Brecon RFC

63 The Watton
Brecon
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Tel: 01874 624848
Fax: 01874 611719
contact@breconrfc.co.uk

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SWALEC WRU Plate Round 3 Saturday 24th January 2009

Treherbert 14 - Brecon 12

Brecon dropped out of the SWALEC WRU Plate Competition after a disappointing performance at Treherbert. Although the game was very close and Brecon won the try count by two to one, this was a game that they should have won. Although Treherbert are a Division 2 side they have been struggling this season and Brecon certainly travelled to the Upper Rhondda with the belief that this was a game that they could win.

In defeat there were a number of plus points. Young Jack Herring at tight head prop had a very good game and confirmed that Brecon have unearthed a player of great potential. Owen Morgan, another young member of the side, also showed what a potent attacker he is as he scored a great try. He took a neat inside pass from outside half Chris Wilton and then showed great pace and balance as he scorched through a narrow gap, beat the full back and scored wide out. The return of captain Andrew Davies in the second half also showed that he is heading back to full fitness and the team will look forward to him starting a game in the near future.

On the downside Brecon made far too many errors to deserve a win. Threherbert is never an easy venue but when Brecon turned round at half time with a 12 points to 11 lead and had the advantage of a gusting wind they should have been able to close the match out. Too frequently they failed to gain territory in the opponents half by kicking downfield, preferring to run the ball. This was particularly surprising when it was obvious that Threherbert’s replacement full back dropped the ball almost every time it was kicked to him. Then when they did get into a threatening position they dropped the ball or allowed Treherbert to spoil at the ruck and make it difficult for scrum half Rob Price to get the ball away.

A further disappointment for the Brecon contingent was the sight of second row Wyn Davies being helped off the field with a knee injury. Wyn has been outstanding in every match this season and he will be hard to replace.

Almost from the first kick off Brecon found themselves in disarray as the conceded a soft try. A quick tap penalty caught Brecon completely disorganised as the ball was moved wide. Full back R Webster was one of four Threherbert players who could have scored as Brecon’s narrow defence was completely outflanked.

Brecon fought back mainly through effective forward drives. No 8 Owen Davies made ground from a number of scrums and eventually lively flanker Isaac Greer burrowed under the tight defence to score his first try for the club. Gari Davies converted to give Brecon the lead.

The lead was short lived as outside half M. Huckridge, who had a good all round game, kicked an excellent penalty from 45 metres. The lead then swung back to Brecon with Owen Morgan’s outstanding try in the right corner and a wonderful Gari Davies conversion.

Just before half time Brecon gave away another penalty and once again Huckridge made no mistake to narrow the gap.

The second period was disappointing. Brecon failed to gain their expected territorial advantage and large periods of the game were played on or around the half way line. There were flashes of good play. Eurin Morgan made one great counterattacking run and Jack Herring and Wyn Davies exchanged passes to set up a great 40 metre run deep into home territory. Sadly Brecon made too many mistakes to capitalise and their driving game became narrower and narrower. Treherbert countered the threat by concentrating their defence around the fringes and getting bodies in the way while making the most of the referee’s interpretation of the breakdown.

Late in the game, Trehebert were given the one clear scoring opportunity of the half. Huckridge kicked his third penalty to give them a two point winning margin and rob Brecon of a great opportunity of making significant progress in this new competition.