Category: Rugby

Action Replay (Newport Programme Notes)

Aberavon 20-10 Pontypool
WRU Premiership Cup, 23rd September 2023
by Paul Williams

The Wizards got some redress for the league defeat suffered at the hands of the same opponents a week earlier, progressing to the quarter-final round of the WRU Premiership Cup after emerging victorious from a hard-fought encounter with the relative defensive performances of both teams largely to the fore.

The Wizards made the early running, with Aled Thomas landing two penalty goals despite the wind blowing across the field that seemed to get the better of Thomas’ opposite number Josh Malson, whose attempts on goal repeatedly fell wide of the mark.

The visitors, however, kept battering away at the home defence, and eventually got off the mark when, just before half-time, hooker Peter Lloyd was driven over for an unconverted try, taking the score to 6-5 at the interval.

Following the restart, the Wizards again were quicker to gain the upper hand, but the Pontypool defence proved equal to the challenge and, much to the frustration of the home contingent, a defensive mix-up presented the visitors with possession from which a perfectly weighted cross-kick by Malsom, aided by a kind bounce of the ball, enabled wing Ewan Rosser to go sprinting in at the right-hand corner. The conversion attempt on this occasion was entrusted to replacement Matt Bancroft but he, too shot wide of the mark.

Trailing by four points well into the final quarter, the Wizards somehow found it within themselves to up their game yet again. Locks Rhodri Hughes and Shay Smallman seemed to set things in motion by stealing a series of lineouts against the Pontypool throw-in. Facing intense pressure, the visitors’ discipline began to waver and a series of penalties gave the Wizards a foothold in the Pontypool 22. Eventually good work by the forwards dragged in the defence for quick ball to be quickly sent wide, with replacement fly-half James Davies delivering a superb pass to Stef Andrews, flying up on the left wing to touch down near the posts. Davies duly converted and suddenly the whole picture had changed as 6-10 became 13-10.

The best, however, was yet to come. A lineout just inside the visitors’ half was duly won by Hughes, and the ball found its way to Joe Tomalin-Reeves in midfield. He drove hard and straight to commit three defenders before delivering quick ball that found its way to centre Brad Roderick. A superbly timed short pass found co-centre Frankie Jones running onto the ball at top speed, scything through the defence before changing pace cleverly to leave two defenders flat-footed as he went clear for a superb try in the right-hand corner. Davies then iced the cake with a magnificent touchline conversion kick.

Pontypool, predictably, were in no mood to throw in the towel, preferring instead to throw caution to the winds as they sought to regain the initiative. A bold attack from deep in their own half looked promising as left-wing Walker Price was put clear, but teenager Scott Delnevo, a half-time replacement for Jay Baker, appeared out of the blue to put in a perfect tackle, driving Price into touch on halfway.

While Frankie Jones, predictably, got the Man of the Match vote from the home supporters after his spectacular result-securing try, there were heroics right across the field. Blind-side flanker Ben Gregory, like Delnevo a summer recruit to the Aberavon squad, got through an enormous amount of defensive work while covering just about every blade of grass, while alongside him Rhys Thomas, a lock currently plugging the gap at number eight while Andrew Waite is sidelined, wasn’t far behind him. The current squad at the Talbot Athletic Ground is, in terms of average age, probably the youngest in the club’s recent history, but the signs are that the future is bright. While there is much debate around how best to develop young talent in Wales, there is plenty of evidence to suggest that playing competitive rugby at club level can pay huge dividends.

The draw for the quarter-final round of the cup sees the Wizards facing a challenging trip to Church Bank to take on Llandovery on December 9th.

Paul Williams (Newport Programme Notes)

Start… stop… start again…

It’s inevitable, really. When the great and the good of our sport from across the globe come together for the four-yearly jamboree that is the Rugby World Cup, that those of us at the sharper end of the ship have to step aside from time to time so as to allow an uninterrupted view of what’s going on at various French stadia, not least, for some of us this year, involving young players who cut their teeth in Premiership Rugby, although if one were to implicitly believe much of what appears in the media then the inevitable conclusion would be that these players somehow appeared out of the blue, ready, able and willing to go out there and produce, for example, a record margin of victory over one of the most successful teams in the admittedly short history of the tournament. Well done, I say, to Gareth and Marina Gange who somehow managed to get Jac Morgan and Adam Beard to appear on TV helping to hold up a Welsh flag with “ABERAVON RFC” emblazoned across its width; two players happy to acknowledge the benefits of playing competitive club rugby as they emerge from U20 into senior rugby.

But I digress. At this moment we’re at the “start again…” phase, by which I mean we’ve enjoyed a full-on start to the season involving four successive Saturday (hooray) fixtures before having things grind to a brief halt as the group stages in France reached their surprisingly enjoyable climax, and must now get ourselves going again, adjusting kick-off times to avoid clashing with the TV broadcasts heading this way from Marseille and Paris later today.

This should not, incidentally, be viewed as criticism. The tournament has, in its comparatively short existence, evolved into something well above and beyond the “Autumn Series” that now appears on each of three out of four years and, from a personal viewpoint, does little to compensate for the disruption to domestic fixtures it causes – domestic fixtures, such as Aberavon v Newport, that are still dear to many of us who can remember the heights to which Welsh Club Rugby was once able to scale, and the giants who took it to those heights.

One such “giant”, in reality a man of fairly diminutive stature, will be sadly missed today and at all future fixtures between our two old clubs. My earliest memories of David Watkins were of seeing him on a black & white TV inspiring Wales on to great things, and those blurred images stayed with me down the years. Then one day, unexpectedly, I was going about whatever pre-match business my role on the Aberavon Supporters Club Committee needed my attention before the Wizards and the Black & Ambers kicked off. True to form, there was someone from Newport was similarly busy and we managed to get under one-another’s feet briefly, mumbling apologies as we went, until we’d both finished whatever chores were taking up our time, at which point we struck up a conversation about the match about to start. The realisation inevitably then dawned that I was talking, in the flesh, face to face and in full colour, with the object of those old TV clips from years earlier.

Our paths crossed occasionally, and always ever so briefly, a number of times during the years that followed, and he was never, ever anything other than a pleasant, down-to-earth chap whose persona could not have been further from that of a dual-code superstar. Farewell Mr Watkins, you will never be forgotten.

Enjoy the game.

Team v Newport

The Aberavon team to face Newport at the Talbot Athletic Ground on Saturday at 1:30 p.m. is…

Aberavon Starting XV:
Scott Delnevo; Chris Banfield, Frankie Jones, Bradley Roderick, Stef Andrews; James Davies, Iwan Temblett; Rowan Jenkins, Luke Davies, Geraint James, Shay Smallman, Rhodri Hughes, Ben Gregory, Rhys Thomas, Joe Tomalin-Reeves.

Replacements:
Aron Hemmings, Aled Thomas, Callum Carson, Iestyn Davies, Cameron Lewis, Travis Huntley, Jordan Walters, Rhys Fawcett.

Preview: Aberavon v Newport

This Saturday, Aberavon hosts Newport at the Talbot Athletic Ground in the Indigo Group Premiership, kicking off at 1:30 p.m.

Last season, the Black and Ambers finished fourth in the Premiership, winning 15 out of 22 games but lost in the league playoffs to Cardiff.

This season, the Gwent side has won two out of three league games, starting with back-to-back bonus point wins against Pontypool (38-27) and RGC 1404 (41-27). Their last league match saw them lose to Swansea (21-26) but they secured a losing bonus point. In the Premiership Cup, Newport lost to Cardiff 15-38 last month.

In their historical league matchups, Newport leads Aberavon with 26 wins to 20, and one draw in 47 meetings. At the Talbot Athletic Ground, the Wizards have a slight edge with 12 wins to Newport’s 11, and one draw. Newport has won their last two visits to the ground.

Referee Jason Bessant will officiate the game, with Gareth Jablonski and Chris Oliver as the assistant referees.

Aberavon Rugby Club is proud to partner with BELTER to elevate performance to the next level.

BELTER is a new international company based in the UK that believes pouches are the best way to deliver a boost to mental and physical performance.

Head of Communications at Aberavon, Chris Davies, said.

“We are always looking for that edge to increase performance.

It was obvious after speaking with BELTER that they have exactly what we are looking for in terms of effectiveness and efficiency of a performance-based product.”

BELTER is a revolutionary caffeine performance pouches are set to change the game for athletes by delivering a new way to combat fatigue & enhance performance.

Tom Higgins from BELTER added.

“We are happy to announce our association with Aberavon Rugby Club, a prestigious rugby club with a rich history of success.

This partnership reflects our passion for excellence. We believe that this partnership is not just about what we can bring to Aberavon but also about what we can learn and gain from this collaboration.”

The players at Aberavon have already started using the product and have great feedback.

Stef Andrews, rugby player at Aberavon commented.

“I have used BELTER for three games, I have certainly felt a different edge after using the product and has certainly prolonged fatigue.

The product is easy to use, slides straight under the top lip.

I have felt such a difference in my performance.”

BELTER aim to work with players so they can understand the performance benefits of their product & the varying use cases of it. Additionally, BELTER will work closely together with Aberavon Rugby club to organise grassroots events with community clubs giving them an opportunity to sample BELTER and educating people on the performance benefits of the product.

The partnership will extend beyond the rugby field through collaboration on marketing and promotional activities, leveraging each other’s networks and resources to increasing collective reach.

Aberavon Rugby Club is now a BELTER affiliate where commission can be built to raise funds for the club.

Tom Higgins added.

“We are excited about the future and the positive impact we can create together.”

---

To purchase BELTER products please use this link.

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Match Report: Aberavon 20 – 10 Pontypool (Cup)
by Paul Williams

The Wizards got some redress for the league defeat suffered at the hands of the same opponents a week earlier, progressing to the quarter-final round of the WRU Premiership Cup after emerging victorious from a hard-fought encounter with the relative defensive performances of both teams largely to the fore.

The Wizards made the early running, with Aled Thomas landing two penalty goals despite the wind blowing across the field that seemed to get the better of Thomas’ opposite number Josh Malson, whose attempts on goal repeatedly fell wide of the mark.

The visitors, however, kept battering away at the home defence, and eventually got off the mark when, just before half-time, hooker Peter Lloyd was driven over for an unconverted try, taking the score to 6-5 at the interval.

Following the restart, the Wizards again were quicker to gain the upper hand, but the Pontypool defence proved equal to the challenge and, much to the frustration of the home contingent, a defensive mix-up presented the visitors with possession from which a perfectly weighted cross-kick by Malsom, aided by a kind bounce of the ball, enabled wing Ewan Rosser to go sprinting in at the right-hand corner. The conversion attempt on this occasion was entrusted to replacement Matt Bancroft but he, too shot wide of the mark.

Trailing by four points well into the final quarter, the Wizards somehow found it within themselves to up their game yet again. Locks Rhodri Hughes and Shay Smallman seemed to set things in motion by stealing a series of lineouts against the Pontypool throw-in. Facing intense pressure, the visitors’ discipline began to waver and a series of penalties gave the Wizards a foothold in the Pontypool 22. Eventually good work by the forwards dragged in the defence for quick ball to be quickly sent wide, with replacement fly-half James Davies delivering a superb pass to Stef Andrews, flying up on the left wing to touch down near the posts. Davies duly converted and suddenly the whole picture had changed as 6-10 became 13-10.

The best, however, was yet to come. A lineout just inside the visitors’ half was duly won by Hughes, and the ball found its way to Joe Tomalin-Reeves in midfield. He drove hard and straight to commit three defenders before delivering quick ball that found its way to centre Brad Roderick. A superbly timed short pass found co-centre Frankie Jones running onto the ball at top speed, scything through the defence before changing pace cleverly to leave two defenders flat-footed as he went clear for a superb try in the right-hand corner. Davies then iced the cake with a magnificent touchline conversion kick.

Pontypool, predictably, were in no mood to throw in the towel, preferring instead to throw caution to the winds as they sought to regain the initiative. A bold attack from deep in their own half looked promising as left-wing Walker Price was put clear, but teenager Scott Delnevo, a half-time replacement for Jay Baker, appeared out of the blue to put in a perfect tackle, driving Price into touch on halfway.

While Frankie Jones, predictably, got the Man of the Match vote from the home supporters after his spectacular result-securing try, there were heroics right across the field. Blind-side flanker Ben Gregory, like Delnevo a summer recruit to the Aberavon squad, got through an enormous amount of defensive work while covering just about every blade of grass, while alongside him Rhys Thomas, a lock currently plugging the gap at number eight while Andrew Waite is sidelined, wasn’t far behind him. The current squad at the Talbot Athletic Ground is, in terms of average age, probably the youngest in the club’s recent history, but the signs are that the future is bright. While there is much debate around how best to develop young talent in Wales, there is plenty of evidence to suggest that playing competitive rugby at club level can pay huge dividends.

Date:
Saturday September 23rd, 2023

Score:
Aberavon 20 – 10 Pontypool

Aberavon Team:
Stef Andrews; Jay Baker (rep Scott Delnevo half-time), Frankie Jones, Bradley Roderick, Morgan Williams; Aled Thomas (rep James Davies 54 min), Iwan Temblett (rep Aron Hemmings 54 min); Rowan Jenkins (capt) (rep Rhys Fawcett 72 min), Luke Davies, Geraint James, Shay Smallman, Rhodri Hughes, Ben Gregory, Rhys Thomas, Joe Tomalin-Reeves (rep Iestyn Davies 78 min).

Replacements Not Used:
Cameron Lewis, Travis Huntley, Morgan James.

Notes:
Iestyn Davies appeared from Tondu RFC; Travis Huntley appeared from Maesteg Harlequins RFC; Morgan James appeared from Penclawdd RFC.

Aberavon Scorers:
T – Stef Andrews, Frankie Jones
C – James Davies (2)
P – Aled Thomas (2)

Pontypool Scorers:
T – Peter Lloyd, Ewan Rosser

Referee:
Steff Edwards

Man Of The Match:
1 – Frankie Jones
2 – Ben Gregory
3 – Rhys Thomas

Time Line:
05 min: Aberavon – PG – Aled Thomas (3 – 0)
17 min: Aberavon – PG – Aled Thomas (6 – 0)
37 min: Pontypool – T – Peter Lloyd (6 – 5)
40+4 min: Half Time
47 min: Pontypool – T – Ewan Rosser (6 – 10)
54 min: Pontypool – Yellow Card – Matthew Flanagan
56 min: Aberavon – T – Stef Andrews & C – James Davies (13 – 10)
62 min: Aberavon – T – Frankie Jones & C – James Davies (20 – 10)
68 min: Pontypool – End Yellow Card – Matthew Flanagan
80+7 min: Full Time

Paul Williams (Pontypool Cup Programme Notes)

A World Cup TV overdose

OK, so it would be practically impossible to stick with tradition on this page and write a piece welcoming Pontypool to the Talbot Athletic Ground this afternoon without repeating verbatim what appeared in this space exactly a week ago, so the customary niceties I would suggest are taken as read as we move onto another subject that is very much in the minds of rugby supporters… The Rugby World Cup. Specifically the television presentation of the Rugby World Cup, which is the means by which the vast majority of us follow the four-yearly feast of international rugby.

I read an article in the media this week proclaiming that S4C’s coverage of the event was far superior to that provided by ITV. In it, the author listed eight reasons why this is the case, with the vast majority being the personnel involved (the exception being that ITV use “ridiculous” lecterns that look as though they were stolen from a political debate).

I will state here that viewing of the event in our family has tended to be via the ITV service, but I will see the author’s mention of “Sir Clive Woodward droning on about 2003” and raise him the appalling lack of balance on show, with the three-man punditry panel consisting of the aforementioned Sir Clive along with Messrs Dallaglio and Wilkinson whenever England are involved. Other countries, Wales included, have the likes of Sean Fitzpatrick, Brian O’Driscoll, Bryan Habana and numerous others bringing their unbiased, objective and informative viewpoints to the viewing public.

Now don’t get me wrong, I have many English friends and a fair percentage of my ancestors hailed from points east of Offa’s Dyke, but is it really that difficult for ITV to understand that the United Kingdom is home to four indigenous nationalities? Sitting at home with one eye on the coverage of the recent England-Argentina clash while I was going about some or other business, my ears were suddenly filled with a sound that made me wonder whether I had fallen asleep for a few weeks and awoken just as England had won the World Cup. Not the 2003 one, I hasten to add, but this current 2023 tournament. As it turned out, the loud hyperbole emanating from the direction of the TV was the result of George Ford kicking a drop-goal in a match that was in fact wearing on like an old sock. Cue the half-time break, and there they were, the Woodward-Dallaglio-Wilkinson triumvirate, all enthusiastically out-hyping one another as though their lives depended on it.

Worse was to follow… play resumed after the half-time break, and Manu Tualagi tackled an opponent. “Manu Tualagi – destroyer of worlds!” roared the commentator (it was either Nick Mullins or Miles Harrison – I’m not certain which).

I could take no more of it. I reached for the remote control and switched off the TV.

Thankfully down here in the real world of Welsh club rugby we manage, with a minimum of effort, to maintain a grip on reality. Today the second arrival of the Pooler faithful in as many weekends is all we need to maintain our enthusiasm for the sport that has been at the heart of our communities for longer than anyone can remember. The real rugby supporter doesn’t need ridiculous hyperbole to fuel his or her enthusiasm – an hour and a half or so standing in the wind, rain or sunshine (and sometimes all three) followed by a drink or two and a chat in a welcoming clubhouse is all we need to keep us coming back, week after week, season after season.

I would like to close by wishing Aberavon club captain Joe Gage a speedy recovery, particularly as I may have jinxed him by writing a congratulatory piece about him on social media recently. It seems the initial indications are that the injury he sustained last week is less serious than first thought.

Enjoy the game.

Action Replay (Pontypool Cup Programme Notes)

Aberavon 10-12 Pontypool
Indigo Premiership, 16th September 2023
by Paul Williams

The Wizards came within a hair’s breadth of making it three victories from three outings this season, but they were controversially denied a winning score in a bizarre end to the match.

It was a match largely dominated by the whistle of young referee Ben Connor, who seemed unhappy throughout with the scrummaging of both teams, regularly calling for resets or awarding penalties one way or the other. With both Aberavon and their visitors, back in the Premiership after what must have felt like an eternity, going hard at it to establish a foothold of some kind, play tended to be rather more attritional than flowing, but to the credit of all concerned it proceeded in the best of spirits.

While both sides had their opportunities as play went from one end to the other and back again, it was the visitors who were ahead at the interval, with fly-half Matthew Jarvis, a veteran of a couple of seasons at the Talbot Athletic Ground quite some time ago, succeeding with two penalty shots to make it 0-6.

The second half began with the home side gradually gaining the upper hand as they laid siege to the visitors’ line with locks Shay Smallman and Rhodri Hughes leading the charge. The ball was moved from right to left, and although it went to ground fly-half James Davies was able to pick up and send an inch perfect kick into the in-goal area for Stef Andrews to go racing in and claim the touch-down. Davies’ conversion put the Wizards ahead 7-6.

Thereafter normal service was resumed, with both sides refusing to yield an inch. Pontypool continued to attack through their forwards, while the Wizards tried to take a more ambitious approach, despite losing the considerable midfield influence of skipper Joe Gage with an ankle injury. Frankie Jones, operating at outside centre, looked confident as he caused the Pontypool defence some problems with some pacy and elusive running, while there was strong tackling right across the field.

However, amid all this Jarvis managed to land two further penalties, with Aberavon replacement Aled Thomas replying with one, making the score 10-12 in the visitors’ favour with the clock running down. The Wizards once again upped the pace and another sortie into the Pontypool 22 yielded a penalty for a high tackle. With time all but up, Thomas called for the kicking tee and lined up the shot at goal from a position out to the left of the goalposts. As he began his run-up, however, a Pontypool player came running off the goal-line between the goalposts, and Thomas’ kick went wide. A chorus of protests followed from the Aberavon players pointing out that when facing a penalty kick at goal defenders must stand still. Mr Connor, however, remained unmoved and brought things to a somewhat unsatisfactory end.

Team v Pontypool (Cup)

The Aberavon team to face Pontypool at the Talbot Athletic Ground on Saturday at 2:30 p.m. is…

Aberavon Starting XV:
Stef Andrews; Jay Baker, Frankie Jones, Bradley Roderick, Morgan Williams; Aled Thomas, Iwan Temblett; Rowan Jenkins, Luke Davies, Geraint James, Shay Smallman, Rhodri Hughes, Ben Gregory, Rhys Thomas, Joe Tomalin-Reeves.

Replacements:
Aron Hemmings, James Davies, Scott Delnevo, Iestyn Davies, Cameron Lewis, Travis Huntley, Morgan James, Rhys Fawcett.

Preview: Aberavon v Pontypool (Cup)

This Saturday, Aberavon hosts Pontypool at the Talbot Athletic Ground in the first round of the WRU Premiership Cup. The game kicks off at 2:30 p.m.

The complete draw for the first round of the Cup is:

• Aberavon vs. Pontypool
• Bridgend vs. RGC
• Cardiff vs. Newport
• Neath vs. Ebbw Vale
• Pontypridd vs. Merthyr

The victors in these matchups will secure a place in the quarter-finals alongside Carmarthen Quins, Llandovery, and Swansea, who have received byes for the first round.

Pooler won the WRU Cup in the 1982-83 season by defeating Swansea with a score of 18-6. They also reached the final in the 1990-91 season, finishing as runners-up to Llanelli with a score of 9-24. Additionally, they clinched the WRU Championship Cup last season.

Aberavon and Pontypool have crossed paths three times in the WRU Cup. Their first meeting took place in the 1984-85 season with Pooler securing a 25-0 victory at the Talbot Athletic Ground. They faced off once more the following season at Pontypool Park, where the home side claimed a 25-4 win. Their most recent encounter in the competition unfolded during the 1989-90 season when the Wizards won in a quarter-final match, edging out Pontypool with an 18-12 victory at the Talbot Athletic Ground.

Taking charge of this Cup match on Saturday will be the referee, Steff Edwards, with support from Joseph Rees and Greg Morgan in the roles of assistants.