Highs and Lows

Pontypool’s latest league fixture at Merthyr meant an early start as the kick off had been rearranged to 13.00hrs to avoid a clash with the Wales v Argentina RWC quarterfinal. For those of us travelling from sea level, there was a noticeable chill in the air as a keen breeze reminded us that winter was on the way despite the sun shining. The artificial pitch with its bright blue surround still takes some getting used to but does mean that playing conditions are not affected by the previous week’s rain.

As the teams lined up at the start of the game, it was clear that the Pooler pack would be conceding a distinct weight advantage to their opponents. Merthyr were quick to make this tell with a try from Wiggins after an unstoppable lineout drive powered over the Pontypool line after only a couple of minutes. Lewis converted and the home team had raced into a 7-0 lead.

Pooler’s defence had to work overtime to keep out the powerful Merthyr forwards over the next ten minutes as they went about their work. The Pontypool scrum was under severe pressure and Merthyr were hungry for points.

Pooler weathered the onslaught and even managed to work their way downfield from a penalty or two. After a quarter of an hour, a delightful dummy from Pooler centre Mahoney, that even the crowd bought, saw him split the Merthyr defence and gallop over from twenty metres or so. Jarvis converted and Pooler were back on terms at 7-7.

Pooler were finding their feet and looking sharp. A yellow card for Merthyr’s Meaclem gave Jarvis an opportunity from the tee that he slotted to give Pooler the lead (7-10). On the half hour, Pooler struck again. Lively scrum half Lloyd made a blindside break near half way and found Rosser in support. The Pooler right wing needed no second invitation and he raced over for an excellent try. Jarvis converted and the away side had opened up a useful 7-17 lead.

Pooler continued to look the more likely to score but it was Merthyr who struck back as half time approached with a penalty from Lewis. So at the interval the score was Merthyr 10 : Pontypool 17. Pooler had fought back well after an unpromising beginning and it was still anyone’s game.

Pontypool needed to start the second half well but it was Merthyr who came out with all guns blazing. Within a couple of minutes of the restart, that had closed the gap to 13-17 with a penalty from Lewis. Merthyr continued to apply the pressure with their kicking game giving Pooler all sorts of problems. The Pooler defence was under pressure but managed to keep Merthyr at bay for the rest of the third quarter.

Early in the fourth quarter, Merthyr finally breached the Pooler defence and again it was through the work of their forwards. A drive from a lineout close to the Pooler line saw Wall touch down for a try. The conversion from Lewis gave the home side a narrow 20-17 lead with a quarter of an hour to go.

By now, both sides had made a raft of substitutions and the game was evenly contested with the Pooler scrum becoming dominant. First Jarvis for Pooler and then Lewis for Merthyr missed eminently kickable penalties for kickers of their quality – they were feeling the pressure too.

Merthyr held on to their narrow lead tenaciously as time began to run out. Pooler were not about to give up and put in a tremendous last ditch effort to work their way down the field. They won a series of kickable penalties but a win was what they wanted and they believed that the scrum was the way to get it. This was nail-biting stuff as scrum after scrum was reset with any Pooler mistake surely bringing the game to an end. Finally, Pooler secured possession from a scrum and spread the ball left. Somehow, they managed to get the ball to Nove in space and he flung himself over for the winning try in the left corner. The conversion failed but time was up and Pooler had snatched victory. Final score Merthyr 20 : Pontypool 22.

What an exciting game of rugby that ebbed and flowed with Pooler just getting home. Well done to both sides. Pontypool are taking to the Premiership like a duck to water.

I have to say having watched Pooler playing in the Premiership there does not seem to be a lot wrong with the way things are organised at present. Young regional players have been given opportunities to gain experience and the matches are competitive and reasonably well-supported. This is Wales, however, and of course we have to change things to try and reinvent the wheel rather than work with what we have got. I am still trying to work out what the benefits of the so-called elite league are. It seems like we will have something very similar to the Premiership but the clubs themselves will lose a measure of control over their teams and their autonomy. In return they will be in a ring-fenced league and will get WRU matched funding. It will be a smaller league 8-10 teams so less rugby for the fans. I hope they know what they are doing!

From Merthyr, it was a swift drive home (apart from the 20mph bits) in time to watch Wales take on Argentina in the RWC. As we all know by now, Wales came unstuck against the powerful Pumas. After a highly promising half an hour or so Wales fell away. Wales really should have built up a much more substantial lead when they held the initiative and rather let Argentina back into the game. A misfiring lineout certainly did not help their cause. Wales lost their momentum and it was the Pumas who bossed the second half. Wales kicked the ball away too much and let their powerful opponents run at them. There was a brief period of hope when Tomas Williams scored an opportunist try to give Wales the lead but, in the end, Wales finished distinctly second best with a lot of key players struggling with injuries. In conclusion, Wales did well to get out of their group from the state that they were in after the Six Nations but they are still far from being competitive against the world’s best.

Talking of the world’s best brings me to Ireland v New Zealand. What a game of rugby that was. I found myself thinking that I was almost glad that Wales did not have to go up against either of these teams carrying the injury list that they would have surely had. This truly was a titanic struggle that could have gone either way right to the last second. Somehow the All Blacks managed to survive Ireland’s last onslaught to hang on to their narrow lead. You can never write off New Zealand when it comes to rugby and they do take their chances whenever they present themselves.

So heartbreak for Wales and Ireland and the hopes for the home nations now rest with England who have not really shown any signs of RWC winners. I won’t be holding my breath!

Next week we can concentrate on Pontypool and the battles of the Pontys. Pontypridd will visit Pontypool Park on Saturday and we can expect another competitive match.

Hard luck Wales!

Come on Pooler!