Match Report

It was a dark and dismal December afternoon on the Common on Saturday last but that was not enough to prevent the faithful from turning out in some numbers for the latest battle between local rivals Dinas Powys and Old Penarthians. Unfortunately, despite the pre-match hype in both camps, the weather allied itself to the lack of action denied to the players through the month of November to produce a disappointing contest that was largely lacking in both passion and skill before the spectators were gratefully released to the warmth of the Villagers’ clubhouse.

Yet it all began promisingly enough. Penarthians began towards the village square end of the ground but the hosts mounted the first attack when right wing James Smith released the panic button in the visiting ranks with a scything cross field sprint that took him dangerously close to the opposite corner of the visiting try line before the defence prevailed. Indeed, the hosts could well have taken the lead just four minutes into the game, full back Rhys Williams narrowly failing with a penalty attempt from close to the half way line.

Excellent lineout ball from Alun Haines followed later with Gareth Jones releasing Richie Moir on the left only for the wing’s inside pass to supporting full back Tom Draper proving to be forward. An exchange of penalties saw Skipper Scott McCarthy fire wide for Penarthians whilst Craig Gore was well off target with a somewhat easier chance for Dinas.

The Old Boys now took territorial charge for a period with James Evans, Paul Langley, and Stuart Clarke well to the fore up front whilst Tim Naylor and Steve Mohring did their best to probe from behind. Dinas, however, were in no mood to succumb and the resolute defence paid off until Scott McCarthy opened the scoring with a 35 th minute penalty from close range. Even so, the Villagers could well have ended the half on level terms had Rhys Williams not failed with his injury time shot at goal at the opposite end.

A blindside break from Gareth Jones enabled Simon Davies to show great speed on the wing at the start of the second session. However, the move that followed showed Penarthians at their best as five men handled going left only for the danger to come to an end when Richie Moir opted for an extravagant miss pass when support was much closer at hand. The disappointment was, however, partially alleviated when Skipper McCarthy kicked his second penalty from a spot made 10 yards the closer as the result of home indiscipline.

The brief visit to Penarthian territory that followed saw Dinas fritter yet another chance when Rhys fired wide from the 25 and the home cup of woe was filled to overflowing by the freak score that took place at the opposite end.

James Evans broke clear from a scrummage with a scintillating run that enabled him to evade a clutch of defenders before linking with his Skipper. Whatever reason Scott McCarthy might have had for opting to kick can surely be found only in the depths of the Australian outback. Equally unclear is the direction he intended; the facts witnessing a sliced effort that skidded towards the Dinas line before striking the upright and rebounding into the field of play. A clutch of defenders failed in their desperate efforts to secure possession but not so scrum half Gareth Jones who showed great presence of mind in following up, snatching the capricious capsule, and touching down for the try. McCarthy showed not a shred of contrition as he landed the conversion.

Undaunted by the setback, Dinas returned to the opposite end with full back Rhys Williams shredding the defence with an excellent run that failed only through the equally marvellous cover tackle from James Evans. It did, however, preface a period of intense pressure that saw the Penarthian scrum put to the sword by their lively opponents and it was a shame that such good work should have been wasted by the talking back to the Referee that resulted in the penalty and ten further yards that enable the visitors to clear.

With time fast ebbing and the game seemingly won, Penarthians replaced Stuart Clarke with Scott Hill. The change, however, sparked a further period of spirited Dinas Powys attack and an excellent passage of passing opened up space on the left for winger Mark Good to outflank the cover before almost disappearing into the darkness of the corner for a fine try that was not converted, leaving the Old Boys victorious by 13 points to 5 and denying the hosts the consolation of a losing bonus point.

Whilst the Old Boys were pleased to return to action with a victory that is the third in as many games, they will have been disappointed that it did not measure up to the earlier outings. Whilst Alun Haines reigned supreme in the linesout with good support from Stuart Gunnarsson, front row forwards Lee Brennan, Dean Pratt, and Tony Kemp were made to labour all afternoon in opposition to the smaller Dinas trio of Tom Paterson, Nick Vagges, and Mike Jones, a situation that continued when Vagges was replaced by Lloyd Horwood. Fortunately, despite the efforts of back row forward Morgan Williams the Old Boys had the outstanding loose player in James Evans, deserving of the accolade as his side’s Man of the Match award, whilst Stuart Clarke tackled determinedly with Paul Langley always a controlling influence.

Gareth Jones was in sharp form at the base of the scrum although Scott McCarthy lacked his usual accuracy in line kicking outside with centres Tim Naylor and Steve Mohring in subdued mood on a day that allowed the Simon Davies, Richie Moir, Tom Draper back three few chances to show their attacking paces. Davies, already named as the Trainer of the Month for November, and McCarthy did, however, distinguish themselves by sharing the top tackler award with Stuart Clarke whilst the whole back division did well to contain lively opponents for whom winger James Smith and full back Rhys Williams particularly caught the eye.

Despite its subdued reaction, the victory was, thanks to cancellations and other results on the day, sufficient to raise the Old Boys to the dizzy heights of sixth place in Division 5 South East. Nevertheless, Scott McCarthy and his men will be well aware that they will need to grind out the results in the opening weeks of the New Year if they are to maintain a position that was their target at the commencement of the season.