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20 February 2017 / Club News

Penallta overcome cup rivals Nelson with a ruthless second half display

The Christmas obituaries citing the end of Penallta’s era of title-winning dominance were ruthlessly debunked in the quarter-finals of the National Plate. Penallta ran out 20-16 winners in a match of excruciating tension. The Pitmen assembled a second half performance of such thoroughly emphatic forward power that any remarks pertaining to their demise were exposed as drastically premature. Nelson were the victims of Penallta’s full-throttled comeback, their cup hopes disintegrating in 40 humbling minutes. It was a match the Pitmen will remember for years to come.

                                                                               

Nelson sit top of Division 1 East with Penallta in third place. The tide was meant to be turning. The Unicorns have been the form team for months, and Penallta’s pre-Christmas form was stuttering at best. The Pitmen’s inauspicious start culminated in a home league loss to Nelson on the final Saturday before Christmas. It was a deserved win for Nelson, who had pressured Penallta into wilting in their home fortress, and it appeared to mark a changing of the guard. Under the coaching of former Welsh international Andrew Coombs, Nelson have been fitter, sharper and defensively imperious this season. Many thought it would be their year.

 

The home team’s form was stuttering perhaps, but Penallta – through experience and typically gutsy desire – managed two important things by Christmas: they hung on in the league and stayed alive in the Plate. There was plenty to play for.

 

Christmas went, and the January games offered mouth-watering challenges for the Pitmen – fixtures which suited the boys. Aberavon Quins away in the Plate, then Senghenydd, and toughest of all, unbeaten Rhydyfelin in the league. It all presented a tall New Year’s order for a team in pursuit of their best form. It also presented a challenge the Pitmen enjoy, and so it proved. Since the home loss to Nelson, Penallta have gone win, win, win and win. The demolition of Quins only transpired to make the fixtures even tastier, with Nelson drawn at home in the Plate. In the midst of the turning of the tide, a cup tie against the most local of rivals was a challenge to whet the appetite of everybody in the club. A challenge too far perhaps? A challenge certainly to ink the pens of those authors ready to chart the Pitmen’s obituaries. A challenge eventually accepted in the most determined of fashions.

 

Pressures have transpired to conflict with Penallta’s drive for success this season. The loss of players to Premiership clubs has bitten hard. For yesterday’s game against Nelson, no fewer than four players were cup-tied. Add that to the dozen other players playing at bigger clubs and the player-drain is too chastening to think about. It didn’t help that Penallta legend Kieran Mahoney chose this weekend to visit New York for his birthday.  Witnessing the Gypsy strolling down Fifth Avenue in his Cardiff City shirt would arguably be a better spectacle than Penallta v Nelson. Whatever, Penallta had to do this the hard way.

 

Aside from a history of exceeding expectations, Penallta have a vital ingredient few other clubs have: a depth of player resources that’s the envy of all. The coaches, not for the first time, made use of those resources in miraculous fashion.

 

And the game didn’t disappoint.

 

Nelson shot out of the blocks like champions-elect. By contrast, Penallta were nervy. Welsh coach Shaun Edwards had given the Penallta boys a pep-talk in the changing rooms pre-game. It only added to the tension. In front of an enormous crowd of over 800 crammed into the Centre of Sporting Excellence, the Unicorns set the tone with a penalty through Danny Ellis.

 

Nelson won the collisions in the early exchanges. The Unicorns looked composed and their tactical kicking was far superior to Penallta’s. Penallta were panicky in possession, certainly feeling the pressure. One could tell, from the opening moments, that this was a game where every single phase counted. Just like December, every play was fiercely contested.

 

Matthew Brewer kicked a penalty for Penallta to tie the scores, and it was the final time Penallta troubled the scoreboard during a fraught first half. Nelson’s weightier forwards were creating quick ball, and Penallta were struggling to slow it down. The Pitmen looked threatening themselves when in possession, but they were sloppy and indecisive, and Nelson’s powerful defence shut plays down superbly.

 

Nelson scored a try on the twenty minute mark. Scrum half Iestyn Hurn was enjoying himself and Penallta couldn’t stem the tide. The home tacklers tried manfully to stop the big Unicorn runners but eventually Liam Williams crashed over from close range. There was no stopping Lunk that close to the line, and Danny Ellis kicked the conversion to stretch the lead.

 

Corey Tucker was conducting a one man kick-off retrieval operation for Penallta, using his basketball skills to win the aerial battle, and it created opportunities. But Penallta were wasteful. From a five metre lineout, Penallta conceding a penalty when the try-line was begging; then through a break from scrum half Luke Crane, Penallta wasted another gilt-edged chance. From the four first half forays deep into Nelson’s half, Penallta scored once. Nelson, by contrast, visited Penallta’s half four times, and scored on three occasions.

 

The third score, to make it 3-13 to the Unicorns, again came from Ellis’s metronomic boot. Penallta were guilty of straying off-side at the ruck and Ellis smoked it home. Two scores behind in a tight contest, Penallta were in trouble.

 

The turning point in the game happened just before half time. Head coach Matthew Tucker had commented pre-game that Nelson’s scrum was the best the Pitmen had faced. There was concern. With Gypsy in the Big Apple and Corey Hewlett cup-tied with Cross Keys, Penallta were heavily reliant on out-of-retirement Matthew Angel and tight head Lloyd Bridges to marshal the scrum. Parity would’ve been the best hope pre-game, but the front row, with Gregg Haines at hooker, had other ideas. Penallta, struggling to find holes in their usual digs, created a chink of light in the darkest of places. First, Haines struck one against the head, and then, in the next scrum, Penallta won a scrum-penalty after shoving Nelson off the ball. It created the biggest cheer of a difficult first half for the Pitmen. The forwards went to create bigger cheers yet.

 

At half time, Penallta had it all to do. Nelson are good at defending leads and it wasn’t a game that looked as though it had many tries in it. A steely determination bound the half-time huddle, and the forwards emerged saying ‘out the way, backs, we’re gonna deal with this’.

 

Penallta’s second half forward effort was one of the most ruthless and brutally effective performances in the club’s history. From the off, Nelson were under extreme pressure. Penallta kept it tight, picking and hitting. The big names came to the fore. Ex captain Lee Rowlands and current skip Ross Morgan exerted their superior fitness over the Nelson front five and blasted into their defences. Geraint Capel was class and composed at Number 8. Corey Tucker was everywhere. Rhys Stephens was his usually heavy-duty self. Crane behind them, in to cover at 9, was superb.

 

Nelson’s scrum soon started falling apart and was closely followed by their lineout. The pressure told elsewhere at first, Nelson centre Daf Carter getting his ten minute marching orders for a ruck penalty. Then, critically for the Unicorns, Nelson number 8 Kieron Hughes left the field. Hughes has long been a thorn in Penallta’s side. During his Senghenydd days he was master of the dark arts. A measure of his ability is half the crowd love him and half think he’s breaking the rules. In McCaw’esque fashion, if he breaking rules, he’s brilliant at it, because he never gets caught. His absence correlated with Penallta gaining quicker ball in the tackle area, the home forwards now dominated the scrums, lineouts and breakdowns.

 

The pressure was on Penallta because they needed the scores. It was tense. The pressure built – the score-line inspiring Nelson to defend for their lives. But the Unicorns eventually began to leak. The first Penallta try came through a scrum-penalty. The referee was underneath the posts before the Nelson front five could gather their thoughts. The scrum pressure was brutal, and the Nelson front three were splintering under the weight. After three scrum penalties the referee eventually lost his patience and gave the try, which full back Lloyd Rowlands converted.

 

Captain Ross Morgan was vindicated in choosing to go for the scrum. Under intense scoreboard pressure in a cup game, the decisions were finely balanced for Ross. Should he stick of twist? Kick for goals or go for Nelson’s throat in the scrums. Rowlands was unlucky with a few penalties, shaving the upright, so, under scoreboard pressure, Morgan turned to the scrum. It worked.

 

Nelson had one brief period of respite. With the scores at 10-13 Rowlands – who was excellent at full back for Penallta, showing superb game management  – missed a penalty, and it boosted Nelson. They enjoyed their best five minutes of the half and in typically efficient style, struck another penalty through Ellis.

 

Penallta were immediately on the offensive, chasing the game. Nelson were struggling and desperately trying to stem the ruthless Penallta tide. Penallta’s outside half, Jonny Wright, gave a penalty away for back-chat and found himself in the bin. But it didn’t halt the Penallta charge.

 

On came Max George for the injured Tucker, and what an impact he had. It’s been a frustrating season for Max, one of the best young players Penallta have ever produced, and he arrived on the scene charged-up. Within minutes he made a searing break and threw a Hollywood pass over James Spear to find Crane in space. Crane used his speed to reach the line and the Penallta crowd exploded in cheer. Rowlands kicked the penalty to put Penallta ahead for the first time in the game, the score at 17-16.

 

With the minutes ticking away Jonny came back onto the field. Penallta were again in full throttle, winning ruck after ruck in Nelson’s 22. Eventually, with the try-line begging, Jonny stepped back into the pocket and casually kicked a drop goal to create enormous cheers and broken hearts. It’s always Jonny. He’s the big moment player. They even heard the celebrations in the chip shop in Ystrad.

 

The four point lead gave Penallta breathing space, but the game had been tense from the off and it wasn’t enough for comfort. With 90 seconds left Nelson gave themselves a chance. A penalty on the halfway line enabled Ellis to send a kick to Penallta’s line. Nerves were shredding in the crowd. Would Nelson be able to manufacture a last minute response just like they did before Christmas? They couldn’t. Max George rose to steal the lineout and Penallta cleared their lines. Nelson had one brief chance to run it back but Seb Toms turned the ball over. Crane kicked dead to the delight of the crowd, and Penallta marched into another semi-final.

 

It was hard not to have sympathy for Nelson at the final whistle. A village club, like ours; they’ve created a major buzz through their performances. They have numbers in training, results on the field and the club is going places. We see in them what we’ve seen in ourselves this past two decades – a club on the march. Even some at Penallta feared the tide was turning.

 

But it wasn’t to be. One of the ironies of Nelson’s rise is that it’s renewed the wire in Penallta’s blood. Penallta needed a tense rivalry to recharge the batteries, and Nelson have provided it. Well supported, well coached and well intentioned, Nelson are a challenge and it will take an enormous effort to dominate the rivalry. On Saturday Penallta won the battle, convincingly in the second half, as Nelson succumbed to Penallta’s experience and also to a ferocious determination of heart and willpower which is hard-wired into the Pitmen mentality.

 

There is a fine line between winning titles yet also an enormous chasm. The next round will be Penallta’s fourth semi-final in six seasons. Penallta won the title in 2012 and finished runners-up last season. After suffering an excruciating loss to Newcastle Emlyn in 2015, the Pitmen responded by winning Division 1 and the Silver Ball. Penallta is a club that wins titles, and to win titles you have to win big games. To win big games, you have to win the big moments. There is an intangible, tears-in-the-eyes desire that drives our rugby club and nowhere was that more evident than in the front row on Saturday. At loose head, the formerly retired Matthew Angel, was brilliant; superb in open play and devastating in the scrum. At hooker, 33 year old Gregg Haines, who has won everything, played one of his best games for the club. He played like he wanted it more badly than ever. And at tight head, man of the match Lloyd Bridges summed up how much it means to him with a scrummaging performance so powerful it broke the back of the Nelson challenge.

 

Lloyd is only 23, has played over 100 games for Penallta and won a stack of trophies. He had to earn his place the hard way, behind captain Kieran Mahoney at tight head for his first few years of senior rugby. He’s number one now. His formative years only strengthened his attitude and he demonstrated on Saturday that players like him, unglamorous and understated, will strain every sinew to carry the club to further glories. His was a performance of destructive domination. It summed up the whole second half performance – one that will be remembered for many years to come. Well done Penallta.

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