Fixture

The AmmoKnights made their annual pilgrimage to the most eastern point of the Welsh compass as they renewed battles with Chepstow. Taking advantage of the half term the intrepid travellers added to the 150 miles already endured in October looking to bounce back after a succession of weighty setbacks. The first 10 minutes had a definitively defensive feel to it for the visitors as they fell foul to the referee’s whistle on more than one occasion. A mixture of youthful over exuberance and tactical naivety allowed their hosts to make ground through penalty misdemeanours, however unlike recent weeks the defence held firm and after a brief period of possession the AmmoKnights found themselves in the Chepstow 22.

A faltering lineout failed to stop the ball being spread wide to fullback ben Moignard who sauntered over the line to touch down in the corner and give the visitors a 5-0 lead. The lead lasted as long as the floodlights and a brief power failure left both teams waiting for 10 minutes whilst the lights rebooted. As the struggling floodlights illuminated so did the Chepstow attack and a series of penalties allowed several attempts at the Llantwit line before they powered over to take the lead at 7-5. The half time whistle allowed for a series of changes to both teams and with several new faces on the AmmoKnights team they looked to add fresh impetus to the attack play.

The second half started well after some sloppy play by the hosts allowed fly half Ethan White to kick the ball through towards the opposition line. White expertly scooped up the ball and rolled over the line to score his first try, which he duly converted to give the visitors a 12-7 lead. That early try seems to spark the AmmoKnights into life and it wasn’t long before White was scoring his second try and the AmmoKnights had a healthy 17-7 lead. With the visitors looking far more threatening in midfield the home defence begun to push up leaving gaps behind which White proceeded to put the ball in to. Ben Moignard gratefully accepted one such gift as he picked the ball up and ran unopposed to the opposition try line to score the AmmoKnights fourth try. From the proceeding kick off, Chepstow made the mistake of kicking straight to Pete Mitchell who after breaking the first tackle outpaced the defence to score under the posts.

As if by magic as White took the conversion the floodlights went out again, brining an abrupt halt to proceedings. With a total of 25 minutes game time lost to floodlight failure, the AmmoKnights were pleased with their nights work and a better showing on the pitch. A tough October for the team who will be hoping for improved fortunes in November. With a trip to Treorchy to start the new month and with some of the newer players showing promise it’s time for the more experienced players to push performances.