Pooler Quickly up to Speed

For ardent fans starved of live rugby it was great to back at Pontypool Park to watch Pooler take on Glamorgan Wanderers. It really has been a fallow period for the Pooler faithful with this being only the fourth competitive match in almost two years and seven weeks since their last tasty morsel. A decent crowd gathered on a cool January day with the sun poking through now and then and no wind to speak of. The pitch was in good condition if a little slippery on top.

So to the match. Pontypool played up the slope in the first half and could have been forgiven if they had been a little slow off the mark against opponents who had played a deal more rugby in the recent past. This was absolutely not the case as the home side got into their stride surprisingly quickly.  They set out to play a high tempo offloading game and for the most part it was mighty effective.

After some great attacking rugby in the first ten minutes, they had ten points on the board through a penalty, a try and a conversion from outside half Jarvis. The Wanderers had done little but defend in this period but finally got a toehold in the match with a penalty from James after pressurising the Pontypool line (10-3)

Pontypool continued to play with confidence and the away side were soon back on the defensive. The home scrum and lineout were working well and the forwards were carrying strongly to set up a great attacking platform for the lively backs. As we entered the second quarter, Pooler scored two tries in a couple of minutes which effectively took the game away from the Wanderers. The first was from quick thinking by Ieuan Jones who took a tap penalty and powered over from ten metres or so. The second followed some brilliant combined play from backs and forwards that took Pooler from within their own half to deep into the visitors’ twenty two. The ball did go loose but ever-alert Pooler flanker Stratton was on hand to scoop the ball up and surge over the line. Both tries were converted by Jarvis and Pooler had a healthy lead at 24-3.

Just before half time, Pontypool added their fourth try when hooker, Hughes, bulldozed over from fifteen metres after some strong work from the forwards. Jarvis converted from wide out to give Pooler a 31-3 lead at half time with the bonus point in the bag.

It really had really been a fine first half performance from Pooler and we hoped for more of the same in the second half. HT Pontypool 31 - Glamorgan Wanderers 3.

The second half started well with a powerful Pooler scrum shunting the Wanderers back at a rate of knots and the referee awarding a penalty try (38-3). This was followed a few minutes later when a strong surge by Hughes led to some slick back play to put Nove in in the left corner. The conversion attempt hit a post but Pontypool were well ahead at 43-3 with half an hour remaining.

From then on, the match seemed to go into the doldrums. There was the usual raft of substitutions and the Wanderers stepped up their defensive effort. Whilst Pontypool continued to create scoring chances, they did not take them. The error count started to creep up and the home side started to give away penalties. As a result, we began to see some attacking play from the visitors who, although they broke the defensive line on a few occasions, found the cover defence in place to snuff the attacks out. I think everyone felt the frustration!

As we got to the final few minutes, Pontypool finally managed to finish with a flourish. Some excellent combined play led to substitute flanker Price touching down in the left corner. A brilliant touchline conversion from Jarvis put the icing on the cake and Pooler brought up the half century (50-3).

There was no further scoring and the match drifted to a conclusion with Pontypool recording a resounding victory. Final score Pontypool 50 – Glamorgan Wanderers 3.

It is great to be back at the Park and congratulations to Pontypool on a fine win in what might have been a tricky encounter after the long layoff. The brand of attacking rugby on show particularly in the first half was exhilarating – long may it continue.

Next weekend will represent another step up with the away fixture at Narberth who ran Bargoed close yesterday. Pontypool have it all to do if they are to catch the Championship leaders Bargoed, Bedwas and Neath. Whist they have games in hand, they really cannot afford to lose another match if they wish to retain the title in a highly competitive league. There is of course no promotion to play for this season but an exciting climax to the season is in prospect nevertheless.

Come on Pooler!