Brecon RFC

63 The Watton
Brecon
Powys
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SWALEC WRU National League Division 3 South East Wednesday 23rd April 2011

Taffs Well 15 - Brecon 38

While the survival of Brecon in Division 3 is now not in question it was important for morale that Brecon ended their run of six consecutive defeats. With a visit to relegation bound Taffs Well the opportunity was there and Brecon took it with a bonus point victory.

It was still not all plain sailing but in general the pre match objectives were achieved. Caretaker coach Chris Yates emphasised that point in his summing up although he also acknowledged that there were still issues that need to be addressed. “We set out to achieve an emphatic win and that goal was achieved. Our play particularly in the last twenty minutes was very pleasing but we have to look at the number of errors that we made. At one stage we kept Taffs Well in the game when we should have blown them away. However, this is a positive result and a genuine move in the right direction.” This honest assessment was endorsed by all of Brecon’s loyal support.

Brecon started the game brightly and on the front foot. Again the young front row of Ryan Harris, Jake Powell Thomas and Miles Davies acquitted themselves very well against a much bulkier opposition trio. With a relatively stable scrum the back row of Tom Daley, Ewan Williams and Gethin Meredith were able to operate off the front foot and they were hugely influential in the match.

Tom Daley in fact opened the scoring after a period of concerted pressure near the home line. Running a quick tap penalty he brushed aside the defence to score under the posts. Full back Gari Davies had the simplest of conversions.

It wasn’t long before the lead was extended. This time Ewan Williams was the creator with a strong run. Prop Miles Davies popped up in support and his power took him over the line. Gari Davies again converted.

Much against the run of play, Taffs Well cut the deficit with an excellent try of their own. Eurin Morgan put in a superb tackle to prevent a try down the left flank but Brecon were penalised at the breakdown. Taffs Well opted for a kick to touch and claimed a line out in the visitors 22. Initially they attempted a drive but the counter drive was impressive and they switched the play to the back line. A flowing move using the full width of the pitch created an overlap and the right wing scored in the corner.

What happened next can only be described as a comedy of errors. Brecon returned to the attack and won a penalty. The penalty attempt just failed and the Brecon team turned their backs as they anticipated a minor. Instead Taffs Well ran the ball out from behind their own line. Brecon were caught napping but even then the cover should have been good enough to prevent any further damage. Instead tackles were missed and the Taffs Well flanker eventually scored under the posts. With the conversion Taffs Well were now only two points behind and clearly buoyed up by their success.

Thankfully Brecon restored their two score advantage almost directly from the kick off. Ewan Williams caught the ball brilliantly and his charge drew the defence wide out on the right. With quick ball play was moved to the wide left where Tom Daley put Gari Davies away for a score in the corner. He converted his own score with a brilliant touchline kick.

The second half started in disappointing fashion as Taffs Well again cut the lead with a penalty. From this point on Brecon seemed to realise that it was their own failings that allowed Taffs Well to remain in touch. By cutting down on their errors and by being more prepared to move the ball away from the breakdown they took complete control of the scoring and the match.

Ewan Williams again broke in midfield and set up the position for Eurin Morgan to score. Ewan then scored himself when another tap penalty led to the fifth try. Gari Davies just failed with both conversions, striking the posts twice.

The best was saved for last. A searing break by Eurin Morgan spilt the home defence and as the cover reached him at full pace he delivered a try scoring pass to supporting Ewan Williams. This time Gari Davies was successful with his conversion and the players celebrated a well deserved and comprehensive victory.