PENARTH SEAL PROMOTION
After a hectic week with 3 games in just 8 days Penarth’s 1st XV have secured their much anticipated promotion to Division 2 East Central. Having defeated title challengers Llanharan by 17-12 in what may well be the game of the season on Wednesday night the Seasiders followed up with a scrappy 29-30 victory away to Canton on Saturday which combined with other results was enough to secure their top three place and guarantee Division 2 rugby next term.
The Seasiders started the season with high expectations given the strength of the squad and the way in which the core of the team has developed over the last few years, and they have not disappointed. After a slightly disjointed pre-season they opened with a narrow defeat to promotion rivals Llanharan and then lost their first cup game away at Abertwsswg after leading with 10 minutes to go. But that was to be their last defeat for nearly 6 months as they went on a 13 match winning streak that saw them storm to the top of the table by Christmas, where they have remained ever since.
The coaching team of Matt Bolton and Paul Williams have moulded this talented group into not only the most exciting team in the league to watch, having scored over 99 tries in the league alone, but also into a resilient defensive force with an inherent belief an calmness that has seen them win several games that they would definitely have lost in previous years.
The development of the squad that is made primarily of homegrown talent is a testament to the work of the mini and junior sections of the club and the most exciting thing for the club is that the mini and junior sections are currently stronger than ever with more teams and players than ever before, the future is bright!
As the dust settles on the excitement of the last week the focus now firmly switches to the final two league games of the season which will see Penarth first travel to old rivals Tylorstown on Saturday before a trip to 3rd place Pentyrch on 6th May. With Llanharan having games in hand the league title is not in Penarth’s hands but by winning both remaining games it would mean that the Dairymen would need to win all 5 of their remaining games, including one against Pentyrch with a bonus point to overall Penarth.
