Fixture

Since their last visit to the home of Porthcawl RFC on the 13th October 2019 a lot has happened.  So the combined U15s & U16s team of Llantwit Major were delighted this Sunday to make the short trip along the coast to to pick up again on a friendly rivalry.

Since the U13s age group the teams have played each other 5 times, with 3 wins going to Llantwit and 2 to Porthcawl, so historically things were evenly matched

One of the big changes since the last match was that in previous visits to Porthcawl, the hosts have helped to support a struggling, short on numbers Llantwit Major side, lending players to try to even thing up just to have a game. 

For the first meeting of this season however, roles were reversed. With only 12 players available, Porthcawl put out a call for help, not only with playing numbers but for a referee. 

Travelling with a match day squad of 20-players the Tigers team were happy to return the favours of the past and mix things up to make sure the game went ahead.  Coaches Ben and Liam did a great job working with the squad and the Porthcawl coaches, settling on a 14-aside structure over four 15-minute quarters to allow a good rotation of players, with 2-different players from Llantwit playing for Porthcawl for each period.

In all honesty, this did prove to be quite disruptive and played havoc with the patterns and positions that the Llantwit team have been trying to work on in training, but in doing so, it did mean that we could have a game.  With coach Liam also saving the day by refereeing, it was just great to see the match kicking off on a beautifully still, dry and warm Autumn morning.

The first quarter was a classic with both teams scrapping hard.  Llantwit did a great job at the breakdown winning numerous turnovers, but were let down by poor handling and could not take advantage of the position they deserved.  The second quarter saw a flurry of changes on the Llantwit side and this appeared to benefit the hosts who started to play with greater continuity and confidence.  The Tigers on the other hand lost their way a little, and even when they broke free to set up winger Emlyn Miles for a great run from his own 22 to touch down under the posts, they were frustratingly called back for an offside decision.

Sticking with the policy of making sure that all players get to play at least 50% of the matches they attend, the third quarter again saw a lot of changes in the Llantwit team, and again this seemed to cause some disruption that Porthcawl were quick to take advantage of.  This quarter however, saw the first try come for Llantwit when centre Kelyn Joseph split the home defence with a typically determined run before offloading to the supporting scrum-half and eventual man of the match, Zac Grinter who refused to be stopped from 15-metres out to barge over for a try.  The practice put in by prop Ieuan Harrison before training was then rewarded with a perfectly judged conversion.

More changes again for Llantwit Major at the start of the fourth quarter were expected to yield dividends by having fresher legs, but this was outweighed by the increased confidence the stable Porthcawl team were able to build on, and it was that which ultimately saw them establish a healthy scoreboard advantage.

The last word of the game however went to the visitors.  Some dissent from the home team saw them penalised twice on the half way line, giving Llantwit Major a chance to make some territory.  A superb kick from prop Lewys Ingram took the Tigers to just outside the 5-metre line, and this gave the forwards the chance to put into practice something they’ve been working on in training.

With no challenge in the line out, lock Cameron Hegney took clean front of the line ball before popping a pass down to hooker Corey Cox, whose dynamic, arching run proved too much for the home defence to handle as he bounced off tackles and burst through for a well worked and well deserved try.   The last action of the day came from a missed conversion, but even with that it was great to see the Llantwit team showing such determination and putting into practice what they have been working on in training, to end on a high note.

With the blue sky of earlier in the day now being replaced by grey cloud, and the rather eery soundtrack of the distant Elvis Presley festival in the town centre being carried on the wind, it was felt that there were plenty of positives to be gained from the encounter for both sides.  With the scores now at 3-3, the next fixture in January will be eagerly anticipated.