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18 January 2015 / Team News

Emlyn progress to the last eight of the WRU Plate

NEWCASTLE EMLYN 13 PENCOED 8

The fact that this game was played at all on Saturday was a wonder of nature because on Thursday the River Teifi decided to pay Dol Wiber a visit and as well as being under water the pitch itself was inaccessible. Mother nature being what it is, by Saturday morning the water receded but to describe the playing surface as heavy would be an understatement. A sharp shower just before kick off meant that conditions were not conducive to open running rugby. This did not deter either side and another large crowd were treated to an absorbing WRU Plate encounter with the result in the balance right up to the final whistle.

The visitors started off in a very positive fashion and took play positively into the home side’s half. They looked to have worked an overlap on the Emlyn twenty two metre line after some five minutes, but the ever alert Emlyn right wing Llyr Jones intercepted the final pass. The speedy winger needed no second invitation to put his head back and run for the opposition line. He was eventually cut down some twenty metres from the Pencoed line. From the ensuing line out Emlyn hooker Alex Williams carried the ball into a ruck and Emlyn were awarded a penalty kick which winger Dan Davies converted to open Emlyn’s account.

Davies was responsible for increasing the home sides lead on the quarter hour mark when he received the ball from a line out inside his own half. He showed a fine turn of speed and rounded his opposite number, with four defenders converging on him he cleverly kicked ahead. The ball landed in the large in-goal area and centre Alun Howells won the race for the touchdown inches from the dead ball line. Davies converted the try to increase Emlyn’s lead.

With Emlyn running the ball from deep their outside backs were noticeably quicker that the visitors and some of the visitor defending was desperate at times but managed to keep the home side out. Emlyn did increase their lead after some twenty minutes with another penalty for an offence at the ruck kicked by Davies. There was a feeling amongst the crowd that one more score by the home side would seal the game. The previously undefeated visitors were now in the unaccustomed position of trailing in a game. They were handed a lifeline by the home side when they decided against kicking for goal from another penalty award and opted instead for a kick to touch. Emlyn failed to score from the ensuing lineout and Pencoed battled their way upfield and were awarded a penalty from a scrum offence enabling their outside half Adam Williams to open their account.    

The second half proved to be a nerve shredding time for the home fans as Pencoed began to exert a great deal of pressure on the home side at scrum time. Their bigger heavier pack started to drive Emlyn back with relative ease and things began to look ominous for the red and whites. The pitch by now had deteriorated considerably and the game became a real forward slog. Emlyn struggled at scrum time and the visitors found worthwhile possession from the lineout difficult to come by as the Emlyn second rows Arwel Davies and Dyfed Morgan continually disrupted Pencoed ball.

Indiscipline did little to help the Emlyn cause, with prop Gethin Davies being the first to be yellow carded for standing up at a scrum. No sooner had his time been served, than replacement flanker Gethin Phillips was sent to the bin by the excellent referee Jon Hardy, followed two minutes later by Gareth Patterson both for offences at the ruck.

To their immense credit Emlyn showed tremendous resolve in defence and, well marshalled by centres Viv Jenkins and Alun Howells, they managed to keep the visitors out. Pencoed possibly were victims of their own poor decision making in electing to go for touch instead of kicking for goal. On one occasion they did manage to win some very untidy ball from a lineout and went through a series of rucks and drives in an effort to breach the Emlyn defensive wall, all to no avail.

Emlyn did manage to relieve the pressure for a short while and worked their way into the Pencoed twenty two when full back Shaun Leonard made a lovely break only to be brought down inches from the line. Outside half Rhidian Harries looked to have put centre Howells through only to be called back for a knock on when it looked as if the ball had gone forward off his thigh.

Eventually with ten minutes to go Pencoed managed to cross the Emlyn line with a pushover try accredited to their number eight Gareth Prentice, but the conversion sailed wide of the posts. This led to an exciting ten minutes as play went from end to end with Emlyn using the siege-gun boot of Shaun Leonard to drive the visitors back.

Pencoed with their scrum half Kyle Barrett marshalling his forwards continued to drive at Emlyn from the ruck but found the red and whites determined to hang on to their lead, with captain Dai Jones and hooker Alex Williams putting in some thunderous tackles.

This was a very good win by the red and whites who now find themselves in the quarter final of the WRU Plate for the first time in their history. With the next round due to be played on the 28th March one can only hope that Spring will have arrived and Emlyn will be able to play on a firm, dry surface.

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