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RUMNEY YOUTH  v  BEDDAU YOUTH

Riverside Park, Rumney
Saturday 19th May 2012, k.o. 2.30 pm

The Mallett Cup Final 2012

RUMNEY ATHLETIC  v  LLANISHEN 2nd XV

Cardiff Arms Park
Friday 18th May 2012, k.o. 7.00 pm

Rumney Athletic 17     Llanishen 2nd XV 9    

Scorers for Rumney Athletic : Shaun Spavin try, John Lewis try, Chris Maton penalty and 2 conversions

Scorer for Llanishen 2nd XV : Tom Hannah 2 penalties and drop goal

Click here to see all the tries from this game and add your comments

East District 2nd XV Cup Final 2011-2012

UWIC 2nd XV  v  RUMNEY ATHLETIC

Riverside Park, Rumney
Monday 21st May 2012,  k.o. 7.00 pm

East District 2nd XV Cup 2011-2012  Semi Final

CARDIFF HIGH SCHOOL OLD BOYS 2nd XV  v  RUMNEY ATHLETIC

Pentyrch RFC
Thursday 10th May 2012,  k.o. 7.00 pm

Cardiff High School Old Boys 2nd XV 6     Rumney Athletic 21

Scorers for Rumney Athletic : John Lewis try, Joe Offside try, Ryan Fenton try, Chris Maton 2 penalties

RUMNEY YOUTH  v  PONTYCLUN YOUTH

Riverside Park, Rumney
Saturday 5th May 2012, k.o. 2.30 pm

Rumney Youth 29    Pontyclun Youth 40

BEDDAU YOUTH  v  RUMNEY YOUTH

Beddau RFC, Pontypridd
Saturday 28th April 2012, k.o. 2.30 pm

Beddau Youth 11    Rumney Youth 8

RUMNEY YOUTH  v  GLAMORGAN WANDERERS YOUTH

Riverside Park, Rumney
Saturday 21st April 2012, k.o. 2.30 pm

Rumney Youth 18    Glamorgan Wanderers Youth 25

WRU 2nd XV League

 BEDWAS 2nd XV  v  RUMNEY ATHLETIC

Bedwas RFC, Caerphilly
Saturday 21st April 2012, k.o. 2.30 pm

Bedwas 2nd XV 18    Rumney Athletic 13

Mallett Cup 2011-2012  Semi Final

CARDIFF SARACENS  v  RUMNEY ATHLETIC

The Diamond Ground, Whitchurch, Cardiff
Tuesday 17th April 2012, k.o. 6.15 pm

Cardiff Saracens 10   Rumney Athletic 17

Scorers for Rumney Athletic : Ryan Fenton try, Chris Maton 4 penalties

SWALEC League Division 1 East

BEDDAU v RUMNEY

Mount Pleasant Park, Beddau, Pontypridd
Saturday 14th April 2012, k.o. 2.30 pm

 
Rumney v Beddau  09.11.2011
Past playing record : played 13, Beddau 9 wins, Rumney 4 wins

Rumney : 15.Christian Edwards  14.Alex Bodin  13.Paul King  12.Paul Niblett  11.Joe Offside  10.Danny Clark  9.Chris Milton   8.Michael Kelly  7.Ryan Sutton  6.Simon Barry  5.Paul Bull   4.Joe Mills   3.Dan Holliday   2.Michael Feneck (Capt)  1.James Monck
Replacements : 16.Lewis Andrews  17.Michael Neale  18.Nathan Bridson  19.Ryan Fenton   20.Darren Fenton

Beddau : 15.Dan Fox  14.Steve Robinson  13.Bradley Coombes  12.Sam Campbell  11.Ieaun Coombes  10.Cameron Pimlow  9.Lloyd Peart  8.Abraham Papali'i  7.Rhys Watkins  6.Robert Downes (Capt)  5.Robert Jones   4.Graham Hartt   3.Liam Bodman   2.Matthew Hunt  1.Simon Wilde
Replacements : 16.Jon Elley  17.Tarion Emmanuel  18.Josh Sheehan  19.Luke Crocker   20.Jack Barrett

Referee : Mike Griffiths, Newport

Beddau 29  Rumney 21

Scorers for Rumney : Christian Edwards try, Danny Clark try and 3 penalties, Michael Kelly try

Scorers for Beddau  : Steve Robinson try and 3 conversions and penalty, Cameron Pimlow try, Liam Bodman try, Rhys Watkins try

A very positive start found Rumney flanker Ryan Sutton leaping and gathering possession, second row Joe Mills powering his way forward, and hooker Michael Feneck, wing forward Simon Barry and second row Paul Bull taking play well into the Beddau half, but the home side soaked up the pressure and, from a penalty, scrum half Lloyd Peart put in a long clearance kick to the visitors' twenty two. Sutton stole the lineout but in the confusion that followed Beddau flanker Rhys Watkins nabbed the ball and slipped it to tight head Liam Bodman who raced in for the first try, winger Steve Robinson adding the conversion for a 7-0 lead after six minutes. The visitors were not put off by the surprise setback, lively scrum half Chris Milton darting forward, opening up the field for some good threequarter play, winger Alex Bodin making a long weaving run, centres Paul Niblett and Paul King probing the midfield and Barry and hooker Michael Feneck linking well with the backs in promising handling movements. The Rumney scrummage was, as usual, rock solid, James Monck making a welcome return at tight head and forming a particularly powerful front row with Feneck and loose head Dan Holliday, and with outside half Danny Clark also gliding past defenders, most of the action moved to the Beddau half of the field. In the nineteenth minute however, intense rucking on the halfway line gave Beddau a turnover and they quickly broke down the right wing, Watkins moving the ball to his backs and receiving the final return pass himself to score the try under the posts. Robinson's conversion increased the lead to 14-0 but Rumney were soon again on the offensive, Mills putting in another outstanding, battling performance, forcing the home side to concede penalties, home prop Simon Wilde receiving a yellow card when Mr Griffiths found him guilty of lying on the ball at the breakdown and killing it. Clark manoeuvered his side into a strong attacking position and carefully exploiting the superior numbers, No8 Michael Kelly broke from the base of a scrum and could not be stopped on his direct burst to the try line. Clark added the extra points, narrowing the gap to 14-7 but three minutes later, in the twenty seventh minute, Rumney were judged to have slipped their binding at a scrum and Robinson landed the penalty. From the restart the visitors once more drove forward with Barry, Sutton, Mills and second row Paul Bull gaining hard yards, but Beddau compensated for their reduced numbers by spreading the ball as wide as possible, and Rumney failed to take full advantage of having the extra man. Restored to their full complement, the home side enjoyed another substantial amount of time in their opponents' territory, No8 Abraham Papali'i proving hard to contain in the midfield, but Clark, Niblett and Bodin counterattacked out of defence, and Holliday, Sutton, Feneck and Barry set up phases to take play away from the danger area. On the dot of halftime, a Rumney chip through was blocked by Bodman, who galloped off at pace for thirty metres before handing over to supporting outside half Cameron Pimlow to score under the sticks, Robinson slotting the conversion for a 24-7 lead at the break.

Rumney opted for a raft of changes at the start of the second half, Mike Neale coming on in the second row, Lewis Andrews at scrum half, Darren Fenton at prop, Ryan Fenton on the flank and Nathan Bridson at No8, with Kelly moving up into the second row. Neale's very strong running, Kelly's outstanding covering work and Joe Offside's decisive tackling on the wing, were immediately needed to relieve Beddau pressure, but both sides were guilty of dropping passes and Clark's kicking kept Rumney moving forward. The visitors' lineouts occasionally went astray but attacking bursts by Neale, Darren Fenton and Ryan Fenton drove the hosts back and Rumney enjoyed their best period of the game, lodged in the home twenty two. In the sixty eighth minute that pressure told, when Kelly pounced like a hawk on a fumbled ball, cantered to within ten metres of the Beddau line and set up the ball for Lewis to whip it out to Clark, the outside half jinking past four despairing tacklers to score a fine try, which he also converted. Having reduced the gap to 24-14, Rumney continued to press, Beddau always looking dangerous when Pimlow opened up but also conceding penalties, and in the seventy second minute a Clark penalty kick sent play to the home five metre line for a corner lineout. This time the confusion in the lineout would be disasterous for Rumney as Beddau gained possession in their in goal area, ran from behind the posts, kicked speculatively upfield and when the visitors' defence failed to clear the threat, Peart was on hand to sprint away and despite an excellent tackle by Rumney fullback Christian Evans, was able to flick the ball to Robinson who gratefully crossed for a try in the corner. With only minutes of Rumney's 2011-2012 campaign remaining, Niblett, Sutton and Kelly combined in another magnificent handling movement to gain teritory in the Beddau twenty two, Andrews quickly delivered the ball to Clark whose long, accurate, lob pass picked out Edwards, coming from deep at speed, and the fullback sliced through the defences for an excellent try and conversion. The visitors' rousing conclusion to the season continued with Niblett making another fine break but the clock ran down and an exciting contest finished with Beddau running out winners at 29-21.

Matt Silva, Coach Rumney 1st XV : "We always look forward to the Beddau matches as they are always keenly contested, and today's game was no exception. I accept that the game was scrappy at times, but from the outset both sides endeavoured to play open, free flowing rugby. The difference in the two teams came when opportunities were presented and Beddau proved more effective in this area. We played a lot of rugby for long periods, often going through nine or ten phases only to be denied by a resilient Beddau defence or by our own mistakes. Once again, we were pleased with Christian Edwards and Paul King, as they put in commendable performances with Christian scoring an excellent try and winning the Man of the Match award. There were also some good performances from our seasoned players, Danny Clark, Mike Kelly, Mike Feneck and Joe Mills to name a few, giving one hundred percent as always to Rumney Rugby Football Club, which has been the case for the whole season, and with this being our last game, the squad finished as they started. We must now look forward to a new era for Rumney as we will be in a new look league next season, a lot of the semi-pro teams will be going into the new Championship which I feel will create a level playing field for Rumney, as we will be playing against similar home-grown teams. I myself, Mike Morgan and Neil Coles would like to thank the players for their unquestionable commitment and memorable moments throughout 2011-2012. We will now have a well earned break and plan our assault on next season's league."

Christian Edwards, fullback Rumney 1st XV : "I though we dominated most of the game and were unlucky not to come away with the points. It was mistakes like scrappy little knock ons and a lack of concentration that was our downfall, Beddau scored from their chances. Taking an overall look at the team, I have never played in a side with so much encouragment, it is friendly and it motivates you. Danny Clark brought skill to the game, passing with vision to the backs, and Paul King stepped up again and took some big hits."

 
Above left : Matt Silva, right : Christian Edwards

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WRU 2nd XV League

BEDDAU 2nd XV  v  RUMNEY ATHLETIC

Beddau RFC, Pontypridd
Saturday 14th April 2012, k.o. 2.30 pm

Beddau 2nd XV 52    Rumney 12

Scorers for Rumney Athletic : John Lewis try, Joe Burns try, Anthony Solomons conversion

Man of the Match : Steven Page

Cardiff and District Youth Cup 2011-2012   Semi Final

RUMNEY YOUTH v GLAMORGAN WANDERERS YOUTH

Hailey Park, Llandaff North, Cardiff
Wednesday 11th April 2012, k.o. 6.30 pm

Rumney Youth 10   Glamorgan Wanderers Youth 24

Rumney dominated a lot of the first half in spells and could have had a good lead if penalties had gone over. The Wanderers scored a converted try, but Rumney replied with a penalty, followed by a charge down try and conversion, giving them a 10-7 lead at half time. The Wanderers dominated play for most of the second half and scored two more tries to put the game out of reach at 10-24.

SWALEC League Division 1 East

RUMNEY v EBBW VALE

Riverside Park, Rumney
Saturday 7th April 2012, k.o. 2.30 pm

 
Ebbw Vale v Rumney 05.11.2011
Past playing record : played 3, Ebbw Vale 3 wins, Rumney 0 wins

Rumney : 15.Christian Edwards  14.Alex Bodin  13.Paul King  12.Solomon Matthews   11.Lincoln Plummer  10.Lewis Andrews   9.Chris Milton   8.Michael Kelly  7.Ryan Fenton  6.Simon Barry  5.Paul Bull (Capt)  4.Michael Neale  3.Darren Fenton  2.Nathan Bridson  1.Dan Holliday
Replacements : 16.Dominic Perks  17.Ryan Matthews  18.Michael Young  19.Matthew Way  20.Anthony Leach

Ebbw Vale : 15.Charlie Simpson  14.Tom Ashmead   13.Wes Cunliffe   12.Tristan Davies (Capt)  11.Dan Ajuwa  10.Dorian Jones   9.David Jones  8.Ethan Matthews   7.Ronnie Kynes   6.Cameron Reagan   5.Ashley Sweet   4.Joe Bartlett   3.Robert Sevenoaks   2.Rhys Miller   1.Ross Jones 
Replacements : 16.Josh Powell   17.Nicky Coughlin   18.Gareth James   19.Dan Haymond   20.Matthew Williams

Referee : Alan Jenkins, Penlan, Swansea

Rumney 7   Ebbw Vale 48

Scorers for Rumney : Paul King try, Lewis Andrews conversion

Scorers for Ebbw Vale  : Charlie Simpson 2 tries, Josh Powell try, Ronnie Kynes try, Cameron Reagan try, David Jones try, Wes Cunliffe try, Dorian Jones penalty and 2 conversions, Dan Haymond 3 conversions

Ebbw Vale played a fast running game from the very start, the hard ground and constant, drizzling rain presenting players with a number of problems but both sides nevertheless determined to attack in a positive fashion. Rumney were forced to defend stubbornly, flanker Ryan Fenton tackling decisively and Lewis Andrews, playing in the unaccustomed position of outside half, putting in vital, long touchfinders. At the first scrum the powerful Ruumney pack drove The Steelmen back off the ball and were awarded a penalty, but after winning the subsequent lineout, were themselves penalised for bridging, the first of a long series of penalties which were to affect the home side throughout the match. Rumney scrum half Chris Milton relished the high paced game, making sharp bursts and linking with the driving forward unit formed by hooker Nathan Bridson, prop Darren Fenton and second row Paul Bull, but with the Ebbw Vale scrum now settling, and taking advantage of the penalties conceded by the home side, the visitors used the skilful boot of outside half Dorian Jones to restrict play to the Rumney half of the field. The Steelmen props Ross Jones and Robert Sevenoaks added bullocking runs and when they were stopped illegally, Mr Jenkins issued a warning about infringments at the breakdown. Another massive Rumney push again drove the visitors' pack backwards and a fine kick by centre Paul King relieved the situation but this was only temporary and good work in the lineout by Ebbw Vale second row Ashley Sweet and a midfield run from No8 Ethan Matthews led to another penalty, this time for going over and killing the ball, Dorian Jones slotting the thirty five metre kick to open the scoring at 0-3. The Steelmen quickly returned to the Rumney half but further solid defence kept the visitors from adding to their total until the twenty fifth minute when home No8 Michael Kelly blasted away from the base of a scrum and Darren Fenton and Bridson drove on, only to be called back for an earlier offence. The puzzled Rumney forwards turned their backs and in a flash Ebbw Vale scrum half David Jones tapped and burst for the line, creating a huge space for flanker Cameron Reagan to cross in the corner and extend the score to 0-8. Home fullback Christian Edwards was totally reliable when The Steelmen launched high balls and wingers Alex Bodin and Lincoln Plummer snapped up clearance kicks and counterattacked with pace, but the visitors patiently soaked up pressure and waited until they could regain possession, before striking back quickly through handling movements and long kicks from Dorian Jones. One of these movements found them battering their way to the Rumney line and when Ryan Fenton entered the contact area from the side, Mr Jenkins decided that a spell in the sin bin was required. The Steelmen opted for the scrum and as the ball was worked wide, Edwards was blocked in midfield and the gap created was ideal for visiting fullback Charlie Simpson to cut through at speed and score his side's second try. Rumney second row Mike Neale put in every effort in attack and also brought off essential tackles as Ebbw Vale pressed forward once more, virtually all the first half having been spent in the home half, and more outstanding defence by flanker Simon Barry and prop Dan Holliday keeping them at bay, but in the thirtieth minute Kelly's foraging and gaining of the ball at a breakdown once again incurred Mr Jenkins' wrath and a second yellow card was issued. The Rumney thirteen held back the waves of attacks, centres Solomon Matthews and King containing dangerous opposite numbers Tristan Davies and Wesley Cunliffe, but in the thirty ninth minute the superior numbers told, and a neat, reverse flick from David Jones put dynamic No8 Ethan Matthews through a big gap and sent flanker Ronnie Kynes sprinting over the line, Dorian Jones' conversion producing a half time scoreline of 0-20.

 

Match photography by Graham, Ebbw Vale RFC

The Steelmen resumed after the interval with more attacking, running rugby, requiring further ferocious tackling by the home side and good defensive and sniping moves from Milton and Andrews. Five minutes into the second period, and now faced with heavier rain, The Steelmen were awarded a scrum on the halfway line. The packs were matching each other in the scrummages, Darren Fenton, Bridson and Holliday maintaining Rumney's immovable position at each set piece, and when David Jones broke wide from the base, he linked directly with Powell, who scorched down the wing and when tackled by Edwards, placed the ball for David Jones to regather and cross in the corner himself for a very well worked try. Dorian Jones' fine touchline conversion added the extras to extend the lead to 0-27 and the visitors varied their response to the restart keeping the ball tight in the forwards for a lengthy period before eventually releasing the backs, but their territorial dominance continued and Rumney were restricted to the occassional breakout, Neale again doing particularly well to drive play back with thundering bursts. Hard work and the home forwards' ability to force turnovers allowed them to gain some ground in the Ebbw Vale half and in the sixtieth minute, when an Ebbw handling movement broke down, Milton quickly fired the ball out wide where Plummer and Matthews blazed down the tramlines, and King snapped up the breakdown ball to dash over in the corner for a well taken try, Andrews' excellent conversion from the touchline narrowing the gap to 7-27. Matthew Way, now on as flanker, was efficiently supplying lineout ball for the hosts and contributing significant tackles with Captain Bull taking on all comers, and tactical changes saw Dominic Perks take to the field at scrum half and Mike Young in the second row, but the mounting number of penalties forced Rumney into retreating positions in their own half. In the sixty ninth minute Kynes secured lineout possession for Ebbw Vale and set up the controlled drive to the line where prop Josh Powell grounded the ball, the successful conversion by replacement outside half Dan Haymond extending the lead to 7-34. The Steelmen were now at their most powerful but did give away a number of penalties allowing Rumney to gain territory. In the seventy second minute however, a loose clearance was gathered by Haymond, who set off on a stunning, long range break finally offloading to Cunliffe who cruised in under the sticks, Haymond adding the conversion himself. The homeside were still looking for another score, Perks putting in a livewire performance around the scrum and Young fiercely running at the opposition, the composition of the pack being varied by the addition of Ryan Matthews at prop and Anthony Leach at flanker, both players offering new options in the closing period, but when Cunliffe took advantage of a loose kick to sprint from his own ten metre line, he set up an intricate movement that led to Simpson cutting back in and cantering to the tryline, Haymond then putting the ball between the uprights to bring down the curtain on an intriguing match and give an impressive Ebbw Vale side victory at 7-48.

Above, left to right : Alex Bodin, Christian Edwards, Paul King, Dominic Perks, Ryan Matthews, Anthony Leach

Matt Silva, Coach Rumney 1st XV : "With the side being depleted by players attending a wedding, this was a good opportunity for a number of youth team and development squad players to experience First Division rugby. Credit must also be given to Lewis Andrews who stepped up and put in an excellent performance at outside half against the league leaders. We were never going into this game to make up the numbers and that was evident in our first half performance. The boys gave their all and in the first sixty minutes held Ebbw Vale well. This was shown by the fact that for their first four kickable penalties, Ebbw Vale opted for the scrum, they got nothing from this and then realised that we weren't going to be rolling over. With so much effort given in the first sixty minutes it was inevitable that the semi-pro outfit would have too much in the tank for us. Congratulations to Paul King, Christian Edwards and Dominic Perks on their excellent First Team performances. I have mentioned it before, but this is where Rumney is the envy of many clubs, in that the Youth Team continuously supplies the senior section with loyal, committed, quality players. Paul King receives the Man of the Match award for an outstanding First Team debut and we all look forward to working with these youngsters next season."

Lincoln Plummer, wing Rumney 1st XV : "Personally, I enjoyed playing in this game, with so many players out, all the Youth boys who stepped up today were excellent. It was a shame about the result, basically Ebbw Vale's power and size decided it, they were good at making phases and after a few phases they punished us. There were a lot of good points, this is still a young team so the future looks bright and I can't wait to play next season. The sin bins were a bit of a disappointment but all the boys played well, the back line had never played together before and they were pretty good ! Michael Kelly always plays very well, I loved the scrum when we pushed Ebbw Vale off the ball right on our line - it was the best moment of the game."

Paul King, centre Rumney 1st XV : "To be honest I thought it would be harder than it was, I enjoyed it until they tackled me ! It wasn't as quick as youth rugby, it was more organised and it was a little easier to see what was happening on the pitch. It was not so frantic, everyone in our makeshift back line did a good job and made their tackles, but Ebbw Vale were that bit quicker and more organised. Rumney have great forward strength and pushed the Ebbw Vale boys off the scrum when we were a man down, it helped us a lot. It was a big step up for the Youth boys who came up but everyone did their job and even exceeded that as well."

 
Above, left : Matt Silva, centre : Lincoln Plummer, right : Paul King

Click here to see all the tries from this game and add your comments

Mallett Cup 2011-2012  Quarter Final

GLAMORGAN WANDERERS 2nd XV  v  RUMNEY ATHLETIC

The Memorial Ground, Ely, Cardiff
Tuesday 3rd April 2012, k.o. 7.15 pm

Rumney Athletic v Glamorgan Wanderers 2nd XV 26.03.11 

Rumney Athletic : 15.C.Edwards  14.A.Bodin  13.L.Facey  12.L.Bendon  11.L.Baptiste  10.C.Maton  9.J.Lewis   8.R.Fenton   7.Ryan Sutton (Capt)   6.C.Cobbold   5.M.Young   4.R.Maton   3.A.Davies  2.S.Spavin   1.R.Matthews
Replacements : 16.C.Fitzpatrick   17.C.Fish   18.A.Jones   19.A.Wilson   20.D.Perks  21.A.Leach  22.P.Dimech

Referee : Dai Cambourne, Nelson, Treharris

Glamorgan Wanderers 2nd XV 16    Rumney Athletic 22

Scorers for Rumney Athletic : M.Young try, R.Fenton try, A.Wilson try, C.Maton 2 conversions and penalty

Man of the Match : Ryan Fenton

SWALEC League Division 1 East

MOUNTAIN ASH v RUMNEY

Y Parc Dyffryn Pennar, Mountain Ash
Saturday 31st March 2012, k.o. 2.30 pm

 
Rumney v Mountain Ash 29.08.2011
Past playing record : played 7, Mountain Ash 3 wins, Rumney 4 wins

Rumney : 15.Joe Offside  14.Gareth Stoppani  13.Paul Niblett  12.Solomon Matthews   11.Lincoln Plummer  10.Danny Clark   9.Lewis Andrews   8.Michael Kelly  7.Ryan Sutton  6.Simon Barry  5.Joe Mills  4.Michael Neale  3.Nathan Bridson  2.Michael Feneck (Capt)  1.Dan Holliday
Replacements : 16.Ryan Matthews  17.Michael Young  18.Carl Fish   19.Ryan Fenton  20.Chris Milton

Mountain Ash : 15.Gavin Roberts  14.James Cole  13.Dale Keepin  12.Scott Davies   11.Nick Griffiths   10.Keiron Olden   9.Marcus Clyne   8.Matthew Dixon   7.Lewis Young   6.Chris Edmonds  5.Kriss Sanders  4.Daniel Jones  3.Geraint Lock  2.Craig Evans  1.James Cowdry
Replacements : 16.Dean O'Brien  17.Gavin Powell   18.Luke Brennan   19.Tom Withers   20.Josh Lewis

Referee : Morgan Whitehead, Caerphilly

Mountain Ash 12   Rumney 12

Scorer for Rumney : Danny Clark 3 penalties and drop goal

Scorers for Mountain Ash  : James Cowdry 2 tries, Josh Lewis conversion

Wing forward Ryan Sutton took the ball from the kick off and attacked straight away, supported by fellow flanker Simon Barry and the mobile Rumney pack, but both sides wanted to run the ball and as soon as his side had possession nimble Mountain Ash scrum half Marcus Clyne set off on an elusive run to release his backs. The Old Firm's pack would prove to be one of the strongest encountered by the visitors this season with flanker Lewis Young showing immediate attacking potential and No8 Matthew Dixon securing lineout ball and controlling the back of the scrum. Rumney wing Licoln Plummer fielded a difficult high ball and centre Solomon Matthews cut through midfield, scrum half Lewis Andrews' linked quickly with outside half Danny Clark to send prop Nathan Bridson thundering forward, and when Bridson was finally stopped, Mountain Ash killed the ball and Clark opened the scoring with an eleventh minute penalty. From the restart the home forwards established a well structured rolling maul but when this went down, hooker Craig Evans was judged to have trampled on an opponent and was consigned to the sin bin. The visitors were looking very potent in attack, Sutton was securing and even stealing lineout ball, with the half backs seeking out second row Mike Neale who raced up the middle of the park, scattering defenders, and when winger Gareth Stoppani set up possession, one of the Old Firm had a hand in the loose and Clark slotted another three pointer. Mountain Ash maintained their regular lineout supply using flanker Chris Edmonds as an alternative jumper, and fullback Gavin Roberts was a clear threat on the burst, but Rumney were still enjoying a good period of play, Plummer again snapping up high balls and sprinting down the wing, and prop Dan Holliday, hooker Michael Feneck and Sutton forming a tight attacking unit, but nevertheless the home defensive line was solid and a further excellent linking movement involving No8 Michael Kelly, Sutton and Matthews was just stopped as the winger appeared to be on his way to the tryline. Mountain Ash soon showed their readiness to counterattack as centre Dale Keepin cut through and combined with Roberts and flanker Lewis Young, and when Rumney subsequently conceded a penalty, the home side opted for the kick to the corner rather than the posts. This proved to be a wise choice, Edmonds made a clean catch, feeding James Cowdrey on the peel and in a well executed move, the prop burst over the tryline to score. The visitors returned to the offensive, Barry being used for a lineout variation and proving a handful to contain, but Mountain Ash regathered and carefully progressed back into the Rumney half where, in the thirty second minute, visiting centre Paul Niblett was judged guilty of a spear tackle on centre Scott Davies, and headed for the bin. Clyne again showed a lot of ability in attack and defence, making an impressive break from a lineout and outside half Keiron Olden also breached the visitors' defences but Rumney second row Joe Mills had been outstanding around the field and made an important turnover, allowing Andrews to whip the ball away to Clark for a long clearance kick. On the stroke of half time, a quality Rumney threequarter movement stalled when Matthews was spear tackled, as a result of which Mountain Ash left wing Nick Griffiths was rewarded with ten minutes in the sinbin, and Clark kicked a magnificent fifty five metre penalty from inside his own half.

It was a running start to the second half by Rumney, fullback Joe Offside, Plummer and Stoppani creating a fast counterattacking movement and Niblett being brought down just short of the line after a fine run. The two sides continued to play open rugby with the ball being spread back and forth, and in the forty seventh minute Kelly charged down a chip kick, Sutton and Neale carried it on and Andrews gave Clark the perfect pass to drop a well struck goal from the twenty two. Chris Milton took to the field at scrum half for the visitors, Andrews moving to fullback and Offside to the wing to replace the injured Stoppani. With Milton incessantly snapping and darting forward from the set pieces The Old Firm was faced with a different style of play and with Holliday, Feneck and Bridson also generating more problems for the front row and Kelly thundering from the back row, Rumney seemed to be gaining dominance. It was therefore surprising when the visitors committed some unforced errors, conceded a turnover and lost possession, allowing Mountain Ash's replacement outside half Josh Lewis  to use his big boot to drive his side right down into the corner for a lineout. The Old Firm then stole possession in the line and set up phase ball, and in another carefully planned move Clyne fed Cowdry on the burst, the powerful prop being unstoppable from five metres out and claiming his second touchdown. Lewis added the conversion to draw the scores level at 12-12 with fifteen minutes remaining to play. Rumney brought on Mike Young in the boilerhouse, the second row putting a storming performance throughout the rest of the game, but Mountain Ash now sensed a possible victory and Clyne and Lewis kept pegging the ball into the same corner where they had scored their tries. The Old Firm launched a number of attacks, Sutton pulling off a vital tackle on Dixon, and Kelly brining down Cowdry, as the home side applied more pressure. The visitors sent on Ryan Fenton in the back row, the flanker showing plenty of aggression and battling alongside Young, Holliday, Neale and Bridson to break out of defence. Rumney cleared their lines and again went on the attack, Barry, Niblett, Feneck and Matthews pressing hard, but indiscipline gave Lewis the chance to send the visitors back deep into their own half again. Mountain Ash once more lodged themselves in their favoured corner but conceded a further yellow card, Rumney grabbing the chance to launch one more phase of attacks, but The Old Firm organised their defenders and the drawn game finished with the scores remaining at 12-12. 

Mike Morgan, backs coach Rumney 1st XV : "This was a hard fought encounter in which Mountain Ash stopped a lot of our game plans and forced us to play quite narrowly. Because we lost some momentum, they took advantage of it and fought hard for their two tries. However, there were some great performances from Ryan Sutton in the lineout and Nathan Bridson stepping up to tight head at short notice, and Danny Clark's long range kick at goal was definitely a highlight. We are disappointed that we didn't play a little wider, as we had practised during the week, but both sides were very determined, which made for a real battle. We now look forward to playing Ebbw Vale next Saturday, we need full squad preparation during training and we can certainly take out elements of today's game, such as our lineout play, and use them as a platform. Today's Man of the Match was Ryan Sutton."

Ryan Sutton, flanker Rumney 1st XV : "I loved every minute of it, the boys played well and we were the team on top in the first half, but to be honest Mountain Ash were the best team in the second half. The set pieces, scrums and lineouts, went well and Nathan Bridson was exceptional, stepping in at prop. Mountain Ash seemed to want it more in the second half but the boys dug in, though the yellow card didn't help. The end of the season is always scrappy and we were playing in dribs and drabs, against Ebbw Vale next week we will need more of the attitude that we showed against Glamorgan Wanderers. Nathan Bridson was awesome and Simon Barry was outstanding, especially in the last twenty minutes."

Above, left: Mike Morgan, right : Ryan Sutton

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East District Youth Cup 2011-2012   Quarter Final

RUMNEY YOUTH v ST JOSEPHS YOUTH

Riverside Park, Rumney
Saturday 31st March 2012, k.o. 2.30 pm

Rumney Youth 12    St Josephs Youth 19

Scorers for Rumney Youth : Carl McGowan 2 tries, Paul King conversion

East District 2nd XV Cup 2011-2012  Round 2

ST PETERS 2nd XV  v  RUMNEY ATHLETIC

The Harlequins Ground, Roath, Cardiff
Wednesday 28th March 2012, k.o. 6.15 pm

Rumney Athletic : 15.Christian Edwards  14.Lincoln Plummer   13.Alex Bodin  12.Paul King  11.Luke Baptiste  10.Chris Maton  9.Dominic Perks   8.Jordan Allen   7.Ryan Sutton (Capt)   6.Anthony Leach   5.Michael Young   4.Rob Maton   3.Andrew Davies  2.Nathan Bridson   1.Ryan Matthews
Replacements : 16.Craig Fitzpatrick   17.Carl Mcgowan   18.C.Cobbold   19.Anthony Wilson   20.John Lewis   21.Lawrence Facey  22.David Turner

St Peters 2nd XV 0     Rumney Athletic 22

Scorers for Rumney Athletic : C.Edwards try, L.Facey try, M.Young try, C.Maton 2 conversions and penalty

SWALEC League Division 1 East

RUMNEY v GLAMORGAN WANDERERS

Riverside Park, Rumney
Saturday 24th March 2012, k.o. 2.30 pm

 
Glamorgan Wanderers v Rumney 22.10.2011
Past playing record : played 13, Glamorgan Wanderers 9 wins, Rumney 4 wins

Rumney : 15.Joe Offside  14.Gareth Stoppani  13.Paul Niblett  12.Luke Fear  11.Solomon Matthews  10.Danny Clark  9.Chris Milton   8.Michael Kelly  7.Matthew Way  6.Simon Barry  5.Joe Mills  4.Paul Bull  3.Darren Fenton  2.Michael Feneck (Capt)  1.John Leadbeatter
Replacements : 16.Nathan Bridson  17.Jordan Allen  18.Ryan Sutton 19.Anthony Leach  20.Lewis Andrews

Glamorgan Wanderers : 15.Elliott Jones  14.Owen Marshall  13.Joe Xiberras  12.Charlie Johnson  11.Lloyd Chalke  10.Gareth Cull  9.Rhys Griffiths  8.Carl Kimber  7.Andrew Bradbury  6.Owain Thomas   5.Alex Luff (Capt)   4.Ed Morris  3.Rhys Jenkins  2.Ross Grimstone  1.Haval Ibrahim
Replacements : 16.Joe Russell  17.Chris Hole  18.Dan Richards  19.Sean Carroll  20.Loren Quick

Referee : Tom Williams, Roath, Cardiff

Rumney 38    Glamorgan Wanderers 17

Scorers for Rumney : Simon Barry try, Michael Kelly try, Michael Feneck try, Danny Clark 2 tries and 5 conversions and penalty

Scorers for Glamorgan Wanderers  : Lloyd Chalke try, Loren Quick try, Gareth Cull 2 conversions and penalty

Joe Mills, Rumney's mighty second row, confidently took the high ball from the kick off and pounded straight into the Wanderers, drawing in defenders in the way that he would do all through the game, and lock Paul Bull and flanker Simon Barry were straight into the action, carrying the ball deep into the opposition territory. The Wanderers reorganised and intercepted a pass, which allowed outside half Gareth Cull to launch a relieving, long range clearance kick and when the ball bounced unpredictably on the dry surface, winger Lloyd Chalk was racing up to gather and sprint in under the posts for the opening try. With only three minutes on the clock Cull's conversion gave his side a 0-7 lead but the home team again showed their attacking intent, outside half Danny Clark carefully controlling the game, fullback Joe Offside, centres Paul Niblett and Luke Fear and winger Gareth Stoppani all looking sharp, and wing Solomon Matthews making a fine break out of his own twenty two, taking play deep into the visitors' half where Rumney then camped for a long period. Home scrum half Chris Milton made sure that the pace was kept up, proving a real headache with is darting bursts, snap delivery and close work with No8 Michael Kelly, and props Darren Fenton and John Leadbeatter and hooker Michael Feneck carried well and set up effective phase ball. Surprisingly, having driven themselves into such strong attacking positions, Rumney started to concede penalties and Glamorgan Wanderers worked their way back upfield, Cull landing a difficult kick in the thirteenth minute to increase their lead to 0-10. Rumney's back three lay deep anticipating more big kicks from Cull and counterattacked strongly, but at an intense midfield breakdown Bull was judged to have deliberatley killed the ball and Mr.Williams consigned him to the sin bin. The young Wanderers pack performed well throughout the game, their solid front row of Haval Ibrahim, Ross Grimstone and Rhys Jenkins setting up a firm platform in the scrummages, but although reduced in number, the Rumney forwards still relished the scrums and showed discipline and skill, flanker Matthew Way stopping one dangerous attack by ripping possession and immediately counterattacking, Mills constantly threatening through his committed driving play and Kelly tirelessly making the hard yards. Clark continued to accurately work the touchlines and with Way claiming, and even stealing, clean ball in the lineouts, a fluid driving maul was stopped illegally by The Wanderers, Rumney opting for a five metre scrum rather than the kick. Milton worked the ball back and forth across the threequarters and Fenton, Barry and Leadbeatter took turns to set up phases, until Clark varied play by chipping over the defence and gathering another very unpredictable bouncing ball to score a fine try at the posts, the outside half's own conversion putting Rumney on the scoreboard at 7-10. Five minutes later, in the thirty sixth minute, impressive flanker Simon Barry secured a long lineout ball for the home side and set up a powerful forward drive from The Wanderers twenty two, and with Feneck at the heart of things, the well organised home pack manipulated their way over the tryline where Barry grounded the ball for the try, Clark's difficult conversion now putting his side into the lead at 14-10. The remaining minutes of the half saw both sides looking to spread the ball, Milton cutting through midfield and Clark accurately well for Rumney, while the Wanderers' backs handled effectively, fullback Elliot Jones positioning himself well and attacking in the centre of the park.

It was a shaky start to the second half for the Wanderers, with Rumney immediately getting a scrum on the twenty two, from the base of which Kelly broke at speed, sold an outrageous dummy and rapidly covered the remaining ground to score an outstanding solo try, Clark adding the points for a 21-10 lead. The visitors had problems with their lineout throughout the game and were far more secure in the scrummage where lively scrum half Rhys Griffiths used possession wisely to spread the ball and release dangerous centres Joe Xiberras and Charlie Johnson. A successful lineout in which second row Ed Morris won good ball and fed flanker Owain Thomas, gave quick possession to the visitors' backs, and some of their best moves saw the threequarters linking with Captain Alex Luff and flanker Andrew Bradbury, but Rumney waited until they could force turnovers and when the Wanderers were penalised for not binding at a scrum, Clark landed a successful forty metre kick. At this point the home coaches decided to make changes, Lewis Andrews taking over the scrum half role and Ryan Sutton at flanker, and further confident play followed, a huge break by winger Gareth Stoppani, and scything counterattacks by Matthews, Fear and Niblett causing havoc. In the sixty ninth minute the Rumney forwards produced a high speed handling variation with Feneck, Bull and Fenton setting up phases at the breakdown, and when Captain Feneck unexpectedly broke down the blindside, he added a neat sidestep before crossing for a corner try. Clark carefully added the difficult conversion and more changes saw dynamic forwards Jordan Allen and Nathan Bridson take the field at No8 and tight head respectively. Sutton was already claiming excellent lineout ball and rampaging in the loose, but although the Wanderers pressed and brought in pacey fullback Loren Quick, they also made uncharacteristic handling errors in the backs, allowing Stoppani to gain from a fumble and set off on another superb, blistering run down the wing, drawing all the defence and flicking inside to Clark who cruised under the sticks and then kicked the conversion to stretch the lead to 38-10. Anthony Leach maintained the power of the home front row by appearing at hooker and in the seventy ninth minute the Wanderers lineout clicked again and a cleverly timed pass from Cull sent Quick through a yawning gape to score under the posts. Cull added the points and although the closing minutes were still played out at top speed, there were no further scores and a good contest finished at 38-17 in Rumney's favour.

Matt Silva, Coach Rumney 1st XV : "This was an important fixture as we needed a game of some significance at this time of year. With an unpaid team, few fixtures remaining and nothing at stake on the games, it is hard for the boys to motivate themselves. Today's was a game that they really wanted to win and they did that in great style. The Wanderers are a good team who recently beat top four side Gilfach Goch, but they were never allowed to settle. Our forwards totally dominated the game and we must have had eighty percent of possession and territory, and the backs didn't give the opposition an inch to work with. For the first time this season I feel we had that fifteen man effort and it would be unfair to single out any particular player, but anybody who watched the match would have to agree that Michael Kelly played one of the finest games of his career and was awarded Man of the Match. Danny Clark should also be praised for his impeccable control of the game. I myself and all at Rumney RFC wish John Leadbeatter all the very best for his up and coming marriage to Nicky Coles and quite rightly, he has played his last game for this season".

Danny Clark, outside half Rumney 1st XV : "After going behind in the first minute, it showed how much we have changed from last year to come from behind and score two good tries. It wasn't an easy game to play in the heat, the forwards did tremendously well to keep it up all through the game. There were some really good displays, Big Joe Mills fronting up and for Michael Kelly to run from the twenty two and finish with a try, shows that fitness is really good. Hopefully we can capitalise on this and move up, judging by the way we have been playing since Christmas, we deserve to be high up the table. We changed our preparation for this game, Matthew Silva and Mike Morgan got everyone's mind and attitude set for kick off. The preparation and attitude of the boys was spot on and it showed in the final score. We did the double on a team that just came from the premiership, the forwards could have gone into a shell but they didn't, we thoroughly deserved the win and double."

Above, left : Matt Silva, right : Danny Clark

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TREORCHY YOUTH  v  RUMNEY YOUTH

Treorchy RFC
Saturday 24th March 2012, k.o. 2.30 pm

Treorchy Youth 19   Rumney Youth 20

SWALEC League Division 1 East

RUMNEY v TREORCHY

Riverside Park, Rumney
Saturday 3rd March 2012, k.o. 2.30 pm

 
Rumney v Treorchy 05.02.2011
Past playing record : played 19, Treorchy 9 wins, Rumney 9 wins, 1 draw

Rumney : 15.Joe Offside  14.Gareth Stoppani  13.Paul Niblett  12.Luke Fear  11.Solomon Matthews  10.Danny Clark  9.Lewis Andrews   8.Michael Kelly  7.Matthew Way  6.Ryan Fenton  5.Paul Bull  4.Michael Neale  3.Darren Fenton  2.Michael Feneck (Capt)  1.John Leadbeatter
Replacements : 16.Dan Holliday  17.Carl Fish  18.Simon Barry 19.Joe Mills  20.Chris Milton

Treorchy : 15.Andrew Mallin  14.Peter Hutchings  13.Trystan Lazarus  12.Richie Lewis  11.Ryan Evans  10.Jordan Lloyd  9.Lloyd Williams  8.Wayne Davies  7.Dan Thorne  6.Damon Filmer  5.Jamie Summers (Capt)   4.Rhys Gillard  3.Robert Jones  2.Shaun Green  1.Lee Davies
Replacements : 16.Celyn Ashton  17.Gareth Fear  18.Ben Hughes  19.Will Griffiths  20.Ben Williams

Referee : Gareth Butler, Llanharan

Rumney 20    Treorchy 20

Scorers for Rumney : penalty try, Gareth Stoppani try, Danny Clark 2 conversions and 2 penalties

Scorers for Treorchy  : Shaun Green 2 tries, Jordan Lloyd 2 conversions and 2 penalties

Rumney started at pace, spinning the ball wide to winger Solomon Matthews and gaining gound through lively bursts from second row Mike Neale and tighthead Darren Fenton, but their advantage was soon given away when the home side conceded early penalties for holding on and for killing the ball, allowing Treorchy outside half Jordan Lloyd to kick deep and relieve the pressure. Flanker Matthew Way was the target in the lineout for Rumney and he provided good ball for loosehead John Leadbeatter and hooker Michael Feneck to batter forward, while in the scrummages, Treorchy were often forced backwards by the power of the Rumney eight, the Zebras' No8 Wayne Davies doing an excellent recovery job at the base of the scrum. The home side continued to look dangerous with ball in hand, half backs Lewis Andrews and Danny Clark choosing when to involve the backs, centres Luke Fear and Paul Niblett running well in midfield and fullback Joe Offside counterattacking strongly. The pressure being exerted by the Rumney pack in the scrums was matched by their work in the loose, No8 Michael Kelly carrying expertly, second row Paul Bull and flanker Ryan Fenton fully committed, and Feneck and Leadbeatter finding more gaps. This technique of making short bursts and following up quickly to secure possession, took Rumney deep into the Treorchy twenty two and in the seventeenth minute a superb drive by the home pack at a ten metre scrum was brought down and Mr. Butler had no hesitation in awarding a penalty try. Clark's conversion gave the home side a 7-0 lead and the Zebras seemed to be struggling, but they regrouped and, demonstrating their skills at ball retention, worked their way to the Rumney twenty two where Lloyd slotted a penalty in the twentieth minute. Treorchy soon won another penalty to take them back into an attacking position but the Rumney backs were up rapidly to break down threatening movements and in the twenty third minute Clark landed a long range penalty to bring the score back to 10-3, but despite more powerful bursts from Kelly, the home side continued to concede penalties which put them on the defensive, and in the twenty sixth minute Ryan Fenton was judged to have entered from the side at a breakdown, and was sent for a spell in the sin bin. Now looking far more composed, with Lloyd kicking accurately to try and take advantage of superior numbers, and the reliable Davies thundering through midfield, Treorchy gained plenty of territory, Rumney needing solid defensive work by winger Gareth Stoppani, Neale and Way to keep the Zebras out, and with the visitors adopting a pod system, using hard running centres Trystan Lazarus and Richie Lewis more, and receiving a steady stream of lineout ball from second rows Jamie Summers and Rhys Gillard, the home try line came under repeated attack. Both sides struggled under the high ball because of the fierce, swirling wind and there were frequent handling errors, but Rumney did manage a turnover and harassing by Andrews, Fear, Niblett and Leadbeatter meant that they also had enough possession to run down the clock until Ryan Fenton returned, and with half time approaching Treorchy had been unable to capitalise on being a man up, the final move of the half in fact being a brilliant break by Stoppani who was hauled down only a metre from the line, so at the break the score remained 10-3.

From the restart Treorchy gained a scrum deep in Rumney territory and although the Zebras' pack were going backwards, Davies again retrieved the situation and the home side was penalised for going over the ball. Scrum half Lloyd Williams saw a gap in front of him and took a tapped ball, then snapped it to hooker Shaun Green who crashed over the line for an opportunist try, Jordan Lloyd's conversion bringing the sides level at 10-10. Three minutes later, in the forty sixth minute, Davies  broke from the back of a scrum once more and combined with Williams to release winger Ryan Evans who covered forty metres before supplying Green with the perfect pass and a clear run in for his second try, Lloyd successfully adding the conversion for the Zebras to canter into a 10-17 lead. Rumney brought on Joe Mills in the second row and he immediately came up with crunching tackles to stop Treorchy forward drives and Darren and Ryan Fenton forced their way over the gain line, but although the home side continued to enjoy good possession from the scrummage, some poor handling gave the initiative back to the visitors. Further changes saw Simon Barry on the blindside for Rumney, and Dan Holliday taking the field at prop, Barry offering an alternative lineout target and contesting every breakdown, and Holliday cleaning up in the contact area and making yards in tight exchanges. It was a good period for the home side, Clark kicking well into the strong wind and organising play, Fear and Niblett probing in the centre, and Offside, Matthews and Stoppani all finding room to break through. Chris Milton took over at scrum half, ripping out possession and darting at the opposition, and starting rapid handling movements between forwards and backs, and in the sixty seventh minute, when Treorchy conceded a penalty to stop a threatening break by Barry, Clark narrowed the gap to 13-17. Two minutes later Rumney were penalised for crossing and Lloyd restored the difference to 13-20, but Mills, Way and Neale replied with a neat handling combination in midfield, and the terrier-like Milton drove his pack on until they were again in a strong attacking position. The Rumney Coaches sent on hooker Carl Fish, who added to the forward pressure as his side forced their way to the Zebras' twenty two and won a penalty there. Opting for the lineout, Way secured possession and Mills and Leadbeatter set up the drive, Milton waiting for the ideal moment to feed Clark whose expertly delayed pass to Stoppani on the burst, sent the winger flying past wrong footed tacklers to glide in under the sticks. Clark added the extra points to tie the scores at 20-20, and with four minutes remaining, both sides pulled out all the stops to try and grab victory, Treorchy pressing hard with Green looking for a hat trick and prop Robert Jones also coming close, and Rumney launching counterattacks in an attempt to snatch the game, but there were no further scores, a hard fought draw being the final result.  

Matt Silva, Coach Rumney 1st XV : "It was hardly a rugby spectacle today but one positive to come out of it was our never say die attitude in forcing a draw. In all fairness, even if we had managed to win at the end, it wouldn't have taken away from our lack of application and desire to win the game. At this stage of the season, with only four games to play, we must find a way of motivating ourselves. The players will be the first to tell you that it was very flat today, which is disappointing as it was a game we could have won easily if we were more clinical in our approach. Today's Man of the Match was second row Mike Neale."

Joe Offside, fullback Rumney 1st XV : "Overall it was not our best performance and although we played poorly, we could have pulled it off if we had stuck to our structures. When the backs did get the ball we did break the line, but silly handling errors cost us tries.The wind sometimes caused issues with the kick offs but we need to do what we do best, and that is to run the ball and play with confidence. Mike Neale carried very well and Luke Fear is now playing at his best with a consistent run of games."

 
Above left : Matt Silva, right : Joe Offside

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WRU 2nd XV League

BRIDGEND ATHLETIC 2nd XV  v  RUMNEY ATHLETIC

Bridgend Athletic RFC
Saturday 3rd March 2012, k.o. 2.30 pm

Bridgend Athletic 2nd XV 24   Rumney Athletic 7

Scorers for Rumney Athletic : Luke Baptiste try, Chris Monk conversion

Man of the Match  : Paul King

RUMNEY YOUTH  v  PONTYPRIDD YOUTH

Riverside Park, Rumney
Saturday 3rd March 2012, k.o. 2.30 pm

Rumney Youth 7   Pontypridd Youth 10

RUMNEY ATHLETIC  v  ARMY XV

Riverside Park, Rumney
Saturday 25th February 2012, k.o. 12.30 pm

Rumney Athletic 73   Army XV 0

Man of the Match : Ryan Matthews

SWALEC Cup 2011-2012  Round 3

CROSS KEYS v RUMNEY

Pandy Park, Cross Keys
Saturday 18th February 2012, k.o. 2.30 pm

 
Rumney v Cross Keys 28.12.2002
Past playing record : played 10, Cross Keys 7 wins, Rumney 3 wins

Rumney : 15.Joe Offside  14.Gareth Stoppani  13.Dafydd Evans  12.Luke Fear  11.Lincoln Plummer  10.Danny Clark (Capt)  9.Chris Milton  8.Anthony Wilson  7.Matthew Way  6.Simon Barry  5.Joe Mills   4.Michael Neale  3.Darren Fenton  2.Colin O'Donoghue  1.John Leadbeatter
Replacements : 16.Lewis Andrews  17.Alex Bodin  18.Jordan Allen  19.Paul Bull  20.Ryan Fenton  21.Dan Holliday  22.Michael Feneck

Cross Keys : 15.Steffan Jones  14.Kristian Baller  13.Leon Andrews  12.Phil Williams  11.Marcus Johnstone  10.Dean Gunter  9.Owen Jones  8.Rhys Peebles  7.Robert Nash (Capt)  6.Lewis Rawlings  5.Tom Lampard   4.Danny Hodge  3.Craig Gould  2.Gerwyn Price  1.Richard Cornock
Replacements : 16.Ian George  17.Jamie Sollis  18.Marc Jones  19.Nathan Williams  20.Nathan Trowbridge  21.Sam Mills  22.Rhys Dyer

Referee : Martin Lewis, Gower, Swansea

Touch judges : Paul Richards, Neil Parry

Cross Keys 36   Rumney 18

Scorers for Rumney : Gareth Stoppani try, Dafydd Evans try, Danny Clark drop goal and conversion and penalty

Scorers for Cross Keys  : Marcus Johnstone try, Kristian Baller try, Gerwyn Price try, Steffan Jones try, Dean Gunter 2 conversions and 4 penalties

Pandy Park, home of high flying Premiership side Cross Keys, was the scene of this absorbing SWALEC Cup third round tie with both sides entering into the spirit of the event to produce six tries and plenty of excitement on a surface which had soaked up a vast amount of rain in the hours before kick off. Rumney No8 Anthony Wilson took the first lineout, the visitors' set pieces would be solid and productive all afternoon, and the early forward encounters were equally shared as the two packs tested each other out. Cross Keys kept play tight, working the ball between their big front five and No8 Tom Lampard, and bringing in speedy fullback Steffan Jones from deep positions, and in the fourth minute were awarded a penalty for offside at the breakdown, which outside half Dean Gunter found no difficulty in landing. Rumney conceded further penalties, mostly due to overenthusiastic play, and had to defend vigorously as The Keys attacked at every opportunity, Gunter himself nearly scoring from a fine break, but the visitors were equally dangerous with ball in hand and prop John Leadbeatter and centre Luke Fear cut through with sniping runs. The heavy conditions and muddy surface resulted in many handling errors and in the seventh minute Cross Keys achieved a turnover, flanker and Captain Rob Nash quickly working the ball wide to winger Kristian Baller who crossed for a corner try, Gunter's accurate touchline conversion stretching the lead to 10-0. The willingness of the home side to counterattack from any position had so far kept them mostly in the visitors' half, but Rumney gradually took a firmer grip on play, second row Joe Mills driving on and also covering back, lock Michael Neale using his strength and speed and flanker Ryan Fenton working hard in the loose and on the deck. With play now firmly lodged in the Keys' half, Rumney flanker Matthew Way burst from the base of a scrum and scrum half Chris Milton rapidly reworked the phase ball for outside half and Captain Danny Clark to drop a goal, but the home side retalliated with more pressure play and Rumney had to weather the storm, fullback Joe Offside and wingers Gareth Stoppani and Lincoln Plummer all setting up a rigid last line of defence. In the thirty sixth minute Gunter kicked a penalty awarded for a high tackle, taking the score to 13-3, but Rumney continued to look for attacking opportunities, Darren Fenton, centre Dafydd Evans and Ryan Fenton all being brought into play to cut through the midfield by carefully selected passes from Clark and the outside half himself making short, elusive breaks. Evans and Stoppani sliced through the opposition and the action remained in the Keys' half, the visitors enjoying excellent scrummage ball and Barry's steady supply of lineout possession, and with both sides attacking through spirited threequarter movements  an exciting half came to an end with the home side maintaining their ten point advantage.

 

Rumney brought on second row Paul Bull at the start of the second half, and from the restart the two teams again tried to spread the ball, though the deteriorating conditions made handling increasingly difficult. The visitors made good use of small groups of three forwards to gain ground, Bull, Neale and O'Donoghue also finding close range gaps and pouncing on any loose balls, while Fear and Evans continued to break through in the centre. Cross Keys conceded penalties for offside and in the fifty first minute Clark pulled back three points. The home side again pressed hard and seemed to have been repulsed by a long, clearance kick out of defence, but Steffan Jones snapped up the ball near his twenty two and ran it back, connecting with centre Leon Andrews on the halfway, Andrew's well timed wide pass finding Marcus Johnstone racing down the tramlines and the winger sprinted the remaining yards for a corner try. Further changes saw the welcome return from injury of hooker Michael Feneck and Lewis Andrews at scrum half for Rumney, but the visitors were to go further behind when, in the sixtieth minute,  The Keys were awarded a penalty for a deliberate knock on and chose to place the ball in the corner. From the lineout they organised themselves efficiently and their best rolling maul of the day found hooker Gerwyn Price driving over for a well taken forward try, Gunter adding the points for a 25-6 lead. Captain Nash, The Key's outstanding forward, took the high ball well from the restart and set up possession, but Rumney were quick to the contact area and were awarded the scrummage. Andrews flashed the ball out to Clark and on to Evans whose superb pass to Plummer put the winger clean through on the burst, and when defenders finally got to him he cleverly offloaded to Stoppani, following up at speed, who burst over to finish off a brilliantly constructed try. Clark's precise kicking kept his side in strong positions and the visitors brought on dynamic back row forward Jordan Allen, he and Feneck immediately asking questions of the home defenders. In the seventieth minute Bull supplied more clean lineout ball and Clark released Fear and Offside on big breaks in the centre, Neale, Way and Allen set up the phases and Evans cut loose from thirty metres out, bursting past three despairing tacklers and spinning over for another outstanding try. Clark's conversion brought the scores close at 25-18 but Rumney instantly gave away another penalty for Gunter to restore three points and only four minutes later, committed another offence and went further behind at 31-18. With only five minutes remaining, the visitors introduced Alex Bodin on the wing and Dan Holliday at prop, Bodin showing good skills in attack and defence and Holliday working hard in the contact areas. Cross Keys attacked from deep and a mix up at the breakdown saw Rumney surprisingly turned over, the ball flying out to Steffan Jones who sliced through to touchdown in the corner. The visitors battled to the final whistle, Feneck, Darren Fenton and Stoppani all menacing and looking to score, but Cross Keys knew that the game was now secure and an impressive cup tie reached its conclusion with the scoreboard reading Cross Keys 36 Rumney 18.

 

Matt Silva, Coach Rumney 1st XV : "As always with these cup ties, when we play a Premiership side who are doing well, it is difficult to convince your players that they can match them. We didn't quite have the belief in ourselves in the first half, and this cost us later on. If you were to break it down we gifted them sixteen points through Dean Gunter the Keys' outside half who, as always when playing in a cup match, put the pressure on us in our own half, we conceded the penalties and he took his chances well to claim the points. The frustrating aspect of the match is that we matched them up front at the scrum and the lineout, got parity at the breakdown and broke their line on many occassions. Their other points came from loose clearance kicks by us and they took their chances well. I will however say our squad was outstanding on the day and we couldn't have asked any more of ourselves, commitment wise. It is difficult to single out any players as they all proved pivotal in staging a great comeback to 25-18 with ten minutes remaining, and once again displayed that never say die attitude. One player who is now performing week in week out and didn't look out of place against his Premiership opponents, was Luke Fear and that earns him the Man of the Match award."

Above : Matt Silva

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ST JOSEPHS YOUTH  v  RUMNEY YOUTH

Blackweir, Cardiff
Saturday 18th February 2012, k.o. 2.30 pm

St Josephs Youth 13   Rumney Youth 6

SWALEC League Division 1 East

RUMNEY v MERTHYR

Riverside Park, Rumney
Saturday 11th February 2012, k.o. 2.30 pm

Rumney v Merthyr 15.10.2011
Past playing record : played 26, Merthyr 13 wins, Rumney 10 wins, 3 draws

Rumney : 15.Joe Offside  14.Gareth Stoppani  13.Paul Niblett  12.Luke Fear  11.Solomon Matthews  10.Danny Clark (Capt)  9.Chris Milton  8.Jordan Allen  7.Matthew Way  6.Anthony Wilson  5.Paul Bull  4.Michael Neale  3.Colin O'Donoghue   2.Carl Fish  1.John Leadbeatter
Replacements : 16.Simon Barry  17.Joe Mills  18.Nathan Bridson  19.Lincoln Plummer  20.Ryan Matthews

Merthyr : 15.Tom Griffin  14.Cameron Gardner  13.Matthew Trowbridge  12.Bleddyn Rees  11.Daniel Butler  10.Lloyd Haynes  9.Darryl Jenkins  8.Geraint Edmunds  7.Aaron Harris  6.Andrew Murphy   5.Phil Rees  4.Nick White  3.Rhys James  2.Jonathan Bowen  1.James Howe
Replacements :16.Bradley Thyer  17.Daniel Snape  18.Jonathan Taylor  19.Sam Wadham  20.A.N.Other

Referee : Stephen Nash, Hilltop, Ebbw Vale

Rumney 24   Merthyr 14

Scorers for Rumney : Luke Fear 2 tries, Danny Clark conversion and 4 penalties

Scorers for Merthyr  : Phil Rees try, Lloyd Haynes 3 penalties

Rumney No8 Jordan Allen took on the Merthyr forwards from the first kick with a blustering run, at the start of a match which saw two fierce packs battle for possession and supremacy and present their backs with the opportunity to play an expansive game. In the fourth minute the Ironmen won a penalty for Rumney entering from the side, and outside half Lloyd Haynes opened the scoring, but the home side hit back with darting bursts from scrum half Chris Milton and harassing by flanker Anthony Wilson which forced errors, and in the eighth minute, when Merthyr slipped their binding at a scrum, outside half Danny Clark levelled the points with a thirty five metre penalty. Rumney centres Paul Niblett and Luke Fear set up a solid defensive wall in midfield but the visitors applied pressure through their big, mobile pack, where second row Phil Rees was the dominant driving force, taking play into the home half and retaining the ball well, until Rumney were caught offside and Haynes added three more points. A fascinating duel was developing between Milton and opposition scrum half Darryl Jenkins, both players operating at pace and with a high level of skill, while the outside halves maintained their kicking contest, Clark slotting a penalty in the eighteenth minute and Haynes claiming three more points in the twenty second minute when Rumney lapsed into indiscipline in the face of tight forward pressure by the Ironmen. The home side continued to give away penalties but were now taking a firm grip on the forward exchanges, keeping play mostly in Merthyr territory where tight head prop Colin O'Donoghue, second row Michael Neale and Tex Allen stepped up the forward momentum through powerful solo bursts. Rumney also enjoyed the advantages of having their outstanding front row of John Leadbeatter, Carl Fish and O'Donoghue guaranteeing faultless set piece ball and in addition, benefitting from their speed and handling skills in the loose, but the home backs also had to be on their guard for dangerous Merthyr attacks and wingers Gareth Stoppani, Solomon Matthews and fullback Joey Offside supplied a secure defence and positive tackling. Rumney flankers Matthew Way and Wilson turned the screw as the home side tightened play and applied their best period of forward pressure, second row Paul Bull and Neale making big gains in the close exchanges, but both teams showed examples of indiscipline and Mr Nash brandished yellow cards for each side, followed shortly after by a red card which reduced the Ironmen to fourteen as a result of a further offense. Clark and Niblett looked for a score before the interval but it was not to be, and half time arrived with Merthyr still leading 6-9.

The one man advantage which Rumney had, was not really apparent for the opening part of the second half, they tried to open up play and stretch Merthyr but handling errors blunted attacking movements, and it was only when Bull, Wilson and Way started to settle things down that they began to stretch the visitors. The Ironmen did however, produce another long period of pressure, second rows Nick White and Rees, and No8 Geraint Edmunds carrying well, setting up phases and Jenkins and Haynes kicking effectively for position, and it was only vital defence work in the corner by Stoppani and Neale's efforts at the bottom of ruck and maul which prevented tries. Rumney also required good kicking out of defence by Clark and powerful counterattcks by Allen and Milton to clear their lines, while Merthyr varied their play again using Edmunds and Rees, but also brining in flanker Andrew Murphy and prop and Captain Ryhs James to batter the home line. In the fifty eighth minute their hard work brought dividends when Edmunds broke from a close range scrum and the ball was worked wide to Rees in the winger position, the big lock proving unstoppable as he thundered over in the corner for the first try. Now trailing 6-14, Rumney quickly replied when Offside collected a loose speculative kick and sent Milton away like a rocket, the resilient scrum half putting in a neat chip for Matthews to follow, and when Merthyr worked the ball back from ten metres out, a knock on in a nervous defence gifted Fear with the chance to pounce and grab a touchdown. Only 11-14 behind, Rumney felt confident to make changes and exploit their superiority in numbers, bringing on second row Joe Mills, winger Lincoln Plummer and flanker Simon Barry, Mills immediately causing havoc with his driving play, Plummer running effectively from Milton's distribution and Barry adding extra power in the contact areas and breakdowns. Wilson continued to supply first class lineout ball and the rock solid scrummage provided guaranteed possession, and in the seventy second minute a loose ball at the base of a midfield Merthyr scrum, saw Way snap it up and link with Milton and Clark, Niblett's brilliant pop pass putting Fear through and although he still had a lot to do, the centre crashed his way to the line and grab the decisive try in the corner. Nathan Bridson took to the field for the home side, adding strength in the contact area and Plummer, Stoppani and Offside put pressure on by following up every ball, until the seventy sixth minute when The Ironmen killed the ball in front of the posts and Clark added  three points. Rumney were now tightening the screw and in the final minute of the game Clark kicked another penalty to give Rumney a very hard fought victory, the final score reading Rumney 24 Merthyr 14.  

Matt Silva, Coach Rumney 1st XV : "We desperately needed a win today as we have been playing really well in the past three games against higher placed teams and have lost by the narrowest of margins to well taken tries. The boys knew they were close to gaining a victory, so the win against Merthyr helps take us into a tough encounter against Cross Keys in the Cup. I feel that in the muddy conditions we weathered the first half onslaught from Merthyr, defending our lines heavily in the first forty minutes. We said at half time that Merthyr had probably shown their hand and we were more than comfortable coping with what they had to offer. Once again familiar faces stepped up to the mark when we needed them, Colin O'Donoghue once again filled in at tight head, Carl Fish, Danny Clark, Matthew Way and Chris Milton proving catalysts in all that we did. The pleasing thing with the win is that it was difficult to focus on the game with our up and coming cup tie - the boys did this and won a hard earned victory. We can now concentrate on the Cross Keys game with a win under our belt. The Man of the Match was Mike Neale, he is a constant threat with ball in hand and his work rate is huge."

Matt Silva

Click here to see all the tries from this game and add your comments

RUMNEY ATHLETIC  v  PENALLTA 2nd XV

Riverside Park, Rumney
Saturday 11th February 2012, k.o. 2.30 pm

Rumney Athletic 0   Penallta 2nd XV 10

RUMNEY YOUTH  v  MERTHYR YOUTH

Riverside Park, Rumney
Saturday 11th February 2012, k.o. 2.30 pm

Rumney Youth 0   Merthyr Youth 36

SWALEC Cup 2011-2012  Round 2

TREDEGAR v RUMNEY

The Recreation Ground, Tredegar
Saturday 28th January 2012, k.o. 2.30 pm

 
Tredegar v Rumney 07.01.2012
Past playing record : played 21, Tredegar 10 wins, Rumney 11 wins

Rumney : 15.Joe Offside  14.Gareth Stoppani  13.Paul Niblett  12.Luke Fear  11.Solomon Matthews  10.Danny Clark (Capt)   9.Lewis Andrews   8.Matthew Way  7.Ryan Fenton  6.Simon Barry  5.Paul Bull  4.Michael Kelly  3.Darren Fenton   2.Carl Fish  1.John Leadbeatter
Replacements : 16.Jordan Allen  17.Dan Holliday  18.Sion Hutchings  19.Paul King  20.Chris Milton  21.Christian Edwards  22.Anthony Heron

Tredegar : 15.Kyle Scrivens  14.Gareth Lloyd  13.Matt McGovern   12.Matt Cummings  11.Rhys Hallet (Capt)  10.Greg Jones   9.Greg Jenkins   8.Jordan Williams   7.Ryan Bevan   6.Christian Jones   5.Lloyd Williams   4.Ryan Thomas   3.Andrew Grant    2.Owain Crowley   1.Sean Griffiths
Replacements : Brett Mountney, Ryan White, Craig Lewis, Craig Lloyd

Referee : Mike Bethel, Treherbert

Tredegar 19   Rumney 32

Scorers for Rumney : Carl Fish try, Gareth Stoppani try, Luke Fear 2 tries, Danny Clark drop goal and 3 conversions and penalty

Scorers for Tredegar  : Christian Jones 2 tries, Greg Jones try and 2 conversions

Seven tries and the lead changing dramatically made this cup tie an absorbing contest from the first clashes when both sets of forwards showed that it was going to be another full blooded encounter. Rumney No8 Matthew Way impressed from the start, stealing the initial lineout, prop Darren Fenton was soon thundering at the opposition and centre Luke Fear looked dangerous when the ball went out to the backs, but the visitors were guilty of conceding early penalties and not making the most of the chances presented to them. At the first real maul Rumney centre Paul Niblett ripped the ball expertly, looking to set the backs away, but in the same maul Tredegar Captain Rhys Hallet picked up an injury and had to leave the field. The visitors stepped up the pressure to get a try but when Fear burst through and set up the ball, scrum half Lewis Andrews snapped it to outside half Danny Clark who dropped a fine goal from the twenty two, the only drop goal to be scored at the Recreation Ground in the last five years ! The pitch had been covered by snow the previous night but the playing surface was very good and this allowed Andrews to put his accurate service to advantage and feed his backs whenever possible, fullback Joe Offside and winger Solomon Matthews combining well to threaten the home line. The tendency to give away penalties in attacking positions reappeared and Tredegar outside half Greg Jones punished the visitors with long touchfinders, which were followed up by good lineout ball from flanker Christian Jones who also drove through in the loose, Rumney being relieved to clear their lines from a penalty. More strong forward bursts by hooker Carl Fish, prop John Leadbeatter and flankers Ryan Fenton and Simon Barry put the visitors back on the offensive, and with Clark kicking them into good positions, a try seemed certain, but Tredegar were secure in defence and won a relieving penalty. The set scrums were evenly contested and in the twenty first minute, quick possession at a Tredegar set piece saw the ball go out to centres Matt Cummings and Matt McGovern who carved out a huge gap, and when Christian Jones was on hand to take a pop up pass, the strong running flanker went under the sticks to score the opening try. Greg Jones added the conversion but Tredegar's 7-3 lead was short lived as Rumney second row Michael Kelly, Ryan Fenton and Way immediately took play upfield, Andrews spread the ball, Niblett cleverly put Matthews and Fear away and when the ball came back to Clark, the outside half released an inspired long pass to Fish, the flying hooker racing down the wing and crossing in the corner. Having regained the lead at 7-8, the visitors attacked once more, Barry pouncing for turnover ball and the threequarters handling neatly, but in the twenty sixth minute, home fullback Kyle Scrivens gathered a chip through and when his kick downfield created confusion and a turnover in the Rumney defences, Greg Jones found himself in acres of room to run in for the try, add the extra points and reclaim the lead at 14-8. Rumney returned to the offensive and again wasted opportunities by giving away penalties, but when powerful Tredegar wing Gareth Lloyd broke out of defence, a crunching tackle from Way led to the home side killing the ball and Clark pegged back three points. The Tredegar pack had performed well from the start, their scrummage was solid and second row Lloyd Williams and Christian Jones supplied steady lineout possession, and the closing minutes of the half found them applying pressure, deep in the visitors' half. In the thirty sixth minute Rumney attempted to run from their five metre line, but a blocked kick bounced back towards the cornerflag and Christian Jones was on hand to ground the ball, the try giving his side the lead at the interval by 19 points to 11.

The second half started with errors from both sides but Jordan Allen, now at No8 for Rumney, Kelly and second row Paul Bull carried well and made big gains, while the Tredegar back row constantly threatened, No8 Jordan Williams also making good yardage. Adventurous play from the visitors, and a massive kick from Clark, took them from their own twenty two to a position in the opposition half where they forced a penalty, and a quick witted tap by Niblett released winger Gareth Stoppani whose brilliant run past despairing tacklers took him the full forty five metres to score an outstanding solo try at the posts. Clark converted to narrow the score to 19-18 and a period of confident structured play follwed where Rumney showed good organisational skills and a willingness to patiently set up phases. Chris Milton took to the field and his high paced play inspired more ploys from the threequarters, Barry, Offside and Matthews running back the high balls which were now being pumped up by the home side, Clark controlling moves and Allen adding immense bursts in the loose. While fully contesting every set piece, Tredegar also showed how dangerous they could be in open play, particularly on the break, and Scrivens, McGovern and Cummings counterattacked with elusive runs. Sion Hutchings took to the field at flanker for Rumney and fitted in perfectly to the blindside role, building up the pressure that the visitors were now exerting, and in the sixty seventh minute another quick delivery by Milton allowed Clark to connect with Niblett, the centre making a superb break before feeding Fear with a try scoring pass, Clark's long range conversion putting his side back into the lead at 19-25. Rumney introduced Christian Edwards at fullback, Edwards and Hutchings, both still members of the Rumney Youth setup, contributed well with their enthusiastic play and positional awareness, as the visitors tightened up the game, Clark now adopting a careful line of kicks to the corners. A potent force right to the end, in the seventy ninth minute Tredegar attempted a breakout from their own line but Fear anticipated the move and intercepted a long pass to battle his way over for his second try, Clark's successful conversion bringing an intense cup tie to its conclusion, the scoreboard reading Tredegar 19 Rumney 32.

 

Matt Silva, Coach Rumney 1st XV : "We are very pleased with the result and not to take anything away from Tredegar, once again this was a game in which we could have scored heavily in the first half. We are working hard within our phase play but we are just not clinical enough in finishing off opportunities. To their credit Tredegar were presented with three half chances and finished them off excellently. I feel that one of the areas where other clubs are envious of us, is in our player development pathway. Today we had four current youth team players in our squad to add to the seven ex-youth team captains currently playing. In today's rugby climate this ensures our future as a club. Players who went well today - Carl Fish started his first game today and took his chance really well, Jordan Allen also made a big impact from the bench after half time, and Sion Hutchings was excellent on his senior debut. Unfortunately Paul King and Anthony Heron didn't get game time today due to the close nature of the game but I hope to expose them to senior rugby very soon. The Man of the Match was Carl Fish."

Carl Fish, hooker Rumney 1st XV : "There was a frantic start to the game from both sides, we took time to settle down and finally got our act together. The forwards then came together as an eight, which allowed all the backs to open up and try some different things. We gave away a few soft tries but in the second half we finally managed to pull it all together, upped the ante and managed to bring off a good win. Our pack was good and the backs looked sharp now and then, but we must stop panicking, allow ourselves time to settle in and avoid giving away soft tries. Darren Fenton played very well today and Luke Fear was excellent in defence."

Above, left : Matt Silva, right: Carl Fish

Click here to see all the tries from this game and add your comments

Mallett Cup 2011-2012  Round 2

RUMNEY ATHLETIC v LLANRUMNEY

Riverside Park, Rumney
Saturday 28th January 2012, k.o. 2.30 pm

Rumney Athletic : 15.D.Turner  14.L.Plummer   13.A.Bodin  12.D.Evans   11.L.Baptiste  10.C.Maton   9.J.Morgan   8.A.Wilson   7.R.Sutton (Capt)   6.A.Leach   5.S.O'Connor   4.M.Young   3.K.O'Connor    2.S.Spavin   1.A.Davies
Replacements : 16.R.Matthews   17.C.Cobbold   18.L.Facey  19.R.Maton

Rumney Athletic 13    Llanrumney 3

Scorers for Rumney Athletic : Lincoln Plummer try, Chris Maton conversion and 2 penalties

Man of the Match : Dafydd Evans

Plummer is the missing Linc as Athletic ease past Llanrumney

In the end it was a move of brilliance by Lincoln Plummer that secured a well deserved victory for the Athletic. A big thank you must go to Ian Riby and his team for sorting out the pitch, Gainsy was so keen to see the game take place that he marked the pitch again, however there was more paint on him than on the touchlines ! The match started with both teams fired up, but the Athletic soon kept the Llanrumney crowd quiet by camping in their half for most of the opening exchanges. Forwards win matches and so it proved to be with the front five of Cogs, Spav, The Ockers and Youngy having the edge in the scrum and at the breakdown. The backrow of Willow, Screech and Captain Stevo were in fine form and after nine minutes, pressure at the breakdown resulted in a penalty which The Monck slotted over for a 3-0 lead. This gave the Athletic a lot of confidence and half backs The Monk and Morgan got the line moving with Daf proving to be a handful whenever he got the ball. Llanrumney's only tactic in attack was to chip the ball forward but Dave Turner, Bapo and The Linc had no problems in getting the ball away. Further play saw the Athletic camped in Llanrumney's twenty two but they were guilty of not spreading the ball wide, though Llanrumney were forced to concede a penalty which The Monk slotted over, 6-0 to The Athletic after twenty three minutes. The rest of the half saw The Athletic on the offensive and they should have increased their lead with a fine break by The Linc, and would certainly have scored if a pass to Alex Bodin had not gone astray. The only other excitement was a handbags exchange between The Linc and the opposing No9 which saw the Rumney winger sent to the sinbin for the last ten minutes of the half, so it remained 6-0 at the break.

The halftime message was simple, keep playing as we are, be patient and a score will come. Cup games are one offs, no second chance, and it seemed that The Athletic were cruising. Daf sliced through and only missed out on a try when he lost his footing with the line at his mercy. Llanrumney are fighters however, and they took advantage of some indiscipline to get right down to The Athletic line. Defence has been a big plus this season and in the end all Llanrumney got was a fifty ninth minute penalty, for a 6-3 score. Play went to and fro and fresh legs from Facey and Dessie, Cobbo and Maton ensured that there was no let up and Llanrumney were forced to kick under pressure. All that was missing was a score to clinch victory, it was the moment The Linc had waited seventy minutes for and he went from zero to hero. From fifty metres out he caught the ball, skinned his wing and swept up the touchline past the Llanrumney supporters. Across came the fullback but The Linc chipped him with a deft kick and grounded the ball, game over ! The Monk converted from the touchline and it was 13-3 with six minutes to go, no way back for Llanrumney, Stevo was controlling the lineout and The Athletic ran the clock down. It is a funny old game, last Saturday the same team gave away twenty seven penalties, in this game it was only nine. The Band of Brothers are on the march and in this form are second to none.

SWALEC League Division 1 East

BLACKWOOD v RUMNEY

Glan Yr Afon Park, Blackwood
Saturday 21st January 2012, k.o. 2.30 pm

 
Rumney v Blackwood 08.10.2011
Past playing record : played 23, Blackwood 16 wins, Rumney 6 wins, 1 draw

Rumney : 15.Joe Offside  14.Gareth Stoppani  13.Paul Niblett  12.Luke Fear  11.Solomon Matthews  10.Danny Clark (Capt)   9.Chris Milton   8.Jordan Allen  7.Ryan Fenton  6.Matthew Way  5.Paul Bull  4.Michael Neale  3.Darren Fenton   2.Colin O'Donoghue  1.Dan Holliday
Replacements : 16.Michael Kelly  17.Nathan Bridson  18.Joe Mills  19.John Leadbeatter  20.Jimmy Morgan

Blackwood : 15.Sean Emery  14.Kristan Perry (Capt)  13.Jamie Jones  12.Adam Jones  11.Rhodri Usher  10.Jeremy Roberts   9.Mark Birkby  8.David Brake  7.Greg Baker  6.David Ford  5.Marc Gwilt  4.Lee Taylor  3.Keiron Brown  2.Jack Williams  1.Rhys Morgan
Replacements : 16.Huw Jones  17.Ross Cornwall  18.Greg Knapp  19.Anthony John  20.Tom Moss

Referee : Craig Evans, Glynneath

Blackwood 17   Rumney 8

Scorers for Rumney : Michael Neale try, Danny Clark conversion and penalty

Scorers for Blackwood  : Jamie Jones try, Adam Jones try and conversion and penalty, Jeremy Roberts conversion

An impressive, disciplined first half performance by Rumney was followed by a second half in which they failed to score a point as a resurrgent Blackwood side took the honours and the points at Llan Yr Afon Park. The visitors started at pace, playing a carefully structured game and soon flanker Matthew Way made a dramatic, early breakthrough, second row Mike Neale battered and thundered at the opposition and snappy scrum half Chris Milton and centre Luke Fear looked particularly dangerous with ball in hand. All the play had so far taken play in the home team's half, Blackwood defendingly stoutly and concentrating on a good link between No8 David Brake and scrum half Mark Birkby to relieve pressure, but in the seventh minute, livewire Birkby took a quick tap penalty inside his own twenty two, raced to halfway and connected with his threequarters, the ball being switched back from winger Rhodri Usher to centre Jamie Jones who sidestepped his way to the posts for the opening score, co-centre Adam Jones adding the extra points for a 7-0 lead. Rumney attacked again from the restart but conceded another penalty and Blackwood made their first real incursion into the visitors' territory, requiring decisive tackling from centres Paul Niblett and Fear and also second row Paul Bull. The home backs were by now also starting to click, full back Sean Emery running strongly from depth, but when Rumney wing Gareth Stoppani hacked on from a dropped ball and was heading for the inevitable touchdown, he was astonished to be called back by Mr Evans for an alleged jersey pulling incident, the flying winger's look of shock and stress clearly indicating a firm belief in his innocence. In the heavy conditions the Rumney backs showed skill in attempting fast, open play, outside half and Captain Danny Clark judging situations well, Milton and wing Solomon Matthews making breaks, and forwards Neale and No8 Jordan 'Texas' Allen, the club's first American 1st XV player, bursting upfield and creating phases on the home twenty two. In the thirteenth minute Clark slotted a penalty for an offside offence and from the restart the outside half once more opened play up, Bull and hooker Colin O'Donoghue working intricately with the backs, and flanker Ryan Fenton, Way and Allen carrying it on further, but the earlier tendency to concede penalties reappeared and large gains of ground were lost. The visitors did however keep possession well and enjoyed a steady supply of lineout and scrummage ball, the front row of Darren Fenton, O'Donoghue and Dan Holliday in their element at the breakdowns and in the tight forward exchanges, where their skilful interplay looked sure to eventually bring points. At no time did Blackwood panic, even when Allen, Neale and Darren Fenton made further drives deep into their territory, the home back row of Greg Baker, David Ford and Brake using any possession to counterattack out of defence. The visiting backs were now looking particularly threatening, fullback Joe Offside, Matthews and Stoppani breaking away and cantering down the tramlines, and in the thirty eighth minute Matthews took play right down to within ten metres of the Blackwood tryline. From the subsequent lineout Way secured the ball and a superbly executed, unstoppable forward drive took Rumney over the line, Neale touching down for the try which sent his side in at the interval, now confidently leading at 7-8.

 
Thanks to David Jones, Blackwood RFC for match photography

Within minutes of the restart it was clear that Blackwood had upped their game considerably, as their backs attacked aggressively and the forwards showed good retention skills to take them close to the Rumney line, prop Keiron Brown getting down and winning hard ball on the floor. The visitors' defences functioned well, Clark repeatedly clearing his lines and taking advantage of penalties to relieve the pressure, but having once more worked their way upfield, a fumble on the Blackwood ten metre line was punished by centre Adam Jones who hacked the ball all the way to the tryline and touched down, outside half Jeremy Roberts adding the conversion to regain the lead at 14-8. The home side was now confidently running the ball whenever possible and they were only kept out by outstanding tackling from Stoppani and Niblett. Rumney decided on tactical replacements, Joe Mills taking the field in the second row, John Leadbeatter at prop, Nathan Bridson at hooker and Michael Kelly in the back row, the forward encounters showing no sign of any reduction in intensity and powerful ball carrying being need to gain any advantage, and with Jimmy Morgan now at scrum half, the high speed link between forwards and backs gave the three quarters the occasional chance to counter. Big forward drives by the Blackwood pack resulted in more outstanding defensive work but also forced the visitors into making errors, and in the seventy fourth minute, play having been lodged in the Rumney half for an extended period, Mills was yellow carded and Adam Jones stretched the lead to two scores with a successful penalty. Rumney battled to the end, Niblett leading a final, sweeping counterattack but Blackwood carefully exploited their one man advantage to close down the game and take the spoils at 17-8.

Matt Silva, Coach Rumney 1st XV : "In all honesty this is a game we could have won in the first half. We spent thirty seven minutes in Blackwood's twenty two but squandered opportunity after opportunity, and we also failed to get any flow into our game as we consistently gave away penalties. I feel Blackwood were there for the taking and once again, as against Newbridge last week, we failed to capitalise on four or five clear cut scoring opportunities. It is frustrating from the coaching point of view, as the boys are doing enough to win these matches, but we must now concentrate on our finishing, being patient and focusing on taking the tries on offer. To Blackwood's credit, I think they realised at half time that they'd been let off the hook, they then woke up and played some good rugby in the second half, with the main difference between the two teams being that Blackwood know how to score tries and how to close a game out. As i mentioned earlier, I can not ask any more of this team mentally and physically, but we now need to concentrate more on the technical and tactical aspects of our game. Next week will be a welcome break from the league as we are playing Tredegar in the Cup. Solomon Matthews was today's Man of the Match, Sol's game is developing every week and he is now becoming a well respected player in Division One East".

Solomon Matthews, wing Rumney 1st XV : "In the first half we played very well and were camped in Blackwood's twenty two but we lacked the finishing touch and weren't clinical enough. The forwards were very good in the scrums and lineouts, Mike Neal made some excellent breaks and we kept the ball alive well and there were three or four clear cut chances to score in the first half. It went to pot in the second half, we were stuck in our own half and gave away penalties over and over again, we made sloppy mistakes and we switched off. Mike Neale had a great game, all the forwards did well in the scrums, and there were some good breaks from Colin O'Donoghue."

Above, left to right : Matt Silva, Solomon Matthews, Jordan Allen, Jimmy Morgan

Click here to see all the tries from this game and add your comments

WRU 2nd XV League

BARGOED 2nd XV v RUMNEY ATHLETIC

Bargoed Park, Bargoed
Saturday 21st January 2012, k.o. 2.30 pm

Rumney Athletic squad : D.Turner   L.Baptiste   A.Bodin    A.Jones   C.Maton   L.Facey   L.Plummer   P.King   J.Kelly   C.Edwards   A.Thompson   L.Andrews   D.Evans   D.Perks   A.Davies   S.Spavin   R.Matthews   R.Maton   S.O'Connor   K.O'Connor   C.Cobbold   R.Sutton (Capt)   A.Leach   H.Applegate  S.Barry

Bargoed 2nd XV 26   Rumney Athletic 6

Athletic catch Yellow Fever !

The Athletic caught a severe dose of yellow fever on Saturday! Not from any of the 'Brothers' but from the referee who handed out a total of ten yellow cards and two reds in the match. The Athletic were lucky, they only got yellow fever and no red!  Twenty seven penalties plus five free kicks were awarded against an Athletic side whose discipline was excellent the previous Saturday. Although conditions were very windy at Bargoed, the game was played on the 1st XV pitch, which was in good condition. At one stage the Athletic were down to twelve men and Bargoed down to thirteen, so it was impossible to get any sort of continuity going. The day had started on a positive with two of the squad, Jimmy Morgan and Tex being selected for the 1st XV. As a development side, this is what the Athletic had been formed for and the reason for going into the WRU 2nd XV League. However, back to the game, which started with the Athletic on the defensive as they were up against a strong crosswind. An early Bargoed attack was held up and although they went 0-6 down after a couple of penalties for offside, it was the Athletic who dominated field position, thanks to good play from the pack with the back row of Stevo, Bazza and Willow on top. Sparkle and The Monk kept the team going forward and it was good to see Daf back from injury in the centre and Josh Kelly making a debut. In the end the Athletic pressure paid and although they should have got over the try line on three occasions, they were well satisfied with two Monk penalties to draw level at 6-6. However careless work from the kick off gifted Bargoed a penalty and it was 6-9 at the half time interval.

All seemed ready for a repeat of last Saturday's game against UWIC. Keep our discipline and we win! But rugby is never that simple. The second half became a procession of yellow cards and sendings off. An injury to The Monk, which caused him to leave the field, did not help and in the middle of yellows to Willow, Linc and Cogs, Bargoed took advantage to score a couple of break away tries. Late in the game it was good to see Dave turner, Ross, Henry and Simon Grimshaw get some game time but those were the only positives to take out of the game. "On to the next Battle !" said Gainsey, and battle it will be, Llanrumney away in the Cup on Saturday! What chance of a yellow or a red card then ? What no takers ?

GLAMORGAN WANDERERS YOUTH v RUMNEY YOUTH

The Memorial Ground, Ely, Cardiff
Saturday 21st December 2011, k.o. 2.30 pm

Glamorgan Wanderers Youth 23   Rumney Youth 0

SWALEC League Division 1 East

RUMNEY v NEWBRIDGE

Riverside Park, Rumney
Saturday 14th January 2012, k.o. 2.30 pm

 
Newbridge v Rumney 01.10.2011
Past playing record : played 23, Newbridge 15 wins, Rumney 7 wins, 1 draw

Rumney : 15.Joe Offside  14.Gareth Stoppani  13.Paul Niblett  12.Luke Fear  11.Solomon Matthews  10.Danny Clark (Capt)  9.Chris Milton  8.Michael Kelly  7.Simon Barry  6.Matthew Way  5.Paul Bull  4.Michael Neale  3.Dan Holliday  2.Colin O'Donoghue  1.John Leadbeatter
Replacements : 16.Anthony Wilson  17.Ryan Fenton  18.Lewis Andrews  19.Carl Fish  20.Nathan Bridson

Newbridge : 15.C.Young  14.A.Bevan  13.S.Thomas  12.G.Langdon  11.G.Jones  10.N.Burnett  9.T.Edwards  8.R.Coombs (Capt)  7.A.Coupe  6.G.Knapp  5.G.Short  4.J.Noble  3.D.Evans  2.D.Hughes  1.G.Lewin
Replacements : 16.D.Price  17.G.Weaver  18.D.Gibbs  19.R.Addis  20.D.Phillips

(Rumney played the first half in black and white and, because of the muddy conditions, changed to dark blue and white for the second half. Newbridge played in blue and black.)

Referee : Huw David, Cefn Cribbwr

 

Rumney 10   Newbridge 23

Scorers for Rumney : Gareth Stoppani try, Danny Clark conversion and drop goal

Scorers for Newbridge  : Tom Edwards try, Neil Burnett try and 2 conversions and 3 penalties

This was an exciting and close match which, despite the heavy conditions underfoot, produced three good tries and plenty of skilful play. The Rumney forwards started strongly, No8 Michael Kelly, second row Miike Neale and flanker Simon Barry carrying well and taking the game to the visitors, and scrum half Chris Milton darting everywhere, getting the ball out to his backs who also showed an early willingness to run, even on the heavy pitch. Newbridge were well organised and composed from the start, efficiently claiming lineout ball and binding closely in tight forward drives, and when Rumney conceded three penalties, one after another, visiting outside half Neil Burnett opened his side's account in the seventh minute by kicking the last one for an opening three points. Newbridge fullback Ceri Young threatened from deep, second row Gareth Short continuously set up quality possession and half backs Tom Edwards and Burnett organised the moves, while for Rumney, the pack kept up their high workrate, Milton excelled under the high ball and attacked non stop, and centre Luke Fear produced a scything break. Both sets of threequarters ran the ball and there were exciting exchanges, but with the visiting backs being penalised for offside and second row Paul Bull and props Dan Holliday and John Leadbeatter being up quickly to make important tackles, the home side showed no signs of conceding a try. Newbridge also favoured a high paced approach, outstanding No8 and Captain Ross Coombs rapidly delivering the ball to Edwards from the base of the scrum in order to start close, handling movements, and further, committed tackling and defensive work was needed from the Rumney back three of fullback Joe Offside and wingers Solomon Matthews and Gareth Stoppani, but in the seventeenth minute the pressure finally told when the home team was caught offside and Burnett added three more points. The visitors' powerful second row pairing of Short and Noble was at the centre of much of their controlled play, Rumney finding success in the loose where Leadbeatter and hooker Colin O'Donoghue burst through, and where Neale, Barry and flanker Matthew Way created space and gained turnovers, the home side moving into a far more attacking period of play. Clark's accurate boot worked the home side into the corners, winning penalties and setting up drives which looked as though they were bound to bring a try, but Newbridge kept their line intact, so Milton flashed the ball back to Clark who slotted over a well taken drop goal. Two minutes later however, in the thirty fifth minute, Rumney were penalised for jersey pulling at a maul and Burnett reclaimed three points, the remaining minutes of the half seeing strong forward tussels between the twenty twos, but no further scores, and the halftime scoreboard read Rumney 3 Newbridge 9.

  

After the break Ryan Fenton took to the field at open side for Rumney and was straight into the fray as Newbridge pressed forward, keeping tight possession and gaining useful attacking positions. In the fifty second minute at a defensive Rumney scrum on the five metre line, the visitors disrupted the set piece and Coombs drove forward to set up phases, and when Edwards spotted the home defence drifting wide, he dummied his way through a big gap to touchdown under the posts. Burnett's conversion took the lead to 3-16 but Rumney heads did not drop and in fact, they came back strongly and quickly, Matthews chasing up a Clark kick and gaining the put in at a scrum, from which a massive front row effort gave Kelly a quick pick up at the back and the impressive No8 fed Milton, the ball flying out to centre Paul Niblett, whose superbly timed pass sent Matthews through the gap on the burst and Stoppani away to score a fine try. Clark's difficult conversion brought the sides back to 10-16. Lewis Andrews took the field at scrum half for Rumney and along with Bull, Barry and Fear, put in important tackles as Newbridge hit back with more expansive play, the reliable Burnett carefully controlling moves through safe and accurate kicking from hand. In the sixty seventh minute the visitors again lodged in the home twenty two, and in a move reminiscent of their earlier try, Edwards dummied through a defensive gap and offloaded to Burnett who crossed for the try and added the conversion to stretch the lead to 10-23. Rumney brought on Nathan Bridson at hooker, Anthony Wilson at No8 and Carl Fish at flanker, three dynamic players who all contributed well to the intense forward effort, the home side playing adventurously using effective lineout variations, Clark and Fear making good breaks and Fenton and Neale battering through midfield, but Newbridge defended well and also ran and attacked with determination, both sides competing for the full eighty minutes, and an absorbing game came to its conclusion with the score remaining at Rumney 10 Newbridge 23.

Matt Silva, Coach Rumney 1st XV : "Despite losing out on a victory today we were pleased with the manner in which we approached the fixture on a difficult underfoot surface, I have to commend the players on their intent to play an open game. Newbridge played the conditions well, adopting a ten man style and taking their chances well. In reality they scored two soft tries when they were camped under the posts in our twenty two, and that proved to be the difference between the teams. Tredegar showed composure and patience, which is something we would do well to emulate. With that said, I would not ask the players to change their style of rugby, which they play week in week out, and this is evident in the fact that the Newbridge coaches commented on how much they enjoyed watching our style of play. It was a good fifteen man performance with Colin O'Donoghue and Mike Neal having outstanding games. Dan Holliday played out of position at tight head and gave one hundred percent for eighty minutes, and for this he deserves to be named Man of the Match."

Dan Holliday, prop Rumney 1st XV : "It was a dogged game all round. We dominated at forward but it was just those two lapses where Tredegar scored, we switched off and they took them. We dug in well all the way to the end, it was an uphill battle but we showed a lot of character and we can try and take the positives from it into the next few games. Solomon Matthews played very well, Sol seemed to have a part in a lot of the good things that we did."

Above, left : Matt Silva, right : Dan Holliday

Click here to see all the tries from this game and add your comments

WRU 2nd XV League

RUMNEY ATHLETIC v UWIC 2nd XV

Riverside Park, Rumney
Saturday 14th January 2012, k.o. 2.30 pm

Rumney Athletic squad : D.Turner   L.Baptiste   A.Bodin    A.Jones   C.Maton   L.Facey   L.Plummer   P.King   J.Kelly   C.Edwards   A.Thompson   J.Morgan   D.Perks   A.Davies   S.Spavin   R.Matthews   R.Maton   S.O'Connor   K.O'Connor  J.Allen   C.Cobbold   R.Sutton (Capt)   A.Leach   H.Applegate

Rumney Athletic 27    UWIC 2nd XV 9

Scorers for Rumney Athletic : Luke Facey try, Alex Bodin try, Chris Maton conversion and 5 penalties

Man of the Match  : Chris Maton

Band of Brothers give Band 1 performance to beat Students

The Monk was magic and Stevo was sensational. The day the Wales Assembly Government published its Banding 1-5 for educational establishments, was the day the Athletic gave an A* performance to send the UWIC students packing. The Athletic provided the eighty minutes of rugby that coaches and players have been waiting for, and all knew that they were capable of. The WRU referee summed it up : "I looked at the League Table and thought that this would be an easy one for UWIC but after ten minutes I changed my mind ". The omens were good, the team had trained on Saturday, Tuesday and Thursday and were ready to start 2012 with a win. Forwards win matches and so it proved to be, the front five of Ockners, Spav, Dessie and Rob Maton dominated the bigger UWIC pack and backed up by Captain Stevo, who was everywhere, Tex and Chris Cob in the back row caused panic in the students' back line. This gave half backs Jimmy Mogs and The Monk a good platform to set centres Paul King and Luke Facey in motion. The back three of Dave the Rave and wingers The Linc and Bapo were everywhere.

The game started with the Athletic dominating field position but an early penalty allowed UWIC to break, and good defence did stop them short, but it cost a penalty and a 0-3 scoreline. It was at this point that the game changed, the Athletic surging upfield from a Tex break, The Monk slotting over a penalty, the Athletic getting back down into the UWIC half and The Monk slotting over another penalty to put them 6-3 up ! UWIC came back but the Athletic's defence was superb and when UWIC got over the Athletic's line three times they were held up on each occassion and all they came away with was two penalties, the Athletic having the final word when The Monk slotted his third penalty for a 9-9 score at half time.

A couple of terse words from Gwyndaf followed, "Give away as many penalties this half and we gift them a game we have dominated". The Athletic took this on board, UWIC were nilled in the second half and never got a kick at goal. TJ and TG rang the changes with Dom Perks, Chris Edwards and Screech coming on early, with Gogs, Youngy and Alex Bodin coming on later. It was the Athletic on the charge with Stevo dominating the lineout and The Monk putting them in the right area. Pressure brought two more penalties from The Monk and a 15-9 lead as the students lost their discipline. Panic set into the student ranks and they were soon in Band 5 mode as they chased the game, spilling the ball fifteen metres out, only for Facey to sweep it up and score at the posts, The Monk converting the try for a 22-9 lead. Further panic in the student ranks led to more penalties and good back play saw Alex Bodin go over for a 27-9 scoreline. There were still ten minutes to go and UWIC were desperate to get a score, but not this time, the Athletic defence was superb - "They shall not pass !". It was summed up in the final seconds, Cogs flattened their scrum half, got the penalty and when the referee nodded that it was all over, Youngy booted the ball out and the celebrations began. What does two twos give you ? No, not four, but twenty two brothers who gave one hundred percent for Rumney Athletic - bring on Bargoed next Saturday.

SWALEC League Division 1 East

TREDEGAR v RUMNEY

The Recreation Ground, Tredegar
Saturday 7th January 2012, k.o. 2.30 pm

 
Rumney v Tredegar 24.09.2011
Past playing record : played 20, Tredegar 10 wins, Rumney 10 wins

Rumney : 15.Joe Offside  14.Gareth Stoppani  13.Paul Niblett  12.Luke Fear  11.Solomon Matthews  10.Danny Clark  9.Chris Milton   8.Michael Kelly  7.Simon Barry  6.Matthew Way  5.Paul Bull  4.Joe Mills  3.James Monck  2.Michael Feneck (Capt)  1.John Leadbeatter
Replacements : 16.Ryan Fenton 17.Anthony Wilson  18.Darren Fenton  19.Colin O'Donoghue  20.Lewis Andrews

Tredegar : 15.Scott Amber  14.Gareth Lloyd  13.Kevin Lewis  12.Craig Lloyd  11.Craig Lewis  10.Greg Jones  9.Rhys Hallett (Capt)   8.Jordan Williams  7.Ryan Bevan   6.Lloyd Williams  5.Ryan Thomas  4.Ryan White  3.Andrew Grant  2.Owain Crowley  1.Brett Mountney
Replacements : Jamie Morgan   Daffydd Dew   Paul Edwards   Kristian Jones   Matthew Cummings   Kyle Scrivens   Richard Dennington

Referee : Paul Richards, Droitwich

 

Tredegar 21   Rumney 22

Scorers for Rumney : Paul Bull try, Gareth Stoppani try, penalty try, Danny Clark 2 conversions and penalty

Scorers for Tredegar  : Rhys Hallett try, Matthew Cummings try, Greg Jones try and 3 conversions

After almost a seven weeks layoff Rumney started the match well, taking good lineout ball and setting up controlled forward drives where No8 Michael Kelly immediately announced that he would be one of their major dangermen. Tredegar also showed few signs of rustiness and were a power to be reckoned with at the set pieces where their No8 Jordan Williams also started very strongly. Concentrating play in the Tredegar half of the field, visiting outside half Danny Clark set up moves for his backs, trying to release wingers Solomon Matthews and Gareth Stoppani through long passes, while aggressive bursts from his flankers Simon Barry and Matthew Way, and second row Joe Mills kept the home side penned in their own territory for the opening exchanges. The visitors' powerful scrummage functioned well from the outset, props John Leadbeatter and James Monck, and hooker Michael Feneck providing a mighty front row, and in the ninth minute Tredegar were penalised for obstruction on the side of a scrum, allowing Clark to open the scoring with a twenty five metre penalty. From the restart the outside half again drove Tredegar back with an enormous, accurate touchfinder but the home forwards were well marshalled at the set pieces and with Rumney giving away penalties, they were able to move into the visitors' territory, only to concede a penalty themselves when they too were caught offside. What followed was a good period for Rumney, Barry continuing to gain clean lineout ball and to impress in the loose, and Milton working well to link with Stoppani and Mills, but when Monck drove hard into a breakdown on the Tredegar twenty two, he suffered an injury to his arm and was replaced by Darren Fenton. The Tredegar halfbacks Rhys Hallett and Greg Jones had looked sharp from the start and a series of unnecessary infringements by Rumney gave them chances to get their side moving forward. In the twenty first minute home winger Gareth Lloyd received a loose kick on his ten metre line, ran it back and set up the possession for scrum half Hallett to feed his supporting forwards and when Williams went through on the burst, Hallett snapped up the pop pass to run in for the first try of the game. Jones added the conversion for a 7-3 lead but the visitors came back fiercely with more forward drives, winning turnovers and moving back to the Tredegar twenty two, where the home side set up a sturdy defensive line and prevented both Kelly and Leadbeatter from grounding the ball over the try line. Mills, Barry and Bull kept up their huge workrate for Rumney and centres Paul Niblett and Luke Fear tackled decisively to close down the midfield, and Fear, Stoppani and fullback Joe Offside created a sweeping counterattack which involved all the backs, while play switched to and fro as Tredegar countered through an equally exciting movement sparked by Jones and centre Craig Lloyd. In the forty fourth minute Tredegar stole a lineout just inside the visitors' half and flanker Lloyd Williams drove forward, the Rumney defence reacting with a lack of confidence, and when Tredegar centre Craig Lloyd charged down a clearance kick, he quickly regained the ball and fed Matthew Cummings who went in under the sticks, Jones' conversion giving the home side a 14-3 half time lead.

The second half started with Rumney in a very different mood, Feneck and Bull ferociously driving at the opposition with forwards and backs linking well at speed. Tredegar were forced into giving away penalties and with only two minutes of the half gone, Way took clean possession at a lineout ten metres out, Fenton and Leadbeatter led the way as an expertly worked forward movement resulted in Bull crossing for the try. Three minutes later, following an excellent breakout by Stoppani, Tredegar were penalised for offside and Clark took an unexpected tap on his own twenty two, linking with Bull and then Milton, Niblett, and Kelly before Way passed back to Stoppani on the burst and the flying winger sprinted in at the posts, Clark's conversion edging his side ahead at 14-15. The outside half was becoming difficult fot the home side to contain as he made breaks, kicked accurately and drew in defenders, but Tredegar were particularly dangerous on the counterattack and an outstanding movement was only called back for a final forward pass when Jordan Williams was already heading for the tryline. Rumney increased their control of the scrummages and confidently used the ball carrying skills of Kelly and Colin O'Donoghue, now at hooker, to relieve pressure, with Stoppani, Offside and Matthews also running out of defence. The visitors made changes at scrum half and flanker where Lewis Andrews and Anthony Wilson took to the field, and following another Stoppani break and huge drive from the forwards, Andrews nearly scored in the corner, only be stopped inches short of the line. With eight minutes remaining on the clock, Wilson and Barry put in immense work to draw in Tredegar defenders and at a disrupted home scrum Leadbeatter ripped the ball and burst on with Fenton and O'Donoghue, before Clark attacked and drew in more tacklers, and when his final scoring pass was deliberately knocked on by Gareth Lloyd, a stern faced Mr Richards flashed his yellow card and headed under the posts to award a penalty try. Leading 14-22 and with an extra man, Rumney's dominant pack created more space and Bull, Kelly, Matthews and Niblett carved out big gaps but the visitors nevertheless conceded penalties and Tredegar forced them back towards their tryline. In the final minute, from a lineout on the Rumney twenty two, the ball was worked quickly across the Tredegar backs until Jones spotted a gap and jinked through to touchdown under the posts, his conversion bringing the game to an end with the closest possible score of Tredegar 21 Rumney 22.

Matt Silva, Coach Rumney 1st XV : "After a seven week layoff it was good to get back into the swing of things with a hard fought victory over a stubborn Tredegar team. We appeared to be rusty and lethargic in the first half but at the same time we did create numerous scoring opportunities, but lacking a cutting edge, we failed to capitalise on the good work we had created. After half time we played with a lot of tempo and accuracy and scored two well created tries, having shown for the first time a lot of composure and patience. Tredegar are an improving team who have not had the best start to the season and were very threatening with ball in hand. This was evident in the fact that they scored the same amount of tries as us and inevitably it came down to the boot of Danny Clark, who kicked the extra points on offer. The Man of the Match was Gareth Stoppani, Gareth is establishing himself as one of the top wingers in the Division, and this is not to be taken lightly as there are a lot of quality wingers in Division One. Whilst we have been blessed today with a formidable pack, we don't always recognise the improving stature of our back line, they are improving week on week and are now playing some of the best rugby I have seen since I started in my role of Coach at the club. We have a tough game next week against Newbridge, we were well beaten at the Welfare Ground in October and it is a fixture that the boys have been looking forward to for a while."

Matthew Way, flanker Rumney 1st XV : "We were really rusty at times, the first half was poor with too many mistakes and panicking when we made a break. The second half was much better, we came out of the blocks like we should have, and played with some good pace on the ball and sorted out the mistakes.  The set piece was quite poor in the first half but that has to be expected after a seven week layoff, but the backs were good in attack and made some nice breaks. Gareth Stoppani and Simon Barry had very good games."

 
Above, left : Matt Silva, right : Matthew Way

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RUMNEY YOUTH v YSTRAD RHONDDA YOUTH

Riverside Park, Rumney
Saturday 7th January 2012, k.o. 2.30 pm

Rumney Youth 27    Ystrad Rhondda Youth 5

SWALEC LEAGUE DIVISION 1 EAST    Fixtures 2011-2012

03.09.2011	BARGOED	v	RUMNEY
10.09.2011	RUMNEY	v	GILFACH GOCH
17.09.2011	TREORCHY	v	RUMNEY
24.09.2011	RUMNEY	v	TREDEGAR
01.10.2011	NEWBRIDGE	v	RUMNEY
08.10.2011	RUMNEY	v	BLACKWOOD
15.10.2011	MERTHYR	v	RUMNEY
22.10.2011	GLAMORGAN W.	v	RUMNEY
29.10.2011	RUMNEY	v	MOUNTAIN ASH
05.11.2011	EBBW VALE	v	RUMNEY
12.11.2011	RUMNEY	v	BEDDAU
19.11.2011	RUMNEY	v	BARGOED
26.11.2011	GILFACH GOCH	v	RUMNEY
17.12.2011	RUMNEY	v	TREORCHY
07.01.2012	TREDEGAR	v	RUMNEY
14.01.2012	RUMNEY	v	NEWBRIDGE
21.01.2012	BLACKWOOD	v	RUMNEY
11.02.2012	RUMNEY	v	MERTHYR
24.03.2012	RUMNEY	v	GLAMORGAN W.
31.03.2012	MOUNTAIN ASH	v	RUMNEY
07.04.2012	RUMNEY	v	EBBW VALE
14.04.2012	BEDDAU	v	RUMNEY

WRU 2nd XV LEAGUE    Fixtures 2011-2012

03.09.2011	RUMNEY	v	PONTYPOOL
10.09.2011	GLAMORGAN W.	v	RUMNEY
17.09.2011	RUMNEY	v	BLACKWOOD
24.09.2011	UWIC	v	RUMNEY
01.10.2011	RUMNEY	v	BARGOED
08.10.2011	PENALLTA	v	RUMNEY
29.10.2011	RUMNEY	v	BRIDGEND ATH.
05.11.2011	BEDDAU	v	RUMNEY
12.11.2011	GLYNNEATH	v	RUMNEY
26.11.2011	RUMNEY	v	BEDWAS
10.12.2011	PONTYPOOL	v	RUMNEY
17.12.2011	RUMNEY	v	GLAMORGAN W.
07.01.2012	BLACKWOOD	v	RUMNEY
14.01.2012	RUMNEY	v	UWIC
21.01.2012	BARGOED	v	RUMNEY
11.02.2012	RUMNEY	v	PENALLTA
03.03.2012	BRIDGEND ATH.	v	RUMNEY
24.03.2012	RUMNEY	v	BEDDAU
31.03.2012	RUMNEY	v	GLYNNEATH
14.04.2012	BEDWAS	v	RUMNEY