Wanderers  25
Treorchy  15

“Excellent win against a top team” commented Huw Dowden “the backs were excellent, providing the cutting edge that was needed to see out the game. We knew it would be a tough battle upfront and the forwards were immense.” added Huw Dowden.

“Our ability to create something out of nothing in unstructured play with our counter attack was the difference, combined with some great defensive sets.” added Head Coach Paul Matthews.

“Great performance against a team that don’t give much away! Boys dug deep to stop all threats.” was Team Manager Mark Gould’s summary.

The Wanderers returned to the Memorial Ground on a bright but cold afternoon, with a pitch that looked in remarkably good condition given the week’s rain. Having lost the reverse fixture earlier in the season, and with both sides chasing league leaders Bedwas, there was plenty at stake.

Treorchy kicked off and the Wanderers immediately knocked on, giving the visitors an early platform. From the resulting scrum, Treorchy worked left, built a few controlled phases, and were eventually awarded a penalty in front of the posts. The kick was successful, giving the visitors a 0 – 3 lead.

The Wanderers then launched their first meaningful attack when Amir Walji broke well down the left following a lineout. Play entered the Treorchy 22, but after several phases the ball was lost forward, allowing Treorchy to hack clear. The visitors mounted their next attacking spell in the home 22, but the Wanderers defence held firm, pushing play back towards the 22-metre line. Soon after, Treorchy capitalised from an attacking scrum, working through phases before finding a gap and scoring the game’s first try. 0 –10.

The Wanderers responded strongly. Walji tapped the restart back to the open arms of Ashley Bissett who carried hard. After playing a long advantage following repeated Treorchy infringements, the Wanderers elected to take the points. 3 – 10.

Treorchy gathered their own restart but soon lost control of the ball. A kick ahead bounced kindly and after a short sequence of further kicks it was Ned Bennett who reacted quickest, gathering and grounding the ball. Gruff ab Ieuan converted to level the game at 10 – 10.

Another break from Amir Walji opened space for Zak Fifield, and when Gruff ab Ieuan saw Shaun O’Rourke was free he put ball to boot. Unfortunately, the long-limbed O’Rourke is so tall, a trick of perspective made him look further forward than he was and the referee gave a penalty for offside. A scrappy period followed with possession repeatedly changing hands. During this sequence Finn Davies suffered an injury and was replaced by Emyr Jones.

The Wanderers ended the half on the attack. They first created a promising opportunity when a penalty put them just 10 metres out, but the ball was knocked on at the rear of the driving maul. Shortly after, Ash Bissett forced a strong turnover in midfield, followed by another penalty, but the Wanderers failed to generate momentum from the maul. The sides entered half-time level at 10 – 10.

The Wanderers restarted the second half full of attacking intent. Steff Davies collected the ball inside the Treorchy 22 and moved it to Ed Thomas, who cut through several defenders before offloading to Bennett on the wing. Bennett, who must have made short work of his Weetabix that morning, had more than enough in the tank to get around the final man and score his second of the afternoon 15 – 10.

Treorchy responded with a spell of pressure near the Wanderers line, but the home defence remained disciplined. A series of dominant tackles pushed the visitors back until the ball was eventually turned over and cleared.

The Wanderers made changes: Huw Dowden replaced Mike Vaughan, Gethin Callaghan came on for Jack Beynon and Osian Phillips replaced Nathan Williams.

Shortly after, a Treorchy clearing kick was fielded cleanly by Ed Thomas. Spotting space, Thomas cut through again and found Bennett in support. He ran straight under the posts, completing his hat-trick. What followed was an interlude as some forwards had disagreed on whether zebras were black with white stripes, or white with black stripes. When everyone had calmed down, Gruff ab Ieuan added the conversion to make it 22 – 10.

Treorchy then enjoyed some territory, following a scrum penalty the forwards’ debate this time raged with voices and tempers raised when a Wands forward was heard using the term ‘stripy horse’. A later penalty allowed the visitors to kick deep into the home 22. From the lineout maul that followed, Treorchy inched towards the line before the player at the back peeled blind and grounded the ball. The conversion attempt was unsuccessful, leaving the score 22 – 15.

Once again, the Wanderers showed they had an answer. Amir Walji produced another strong run down the left to win a penalty in front of the posts. The Wanderers chose to take the points and Gruff ab Ieuan duly extended the lead to 25 – 15.

The Wanderers came close to a bonus point try when Ed Thomas and Bennett combined superbly once more, but Thomas was judged to have offloaded after the ruck had formed. In the final minutes the home side closed out the game with a determined defensive set, ultimately forcing Treorchy into attempting a long-range penalty in search of a losing bonus point. The kick drifted wide, and the referee brought the game to an end.

Final Score: Glamorgan Wanderers 25 – 15 Treorchy.

Wanderers’ Scorers:
Tries: Ned Bennett (3)
Cons: Gruff ab Ieuan (2)
Pens: Gruff ab Ieuan (2)

#MASSIV MOM:  Ned Bennett
#MASSIV Special Mention:  Mike Vaughan

Management MOM:  Ned Bennett
Management Special Mention:  Mike Vaughan

Match Photos:  Click HERE
(Photo credits to Matthew Partridge)