Steel Buckles

We had hoped for some late April sunshine as the Pontypool faithful headed down the M4 for the visit to Tata Steel in Port Talbot but instead we were battered by a cold wind and squally showers. Most of the crowd huddled together in the shelter of the once splendid clubhouse. The outcome of the match was clearly going to be decided by which team adapted to the conditions better as the strong wind was blowing straight down the pitch. The wind was surely going to be worth 20 points to the team playing with it

Pontypool lost the toss and played with the elements in the first half. They looked keen and hungry from the outset and although the home side were strong in the scrum and the maul Pontypool were clearly on top and the strong wind gave them a clear advantage in terms of territory. The three quarters combined well for Thorley to put Lewis in for an early try that was expertly converted by Gullis. This was backed up by a try by Sparks who barged over from short range. The conversion gave Pooler a healthy 0-14 lead but they still needed to build up a bigger cushion to counteract the wind factor.

The away side continues to press but looked to have a blown a scoring chance when they lost the ball close to the Tata line. Tata made a horrible mess of the clearance kick, however, and Quick was on hand to score Pooler’s third try. The conversion failed but at 0-19 Pooler were close to the magical 20 point lead that we wanted. They weren’t finished though and Sparks drove over near their posts for their fourth try and a lead of 0-26. Things were looking good for the away side but a couple of defensive blunders let the Tata scrum half stroll over from a 5 meter scrum right at the end of the half. The conversion failed leaving Pooler with a 21 point lead at half time. The game was far from over.

Tata Steel attacked strongly at the outset of the first half using their big forwards to drive forward but Pooler’s defence held firm. Both sides knew the importance of the first score of the second half. A Tata attack broke down and Pooler were able to escape from their 22. Excellent work from the backs led to Laing scoring wide out. Even though the conversion failed the try was a heavy psychological blow for Tata to take but even with the score at 5-31 you felt that Pooler could not afford to relax. Tata suffered a further blow when a yellow card for one of their flankers reduced them to 14 men. Pooler were clearly in command but then a rash tackle by their prop Edwards led to a red card redressed the balance.

The home side continued to attack through their forwards but the Pontypool defence seemed impregnable. The match became bad tempered as Tata’s frustration boiled over. The two opposing wings Lewis and Skidmore had a bout of fisticuffs and both were yellow carded. They did both return to the field in time for the coup de grace. Lewis expertly gathered a kick ahead to score near the posts and the successful conversion was the last kick of the game. The final score was 5-38 with Pooler scoring six tries.

This was an impressive performance from Pontypool who got the tactics just right in difficult conditions. Keeping Tata scoreless in the second half was a major achievement. Apart from the blip at Tondu, they are finishing the season strongly with several players impressing and the team playing well together. Next Saturday will give us a chance to measure the extent of their improvement when they come up against RGC 1404 who are well clear in second place in the league.

It has been heartbreaking to here the cries of the bottom sides in the Premiership as the reality of relegation stared them in the face. Suggestions of increasing the size of the league have been made and also we have heard them extolling the value of their contribution to Welsh rugby over the years. Do these arguments sound familiar? Where were they in Pontypool’s hour of need? We didn’t even finish in the bottom two of the league and we were relegated!

It seems as if Swansea will be joining us in the Championship next season and we look forward to it. Don’t rule out a last minute reprieve though!  

A Curate’s Easter Egg

There cannot be many more scenic places to watch rugby than Pontypool Park on a sunny Spring day with the trees in full blossom. It really would be a shame to fence it in to satisfy the WRU and to keep out those mindless vandals. You can make up your own mind if they are one and the same! Our Easter fare was a local derby against Newbridge who have been serious rivals over the years. The two encounters so far this season have both been won by the away side so we hoped that that was not an omen.

Newbridge had the better of the opening exchanges and looked the more lively as they attacked down the slope. It wasn’t long before they opened the scoring with a well taken try by their hooker under the posts. They continued to have the upper hand as Pontypool, to the dismay of the crowd, persisted in kicking away the possession that they had. The loss of lock Jones disrupted the home side’s lineout which only added to the frustration. Fortunately for Pooler, Newbridge squandered some good chances to score through inaccurate passing. The home side plugged way and it seemed that every time they managed to cross the halfway line they were awarded a long range penalty opportunity. Gullis converted three of them expertly and the teams went in at half time with Pooler holding an unlikely 9-7 lead.

Pontypool opened the second half with far more purpose. The crowd groaned when they seemed to kick possession away yet again but this time the wind held the ball back and Pooler centre Hales caught the ball and took off to score in the corner. The conversion was unsuccessful but they had opened up a useful 14-7 lead.

It was time for the Gullis show, he followed up a penalty goal with a fine individual try He made a break up the touchline before kicking ahead and gathering the ball as it crossed the line. His successful conversion left the score line 24-7 with Pontypool well in control. There was further blow for Newbridge when they were reduced to 14 men by a yellow card. This was the cue for Pooler to play their best rugby and they scored two more converted tries to secure victory and a bonus point. Both tries were scored by forwards - Williams scoring wide out after some good combined play and prop Brown bursting through from the Newbridge 22 to score under the posts.

With the score at 38-7, Pooler seemed to take their foot off the gas and fall off tackles. The away side took full advantage of this and scored two tries to leave the final score at 38-19. This sloppiness at the end from Pontypool rather took the edge of an excellent second half performance.

Two victories in four days is a great effort from Pontypool and must surely put them in confident mood for the visit to Tata Steel next Saturday.

So to Judgement Day at the Millennium Stadium on Easter Sunday. Unfortunately there was not really going to be much decided on the fateful day. It has been a season steeped in mediocrity for all our regions so only the Ospreys have an outside chance of making the playoffs. Ospreys and Scarlets look set to finish fifth and sixth respectively in the league and so qualify for Son of Heineken.

The first match was more like Grudgement day with a lot of stuff happening off the ball. The Scarlets’ Liam Williams is a curate’s egg of a player. After his brilliance for Wales against Scotland, he revealed his impetuous side and really should have been sent off for his challenge on Cuthbert early in the match. He eventually did get a red card for a second yellow card after a professional foul. In the same ruck Copeland got his marching orders for kicking Williams’ head. The Blues just about deserved to win a close scrappy game and showed a lot more appetite for the challenge than the last time I watched them when they rolled over meekly against the Ospreys.

The second match was more like Nudgement Day with the Ospreys dominant in terms of possession but knocking on the ball on countless occasions. The Dragons tackled bravely and scored the first try but at the death conceded a penalty try from a short-range scrum that decided the game.

The games were absorbing and hard fought even if they were scrappy. A crowd of 30000 was in attendance so the event must be considered a success.

Rumour has it that Bristol will apply to be the fifth Welsh region if they fail to win promotion to the English Premiership.

So a curate’s egg of a weekend but a Pooler victory is always a good thing.

Pooler Just Pass University Examination

I missed Pontypool's previous outing at Tondu but, by all accounts, it was poor fare with a below par performance. It was therefore vital that Pontypool bounced back with a good performance against Cardiff Met University. Conditions were perfect for running rugby at Pontypool Park with clear skies and a newly mown pitch. Previous encounters had shown that the pace of the students' backs was likely to be a major threat.

The home side started well and were quickly ahead by 3-0 after a successful penalty goal in the opening exchanges. Both sides showed their intent to run the ball with the Cardiff Met backs looking dangerous individually but not really clicking as a unit. The home side had the edge in power and made several line breaks but needed to support the ball carrier more effectively.  An exchange of penalties brought the score to 6-3 before we had the first try of the game. A scything break by home centre Thorley was halted just short of the Cardiff Met line and this time Guy was in support to cross. The conversion attempt failed leaving the score at 11-3. The away side attacked strongly but blew a couple of decent chances to score through inaccurate passing. It was certainly a better first half for Pooler than in the reverse fixture and they had the benefit of the slope in the second half.

The second half opened with a bang. Impressive Cardiff Met centre Lewis showed his pace to score after a loose Pooler kick. The successful conversion closed the gap to 11-10 and the home side needed to dig in. Pontypool started to miss first up tackles as the tricky away backs jinked and swerved their way through. The cover defence had to work overtime to stop the students from scoring. Pooler for their part continued to exploit their power with number 8 Sparks and wing Laing prominent. Three incursions into Cardiff Met territory led to three successful penalties from Gullis and Pooler stretched their lead to 20-10 with the students reduced to 14 men following a yellow card. The home side capitalised on their superior numbers and increased their lead with a try following an excellent break by Laing. Although Laing was ankle tapped agonisingly short of the line Hancock crossed following the ensuing ruck. The conversion was missed but with the score at 25-10 you might have thought that the game was over.

The students had other ideas and threw caution to the wind. Pooler seemed to be chasing shadows and the missed tackle count increased alarmingly. Poor defence allowed the students’ number 8 Stevenson to score near the posts bringing the score to 25-17 with plenty of time left. The home supporters’ nerves were settled when Laing scored an excellent try after being put into space by some good passing. The try was converted and the score at 32-17 gave Pooler some breathing space. The students were far from accepting defeat, however, and attacked the tiring home side from all angles. In a breathless few minutes, tries by man of the match Lewis and Thomson closed the gap to 32-29. Fortunately for Pooler who were hanging on grimly the second try came from the last move of the match and it was with great relief that we heard the final whistle.

This was a thoroughly enjoyable game and it really could have gone either way. Cardiff Met have several exciting players who will surely make it at a higher level. Pontypool probably just about deserved to win even though they were out-scored by four tries to two. It was a good team performance but I’m sure there will be a few nightmares involving chasing shadows.

Next up is our old friends from Newbridge. Let’s hope that we carry forward the attacking intent that we showed tonight and pay them back for that defeat in the Cup.

Bright Sparks

The weather was truly miserable in Bargoed in stark contrast to sub-tropical Pontypool Park the previous week. It was wet and windy and certainly not a day for free flowing rugby. This didn’t bode well for Pontypool who had suffered at the hands of the Bargoed pack in the home fixture earlier in the season.

Bargoed played with the wind at their backs in the first half and quickly camped out in the Pooler 22. Pooler managed to hold out by the skin of their teeth and certainly looked in determined mood. It was clear that this was not going to be a high scoring game as the slippery ball resulted in countless handling errors particularly by the home side. The scrappiness actually seemed to suit Pooler who fought tenaciously for every loose ball. The only score of the first half was a penalty goal by Bargoed and we were just thinking that 3-0 at half time playing against the wind was not a bad position. Then, disaster, a scuffle near the Pooler line led to Taylor being dismissed for a head butt. The away side were down the 14 men for the rest of the game. Things didn’t look quite so rosy.

Pontypool started the second half purposefully and quickly started to harry Bargoed into mistakes. The numbers were evened up by a Bargoed yellow card and Gullis brought the scores level from the ensuing penalty. The away side started to gain the ascendancy and use the wind well with some excellent tactical kicking that pushed the home side back into their 22. Pooler had the outstanding player on the park in number 8 Sparks who seemed to be everywhere. He managed to control the ball at the rather unstable scrums and carried strongly as well as playing a full part in Pontypool’s robust defence.

No sooner had Bargoed returned to 15 players, than they lost their scrum half to another yellow card so the loss of Taylor was not as crucial as it might have been. The away side seemed to be the more likely to score and their pressure led to another penalty from Gullis which put them into the lead as the game moved into the final quarter. Another fracas led to two more yellow cards, one for each side, and we were down to thirteen a side. The away side’s lead was still precarious but another penalty goal gave them breathing space at 3-9. The home side threw everything at Pooler as they regained numerical superiority but they came up against a brick wall. Pooler were determined to win this game and every player was busting a gut to make sure that it happened. Right at the end of the game Pooler wing Hurley made good ground down the left wing before kicking the ball ahead. Dykhoff won the chase to the line to score wide out. Gullis slotted over an excellent conversion to leave the final score 3-16.

This really was an excellent win in difficult conditions. It was a triumph for team work and unstinting commitment. Yes Sparks was outstanding, but it would be unfair to single him out in what was Pooler’s best team performance of the season.

When I had managed to dry out, I watched a bit of the Heineken Cup on the TV. The Leicester outside half, Williams, looked a class act and he’s Welsh. We need to get him involved with the Welsh team pronto if Leicester rate him higher than Flood. The Ulster v Saracens game was rendered much more even by the sending off of the Ulster full back and a catalogue of injuries to Ulster’s star players. It seemed to me that the sending off was slightly harsh. I’m not really sure what you are meant to do if someone jumps straight at you with his knees up. It seems that you are a protected species if you jump for the ball rather than try to catch the ball with both feet on the ground. Still the Saracens won in the end despite a tremendous effort from Ulster.

The highly charged Heineken games were in stark contrast to the Dragons v Edinburgh. It hard to see how the Welsh Regions are ever going to dine at the highest table with the resources they have at their disposal.

So for Pooler it’s Tondu away next week. It’s quite tight in the race for the minor places in the Championship and with a strong finish we can move up significantly. Congratulations to Ebbw Vale on winning the title. Let’s hope the WRU don’t do the dirty again.