SEASIDERS STRUGGLE AGAINST POINTLESS ABERCYNON

PENARTH 22 ABERCYNON 39

 

After three games this season, the promotion and relegation contenders may have already shown their hands. Llanishen, Llantrisant and St.Peters have 100% records at the top, while Gilfach Goch, Barry and Old Illtydians have yet to record a win. This may be a little misleading though, as the Seasiders showed last Saturday how this season could yet prove to be a long, hard one for them.

 

It was clear early on that something wasn’t quite right, as an unnecessary high tackle allowed Abercynon to break their season’s points duck after 2 minutes with an easy penalty in front of the posts. Things were looking up briefly from the restart as Penarth won a scrum and Huw Elias side-stepped and accelerated through the defence to score under the posts for a 7-3 lead after 4 minutes. Even then, Abercynon didn’t seem all that well equipped to exploit the alarming error and penalty count the Seasiders were facing, although they clearly had a small number of players who were a cut above the rest of the proceedings, as became clear soon enough.

 

Ten minutes afterwards, the visitors took a line-out 30m from the Penarth line, but overthrew badly. As the Seasiders failed to gather, Abercynon scrum-half Josh Sav was more alive to the opportunity and burst through to score under the posts. Penarth muddled through the next 15 minutes before another failed line-out nevertheless yielded a free-kick and then a penalty, which Elias converted from 25m to bring the scores level. Any chance that they might reach the break on level terms was scotched on the stroke of half-time as the visitors worked a simple line-out move and outside centre Nathan Jones strolled through under the posts.

 

Matters took a sharp turn for the worse at the start of the second half as Elias chipped over the defence on half-way, gathered and fed Alex Thau, who returned a forward pass. Abercynon countered quickly and outside-half Sam Campbell went through a misaligned Penarth defence for his side’s third try. That the Seasiders were really failing to get to grips with what was going on was confirmed twelve minutes later as ineffective defence allowed Jones through for his second.

 

Reinforcements were finally sent on after 60 minutes and the ship was steadied. The introduction of Mason Good and Elliott Smith smoothed out the line-out problems, while Owen Rees provided a little more zip at the base of the scrum where the visitors had been slowing down Penarth ball from the outset. A five-metre scrum then provided the perfect platform for Elias to score his second, this time forcing his way past three defenders.

 

However, the weariness of the home defenders was still evident as replacement flanker Dylan Bird was allowed to sell a lazy dummy and stroll through for the bonus-point try and although the Seasiders then took a scrum against the head, any scores to close the 19-point gap proved hard to come by.

 

Despite total Penarth domination in the scrum, further scores came far too late. A succession of reset scrums ended as Thau went over for the third try with 2 minutes to go. Abercynon then scored their sixth on the stroke of a long-delayed full-time as blindside Callum Rogers was allowed to make the final 10m, despite the defence being in place.

 

Plenty to work on for Matthew Bolton and John Colderley before the visit of 4th-placed Dinas Powys on Saturday, but the clear potential of a talented Penarth squad remains, as yet, unrealised.

 

PENARTH Rhys Morgan (Tom Luck), Riyad Auckbarally, Adam Lewis (Owen Rhys, James Candy), James Candy (Tom Luck), James Crothers, Huw Elias, Tom Hillman (Owen Rees), Sean O’Sullivan (Richard Merrett), Jerome Bryan (Mason Good), Alan Doyle, Aaron Ellis (Elliott Smith), Anthony Pine, Dan Seal, Alex Thau, Harry Roberts

 

National League Division 2 East Central

Saturday 24th September 2016

PENARTH v Dinas Powys

The Athletic Field, Lavernock Road, Kick-off 2.30pm