THE HERALD FRIDAY JANUARY 20 2017
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Otters go second Narberth NARBERTH 34
Glamorgan Wanderers11 WRU Championship
climbed
back up to second place in the Championship table as they eased to a 34-11 victory over Glamorgan Wanderers on Saturday (Jan 14). The Otters were quick out of
the blocks and they stunned their opponents to score an early try through Jack Parkinson but the conversion was missed. Luke Fish then reduced the
deficit with a penalty and then sent another penalty through the posts to put the Wanderers into the lead. Narberth responded well and
went back ahead with another try from Joe Hutchings, which was then converted by Jonathan Rogers for a 12-6 lead. Jake Conway then pulled
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Glamorgan back to within a point with a try but they could not take the lead as the conversion was missed. Rogers then added a second
penalty of the half to put the Otters 15-11 at the break. The home side started the second
like they had started the first and they were soon rewarded when Hutchings went over for his second try of the game. Rogers then added the extra two points. Pat Roberts also went over for
Narberth and again Rogers was successful with the conversion. Callum Tree then went over for
the home side’s third try of the match but this time Rogers was unable to add the extra two points. It was another excellent win for
Narberth, who now sit second behind runaway leaders Pontypool. They will be looking to keep
hold of second place when they take on Skewen on Saturday (Jan 21).
Pembroke hold on for welcome win Laugharne Pembroke
League 3 West A AFTER two straight defeats,
Pembroke finally returned to winning ways with a hard-fought win over Laugharne in an entertaining game on Saturday (Jan 14). The home side had first half tries
from Tom Rees and Carwyn Jones but they went unconverted. Pembroke had tries from Lewys
Gibby, Sam Smith and Barry John, with Luke Hartland adding one conversion. That gave them a 17-10 half time
lead and they increased their lead in the second half as they began to dominate the game. Matthew Lewis and Hartland both
went over for tries which earned them a bonus point, with Hartland then adding the extras for one and also a penalty.
Laugharne hit back and had
tries from Tom James and Gareth Spiers, with Gareth Thomas adding a conversion and a penalty to bring the home side to within a score of their opponents.
Pembroke held on to secure a
welcome win and they will now be looking to push on back towards the top end of the table. Laugharne earned two bonus
points for their four tries and for being within seven points of Pembroke but they remain in sixth place as a result. On Saturday (Jan 21), Pembroke
are at home to St Davids while Laugharne are away to Pembroke Dock Quins.
Haverfordwest County Risca United
3 0
by Robert Nisbet HAVERFORDWEST COUNTY
are through to the semi-finals of the Welsh League Cup after they beat Risca United 3-0 on Saturday (Jan 14).
After a scrappy first half in
difficult conditions, the Bluebirds came storming through with a second half attacking performance that could well have seen them score six. The biting north-westerly wind
which blew across the ground in the first half made control difficult and more passes on both sides were going astray than to their man. There could have been a turning
point in the 16th minute when a heavy tackle by Matthew Broome saw referee Phillips award a penalty, but James Gwilt dove to his right to turn the spot kick away. From that point on, the Bluebirds
got more into the game and threatened several times in the later stages of the
first half. A Broome free kick set up a scramble in the Risca box, a Greg Walters shot went just wide and Rhys Dalling headed against the bar from a fine Ashley Bevan cross. It was Bevan who was to prove
influential in the second half. The whole side was now playing well, with Gwilt as cool as ever behind a strong back four which saw the newly-returned Ricky Watts solid beside the strong Sean Pemberton. Broome played well and Spencer Williams played with a composure which suggested he might never have been away. Nicky Palmer and Walters covered
swathes of the midfield, as did the wily Lee Hudgell, whose grafting was a real threat. The front runners of Bevan,
Dalling and Steffan Davies kept the pressure on the Risca defence, and the first goal came in the 49th minute, when the ball was only half-cleared after a Hudgell corner and Walters’ exquisite chip over the full back saw Bevan curl his header beautifully over the keeper.
Bevan became the provider for the
second goal in the 63rd minute, when he made a powerful run down the left and squared a ball to Steffan Davies, who hammered in. The last of three classy goals came
in the 75th minute when Walters again played in Bevan for him to cap a fine display with a powerful finish. The only two disappointments
were the injury (fortunately not too serious) to Steffan Davies as he was scoring the second goal and the red card for Rhys Dalling after what really did appear to be two fairly innocuous challenges. But the win was decisive and the
Blues can look forward now to their first cup semi-final in many seasons. Haverfordwest County: James
Gwilt, Matthew Broome, Spencer Williams, Sean Pemberton, Ricky Watts, Nicky Palmer, Steffan Davies (Kristian Speake), Greg Walters, Ashley Bevan, Rhys Dalling, Lee Hudgell (Tomas Wellington). Subs not used: Kieran O’Brien, Rhydian Davies.
Watts re-joins Bluebirds DEFENDER Ricky Watts has re-
joined Haverfordwest County after a spell in the Welsh Premier League with Aberystwyth Town. Ricky, who has regularly played in
Twigg selected for training camp along with former Bluebirds manager
the WPL this season, is eligible to play in both cup matches that the club are involved in this month. Watts joined Aber in June 2016,
Wayne Jones. He played an integral role in Haverfordwest County’s Welsh League Division One championship winning season and grew his reputation during the Bluebirds’ term in the Welsh Premier League last time around. Ricky made his debut at age 17 in the
Welsh Premier League, and was capped for Wales schools under 18s in 2010.
A delighted Chris O’Sullivan
said: “This is a massive signing for the club on and off the field. Our squad is strengthened by another local player but Ricky is special as he is undoubtedly of Welsh Premier League standard.” Haverfordwest County would like
to thank Aberystwyth Town for their cooperation in making this transfer possible.
WALES have named a 36-man
squad, featuring seven uncapped players, led by captain Alun Wyn Jones, for the forthcoming 2017 RBS Six Nations. Scarlets’ Steffan Evans is one of
five uncapped players in the squad for the first time alongside Olly Cracknell (Ospreys), Thomas Young (Wasps), Owen Williams (Leicester Tigers) and Ashton Hewitt (Newport Gwent Dragons). Fellow uncapped duo Rory
Louisa Twigg: Selected to train in Swim Wales Half Term Camp LOUISA TWIGG of
Pembrokeshire County Swimming has been selected to train in Swim Wales Half Term Camp for showing potential for the upcoming selection for Bahama’s Commonwealth Youth Games 2017. Louisa, from Haverfordwest Seals,
trains in the PCS National Performance Squad and trains 16+ hours a week at
Haverfordwest Leisure Centre. PCS Coaching Team said: “It’s
a great stepping stone for Louisa to experience the holding camp. She has a great opportunity to push on and make selection. We will be working hard to try make this happen.” Congratulations to Louisa from all at The Herald and good luck.
Thornton and Aled Davies, who have both previously been part of the national set-up, are once again included. Haverfordwest-born Rob Evans,
who missed the autumn campaign due to injury, returns to the squad having previously been called up for the 2016 tournament. Evans features alongside fellow
forwards Nicky Smith, Scott Andrews, Rhodri Jones, Tomas Francis and Samson Lee. Kristian Dacey, Ken
Owens and Scott Baldwin are the three hookers named. Jones, who became Wales’ 127th
captain when he first took on the duties back in 2009 (against Italy in Rome, Wales’ first opponents in this year’s competition) and has led Wales on a total of five previous occasions, is joined by Jake Ball, Luke Charteris, Cory Hill and Thornton. The uncapped back-row duo
of Cracknell and Young are named alongside James King, Justin Tipuric, Ross Moriarty, Taulupe Faletau and Sam Warburton. Scarlets pair Gareth Davies and
Aled Davies are included, along with Rhys Webb. Ospreys duo Dan Biggar and Sam Davies are joined by uncapped fly-half Williams. Jamie Roberts, Jonathan Davies and Scott Williams are named as the centres with Hewitt and Evans joined by Alex Cuthbert, George North, Liam Williams and Leigh Halfpenny as the back-three
contingent. “I believe we have named an
exciting and experienced squad for what is going to be a thrilling RBS Six Nations Championship,” said Wales Head Coach Rob Howley. “There is a flavour of freshness
too in the squad, with seven uncapped players deserving their opportunity and it will be exciting to see how they perform in the international set-up. “It is shaping up to be another great
Six Nations. We have the all important carrot of Rugby World Cup seedings on the horizon post tournament and that is an important target for us, especially as we welcome the World’s number two (England) and number four (Ireland) ranked sides to Principality Stadium over the coming months.” The squad will meet up on Monday
(Jan 23) to begin preparations ahead of their opening 2017 RBS Six Nations clash against Italy in Rome on Sunday, February 5.
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