Match Report - 21st January 2012

Old Penarthians RFC 1st XV 10 v St Joseph's RFC 1st XV 8 (SWALEC League)

The Saturday saw the third meeting this season of the Old Penarthians and St Josephs.  On the two previous occasions at Blackweir, St Josephs were the winners in the league and SWALEC Bowl competition by 11 points to 6 and 18 points to 10 respectively.  With such close scorelines it was therefore expected that this fixture would be no different.  And this was definitely the case with Old Penarthians breaking their 2012 duck with a victory by 10 points to 8.

Whilst the score suggests a very close contest it does not tell the whole story with Old Pens dictating much of the game.  Their scrum in particular was very dominant with Lee Brennan, Jippy Evans and Peter Harry again immovable, and with the support of Tony Kemp and Andy Gill from the second row the opposition were often driven back.

The dominance of the pack did not however pay off when it really mattered and a series of scrums on the opposition goal line after twenty minutes of the first half failed to produce the necessary points that would have finished the contest.  Unfortunately wrong options were chosen at critical times and opportunities were lost.

It was particularly galling for coach Jeff Norman who was urging his team to follow a tight game plan only for his charges to release the ball at the wrong moments.  Coach Norman was to admit afterwards that it was a game that he very much wanted to win and at times he thought the absence of points from the pressure was going to cost the team dearly.  Of course he should not have worried.

The game could however not have started more poorly for the Old Penarthians when from the kick off by St Josephs the home team did not claim the ball, putting pressure on the backs who managed to knock on twice, once behind their own line.  From the restart the Joes were awarded a penalty that was kicked by outside half Scott Taylor.

In the Old Pens defence they were playing against a very strong wind in the first half and therefore passing the ball wide and kicking for territory was something of a lottery.  The plan to keep the ball within the forwards was therefore justified and the forwards responded well with strong carries by Alun Haines, Evans and Paul Kemp.  This was supported by captain Mark Sadler from centre who carried the ball back into the forwards.

This led to the scrum pressure on the Joes try line that was not turned into points.  On nineteen minutes good line out work and ball retention from the forwards within the opposition twenty-two allowed Gareth Jones to pass to outside half Jonathan Crimp.  He sensed that the opposition three-quarters had advanced too quickly and he stepped inside a tackler before eluding the covering flanker to score under the posts from ten yards out.  Huw Liddell kicked the conversion.

St Josephs then came back into the game and on twenty five minutes they had an attacking line out from a penalty.  From there, their forwards tried to assert themselves but they could not get through the determined Old Pens tackling, particularly that of Sean Leach and Evans. The half ended with Simon Davies attacking from full back with support from Richie Moir but they were bundled into touch to give a half time score of seven points to three in favour of the Old Penarthians.

With the wind at their backs the Old Penarthians would have expected to continue their dominance but as is often the case the team with most to overcome strengthened their own resolve and Old Pens spent the first ten minutes on the defence.  A break out from Tim Naylor did relieve the pressure and gave Liddell an opportunity of three points from a St Joes infringement but itwas not taken.

After twenty six minutes Liddell made amends from another penalty kick awarded against the Joes for collapsing a maul and Old Pens led by 10 points to three.  This lead seemed to frighten the Old Penarthians, who have not been in this position going into the last fifteen minutes of a game very often this season and the lack of confidence seemed to affect all decisions.

Whereas previously in the second half kicking downfield using the wind seemed a sound tactic to make the opposition play from deep within their own half, this was not continued.  Or if it was, it was poorly executed.  This meant that most of the rest of the game was played in Old Pens territory.  Tackling was again robust but the penalty count began to climb and with seven minutes left the referee lost patience and Leach was sin binned.

Two minutes later Dave Mason, who had replaced Paul Kemp mid way through the second half, was also sent off for playing the ball on the ground and preventing a quick release.  Mason was not if fact the transgressor as Liddell had committed the offence but the referee must have thought that one scrum cap looks much like another and Mason was off.

With Alun Haines already retired from the game with injured ribs, replaced by Noel Etxragary, the makeshift pack still had five minutes to survive.  The tackling remained strong with Gill to the fore and with the Joes attack bundled into touch for a home team throw-in the game seemed to be safe.  The line out was however won by St Josephs and the attacks resumed.  Somehow the ball was retrieved by Penarthians and all it needed was a touch line clearance.  Unfortunately the kick sliced into midfield and the pressure was not relieved.

This time the defence could not hold out and flanker Nigel Morgan scored a try five metres in from the corner flag.  The Old Penarthians team and supporters emotions sank thinking that a great opportunity had been lost, however the kick came up short and to the left of the posts and with the missed kick the referee blew the full time whistle.  Cue celebrations for a 10-8 victory and four league points.  The coach need not have worried at all.