lineout which the away side could not stop. Jones got the touchdown and Phillips converted to give Pontypridd a convincing 19-5 lead.

There was just time for Pooler to have a quick foray into the Ponty twenty two but a missed penalty and a driving maul that went wrong meant that they could not make any impression on the scoreboard.

A rather chastening half for Pontypool came to and end with the home side holding a deserved 19-5 lead. Pooler, as is becoming a bit of a habit, would have it all to do in the second half.

Things started badly in the second half for Pontypool with a yellow card for Lewis couple with a successful penalty by Phillips as Ponty extended their lead to 22-5. As we know, it is at times such as this that Pooler often start playing their best rugby. Four half time changes with a whole new front row and Morgan Lloyd at scum half gave Pooler fresh impetus. The scrum battle tilted back in their favour and they managed to get decent possession and territory.

It was now Pooler who were doing the attacking and after the forwards had battered away it was Matthews who got the all-important touchdown which Jarvis converted and their cause seemed far from lost at 22-12.

The momentum was temporarily lost when, as the third quarter ended, Pontypridd worked their way down field. After Pooler conceded a penalty, Ponty set up another powerful forward drive with hooker Jones scoring again to claim their bonus point. Phillips converted and the gap was back to 17 points at 29-12.

One thing was certain and that was that Pooler were not going to give up – it is not in their DNA. The fourth quarter belonged firmly to Pontypool as they went in search of a very unlikely victory. Ten minutes into the final quarter they were awarded a penalty try when the home side stopped a driving maul illegally. Not only had Pooler secured an invaluable 7 points but Ponty were a man down with Parry shown a yellow card (29-19).

Pooler continued to press with Ponty battling hard to hang on to their lead. Time was ticking away when Pooler had a scrum close to the Ponty line. Scrum half Lloyd picked up and in a twinkling of an eye had scooted over the line for Pooler’s fourth try bringing up the bonus point. Jarvis converted to bring the score to 29-26 with precious little time left.

Ponty kicked off and Pooler attempted to run the ball from within their own twenty-two. The Pontypridd defence made sure that they could not escape and the home side breathed a sigh of relief when the referee blew the final whistle. Final score Pontypridd 29: Pontypool 26.

Another narrow loss for Pontypool who again left themselves with too much to do. They did give Pontypridd a scare and did bag two bonus points so it is far from doom and gloom. The squad has tremendous spirit and never gives up even if the cause looks hopeless to the outside world. The season started with Pooler claiming narrow victories and now we are seeing narrow defeats – the margins are fine that is for sure.

Next up for Pooler will be Cardiff at home on the 17^th of February which gives the squad a few weeks to lick their wounds and make themselves ready for what will be another tough match.

The Six Nations Championship is just around the corner with Wales playing Scotland in Cardiff next Saturday. It is hard to know what to expect from Wales with a much changed and inexperienced squad. A long injury list will limit Warren Gatland’s options in several key positions so his initial team selection will be fascinating. Scotland are a much more settled side and must start as favourites in my mind despite being the away team. Wales have surprised us before so let us hope for a victory that will give them confidence for the trips to England and Ireland to follow.

Come on Pooler!

Come on Wales!