Fixture

The winds of change have certainly swept through the under 13’s since the start of 2022 with a gusty dose of heart and character replacing a sometimes-brittle fortitude that had plagued the team. With a resilience having previously resembled a poorly assembled garden fence trying to withstand Storm Darcy it seems that the team have embraced the characteristics of the Chinese year of the Tiger. This was in further evidence on Sunday as they needed to show a level of bravery and courage to withstand a second half onslaught from the travelling St Julians team that would have blown them away like that rickety fence.

The game started with a flurry of poor discipline that saw both teams penalised for high tackles and poor handoffs which gave the game a stop start nature. The early mood was further dampened following an injury to Ruthyn Griffiths who suffered a collar bone injury that will end his season. After a lengthy delay both teams then added a score each, with Llantwit striking first following a typical storming run from Aaron Moce. St Julians though are no slouches and replied through some constant pressure before moving the ball to the wings and scoring out wide. With both teams looking to play a high tempo game it was Llantwit who took advantage of the slope and wind to score two tries through Tyler Lee. Like Moce before him Lee looked to use his strength and speed to break off would be tacklers and his efforts took the half time score to 15-5 to the home side.

With some impact subs at the ready St Julians roared into action in the second half and scored 17 unanswered points to lead 22-15 within a 10-minute spell of fast aggrieve rugby. With the visitors looking rampant and some sullen Llantwit faces you could imagine their confidence teetering on the brink of collapse. However, there is now a heftier dose of tiger’s courage to the Under 13’s at present and they withstood the pressure and soon closed the gap to 22-20 thanks to another Lee try. Lee soon added another and as the clocked ticked down the hosts were now holding on to a 3-point lead. Chasing the game St Julians made a break through their rapid centre and he looked to close in on the try line and last gasp tackle from covering defenders forced him into touch within metres of the line. That tackle changed the ending of the game as from the lineout Llantwit made their way down the pitch and after keeping possession, they saw Moce cross in the corner to make the game safe at 30-22. The game ended shortly after and the Llantwit players looked overjoyed at their hard-earned efforts knowing this game could have gone either way against a good opponent.

Several congratulations in this one, big thumps up to Lewys Gregson who played his first game at scrum half and did a stella job.  A big hand has to go to all the U12 boys who have been playing up all season especially given the size difference for some, they have performed admirably all year. Last but not least all the parents, players and volunteers wish Ruthyn a speedy recovery and hope to see him up and about on the side-lines soon.