WRU Division 3A East Central

GWERNYFED 32 LLANDAFF 12

TENACITY REAPS REWARDS AT LAST

During what can only be described as a disappointing start to the campaign, those who follow the green, white and blacks will not have wanted for commitment or effort – rather a little bit of luck by way of reward. On this occasion luck was not required as an excellent performance was rewarded by six tries and a bonus point

In each of their last four games Gwernyfed’s pack has been so dominant as to force the opposition to opt for passive scrums, neutralising the Talgarth men’s advantage. The sequence extended itself after 65 minutes when an injury forced off a beleaguered Cardiff prop by which time the die was cast.

Early pressure up front yielded two tries within the first ten minutes. Front rowers Craig Parry, James Brute and Aaron Nicholls carried all before them, setting up plenty of opportunity in conditions that lent themselves to forward play. First Brute himself ploughed over following a line-out and maul and then number 8 Ben Barrell controlled the ball in the scrum, marched his pack forward and touched down.

In a rare foray into home territory Llandaff wing Grimes touched down courtesy of a superb cross kick when the defence appeared to have everything covered. However, Gwernyfed struck right back when a long clearance was chased down by Lewys Cooke who cleverly stood guard over the sprawling defender until he regained his feet, bundling him over for a five-metre line-out. Andy Hill’s forwards made no mistake, Jordan Curran applying the final touch to the successful maul.

Llandaff were under pressure but were also admirably defiant. They launched a series of attacks as the second period opened and it was Grimes again who squeezed into the corner for a try which, when converted, gave the scoreboard a rather unrepresentative look given Gwernyfed’s dominance.

There was little for the home support to worry about as the green, white and blacks tore back into attack, turning positional advantage into points with tries by first Craig Fuller and then right wing Keiron Jones, the latter a well taken effort requiring speed and dexterity.

Once the scrum was neutralised the game was over as a spectacle but there was still time for centre Haydn Murphy to illustrate what a good player he is when spotting that his opposite number was about to kick into the corner. Murphy not only stopped the kick but caught it clean and outpaced the defence for fifty metres, offering Gerwyn Williams a simple conversion to break his ‘duck’ on an afternoon not designed to offer kickers a form footing.

Head coach Chay Billen was delighted with the win but disappointed that next week’s opponents have opted to stop at home to watch the Wales game rather than travel to Talgarth, causing a three-week break in the campaign that Gwernyfed will enter with renewed confidence.