PRINCIPALITY PREMIERSHIP
CROSS Keys earned a desperately needed victory and avenged their 34-23 defeat to Bargoed earlier this season with a well-deserved win.
The hosts enjoyed a bright opening, but it was the visitors who struck first, former Bulls outside-half Josh Prosser slotting a long range effort which was soon cancelled out by opposite number Iain Smerdon.
Keys enjoyed a purple patch in the early stages of the second quarter but failed to capitalise.
As it was, the hosts went downfield and took the lead when Smerdon kicked his second penalty on the half-hour mark.
Another Smerdon penalty then looked to have gone wide of the uprights to just about everyone apart from the assistant referees behind the posts, who awarded the three points, much to the amusement of the home fans.
With Bargoed having worked so hard to get themselves 9-3 up, they then gifted Keys a try from the restart. AN early onslaught that saw Pontypridd score their bonus pointwinning fourth try inside a quarter of an hour left Ebbw Vale reeling and unable to play their way back into the game.
It took little more than two minutes for the home side to open their account, wing Dale Stuckey making the initial break to set up second row Chris Dicomidis for the touchdown.
Two minutes later and it was full back Lloyd Rowlands’ turn to score under the posts.
The Steelmen’s opportunity to strike back came in the ninth minute when Rhys Shellard slipped in his own 22 and was unable to gather a high ball, visiting scrum half Carl Lewis pouncing on it.
Pontypridd’s third try came with under 13 minutes gone, the home pack driving to within three metres of the Ebbw Vale line for Stuckey to dive over.
Two minutes later the wing secured Ponty’s bonus point with a try in the corner. While Stuckey was forced to leave the field with an injury immediately after scoring, his partner on the wing, Alex Webber crossed for try number NEWPORT secured a dramatic victory over Bedwas in the Principality Premiership with a late Matt O’Brien penalty at Rodney Parade on Friday night.
Steffan Jones had brought the scores level with a late kick but in the dying seconds Newport were awarded a penalty and fly-half O’Brien kept his nerve to fire the Black and Ambers to victory.
The day had started well for Newport as they took an early lead. Owen Davies exploited a gap in the Bedwas defence to touch down and O’Brien converted.
Visiting Bedwas hit back with a similar try as Michael Callow crossed the whitewash and Jones hit the conversion.
Undeterred, the hosts retook the lead as Haydn Palmer was played into space by O’Brien and the winger touched down.
But back came Bedwas and after Geraint Edmunds had bagged their second try, Jones’ conversion edged them ahead.
They tried to run the ball from deep and a mistake allowed young blindside Taine Basham to scoop up the ball and romp home, Prosser’s conversion giving the visitors a 10-9 lead at the interval.
Keys dominated the opening stages of the second half and it resulted in Bargoed lock Matthew Thomas being sin binned, Prosser’s penalty stretching his side’s lead.
With the Bulls down to 14 men, Keys capitalised and dangerous wing Matthew Powell finished superbly for an unconverted try as they turned the screw.
With the Pandy Park outfit camped in the Bargoed 22, fullback Joe Goodchild crossed for a converted try in the 68th minute in a one-sided second half. BARGOED: Pens: I Smerdon (3) CROSS KEYS: Tries: T Basham, M Powell, J Goodchild; Cons: J Prosser (2); Pens: Prosser (2) five on the 20 minute mark.
The home side’s progress was slowed a little when, with 10 minutes of the half remaining, flanker Rhys Shellard saw yellow.
Try number six for the home side came early in the second half, prop Chris Phillips going over from short range. As the penalty tally for Ebbw Vale rose, referee Joy Neville of Ireland, the first female official to referee a Principality Premiership game, dispatched visiting wing Toby Fricker to the sin bin in the 65th minute.
Try number two for the visitors came with 10 minutes of the game to go through full-back Dean Haymond.
It was the hosts who had the last word however, with a quickly taken penalty allowing centre Geraint Walsh to claim his side’s seventh try. PONTYPRIDD: Tries: C Dicomidis, L Rowlands, D Stuckey (2), A Webber, C Phillips, D Walsh; Cons: D Bird, J Rees. EBBW VALE: Tries: C Lewis, D Haymond; Con: L Dennett
Jones and O’Brien then traded penalties to leave the Wass with a slender lead going into the break.
But an early George Lee try in the second half gave Bedwas a bit of breathing space.
After a good spell of pressure Chay Smith continued his good recent form to haul Newport back into the game. O’Brien’s conversion levelled the score at 22-22 with half an hour to play.
O’Brien’s next penalty seemed enough to give them the victory until referee Alex Thomas handed Bedwas a 79th minute penalty
Jones stepped up to bring the scores level before O’Brien’s late intervention. NEWPORT: Tries: O Davies, H Palmer, C Smith; Cons: M O’Brien (2); Pens: M O’Brien (3) BEDWAS: Tries: M Callow, G Edmunds, G Lee; Cons: S Jones (2); Pens: S Jones (2)