Pooler get back in the saddle

Pontypool finally got back into competitive action on a cold, grey December day in Pontypool Park after a month of kicking their heels. Their opponents were Trebanos who have certainly created an impression in their first season in the Championship and were in the pack chasing Pontypool at the top of the league.

Pontypool played up the slope in the first half and it was immediately apparent that this was going to be a tough and bruising encounter. As might be expected after the lay-off, the game was littered with mistakes as both sides tried to assert a measure of control. The two things that were immediately apparent were that the Pooler scrum had an edge and the referee was going to have his work cut out controlling a niggly and scrappy game.

After ten minutes or so, Pooler finally earned a scrum close to the Trebanos line. They applied the necessary pressure and the referee had no hesitation in awarding a penalty try (7-0). He also gave a yellow card to the Trebanos loosehead prop.

The game reverted to a battle between the two twenty two lines with defences on top and neither set of backs managing to find any sparkle due to a combination of rustiness and cold fingers. It invariably ended in booting the ball down field and a kick chase on a sticky pitch. The game desperately needed a touch of inspiration and it came when Pooler took a quick tap penalty after about half an hour and, although the passing amongst the backs was hardly slick, Thomas was freed on the left wing. He was tackled just short of the line but managed to off load the ball for the supporting Gullis to score. The try went unconverted but Pooler had built a 12-0 lead on a day when points were going to be hard to come by.  There was no further scoring in what had been a hard fought first half.

The second half started well for the home side as they worked their way down field into the Trebanos twenty two. After a series of forward thrusts, Jones threaded a clever grubber through the away defence for Gullis to score. The conversion gave Pooler what looked to be a winning lead of 19-0 but still needing a further try to claim the bonus point.

The next twenty minutes was real attritional stuff with forwards and backs alike clattering into each other with some ferocity. There was a yellow card for either side and it was Trebanos who were the team that took advantage of their period of numerical superiority. After several minutes of sustained attacking, they scored a well-deserved try by Davies which was converted by Edwards to close the gap to 19-7 as the game went into the final quarter.

The Trebanos try plus a series of substitutions seemed to give both sides fresh impetus and the battle became even fiercer. Trebanos were certainly not about to lie down and Pooler were anxious to get their bonus point try. With ten minutes to go, Pooler earned a lineout close to the Trebanos line. An excellently constructed lineout drive saw Nash get the vital touch down. The conversion from wide out failed but at 24-7 Pooler were home and hosed. The final ten minutes did not deliver any more scoring even though both sides huffed and puffed. I for one was glad to return to the warmth of my car as my feet felt like blocks of ice.

While Pontypool could not find the form that they had before the lay-off, this was a solid hard-earned victory against doughty opponents. It keeps them firmly planted at the top of the Championship with eleven wins from eleven games at the halfway stage. The next match will be at Glynneath next Saturday. Glynneath have been struggling a little this season but are sure to give Pooler a warm welcome.

There are certainly a lot of rumours flying around about the Dragons’ recruitment drive. I don’t know where the money is coming from to fund it I am sure when we hear that Moriarty will be the highest paid player in Welsh rugby. It is difficult to imagine top players like Quade Cooper, George North and Taulupe Faletau coming cheap. I wish the Dragons well as their history of recruitment has certainly not been that impressive since the days of Teichmann and Montgomery.

I duly filled in the WRU questionnaire about the future of rugby in Wales. I must admit I do fear for the outcome following the report from the consultants if you believe the spin that has already started. The constant short term tinkering with the league structure and the various competitions has got us precisely nowhere so far. Whatever happens, there has to be some incentive for every club in the pyramid to excel and there has to be stability in the way competitions are run.

In the European Rugby Champions Cup it saddened me to see the rows of empty seats at the Scarlets while virtually every ground in the other countries was full. Nevertheless both Scarlets and Ospreys won as did the Dragons in the Challenge Cup with the only Welsh loss the Blues at Sale. It still seems likely that we will again see a Wexit in the Champions Cup.

Anyway let’s not get too depressed - Xmas is coming and we’re going to Glynneath to watch Pooler next Saturday.

Come on Pooler!