Pooler Power On

No Xmas is complete without a rugby derby match on Boxing Day. The awful weather had relented enough to allow Pontypool to take on their long-time arch rivals from Newbridge at Pontypool Park. The pitch was in surprisingly good condition but yet again, although the rain had stopped, there was a strong breeze blowing mostly across the pitch but if anything helping the team playing down the slope. The bad weather had brought with it the inevitable list of postponements so it was vital that Pooler maintained the pressure at the top of the Championship with a win.

Pontypool played up the slope in the first half and the first quarter of the match turned out to be pretty forgettable. Both sides seemed to struggle to put any patterns of play together – indeed they played a bit like the way I felt after my hearty consumption the previous day. It was the home side who drew first blood when they finally managed to put together a concerted series of plays for Usher to cross for a try in the corner. Gullis converted expertly from near the touchline.

Newbridge responded with some good play of their own and it was only good defence from Pooler that prevented them from scoring a try. In the end they had to settle for a penalty goal to close the gap to 7-3. Pontypool looked the more likely to score in the last ten minutes of the first half and they eventually worked their way up to the Newbridge line. The pressure began to tell and Newbridge were reduced to fourteen men when No 8 Blacker was given a yellow card after a series of penalties. The home side’s scrum gained the ascendancy and on the stroke of halftime Pontypool were awarded a penalty try after Newbridge were judged to have illegally stopped a scrum that was destined to end in a pushover try. The half time score of 14-3 was slightly flattering for the home side but it provided a sound platform for what surely had to be a better second half.

Pontypool started the second half strongly and within a few minutes scored a really good try. In the best passage of play of the match up to that point, backs and forwards combined and finally created an overlap for Bishop to score in the corner. The conversion failed but the home side had opened up a useful lead at 19-3.

The switching on of the floodlights seemed to energise both sides and the standard of play improved. Newbridge enjoyed their best period when Pontypool lost lock Ferriman to a yellow card after he infringed at a lineout. After a strong assault on the Pooler line, they eventually came away with a well-deserved try to leave the score at 19-8.  

From then on it was all Pontypool as they went in search of the fourth try and the valuable bonus point. The introduction of a number of replacements increased the tempo of the Pooler game and it proved to be too much for a tiring Newbridge team. Highly promising centre Lewis scythed through the Newbridge defence to score the all important try and open up a surely unassailable 24-8 lead.

 Pooler were far from finished as the piled on the pressure in the remainder of the match. They were rewarded with two more tries - one from Parry after a series of forward drives and a second penalty try from a scrum close to the Newbridge line. The two successful conversions left the final score at 38-8 which sent at least the Pooler section of the large crowd home with smiles on their faces.

This was by no means an easy match and it was important for Pontypool to gain five points as none of their closest rivals were playing due to postponements. This lifts them to second place in the Championship and puts them twenty points ahead of Bargoed in fifth place. Bargoed, however, now have three games in hand so could close the gap significantly with three bonus point wins. RGC 1404 in fourth place are fourteen points behind Pooler but also have three games in hand. There is no doubt that the forthcoming matches between these three teams will go a long way to deciding who misses out on promotion.

Well next up for Pontypool is none other than Bargoed at Bargoed! It is clear that this is very important encounter for both sides. Pontypool were rather fortunate to get away with a draw in the home fixture earlier in the season and the reigning champions are certainly a tough and uncompromising outfit. Pooler will really have to be at the top of their game to stand up to what is sure to be a stern test of their resolve. It is hard to assess whether the fact that Pooler have had played two tough matches over the last couple of weeks while Bargoed have not played is an advantage. Let’s hope so!

Unfortunately I will miss this crunch match and also the cup match against Bedwas but I shall be using the power of the social media to keep in touch.

Come on Pooler!

Pontypool Pay the Penalty

There was really positive news this week with Pontypool gaining the coveted A Licence which means that they can be promoted to the Premiership. There are now seventeen clubs with the A Licence – the twelve already in the Premiership plus Merthyr, Swansea, RGC 1404, Bargoed and Pontypool in the Championship. With the Premiership’s expansion to sixteen next season, the position is now clear. Pontypool need to finish above one of the “famous five” to gain promotion. Currently the five clubs just happen to occupy the top five places in the league so it is very much game on.

In that context, Saturday’s match for Pontypool at Swansea was pretty important as it was potentially a “ten pointer”. Before the match, Swansea were second in the league with Pooler one point behind in third place.

The weather was pretty unpleasant with squally showers which following on from the heavy rain of the last few days meant that this, thanks to the excellent St Helens pitch, was the only Championship game still taking place. The wind was blowing towards the Town End of the ground and Swansea elected to play against the elements in the first half. It was pretty evident early on that Pooler were going to have their hands full if they were going to compete with the all-around strength of the home side. Even with the wind in their favour, Pontypool struggled to get out of their own half for most of the first quarter. Getting on the wrong side of a rather fussy referee and giving away a string of penalties certainly did not help their cause.

The Swansea backs looked dangerous and it was them that broke the deadlock with a sweeping three-quarter move that allowed slippery wing Claypole to score in the corner. It was an excellent try but the final pass did look a little forward to the Pontypool faithful. There followed an exchange of penalty goals with Pontypool converting two to Swansea’s one to leave the score at 8-6 after half an hour. Swansea then took complete charge of the game and camped on the Pontypool line for the remainder of the half. The referee awarded penalty after penalty and two yellow cards against the away side and it seemed inevitable that Swansea would increase their lead. Remarkably Pooler managed to hold out against all the odds with some heroic defending.

So it was 8-6 at half time and Pontypool must have been mighty relieved to be only two points down after being outplayed in the first period. They would have it all to do playing against the wind in the second half and would certainly need to improve their discipline if they were to compete effectively.

What Pontypool really needed was a strong start to the second half even though their ranks were still depleted. It couldn’t have really started worse – they failed to claim the Swansea restart and within moments Swansea crossed for a converted try and the score was 15-6. This seemed to fire Pooler up and they started to get a real foothold in the game with their set-piece play gaining some good possession. Even the referee seemed to approve and began to penalise Swansea at ruck and maul. Gullis kicked a penalty to close the gap to 15-9 and Pooler sensed that a comeback was on the cards. Talking of cards, the referee lost patience with the home side’s persistent offending and sent two Swansea forwards to the sin bin. This was Pooler’s chance and they seized it gleefully. They battered the Swansea line and after a tremendous forward drive the hardworking Nash scored a try. The successful conversion gave Pontypool a narrow lead at 15-16.

With Swansea back to full strength, the last ten minutes or so was a real battle but the wind and Pooler’s indiscipline finally decided the outcome with the away side conceding two kickable penalties that were duly converted. This left the final score at 21-16 with Pontypool having to be content with a losing bonus point.

On the balance of play, you would probably have to say that Swansea just deserved to win. Unfortunately the game seemed to be dominated by the penalty count and this was heavily in Swansea’s favour and this is certainly something that Pontypool will need to think about. Nevertheless it was a massive effort from Pooler and coming away with a bonus point against one of the strongest sides in the league is far from being a disaster. That point might well prove valuable in the final analysis.

Congratulations to the Dragons on their excellent win at Pau. They were the only Welsh region to win with all the others suffering narrow defeats. It is interesting to note that if at the end of the season both Pontypool and Bargoed are promoted there would be six Premiership clubs in the Dragons’ region. I wonder what the WRU would make of that? Could there be a sting in the tail?

The next match for Pontypool is a local derby against Newbridge at Pontypool Park. Let us hope that we can shrug off the reverse against Swansea and get back to winning ways.

I wish all a Merry Xmas and a successful New Year. Come on Pooler! 

Mission Accomplished

Conditions at Pontypool Park were absolutely foul and if we had been on a ship we would have sought refuge in the nearest harbour. As it was, the strong wind and sheets of rain made me seek the sanctuary of the stand for the first time in a couple of years. It was one of those days when you wondered why you had left the comfort of your home but then of course when the teams run out on to the field you know exactly why. Pontypool were looking to extend their run of victories against the doughty Narberth. We rather hoped that Narberth’s nickname “the Otters” was not based on their aquatic abilities.

Pontypool won the toss and elected to play up the slope and against the wind in the first half. They started brightly enough and, before all the players were completely soaked through, scored an excellent try when Brooks outflanked the Narberth defence after some skilful passing which made light of the atrocious conditions. Gullis converted miraculously from near the touchline for an early 7-0 lead.

The weather and Narberth then took charge and the home side were confined to their half for the rest of the first quarter. All the away side’s pressure eventually told and they scored a good try when their fullback Morgan scored after some slick passing. The successful conversion tied the game up at 7-7.

Pooler immediately hit back when Nash charged down Narberth’s attempted clearance kick straight from the kick off. Nash fed Popple and the prop trundled over for an invaluable try (12-7). After this brief interlude, play was confined to the Pooler half for the rest of the first half. The slippery ball and the sodden pitch made attacking play difficult and the away side had to be content with a penalty to leave the score at half time 12-10. The home side must have been delighted to have a narrow lead and to be able to look forward to the assistance of slope and wind in the second period.

The second half was a mirror image of the first half with Pooler camped in their opponents half. Narberth were well organised and their forwards were powerful in the loose and in the scrum and they managed to frustrate all Pooler’s efforts in the third quarter. After the usual raft of substitutions, the home side started to get the upper hand in the forward exchanges and play was almost exclusively inside the Narberth twenty two. The pressure was bound to tell and eventually Nash was driven over from a lineout close to the try line. The conversion failed but Pooler had opened up a useful, but still not decisive, 17-10 lead.

The attrition continued as the home side went in search of their fourth try and the bonus point that would keep them well-placed in the titanic battle at the top of the championship. After a number of close calls, Jeune eventually managed to drive over the line with a couple of minutes to spare. The conversion again failed but there was no way back for Narberth at 22-10. You got the feeling that everyone - players, referee and spectators alike - couldn’t wait for the final whistle.

This was very much “mission accomplished” in absolutely awful conditions. Pontypool eked out a bonus point win against strong opposition which says much for the spirit and belief that is growing in the team. This was not a day for back play and the forwards had to battle hard against the tough Narberth pack. Well done everyone!

Next week brings the prospect of an even tougher fixture when Pontypool visit St Helens and a match against second placed Swansea. Swansea are the only team to have beaten Pooler this season so this is bound to require an enormous effort if we are to turn over our long-time rivals in the West.

In a different world, I see that Faletau is to join Bath at the end of the season. This affair seems to have been managed incredibly badly with the Dragons being the losers. I don’t blame the player as he wants to play a higher standard of rugby and be rewarded financially for it. Then there is George North signing up for an extended period at Northampton and the curious affair of Scott Williams signing for the Scarlets but not on a WRU contract. With Jamie Roberts joining Harlequins and Charteris joining Bath it appears that, even with the WRU contract, the money on offer in the regions is not going to be able to keep all the best players in Wales. It will be interesting to see what Halfpenny does.

Meanwhile in the European cups there were home wins for the Ospreys, Blues and Dragons against French opposition and a disastrous loss for the Scarlets in Glasgow. I watched Ulster dismantle Toulouse on Friday evening and once again you wonder at the French fragility away from home. Even the mighty Clermont were humbled at Exeter.

Still we at Pontypool don’t need to worry about the French. We are looking forward to our own Agincourt at Swansea.

Once more unto the breach dear friends! Come on Pooler!

Pacey Pooler have the wind in their sails

Grey skies and a strong wind greeted Pontypool for their first home match for more than a month. Mercifully the rain had stopped and the pitch looked in pretty good condition but as always the wind would be bound to have a significant effect on the game. Pontypool’s opponents were Tata Steel who were sitting in mid-table while Pooler were in third place so a home victory was hopefully on the cards.

Pontypool elected to play up the slope in the first half which meant that the powerful swirling wind was if anything against them. For some strange reason they had decided to wear dark blue jerseys while Tata were wearing light blue. The referee decided that it was not the varsity match and Pooler quickly changed into their tradition red, white and black.

Tata had the better of the early stages and it was soon clear that they had a strong pack who were very competitive at scrums and the breakdown. After being pinned in their 22 for a considerable period, Pooler finally broke out and completely against the run of play scored the opening try when Jordan Williams finished off some good passing between backs and forwards. The Pontypool scrum was still struggling and shortly afterwards the referee awarded a penalty try to Tata when the home side were guilty of kicking the ball out of a rapidly retreating scrum close to their line. The successful conversion gave Tata a 5-7 lead.

Pontypool gradually overcame their problems in the scrum and as they gained more quality possession the backs showed that they had the pace to cause the away defence serious problems. Tata were reduced to fourteen men by a yellow card for off side and Pooler swiftly capitalised when Tom Bell scored a try from a lineout just inside the Tata 22. A tremendous conversion from Gullis gave Pooler the lead at 12-7. The home side had one glorious chance to score before the end of the first half but the final pass didn’t go to hand after some great running by the backs. Momentum was clearly with the home side and with the help of the elements in the second half even the most pessimistic Pooler fans felt that a home victory was the most likely outcome.

Pontypool started the second half in the best possible way when Hurley ran a clearance kick back at Tata and after a clean break by Brooks, Lewis crossed near the posts. The successful conversion put the home side 19-7 up within a minute or so of the restart.  Pooler were clearly well on top but it took almost fifteen minutes to score the bonus point try due to stubborn Tata defence and on a few occasions the scoring pass going astray. When the fourth try came it was worth waiting for. A brilliant break by Gullis spilt the defence and Jordan Williams scored wide out. Pooler were leading 24-7 and the game was in the bag.

In the final quarter Pontypool ran riot as the backs cut the bemused Tata defence to ribbons. Four more tries followed with excellent scores by Nash, Quick, Brooks and Hurley. Three of the tries were converted to bring up the half century at 50-7. Tata never gave up trying and were rewarded with the last try of the match which left the final score at 50-14.

This was a really strong performance from Pontypool in pretty difficult conditions. The backs looked sharp and pacey and with a bit more luck could have score several more tries. The forwards were lively in the loose and, once the scrums had settled down, presented the backs with the kind of ball required for them to strut their stuff. Overall a very encouraging performance and you get the feeling that there is still more to come.

This well-deserved victory keeps Pontypool in third place in the Championship but the defeats suffered by RGC 1404 and Bargoed at least puts a bit of daylight between third and fourth place. Pontypool have now played half their matches and are breathing down second placed Swansea’s neck. The game at St Helens just before Xmas promises to be a cracker. Before that, however, Pooler will need to take on Narberth at home next weekend and it will take another big effort to overcome tough opponents.

Come on Pooler!

Away the Lads!

I have been away for a while – no not in prison – and have missed the last three Pooler matches. From that perspective it has been something like punishment although I have to admit the weather was a lot better where I was. In my absence Pontypool has racked up three consecutive away victories to keep them in third place in the Championship. The teams around them in the table all seem to be winning through and it promises to continue to be a fiercely competitive league for the crucial top four places that will guarantee promotion.

Yesterday’s 15-19 comeback victory at Glynneath demonstrates the resilience and confidence of the burgeoning Pooler team. Over the last few seasons overcoming a 15-0 deficit in poor conditions would have probably been beyond them. It was a shame I could not visit Glynneath as their ground is Abernant Park and Abernant is the name I give the fictional Welsh town in my books. It might have given me a few ideas.

The narrow 9-10 win at Beddau also sounds like it was a test of character in poor conditions but by all accounts Pooler played some superb rugby at Cardiff Met to blow traditionally tricky opponents away 10-45. So Pooler remain unbeaten away from home this season having won all seven matches so far including a standout win at league leaders Merthyr. This is a great record and long may it continue.

The next two matches are at home with Tata Steel and Narberth the visitors. This will then mark the half way stage of the league in terms of games played although we have yet to play one of our key rivals RCS 1404. If Pontypool can record two victories, it will surely leave them handily placed but nothing can be taken for granted in this league. It is sad to see Llanharan, seemingly following Blackwood’s demise last season, and being cast adrift at the bottom of the table.

I did watch the Ospreys v the Blues on the TV yesterday afternoon and it was a pretty low quality affair with neither side managing to put together much in the way of attack admittedly in torrential rain. Defence certainly ruled the roost with plenty of commitment on view. It was a bit worrying to see Biggar and Warburton leaving the field with injuries with the Six Nations rapidly approaching.

 

I also watched a recording of the BBC Wales programme about drugs in rugby. It was a pretty poorly made programme but it did give an airing to what appears to be an area of some concern. Worryingly it did seem to indicate just how unlikely you were to be caught if you were cheating and that things were not really going to be tightened up by way of testing any time soon. The side effects of putting all sorts of chemicals into your body are surely not desirable and if you do get caught it brings a lengthy ban so it certainly does not seem a sensible course to follow. The desire to get bigger is a little difficult for me to understand as I spend my life trying various diets to try and get smaller.

It’s good to be  back in Wales and I’m looking forward to Pooler’s match against Tata Steel next Saturday.

Come on Pooler!

All Blacks Worthy Winners

So the Rugby World Cup has drawn to a close but not before we were treated to a tremendous final. New Zealand and Australia served a game worthy of the occasion with New Zealand just having too much power and class in the end.

With the All Blacks leading 21-3 early on in the second half, you could have been forgiven for thinking that the result was a foregone conclusion. The Australians, as always, saw things in a different light and, with the opposition reduced to fourteen men by a yellow card, came storming back. Two converted tries saw them close the gap to 21-17 and an unlikely victory seemed eminently possible. Then up stepped the redoubtable Dan Carter with a coolly taken dropped goal and a long range penalty. This left the Aussies with a mountain to climb and in their desperation to score a try they lost the ball. The New Zealanders needed no second invitation and Barrett scored under the posts after an exciting kick and chase.

The final score line of 34-17 was a little harsh on the Australians but the All Blacks were deserved winners. The rest of the world had better take note or they may well be world champions three times running when the RWC takes place in Japan in 2019.

So what makes the All Blacks so good? They are not possessed of super powers although now and then you sometimes wonder. Their players are no bigger and probably no fitter as measured in the gym. They are certainly obsessive about winning and they leave nothing to chance. Rather like the British cycling team they seem to look to improve even the smallest things all the time. Add to that an inherent belief that they cannot lose and a tremendous team ethic and you have a powerful formula. You also get the feeling that all the most talented athletes in New Zealand (and the nearby islands) try rugby first rather than the range of other sports that have primacy in other countries. They have also found a club structure that supports the aims of the national team with everyone working together for a common aim. The haka that is performed before they play seems to sum up their philosophy of unity coupled with aggression perfectly.

I have thoroughly enjoyed the RWC and it has produced some great matches and some moments to treasure. Although I said that the ticket prices were pitched far too high, the grounds have been full and I have even gone to three matches myself (hypocrite). The atmosphere in the stadia was brilliant and the sets of fans mingled amiably. On the downside it was difficult to exit the grounds with transport links not always coping. Just imagine what it would have been like if there had been more chariots on the road!

The best thing about the RWC still remains the Welsh try against England closely followed by the final Japanese try against South Africa. The worst thing has to be that horrible grating version of World in Union by Paloma Faith at the start and end of every commercial break.

So back to normality. Next up for Wales is the Six Nations and for Pooler it’s Beddau away.

Come on Pooler!

Home Sweet Home

After two weekends in Twickenham with all the angst that they brought with them, it was good to be back in the serene surroundings of Pontypool Park. Although it was a grey and wet afternoon the autumn colours of the leaves on the trees were a sight to be behold. This really is a beautiful place and it is in stark contrast to the forbidding edifice of HQ at Twickenham. Pontypool have been in good form of late but have always found the visitors from Bridgend Athletic to be worthy opponents. Indeed last season Athletic gave Pooler a bit of a thrashing at the Park so the home side would surely be keen to put the record straight.

From the start, there was a contrast in the tactics employed by the two teams. Pontypool were keen to play a high tempo running game whilst the visitors employed a kicking game coupled with forward drives. Pontypool’s strategy was high risk in the conditions and although it was entertaining stuff there were errors galore. Pontypool eventually opened the scoring with a penalty by Gullis after some pretty breathless attacking. Another attack broke down and Bridgend won a lineout close to the home try line. Their lineout drive was clinically executed and they took a 3-7 lead rather against the run of play.

The Pontypool scrum began to get the ascendancy and with the lineout functioning well the home side had plenty of possession. A combination of stubborn Bridgend Athletic defence and high error count from Pontypool meant that the home side squandered a number of good chances to score. This was pretty frustrating for both players and fans alike. At last the dominance paid off and after some concerted attacking Parry crossed for a try which Gullis converted to give Pooler a narrow 10-7 lead at half time. Too close for comfort, so wise words would be needed in the changing room during the break.

Pontypool substituted both props at half time and the scrum dominance became overwhelming with the away side being pushed back yards. A scrum close to the Athletic line led to a penalty try being awarded and Pooler gaining a useful 17-7 lead. The tale of woe continued for the away side when they were reduced to fourteen men when their right wing Lewis was sin-binned for a deliberate knock-on. Another scrum shortly afterwards saw Pontypool awarded second penalty try and what looked an unassailable 24-7 lead.

A sudden rash of injuries in the visitors’ front row led to uncontested scrummaging which nullified Pooler’s most potent weapon as they went in search of the bonus point try with a quarter of the match remaining. There was more frustration as Pooler camped in the Athletic half but could not seem to give the final telling pass to score a try. They made a catalogue of errors as the players seemed to get more and more anxious as time ticked away. At last a searing break by substitute centre Lewis saw him score the coveted fourth try with only a few minutes remaining. Gullis converted from wide out to give a final score of 31-7.

There was much to admire about Pontypool’s approach play and they really should have scored more tries. The conditions were not ideal but the error count was too high at critical moments. The set piece continues to look strong and the loose play of the forwards is highly competitive. All in all a pretty effective team is coming together. It is a really tough league with few easy games so the confidence that winning brings is a crucial factor.

There is no game next weekend due to some minor event at Twickenham but it is Beddau away the following Saturday. Another tough nut to crack but Pooler’s away form is good.

I got home in time to catch the second half of the RWC semi-final between New Zealand and South Africa. The RWC had got to that phase when teams worry more about making mistakes than playing attacking rugby. The heavy rain certainly didn’t help the All Blacks who need to play a high tempo game to be most effective. They gave away far too many penalties against the uncompromising Springboks and nearly paid dearly for it. In the end they just about protected a narrow lead to win 20-18. It was a tense affair but the All Blacks deserved to win as they scored the only two tries of the game. Let us hope that the second semi-final is a bit less dour.

An Australian told me that they are introducing a fifth/sixth playoff into the RWC. It’s called the Six Nations! For this reason I want Argentina to win.

Come on Argentina! Come on Pooler!

PS Spare a thought for Craig Joubert. He doesn’t deserve to be vilified. He’s a good referee who got a really close call wrong. We are all fallible.

North South Divide

Sitting in the stand at Twickenham on Saturday afternoon at around 5.00 pm I felt quite pleased. The news of a thumping win for Pontypool at Newcastle Emlyn plus a decent measure of alcohol certainly helped but so too did the first half display by Wales against South Africa. We had more than matched them in most aspects of the game and even had the temerity to have a narrow lead. We had given away a few too many penalties otherwise our lead would have been a little bit more comfortable but a chat at halftime could surely put that right. Of course I am the veteran of many such promising situations when Wales take on one of the Southern Hemisphere powerhouses. Mostly they have ended in tears and this, as we all know now, was to be no exception.

South Africa did the vast majority of the attacking in the second half and it was only fantastic defending that kept Wales narrowly ahead until the fateful last few minutes. Yes it happened again - the Boks pinched it right at the end with a well-worked try and our hearts were broken once more. It happened right in front of me and I still think that South Africa should have been penalised at the fateful breakdown rather than being given the put-in at the scrum.

So Wales exit the RWC. My abiding memories will be that marvellous win against all the odds against England and the tremendous effort required to hang on against Fiji when the team was absolutely knackered. There was some pretty awesome defending too in losing battles against Australia and South Africa which almost brought victory. Whilst the defence was world class, the attack was pretty limited and at the end of the day we did not score enough tries to be a true contender. The enormous injury list amongst our backs is well documented and that surely restricted our options but even in the Six Nations Championship last season we struggled to score tries apart from the Italian match where we simply had to throw caution to the wind. There will be plenty of videos to pore over in the dark winter nights and the way that the All Blacks, Australia, Argentina and Japan turn pressure into tries would be well worth watching.

If Wales felt heartbreak, then spare a thought for Scotland who had their quarter final against Australia all but won. A famous victory was snatched away with a pretty dubious last gasp penalty. Knowing Australia as we do, I wouldn’t have put it past them to score from the attacking scrum that should have been awarded rather than a penalty. Australia certainly looked like scoring a try every time they had any continuity and had already scored five tries in the match. It was pulsating affair with Australia uncharacteristically making errors and even presenting Scotland with two gift wrapped tries from a charged down kick and an interception. We can certainly expect the Scots to be a handful in the new year.

The other two quarter finals saw thumping victories for the All Blacks and Argentina against France and Ireland respectively. Maybe the fact that the Irish and the French had been bashing lumps out of each other the previous week had something to do with it but their southern hemisphere opponents looked pretty impressive and thoroughly deserved their wins.

So the semi-finals are a Southern Hemisphere lock-out as they say in Formula One. I suppose it is no great surprise to see New Zealand, Australia and South Africa there but Argentina have gone quietly and effectively about their business. Both the All Blacks and the Pumas exploded into life in the quarter finals and look to be building momentum at just the right time. The Aussies and the Boks will need to recover from two pretty ferocious games. Australia will have faced England, Wales and Scotland on successive weekends and will not find it easy against Argentina.

There’s no more traipsing up and down the M4 to London for me. I can now get back to proper rugby and the Welsh Championship. Pontypool have strung together some good results and climbed to third place in the table. Next week finds them at home to Bridgend Athletic. There is a clash between that and the New Zealand v South Africa semi-final in the RWC. The question is can I record the semi and get home without knowing the result.

A big “well done” to the Welsh team who have given everything they could. It’s a real shame we couldn’t sneak a win on Saturday but at least we beat the English.

Come on Pooler!

Hope Flickers at Twickers

I have never really liked Twickenham or “HQ” as some people would have it. I have always regarded it as a grim and inhospitable stadium to watch rugby and have often vowed never to return particularly after Wales have been on the end of a beating. So it was with a low expectations that I returned to the said venue to watch the final pool match for Wales in the RWC. Wales of course had already qualified for the quarter finals so the match against Australia was to decide on future opponents. Both sides wanted to win as that would mean a theoretically easier passage through the knock-out stages. Contrary to my rather jaundiced expectations, Twickers was transformed. Everyone was far more friendly and the mood altogether far lighter than on previous visits. I wonder why that was?

The outcome of the match is well documented with Wales losing 6-15 with the outcome decided by penalty goals. Defences were well on top and the crucial period of the match was when the Aussies put up brick wall that kept Wales out when the Welsh had numerical supremacy. It was truly frustrating but you can only admire the Australians’ resolution. Wales adopted very much a “blunt instrument” approach which did make it a bit easier to counter. Our lack of key personnel in the back field told as we did not seem to have the guile needed to outfox the Aussies. You could not help feeling that Rhys Webb or Scott Williams might have sniffed out a chance.

A chance missed then and so on to a clash with South Africa. The bad news is that Wales will be without Liam Williams – yet another body blow to the depleted back division. This will be another immensely physical encounter in this most brutal of competitions. Lord knows how we will reshuffle the pack of backs this time. This will be straight knockout, with no second chances, so I think we need to score some tries from somewhere. I really hope that we don’t decide that the best option is to be ultra-defensive and rely on goal kicking to scrape through. Surely there is a lesson to be gleaned from the Japanese approach which demonstrated that with attacking verve even the greatest of underdogs can triumph. Regarding the Japanese, it is worth remembering that, if it hadn’t been for the insanity of the match scheduling which meant that they ran out of energy in the final quarter against Scotland, we could have been facing them on Saturday.

Whilst I was away on international duty, Pooler recorded their first home win of the season with a victory over Llanharan by a 60-18 margin. This keeps the Pooler in fourth place in the Championship with a trip to Newcastle Emlyn in the offing next weekend. This will be yet another challenge but confidence must be high in the camp.  Yet more injuries though – let’s hope that they are not too serious.

Come on Wales! Come on Pooler! 

Pontypool Rockets, Lancaster Bombs

Saturday started badly – the lift in the apartment block where I live had broken down. Even though I live on the ground floor, I seem to have accepted responsibility for this pesky bit of kit. Suffice to say, by the time that the engineer had fixed it, it was too late to travel to Merthyr to watch Pontypool’s latest encounter. Merthyr have been carrying all before them so far this season and so this was the ultimate test for the injury ravaged Pooler squad.

Eventually I found my way to the couch and, with my mobile phone and tablet close at hand, tuned into the Japan v Samoa match in the RWC. Even though I was not at Merthyr, the excellence of the stream of tweets from the Wern kept me well in touch with what was going on.

Of all the teams competing in the RWC, I think I have enjoyed the play of the Japanese best. Not the biggest in stature, they play a high tempo game which is backed up with technical excellence in the set pieces. After their dramatic win against the Springboks, they were the victim of the dreaded shorted turnaround between matches and rather ran out of steam in the final quarter of the match against Scotland to ultimately lose quite heavily. They were rejuvenated against Samoa and quickly took control of the match against their much more heavily built opponents.

The tweets from Merthyr kept pinging in and it was clear that Pontypool were giving a good account of themselves and the match was building up to a close finish. I glanced at my watch to see if there was still time to jump in the car and drive to Merthyr but it was no good.

Meanwhile the Japanese were building up a healthy lead and looked good for a bonus point win which would threaten the qualification of the heavy weights of their pool South Africa and Samoa.

Another ping and Pooler were actually in the lead at Merthyr but were down to fourteen men. Tension was rising and my palm was sweating as I clutched my mobile phone to my chest. I even had to let go of the remote for the TV – almost unheard of!

On the TV, the heavy hitting of the Samoans had eventually taken its toll on the Japanese and, as their pace slowed, the bonus point was clearly beyond their reach. They would have to settle for a comfortable 25-5 victory.

Yet another ping and the glad news from Merthyr told me what I was longing to hear - Pooler had held on for a 13-20 victory against the league leaders. A fantastic win that will be a real tonic to everyone associated with the club. It has been a tough start to the season and to emerge from it with three away wins and a home draw in the first five games is a great result.

Next up from the RWC was Scotland v South Africa. The South Africans looked to have fully recovered after the shock defeat by Japan and really overpowered the Scots to show that they will certainly be a force to be reckoned with as the tournament progresses. The 34-16 victory puts them in charge of their group with a game against USA to follow. Japan need to beat the USA and hope that Scotland lose against Samoa if they are to progress.

So now on to the most important match of the RWC so far – England v Australia. If England didn’t win they were out and Wales and Australia would qualify for the quarter finals. It is not often that I root for Australia but this was one of those days. Call me parochial but I didn’t really want Wales to have to beat Australia to progress. I don’t think I was alone in that sentiment as the social media was positively seething with pro Aussie messages.

We were told that England, with fire in their bellies, would start well and that their scrum was going to overpower Australia. This couldn’t be further from the truth as the Australians quickly took charge of the game and demonstrated conclusively that their scrum was more than a match for the English. Inexorably the English dream slipped away as their glaring weakness at the breakdown was cruelly exposed by Pocock and Hooper and the Aussies turned pressure into points. Even as a pessimistic Welshmen, I had to concede that we were on our way to the quarterfinals with a match to spare. The final result a resounding 13-33 victory for Australia was a true reflection of the match. England were down and out. The chariot had swung pretty low. As Windsor Davies would have said, “Oh dear, what a pity, never mind.”

So now we will have a few days of recriminations in the English media before rugby disappears off the front and back pages to be replaced by football. I am not sure what all those English rugby pundits are going to do – maybe they will have to start talking about the other teams.

Wales will play Australia at Twickenham next week in the knowledge that they have already qualified. It will be interesting to see what sort of team we field. It seems likely that if we win we would play Scotland and if we lose we would play the Springboks in the quarter final. I think I would be inclined to rest some of the key players for the game and not worry too much about who we will play next. It’s a nice problem to have though!

It looks to me as if the Southern Hemisphere sides, as expected, will be the ones to beat as they all seem to be imposing themselves on the tournament. France and Ireland have not really been tested yet so their encounter next week will be fascinating as they battle to try and avoid facing the All Blacks in the QF.

I am going to the Wales v Australia at Twickers match next weekend and looking forward to a far more relaxed experience than I originally anticipated. My finger nails will certainly benefit as they have been suffering over the last couple of weeks. Pontypool play Llanharan at home and hopefully will build on their brilliant victory over Merthyr.

Hard luck England. Maybe you shouldn’t have bought the chariot from VW after all - the performance wasn't quite as you expected!

Come on Wales, come on Pooler.

Grey Wales Tough It Out

Yesterday I had my first live experience of the Rugby World Cup 2015 when I went to Cardiff to watch Fiji play Wales. The Millennium Stadium was packed to the rafters but it was an atmosphere unlike any that I have experienced in the fifty or so years I have been watching Wales international matches in Cardiff. There seemed to be little of the raucous Welsh support that I have come to expect. Virtually everyone who was sitting around me was English and supporting Fiji in an almost self-conscious way. Unsurprisingly I seemed to be the only one who sang the Welsh National Anthem in the vicinity. Where was the goat?

To make matters worse, Wales had chosen to wear absurdly dull dark grey shirts. This did nothing to breathe fire into the Welsh dragon. Imagine if all the Welsh supporters decided to wear dark grey – it would be like going to a business meeting or something. I can’t think of any sport’s team that has been successful playing in such a drab colour – black would have been better. On the other hand, I suppose grey whales are eschrichtius robustus and Wales were certainly going to need to be pretty robust against the powerful South Sea Islanders

Wales had a job to do. They had to back up that epic win against England with another victory. Would the short turnaround time between matches claim another victim? Well to start with things looked fine, Wales started with energy and purpose and soon had a try on the board. It was clear that Fiji were going to run the ball at every opportunity and sap the Welsh reserves of energy. This was a high risk policy but great entertainment. Wales stuck to their guns and built up a 17-6 lead at half time with a further try and penalty. The Welsh scrum was under pressure and they had turned over too much ball but they were still in a good position.

As the second half progressed, Wales started to flag as the gargantuan effort they had made at the weekend took its toll. Fiji scored a brilliant try when Wales lost possession in the Fiji 22 and we were no longer thinking about a winning bonus point but just hanging on to win. I was sitting behind the posts and I have to say the Welsh defensive system was awesome. Yes they missed the occasional tackle against their strong running opponents, but there was always someone there to cover up. The exemplary goalkicking of Biggar coupled with the brave and resolute defence eventually saw Wales home 13-23 with the players looking absolutely drained at the final whistle.

I think the sad thing about the RWC is that it has quickly become a war of attrition. Far too many players are getting injured and a recovery time of less than a week is proving to be too short for such a physical sport. If the game continues to become more and more a slug fest, there will need to be some careful thought about how to structure the next RWC in four years’ time. The way it is going it will start as fifteen a side and finish as a sevens tournament!

At least Wales now have a decent rest period before the next match against Australia in Twickenham. It would certainly make things much simpler of Australia could prevail over England tomorrow. If that were the case Wales and Australia would just be playing for first and second place in the group and we could enjoy the game. Things rarely work out that simply but we can hope.

Hearty congratulations to Warren and the boys you have done us proud. Three wins out of three is just brilliant.

PS I am not going to moan about the fact that there was only one train to Newport an hour after the game. 

The Agony and the Ecstasy

Being a Pontypool and Wales fan is not for the faint hearted, life is full of twists and turns some good and some bad. Saturday was one of those days when we were tested to the full.

First came a visit to Pontypool Park for the visit of Bargoed who last season carried everything before them in the Championship to finish as champions by a street. By all rights, it should have meant promotion to the Premiership but lack of the dreaded A licence prevented this from happening. This season Bargoed have already lost two matches which as many as they lost in total last term. We knew that Pontypool could expect a stern examination as Bargoed attempted to right their ship.

It turned out to by a niggly and ugly Gwent derby with far too many mistakes made by both sides. The opening stanzas all belonged to Bargoed who completely monopolised possession for the first quarter of an hour. It was no real surprise when they opened the scoring with an unconverted try when Coombs drove over from a lineout close to the Pooler line. Pooler came back strongly from this and Burke crossed for a well taken try after good handling by the backs. The try went unconverted but the home side edged in front 8-5 with a penalty from Gullis.

The niggle that had been evident from the start bubbled to the surface as Bargoed managed to get under Pooler’s skin. After a bout of fisticffs, Pizey from Bargoed and Mills from Pontypool were yellow carded. This disrupted both sides but Bargoed began to exert a degree of dominance and were rewarded with their second try when Humphries scored in the corner. This time the conversion was successful and Bargoed led 8-12. Bargoed looked the more likely to score in the remainder of the first half but it was Pontypool who managed to close the gap with another Gullis penalty. At 11-12 at half time the game was in the balance.

Bargoed playing down the slope, started the second half the stronger and the Pontypool defence parted like the Red Sea for Moses to allow Dyer to score near the posts opening up an eight point lead for the visitors. A yellow card for the belligerent visiting captain Meades gave the home side a chance to exert some pressure on the Bargoed line and eventually Quick darted over to score in the corner. The conversion was missed but it brought Pooler back within a score at 16-19.

The niggle continued amongst the forwards and Pooler prop Edwards lost his rag and was given a red card for punching an opponent and became the second prop in two weeks to receive his marching orders. The home side’s discipline again failed them and a yellow card for Scanlon for an offence at a ruck meant that they were reduced to thirteen men.

The stage was set for Bargoed to take charge and seal a bonus point win. Fortunately for the home side, the visitors completely fluffed their lines even though they were camped out near the Pooler goal line. Indeed Pontypool managed to break out of the stranglehold and in a rare sortie into the Bargoed half they were awarded a penalty which Gullis duly converted to tie up the scores at 19-19. Pooler held out relatively comfortably to earn a rather unlikely draw.

Pontypool now face a daunting visit to Merthyr next Saturday. Merthyr have carried all before them so far this season and look a sure-fire bet for promotion on the back of a major squad strengthening exercise and plenty of pies. Pooler will certainly need to improve their discipline if they are get anything out of this game.

Rugby has become a complicated game and it is often difficult for the spectators on the terrace to understand why penalties etc. are being awarded. I think we should spare a thought for the referees in the lower echelons of the game. To referee at the highest level it seems that the merry whistle blower needs a considerable amount of assistance. He has two assistant referees plus a fourth official connected to him via a radio link. If there is any doubt, he has the benefit of replays and even someone else to make the contentious decisions. Even then a partisan fan might think that a decision is wrong. How then can we expect one poor dab with limited experience and no help at all to make all the correct calls? I take my hat off to these brave souls who stand out in the middle of the field every Saturday for without them we would have no game at all.

The evening saw what was billed variously as “the most important game ever” and “life or death” by the media. Yes it was a pool match at Twickenham between England and Wales in the Rugby World Cup. England had been made clear favourites by the bookies but spurred on by Pooler’s unlikely draw I settled down with a glass of Magner’s to witness the event on the TV. I pulled the couch out from the wall so I could hide behind it if things got ugly.

It certainly did look as if things were going to get ugly as the England scrum dismantled the Wales scrum. Away from the scrum, Wales looked pretty competitive although it looked like England were the more likely to score a try. There were plenty of penalties for both sides and there was some exemplary goal kicking from Biggar and Farrell. England scored the first try when May skated through after a bouncing ball created confusion in the Welsh defence. England looked pretty comfortable at 16-6 although a third Biggar penalty closed the cap to 16-9 at half time.

England got the crucial first score of the second half and at 19-9 things started looking bad for Wales. Their most penetrative back Scott Williams had been stretchered off and it was hard to see how they would score the try they would surely need especially as the scrum was still in dire trouble. A further penalty from Biggar meant that hope still flickered. An England attack left red-covered bodies strewn about the pitch in a scene resembling Rorke’s Drift. The outcome was both Liam Williams and Amos leaving the field and a major rejig of the Welsh backs. We now had a wing in the centre. A fly half at full back and a scrum half on the wing. The game was surely up and I a poured myself another Magner’s to drown my sorrows.

Astonishingly the game was not up at all and Wales scored a brilliant try under the posts from nowhere. Lloyd Williams, a scrum half playing on the wing, was set free by some good passing and his brilliant cross kick was gathered by the scrum half Davies to score the try. Wales had drawn level against all the odds and my heart was pounding. There was still time left and that England scrum was still hanging over us. Wales seemed to find new energy and belief from somewhere and were awarded a penalty virtually on the halfway line. Up stepped Biggar and the ball sailed between the posts. Wales were actually in the lead with time running out.

My heart sank as England were awarded a penalty deep in the Welsh half but wide out. Farrell would surely kick it but at least we would come out of the match with a draw. In a startling decision England kicked to the corner anticipating that a driving lineout would deliver a try and victory. It was time to go behind the couch and send for the crash trolley just in case. Wales have never defended a lineout better and shoved the much vaunted England pack into touch. Moments later we were bellowing in joy as Biggar booted the ball into touch as time was up.

What a victory. All the talk in the studio was about how England had lost the game rather than how Wales had won the game. Quite frankly my dear I couldn’t give a damn. Wales had won against all the odds. Shades of Wembley 1999. Wow!!

On reflection this morning, as the euphoria subsides, you realise that for Wales the job is far from done. There is no doubt a hefty butcher’s bill to consider and we really have to beat Fiji in a few days’ time to progress. The way our backs have been going down like nine pins it is hard to see what kind of team will take the field on Thursday. We need Paul James back to bolster the forwards as the scrum was in real trouble and Fiji matched England there in the first game. Will James Hook finally get the nod? Perhaps my reference to Rorke’s Drift is an omen.  He must be the only back standing from the original squad who hasn’t been called up yet! There isn’t much time to make the decisions that’s for sure.

In the meantime I will enjoy the sweet scent of victory against the old enemy. Come on Wales!

Phew what a day!

Injury prone Wales fail to convince

Thank goodness, Wales comfortably avoided a huge potential banana skin. Of course, defeat should never really been crossing our minds against the pluck amateurs of Uruguay but after Japan beating the Boks you just never know.

Any of the other members of the “pool of death” will not be unduly concerned about what they saw as Wales stuttered to a 54-9 victory over the South Americans. Rather like England against Fiji, Wales turned the ball over far too many times for their liking with the amount of ball lost in contact a real issue. Perhaps the most worrying aspect though was the further swelling of the sick list and the fact that the two key players who were rushed back, Liam Williams and Samson Lee, both failed to complete the match due to injuries. Add to that injuries to back-up centre Allan and props Jarvis and James and it represents a real cause for concern. Perhaps we have not yet properly acclimatised to local conditions!

There was a distinct feeling that Wales were holding back and not really going into the collisions with the ferocity that the modern game demands. Well this certainly will not do against England and I am sure that the lads will raise the intensity a few more notches against the old enemy. There were some positives of course and Tupuric, as usual, looked very good with Jake Ball also showing up very well. In addition, Priestland’s goal kicking was really consistent and there were some well taken tries.

Warren Gatland looked quite a worried man during the post-match interviews and his biggest concern must be the injuries. The clock is ticking and he needs to call for any replacements to the squad quickly with the seventy two hour deadline fast approaching if they are to be eligible to participate in the England game. I understand that once a player has been replaced in the squad he cannot return so these will be tough decisions. With an urgent need to win at least two of the three remaining pool matches, we need maximum squad strength. There will not really be enough time between the England and Fiji games to call for more replacements. It sounds as if the injury to Allan is the most serious and the experienced and versatile James Hook must surely be worth serious consideration.

Nil desperandum Wales, we can still do it. The injury list is nothing like as long as the one at Pontypool and we managed to beat Newbridge away!

Bridging the gap …and some!

The Rugby World Cup is under way and there is a surfeit of rugby for us addicts.

The starter for Saturday’s feast came from Gloucester were the tough and uncompromising Georgia beat a rather lack lustre and disorganised Tonga side. This was treated with mild surprise but did not really prepare us for what was to follow.

The main course was Pontypool’s visit to the Welfare Ground in Newbridge which has been the scene of many a fiercely contested local derby over the years. Newbridge have started the season well with two victories and Pooler were anxious to bounce back from last week’s disappointing showing against Swansea.

Pooler, inspired by the return of the combative Nash at flanker, went off at a cracking pace and soon had the home side under all sorts of pressure. The pressure was quickly converted into points by two penalty goals converted by Hancock.

Newbridge gradually found their feet and began to dominate possession and territory. Their reward came when they were awarded a penalty for an offence at a ruck that closed the gap to 3-6. The penalty was accompanied by a yellow card for Pooler lock Jones. To make matters worse the Pontypool injury jinx continued when centre Madgwick was stretchered off with an ankle injury.

Despite the disruption, Pontypool surprisingly enjoyed a purple patch. It started when Newbridge made an awful hash of a lineout on their line and Pooler number eight Williams pounced to score. Then Nash broke from a scrum to put Mills in for a try near the posts. Both tries were converted and the away side had suddenly opened up a healthy 3-20 lead. Pontypool were further hampered by the loss of flanker Rusby-Davies through injury. Newbridge threatened briefly but the away side held out without too much trouble to maintain their lead at half time.

The second half saw more Newbridge pressure but the powerful Pooler scrum and their ferocious work at the breakdown kept them at bay. The referee lost patience with the continual offending of the home front row at the scrum and there was a yellow card for Newbridge prop Williams. A boxing match between Scott Williams in the blue corner and Garin Harris in the red corner resulted in them both being shown red cards. This meant that Newbridge were now pretty unlikely to be able to close the gap in the scores as we went into the final quarter. The home backs didn’t seem to think so and attempted to run the ball from behind their own goal line with disastrous consequences. A Pontypool scrum on the Newbridge line resulted and inevitably Pooler drove the scrum over the try line for Williams to touch down for his second try. The try went unconverted but the score line at 3-25 left far too much for Newbridge to do.

Pooler took their foot off the throttle and Newbridge took advantage to score a converted try closing the gap to 10-25. Pontypool were stung into action but squandered a chance of a bonus point when a lineout on the Newbridge line went wrong. The home side had the last say with a consolation try from the last play of the match to leave the final score at 17-25.

This was a strong and spirited display from Pontypool with the return of Nash at flanker and Gullis at fullback major plusses. The pack seems to be coming together as a formidable unit both at set piece and in the loose. The backs seem to have potential but the constant disruption by the lengthy injury list means that we have not yet managed to put together a settled combination.

Next week sees the visit of reigning champions Bargoed to Pontypool Park and a chance to gain revenge for two heavy defeats last season.

So back to the RWC and a chance to watch South Africa tune up with a comfortable victory over Japan – or so we thought! Japan shocked the rugby world by pulling off a last gasp victory over the mighty Boks. This was not a fluke - the Japanese thoroughly deserved to win as they matched the illustrious opponents in all aspects of the game.

I remember watching Japan lose by 145 points to New Zealand in the RWC in South Africa in 1995 – they have certainly come a long way since then. About ten years ago I went to a university match in Japan and was blown away by the skills of the players. Yes, the Japanese have been technically good for a while now but have always been hampered by their generally small stature. Now the home grown players are noticeably chunkier and they are augmented by the judicious use of South Sea Island beef. The result is that they are far more competitive as the South Africans found out to their cost. The South Africans did the classic thing and set out to out-muscle the Japanese with their version of “Warrenball”. It worked to an extent but every time you thought they were going to pull away the Japanese pegged them back with well organised attacks. At the end of the game a lot of people were shaking their heads in disbelief. The outpouring of joy from the Japanese players and fans will live long in the memory.

I did watch the opening match between England and Fiji on Friday and the final score certainly flattered England. There was a period in the second half when England were certainly rattled and I thought, “Maybe just maybe…”. The strength of the England bench told in the end and the introduction of the two Pontypool boys was decisive. England did not really look invincible that’s for sure. For the next England game (which happens to be against Wales), I do hope that the ITV bring a bit more balance to their panel of experts. It was a bit tedious listening to Clive, Jonny and Laurence all saying the same things.

The astonishing Japanese victory now puts a bit of a different light on who might play who in the quarter finals. It very much depends on whether the Boks can recover from the shock and whether the Japanese can back up their performance against Scotland and Samoa.

I find the format of five teams in each pool a bit strange with the huge disparity it brings in the length of the intervals between matches. Wales have only four rest days between the England game and facing Fiji but then double that between the Fiji and Australia games. You wonder why they can’t have an even number of teams in a pool playing on the same day.

After the excitement of Newbridge and Brighton, I needed a drink and didn’t manage to see anything of the French victory over Italy or indeed the highlights of the Irish hammering of Canada. There is a limit to how much a man can take in one day.

And so to today and Wales have to face Uruguay. This surely can’t be another shock can it? I don’t even want to think about it.

Come on Wales and come on Pooler.  

Down to Earth with Bumps

There are few more scenic places to watch rugby than Pontypool Park on a sunny September afternoon. The ground looked a picture for the first home league game of the season and we could look forward to a lively encounter between old rivals Pontypool and Swansea. Both teams had won their first matches and the Pontypool faithful hoped that the home team could put down a marker against a powerful Swansea team that must surely be one of the favourites for the league title. The Pontypool team had a familiar look about it as many of the new members of the squad were unavailable due to injury.

Swansea dominated the early exchanges but were let down by poor handling at crucial times. This coupled with some strong Pontypool defence prevented them from taking the lead. Pontypool managed to break out but, in the course of doing so, influential centre Thorley was badly injured and was stretchered off. We wish him well and hope that he has a speedy recovery. This disrupted both Pooler’s shape and their rhythm and Swansea wrestled back the initiative and scored their first try soon afterwards to take a 0-7 lead.

The home side hit back with a Tom Hancock penalty but this was cancelled out by a Swansea penalty to leave the score 3-10. A sustained period of pressure close to the Swansea line eventually led to a penalty try being awarded to the home side at a scrum which tied the match up at 10-10.

Pontypool were further disrupted by the loss of Jordan Williams who was replaced by lock Lee Williams. Losing two players through injury so early on when you are only allowed five replacements in total does make things difficult as it drastically reduces the options for tactical substitutions later in game. I am still not clear why teams in the Championship are restricted to just five replacements.

Swansea finished the half the stronger and were rewarded with a further try after some excellent combined play following a quick throw in at a lineout near their own twenty two. The half time score was 10-17 and both sides looked delighted for a break on what was a pretty warm afternoon.

The home side started strongly in the second half and went close to scoring a try on a number of occasions. They had to settle for whittling away the Swansea lead through two penalties and with the score at 16-17 it was still anyone’s game.

As Pontypool tired, the lively Swansea backs started to find more and more gaps to exploit and although Pooler strove manfully the last quarter belonged to the visitors who played some excellent rugby. Swansea pulled majestically away with two tries one of which was converted and a penalty to earn a bonus point victory with a final score of 16-32. In truth the margin could have been greater and there is no doubt that Swansea will be a force to be reckoned with in the league for the rest of the season.

As for Pooler, they will need to lick their wounds and try and lift themselves for what promises to be a tough local derby at Newbridge next week. The long list of injuries is a concern, let us hope that the medical staff can work wonders so that we can start to reap the benefits of what is a strong squad of players. Of course we should feel disappointed at the loss, but I don’t think that we need to feel too bad about losing to a Swansea side that will not be beaten many times this season.

The RWC is just around the corner and Wales too are beset by injuries. It will take a monumental effort for them to get out of “the group of death” but they still have a fighting chance. We need a lot of luck with injuries as the strength in depth is now really being challenged. I suppose it can’t be that bad if James Hook is not good enough even to be a replacement! I don’t know much about Uruguay but if they have players with a similar physique to the Argentinians they can rattle a few bones. The Fijians will certainly give us plenty to worry about and then there are England and Australia. The RWC is sure to be pretty brutal and the teams with the strongest squads will the ones to win through in the end.

Injuries certainly seem to be an ever increasing worry in rugby. Some of us can still remember the days when Pooler used to play forty-odd games a season with what seemed like the same team for every match. Perhaps my memory is playing tricks!

So next weekend serves up a menu of Newbridge and Uruguay. Come on Pooler! Come on Wales!  

Good News and Bad News

Yesterday afternoon started very well when the news came through that Pontypool had won their first league game of the season at Narberth. I had been squirming and fretting on the couch for the news as Narberth is certainly not the first choice venue for the season’s opener.  Not many sides manage to lower Narberth’s colours at the Lewis Lloyd ground so this really is an encouraging start to what is likely to be a very competitive league.

Reading the match report, and talking with Pooler fans who had made the trip it was a typical early season game with plenty of errors from both sides as they got back to business. The cutting edge provided by Nathan Brookes and the sheer determination of the side to win proved to be decisive in the end with Pooler deserving their 18-26 victory.

It doesn’t get any easier as next week’s match is against Swansea at Pontypool Park. Swansea are sure to be strong contenders for the league title so it is a great chance for Pooler to test their mettle.

Back on the couch, I was watching England and Ireland battling it out. From a Welsh perspective the news started off badly as England looked really good with the backs looking particularly sharp. The news improved as the Irish began to get into the game. The English scrum looked surprisingly vulnerable and the backs didn’t look so clever when the pressure came on. In the end England won but you were not left feeling that they were invincible. If England had a constructive open side flanker in the Neil Back mould who acted as a link between backs and forwards they could be far more dangerous.

The worst news of the day was to come as I settled down to watch Wales play Italy. I think everyone including the Welsh team expected wales to just turn up and have a comfortable victory. Complacency is a dangerous thing and of course Parisse and the Italian team had an entirely different view of what was going to happen. Wales were pretty poor and a pale shadow of the team that had won in Dublin the previous week. The Italians were powerful in the scrums and a handful in the loose. They took every opportunity to slow the game down and prevented Wales getting into any kind of rhythm. If they had won it would have been no more than they deserved.

Wales played in fits and starts and conceded possession for long periods of the game. When they got the ball they far too often kicked it away. They were penalised heavily at the scrum and the lineout did not function smoothly. It was woeful at times.

Not only did Wales fail to fire but they were also badly hit by injuries. Two of the key players for the imminent RWC: Webb and Halfpenny were stretchered off with serious looking injuries. There is no doubt the seriousness of the Webb injury affected the Welsh players’ performance and seemed to make them much more tentative. If Webb and Halfpenny are out of action for an extended period it really is a body blow to the Welsh hopes going forward.

For the record Wales clung on to win 23-19 and only managed one try to Italy’s two. For Wales, only two players did themselves justice – Scott Williams gave a good all-round performance at centre and Sam Warburton was effective at the breakdown and also carried the ball strongly at times. There was a powerful brief cameo from Moriarty when he came on as a substitute but far too many Welsh players under-performed. I wouldn’t want to be in their shoes on Monday!  

So there will be an anxious time for Wales as they regroup to lick their wounds. Let us hope that Webb and Halfpennny are not too badly hurt and I wish both a speedy recovery. Realistically though it did not look good so let us hope Liam Williams is fit. Will we see Mike Phillips return to the squad I wonder?

The good news is that I have prised myself off the couch and will be fit and ready for Pooler’s first home game against Swansea.

Come on Pooler!  

Warming to the Task

Well if Wales weren’t warmed up after their trip to Qatar they must certainly feel pretty hot now. The match between Ireland and Wales yesterday turned out to be as fiercely contested as if the Six Nations title was on the line. It had those of us who are worried about the lack of depth in the Welsh squad wincing as the two teams thundered into each other.

Ireland have recently made the Aviva Stadium something of a fortress in recent times and have climbed to number two in the world rankings on the back of it. They were not about to surrender this record so this was a real test for was probably a full strength Welsh team when injuries are considered.

Wales gave as good as they got and looked powerful both as individuals and as a team and pretty soon the memories of the previous encounter in Cardiff melted away. This was more like it and sent a clear message to the “group of death”. They dominated the first thirty nine minutes and looked to be going in at half time with a 3-10 lead. A poor scrum near the Welsh line with seconds to go gifted the Irish a sniff of the line and they gratefully accepted to go in at 10-10.

The Irish were obviously severely mentored at half time and for the first twenty minutes of the second half dominated possession and territory but the Welsh defence was awesome and they weathered the storm reasonably comfortably. Gradually Wales started to see more of the ball and started to give the home side something to worry about. Two penalties from Halfpenny opened up a 10-16 lead which proved decisive. Despite a typical last ditch effort from the Irish in the last few minutes, Wales held out for a hard earned victory.

This was a great team effort but you have to single out Justin Tipuric who was simply outstanding for Wales. The rest of the pack looked strong with the veteran Gethin Jenkins still mightily effective and, at the other end of the experience spectrum, Francis at tight head looking a good prospect. Bradley Davies and Alun Wyn Jones formed an abrasive second row partnership and Owens, Lydiate and Faletau went about their business effectively. The backs were strong in defence and showed some sparks of creativity but I like to think they were keeping their powder dry for future encounters. I guess we still have to consider how we fit Liam Williams into the team which was exactly how we left the debate at the end of last season.  

Warren Gatland and his coaching team can have few problems picking the final squad of thirty one for the RWC and all the players who took part in this match must surely be included.

So to Pontypool who are approaching the start of what could be a momentous season. They have a golden opportunity to get back into the top flight of Welsh club rugby with the expansion of the Premiership in 2016-17. There are four promotion places up for grabs and these are only available to clubs with the A Licence. This means Pooler are probably one of a maximum of six clubs that could be promoted and it could well be fewer than that. There is certainly no room for ay complacency however, and I hope that Pooler go hell for leather to win the Championship as you never know what the fickle WRU may dream up with in the mean time.

I have not been at any of Pontypool’s pre-season friendly matches but on paper the results do not look too encouraging with heavy defeats to Ebbw Vale and Ampthill and a narrow victory over Blaenavon. “Reliable sources” tell me not to read too much into them as we have been giving the whole training squad a chance to show what they have got before it is whittled down to the final playing squad. There is plenty of talent available and we should certainly be stronger than last season.

Pontypool certainly need to hit the ground running as the fixtures in September are pretty demanding with the first match a tough challenge at Narberth and matches against last season’s top two - Swansea and Bargoed following closely behind.  

It’s a mouth-watering prospect although I must confess to feeling some pre-season nerves as I write this.

Come on Pooler!

Come on Wales!

  

Common sense prevails for once

Hallelujah the WRU have seen the light!

Everyone now knows what is happening in the Premiership/Championship over the next few years. The expansion of the Premiership to 16 clubs will not take place until 2016-17 season. Pontypool know exactly what they need to do to achieve promotion – finish in the top four of the clubs with the A Licence next season.

It seems simple when you say it quickly but I am sure that there will be many twists and turns and much angst along the way. Promotion is far from assured unless there are only four clubs with the A Licence. Success or failure is completely in our own hands however.

Carpe diem Pooler. We are all behind you.

Mid-summer Murder

I suppose it wouldn’t be normal if all was peace and harmony in Welsh Rugby during the summer. Just when we need the rugby nation to come together before the Rugby World Cup we are at each other’s throats again.

This time it is about the structure of the Premiership and who should represent Wales in the British and Irish Cup competition. The idea that the Region’s should field a development team to play in said cup has not met with universal approval. The knock-on effect of this move would be that the Premiership clubs would not have enough rugby to be viable. The answer of course is to increase the size of the Premiership. Well that doesn’t seem too bad does it? Pontypridd do not agree and they feel that as champions and by far the strongest side in the Premiership that they should get to compete in the B&I Cup. This debate rages on.

If the dust does settle on this argument then there is the vexed question of how big the Premiership should be. Most people would say that it should consist of sixteen clubs – now this seems vaguely familiar to those of us with grey hair. This doesn’t seem too bad does it?

So when would the changes be implemented? 2016-17, 2017-18? No next season yes just a couple of months or so from now!

We in Pontypool suddenly prick up our ears. We of course were the big casualty when the WRU in their wisdom decided that the Premiership was too big with fourteen clubs. Could we get the call?

There are only three clubs in the Championship who have the WRU A Licence which is regarded as mandatory to participate in the Premiership – Swansea, RGC 1404 and Pontypool. Even though Pooler finished fifth, we must be in with a shout surely. Merthyr who finished third are making a huge clamour on the back of Stan Thomas’ cash and contend that they will be in a position to satisfy the A Licence criteria by the end of next month. Bargoed the runaway champions are not close to satisfying the criteria but are looking at alternative venues. (If Bargoed were to get the A Licence it would make you wonder how Newport avoided relegation – but that’s another argument).

So it’s watch this space for now. The WRU have delayed their decision but the clock is ticking and the clubs really do not need a hiatus of this magnitude with the new season just around the corner. It’s not just the Premiership of course – the impact would cascade down through the entire league structure.

Wouldn’t it be sensible to have a Premiership that looked like this:

Dragons Region

Newport

Ebbw Vale

Cross Keys

Pontypool

Blues Region (Pies)

Cardiff

Merthyr

Bedwas

Pontypridd (pies off the menu)

Ospreys Region

Aberavon

Swansea

Bridgend

Neath

Scarlets Region

Llanelli

RGC 1404

Llandovery

Carmarthen Quins

But then I would say that wouldn’t I! You might say this is pie in the sky.