Pooler Make Llandovery Work Hard for Victory

A glorious May afternoon and almost a party atmosphere greeted us at Church Bank, Llandovery. This was a quarter final of the Super Rygbi Cymru playoffs. The artificial pitch was in pristine condition and Pontypool were going to have it all to do against a team that thrives on playing in these conditions. The Drovers of Llandovery are the reigning champions of the Premier League and had already beaten Pooler twice this season. Yes, this was going to be difficult.

Llandovery kicked off and almost immediately seized possession. Some powerful running from backs and forwards alike gave the Pooler defence an early workout. Eventually the pressure told and right wing Doel touched down in the corner for an unconverted try with only three minutes on the clock (5-0).

The Drovers continued to press with Pooler really struggling to keep them out. But keep them out they did and eventually managed to get out of their own half. Pooler were awarded a penalty that Ford converted to register their first points (5-3).

Normal service was resumed with Pooler back on the defensive as Llandovery kept playing at a tremendous pace and Pooler tackling like demons. After a couple of narrow escapes, the pressure told and Jones touched down after powerful work by the home forwards. Hughes converted  and Llandovery had extended their lead to 12-3 with a quarter of an hour played.

The Pooler set piece was coming under pressure with the scrum creaking and the lineout misfiring at times. The home side were certainly getting the better of things.

Pooler managed to gain a rare foothold in the Drovers half as the first quarter ended. They were awarded a penalty and Morgan Lloyd took a quick tap penalty and made good progress. As ever, Matthews was there in support to touch down near the posts. Ford converted and, rather against the run of play, Pooler had closed the gap to just two points at 12-10.

Back came Llandovery and, after a series of forward drives, home prop Hughes was awarded a try after TV review. The conversion failed but Llandovery had extended their lead to 17-10.

The last part of the first half was a bit more evenly contested and Pooler were rewarded with another penalty from Ford. So, at half time the score was Llandovery 17 : Pontypool 13. The scoreline did not really reflect a dominant performance from Llandovery but the grit and determination of Pooler had kept them in the game. Pooler seemed to have come away with points on almost all their visits to the home half while Llandovery were probably ruing many missed opportunities. Still, it was all to play for.

The third quarter proved to more of the same with Llandovery dominating territory and possession and Pooler battling to protect their line. Llandovery had a “try” disallowed on review but eventually Davies scored a try that was converted by Hughes to open up a two score lead at 24-13.

Pooler began to get their hands on the ball more frequently and fresh legs from the bench helped their cause. As the final quarter started, Pooler seemed to have scored when they broke from a lineout on the Drovers twenty two with Chapman touching down. Unfortunately, the try was ruled out after the officials reviewed a replay on the TV monitor. This could have been a real turning point for Pooler.

Pooler were now giving as good as they got but did make errors at crucial times which cost them dear. With just five minutes remaining, Hughes kicked a penalty for Llandovery and they were two converted tries clear at 27-13.

Pooler were not about to give up and some fine attacking play saw Cole score a try just a minute later which Ford converted. There was still a chance at 27-20 with four minutes left.

Pooler’s hopes were instantly dashed as they failed to deal with the kick off and Doel squeezed in at the corner for his second try. Although the try was unconverted the home side had surely secured victory at 32-20 with only a couple of minutes left.

Pooler threw caution to the winds in those last minutes and paid the penalty when Llandovery seized possession for Williams to score a try that was converted by Maynard. This was the last action of the game. Final score Llandovery 39 : Pontypool 20.

There is no doubt that Llandovery were deserved winners but Pooler made them work damned hard for their victory. Pooler’s defence was heroic at times as they strove to stem a seemingly endless stream of Drovers’ attacks. Llandovery are a really good team with all round strength and there is no disgrace in losing to them on their own patch.

That will be the last game of Pontypool’s season. They can reflect on a great first year in the new Super Rygbi Cymru league where they have been very competitive and have beaten every team but Llandovery at least once in finishing in fifth place. There is plenty to build on for next season and plenty to look forward to.

Well done Pooler!