WRU Division 4 East

GWERNYFED 24  NEYLAND 12  

On a glorious morning, the Gwernyfed squad and a battalion of supporters set off for the long trek to Newcastle Emlyn where a Cup Semi Final and a strong Neyland side awaited. The setting was as glorious as the weather and the green, white and black performance and the result all added together to make it a glorious day for skipper Jack Williams, the playersand coaches and the legions who abandoned Talgarth to cheer on their team.

Gwernyfed couldn’t have hoped for a better start, putting seven points on the board within two minutes. Fly half Joe Winfield kick off was perfectly crafted and with the green, white and black hoards bearing down, propelled by a huge noise from the sideline, Neyland rather scrambled to secure the ball.

Attempts to run out of defence were short-lived thanks to ferocious tackling until centre Gethin Davies stripped his opposite number of the ball and set up a ruck. Tom Griffiths moved the ball wide and the had a dart himself from a second ruck. The scrum half was hauled down, but lock Tom Lloyd was on hand to feed Gethin Davies who arrowed a long pass to full back Tyler Morris. Morris had plenty to do but launched himself into the corner to even louder cheers, not least from father Rob and grandfather Brian, both green, white and blacks of distinction in their day.

Neyland didn’t get to the semi by accident. The Pembrokeshire All Blacks went on to the attack from the restart and made yardage, always to be met by stern defence, Kelly Evans and Tom Millington amongst those with the highest tackle rates. Neyland tried Route 1 without much success but did look more dangerous when spreading the ball. However, adventure was their undoing when the ball was spilled on the Gwernyfed 22 – in the immediate vicinity of centre Dylan Skyrme. Tackles were shrugged off by the pocket battleship and once daylight beckoned no one had a hope of stopping a marvellous try crafted from scraps. Winfield’s conversion added insult to Neyland’s injury.

Perhaps the comfort of a fourteen-point lead within ten minutes tempted Gwernyfed to be too ambitious. A couple of kickable penalties were used instead to produce attacking line-outs, though both efforts came to nothing. A really enticing scoring opportunity went begging when a punt through in lieu of the better option, a pass, was too heavy. Neyland took advantage of the let offs to mount a series of drives up the middle, Ben Williams completing the sequence by crashing over to reduce the arrears.

With half-time approaching Gwernyfed seized another opportunity after will Eckley was brought down ten yards out. Tom Griffiths wasted no time in releasing Joe Winfield whose sublime pass left Gethin Davies with only three men to beat over ten metres – no contest for man of the match Davies who plunged over to restore the lead before the oranges were brought out.

A feature of the game was Joe Winfield’s clearance kicking. On several occasions when Neyland threatened, Winfield turned the attackers with fifty metre touchline kicks. Inevitably heads dropped and matters took an even more serious turn for the West Walians when, after transgressing at a line out forced by one of Winfield’s ‘specials’, flanker Will Eckley took a tap penalty from five metres and charged over the line largely unattended.

Faced with the need to score three tries in the last quarter, Neyland, spurred on by their own vociferous support, had the majority of possession and handled well, skipper and centre George Williams and full back Paddy Bellamy the standouts. However, the attacks were not incisive, the sword being preferred to the rapier, and the fresh legs of replacements Rory Mears, Craig Parry, Scott Rees, Kyle Davies and Rhys Price meant that the stout defence was shored up, restricting encroachment too close to the try line.

With defence the order of the last ten minutes, penalties were conceded at regular intervals. Three points were not enough by this stage and the tap penalty came to the fore. From yet another attack, George Williams did get the ball down close to the posts, Oli Rotheroe adding the conversion, but it was too little and too late to prevent mass celebrations breaking out amongst the green, white and black faithful when the final whistle was blown.

Rugby was very much the winner on the day. Neither side deserved to lose had the outcome been judged on endeavour and effort. However, the speed and penetration that Gwernyfed displayed throughout had the Talgarth men as worthy winners, their reward a Final against old friends and rivals, Seven Sisters RFC.

This win and an impressive league record owe much to the sterling work of recent coaches James Reynolds, Dave Roberts and Richard East, the foundations they laid now turned into an unbeaten side playing with great panache by the current coaching team of Lee Thomas, Alun Phillips, Gareth Dodd and Tomi Lewis. The green, white and blacks owe these men and so many more a great season in this, the Club’s sixtieth year. They are certainly delivering on that debt.