Match Report
GILFACH GOCH 34 – PENARTH 25 – Saturday 8 April 2017
Be cautious about the scoreline above, the home scoreboard was less generous to its own side giving them four points fewer. However a lot was confused in the chaotic conclusion to this contest, one thing certain is that Penarth scored 25 point away from home yet came away empty handed.
Despite problems with availability, only two travelling replacements and several positional changes, Penarth were well in this game until the final ten minutes. Both sides used the dry, fast conditions well with the home side preferring to kick deep for position then hammer away with their weighty front eight. By contrast Penarth launched moves from half back pairing Mathias and Thatcher who controlled play for long periods and made repeated significant breaks.
Gilfach Goch gained early ascendancy countering a Docherty penalty with a try from sustained pressure close in. Then home wing Evelyn put in a monstrous cross field kick, Penarth were ruled to have infringed in the line out and advantage given to Gilfach for some minutes during which a further infringement was identified and a penalty try awarded.
Gilfach settled into this rewarding pattern of close quarters hammering using their man mountain prop Priday, or ‘Wrecker’ to the shouting home support, to crash over for their third try.
So thirty minutes in, after conceding, through little defensive errors, a 19 – 6 lead, Penarth outside half, Thatcher decided to get a grip. From midfield he created space from two elusive side steps and a rifled long pass to Luck who made most of the remaining meters before passing to Hickey who looped round to get the touchdown.
This was followed by an equally telling jinking break from scrum half Mathias but the supporting Thau just didn’t have the gas to make the line. Then came a wonderfully angled run by centre Laity which also only just failed to produce points.
So the score form all this enterprise waited until just after half time when Thatcher, again, left the home defence flat footed and glided under the posts untouched. Penarth back in it at 19 – 18.
Sadly the Penarth front row which had been performing staunchly against the massive home three was disrupted by the loss of hooker Good to injury.
The contribution of Lewis at loose head prop deserves special mention, slight for a prop he gave not an inch against the ‘Wrecker’.
At this late stage the problems started. Gilfach gained another, close in unconverted try, but then collapsed a scrum with their prop taking wild exception to Penarth number 6, Mortimer. All this on the blind side of the referee who, having already issued a general warning, gave yellow cards to both players.
The niggle having been introduced, continued, and the referee responded by yellow carding both captains!
Penarth it was took first advantage of the space available. A penetrating kick ahead being chased up and a 5 meter scrum achieved. But Gilfach number 6 Richards was able to frustrate the follow up and the rejigged Penarth scrum began to creak badly.
Frustration lead to indiscipline and Penarth conceded a sequence of penalties ending in the normally level headed Smith being red carded for dissent and Gilfach took their fifth try.
A further home try followed when Penarth heads dropped. But they still managed the last word despite losing Laity to another card. Captain Luck produced the break and the alert and mobile prop Lewis provided the finish.
If Penarth can only get a stable team membership they will win fixtures like this with comfort.
15 Mitch Hickey; 14 James Docherty (Tom Hillman); 13 Tom Luck (capt.); 12 Sam Laity; 11 James Crothers; 10 James Thatcher; 9 Gareth Mathias; (Owen Rees) 8 Eliott Smith; Alex Thau; Chris Mortimer; Matt Allen; Anthony Pine; Alan Doyle; Mason Good; (J Docherty) Mervyn Lewis.
Scorers: tries Hickey, Thatcher, Lewis Pens Docherty (2), Cons Docherty (2)
