PROMOTED SEASIDERS BEATEN TO CHAMPIONSHIP

Penarth RFC completed their fixtures in one of their best seasons ever sitting on top of the
Division 3 East Central table, having just beaten promotion rivals Pentyrch and taken their
unbeaten record at Parc y Dwrlyn. They had been at the top of the table for seven months,
but for a number of weeks it had become increasingly obvious that they had only one
challenger for the actual title.
By the beginning of March, Llanharan, who had spent most of the autumn playing no
matches at all, were making their way through a huge backlog of games, but still lay ten
points behind the Seasiders. Three matches in hand, they still needed to win their remaining
games, preferably with bonus points, to take the title.
At the beginning of the season, Penarth’s first game was away at the Dairy Field, where they
lost by 5 points. Towards the end of the season this was reversed as the Seasiders defeated
the Dairymen by the same margin.
So, in the end, the title was to be decided by another game between two of the best three
sides in the division, as third-placed Pentyrch, already promoted themselves, made their way
to the Dairy Field last Friday. The hosts, still three points behind Penarth, simply needed a
win from their last game in order to take the title. Apparently, the game was tightly contested
up to half-time, but Llanharan cruised away in the second period to win by 43 points to 3.
All credit to a team that matched the Seasiders all season for consistency and a talent for
securing bonus-point wins. No other team in the division even came close to the two clubs’
records and both will be harbouring ambitions to continue their form in Division Two East
Central next season.
The club must have realised at the outset that this was going to be the season when Penarth
could finally build on years of careful team-building based on mainly locally-produced talent.
With a top-class coaches Matt Bolton and Paul Williams pulling the strings, they soon came
to dominate teams in the rest of the division, claiming try bonuses in as many as 15 of their
20 wins. They averaged 5 tries and 35 points per game, conceding only 2 tries and 14
points.
Team spirit and a subtle balance of skills across the squad also meant that there were no
players they couldn’t manage without. However, the early loss of first-choice outside-half
Morgan Williams to injury after only two games thrust his illustrious predecessor James
Docherty back into the limelight. The veteran didn’t disappoint and carried off this pivotal role
with some style, also taking good care of the kicking duties when Josh Hurley was
unavailable. Occasional explosive guest appearances from Joe Williams only added to the
entertainment.
With a total of 60 players making at least one appearance and half of those making up the
core squad, even then there’s no room to cover everyone’s contribution. Mention, then, for
top try scorers George Roberts and Spencer Robinson, with 17 each, but also ever-present
hooker/flanker Tom Griffiths, with 15. Chief kicker Josh Hurley naturally led on points scored
with 161, but beyond these simple stats, the pack had a settled look to it and that’s where
the stability of a promotion-winning side comes from.

Front-row duties were mostly shared between Griffiths, Bradman Williams, Geraint Williams,
Harry Wood and Ryan Jones, while the second row chiefly featured Cam Sultana, Andy
Lang and Matt Allen. Captain Miles Jones led the back row, regularly assisted by flankers
Mike Lang and Harry Roberts.
To the regular supporters, all the players not yet mentioned are very well known, with some
real stars among them and all this comes together to bring us the strongest squad since the
introduction of leagues back in the 90s. It’s all of 13 seasons since Penarth last won
promotion and it would be nice to think that the next success won’t take as long.
Thanks for the memories, it’s been a great watch!