DIVISION 1 EAST CENTRAL

MOUNTAIN ASH ......... 34 ST JOSEPH’S ............... 22

IT TOOK the Old Firm a good 50 minutes to shake off the effects of the Christmas and New Year break before they cut loose in this first game of the second half of the season.

Although Mount scored two tries in the first half, they trailed 14-10 at halftime after a lethargic display for the most part.

St Joseph’s were 6-0 up after 11 minutes with two penalties by outside half Jacob Chilcott, who had a good day with the boot and proved a livewire throughout the game. After the second penalty, the Old Firm won the ball from the restart and set up an attack which went through several phases, centre Steve Brittain neatly chipping through and forcing a defender to concede a 5m lineout. After a take by flanker Richard Griffiths was driven on and held up over the line, and pressure from two 5m scrums, flanker Chris Edmunds eventually touched down for the first try of the day to make it 6-5 to the visitors after 15 minutes.

From the kick-off, scrum half Ross Davies put up a well judged high kick to half way which the St Jo’s defence failed to deal with. Wing Sean Williams was quickly up and got hold of the loose ball to keep the attack going forward, hooker Jack James getting the ball near the touchline and dummying a defender before putting his head back and sprinting 35m down the touchline where he showed good strength metres out to hold off a tackler and score in the corner to put Mount 10-6 up. The two quick tries failed to ignite the Old Firm, with handling errors and knock-ons stopping a couple of promising attacks. One of these saw an attack from the Old Firm’s 22, when the ball was moved quickly along the backline but a spilled pass put pay to the move on the visitors’ 10m line. Overall though, it was the visitors who had the better of the rest of the half and it took a couple of superb tackles, one by scrum half Ross Davies and another in midfield to stop the visitors breaking through.

Although Mount wing Sean Williams covered a well-placed chip into the Mount 22, a 5m scrum was conceded from which the visitors set up a number of attacks across the field, loosehead prop Callum Wingren eventually touching down from close in to put St Jo’s 11-10 up after 35 minutes. And then right on half-time, a superb 52m penalty by Chilcott took St Joseph’s into the break 14-10 up.

Mount’s rustiness and lethargy continued at the start of the second half, a fumble in midfield leading to a turnover and then a penalty which Chilcott banged over to extend the lead to 17-10. At last Mount showed some enthusiasm for the job in hand, second row Jarrod Parfitt taking the ball at pace and breaking through the visitors’ defence to take play up to the St Joseph’s 22. A clear- ance kick from a scrum saw Mount full back Declan Conway counter attack from halfway, beating one man and setting up a ruck. The ball was moved quickly to wing Will Holley who tore through a gap in the visitors’ defence and passed inside to flanker Richard Griffiths who finished off a well-executed move with an unconverted try midway out after 49 minutes to make it 17-15. Scrum half Ross Davies was quickly onto some untidy St Jo’s scrum ball as the Old Firm pack applied pressure.

The ball was once again moved quickly, and from a kick through outside half Kieron Olden was quickly up, but some fine covering and a turn of pace saw St Jo’s outside half Chilcott clear the ball to halfway, where full back Conway once again started a counter attack with a pass into midfield.

Centre Alex Hughes linked with prop James Cowdry who slipped a nice pass to nearby flanker Richard Griffiths who got away, drew the last man and gave to second row Luke Brennan who ran in unopposed from 20m to finish off another excellent attack to great applause for the bonuspoint try. Holley converted to put Mount 22-17 up after 59 minutes. The Old Firm had the bit between their teeth and minutes later scrum half Davies went through a gap on the blindside of a ruck from 5m out to touch down for the Old Firm’s fifth try of the afternoon which took the lead up to 27-17 and made it 17 points in 10 minutes.

After the ball flew out of a lineout drive by St Jo’s on the Mount 22, flanker Griffiths got away up to halfway where the ball was moved wide quickly to Holley who shrugged off two tacklers and looked to have finished off a 75m move with a try in the corner, but the referee judged accidentally offside after a Mount player was pushed into him by a defender and the visitors awarded a 5m scrum. A strong run by centre Hughes set up a ruck on the St Jo’s 22, where outside half Kieron Olden foxed the defence with a dummy scissors and then showed an eye for the gap by racing through to slide in for a well taken individual try which Holley converted with a beautifully struck kick from near the touchline to make it 34-17. The visitors never quit and kept on attacking Mount from all areas of the field.

With just five minutes left, they scored after a long phase of play saw the Old Firm repel one attack, launch one of their own to take play from their own 22 to the visitors’ 22, and then St Jo’s counter again and show their running capability to finish off a 75m move with a touchdown and conversion by Chilcott, which took his points tally up to 17, and brought an entertaining game to an end.

The win keeps Mount in second place, six points behind Treorchy with a game in hand.

Mountain Ash 2nd XV were disappointed both Aberdare and Bedlinog dropped out due to a lack of players but Mountain Ash Youth got on the field and travelled for a second time this season to play the students of Cardiff Metropolitan, where they came away once again with a draw.

This time, the score was 7-7, the Young Firm having 80% of the game but unable to score against a well-organised defence. Against the run of play in the first half, Cardiff went in front with a converted try and it wasn’t until the last minute of the game that Mount drew level, forward Mitchell Barnard taking the ball on the Cardiff Met 22m line and taking four defenders over the line with him to score in the corner. Scrum half Morgan Cartwright kicked a superb conversion from the touchline to give Mount a draw and a share of the points in this Blues Youth League Division BA game.

This Saturday, the Old Firm are away to Heol Y Cyw in a rearranged Division 1 East Central game and both the 2nd and Youth XVs visit Aberdare in their respective leagues. All games kick off at 2.30pm.