Brecon RFC
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Brecon Under 11
SUNDAY 28th February 2010
Brecon RFC 64 - Abercynon 14
The recent return to action following the Mid Winter blues of the poor weather saw the Under 11s welcome their counterparts from the Abercynon club, one of the historically stronger clubs in the old Mid District region.
The teams had met earlier in the season at the top of the Cynon Valley with the visiting Brecon team running out victors by 12 points to nil. The coaches, Paul, Alan and Ernie were therefore keen that the team prepare themselves properly, and focus on the job in hand. Notwithstanding Ben Amphlett's sartorial elegance, it was clear that the team were very much raring to go and they took to the field with a real intent.
This was highlighted by the fact that the very first kick of the game was gathered well by Iwan Parry who fed Dafydd Edwards in his 22. The ball was immediately run back and Dafydd crossed after 20 seconds to register the game's first point. This set the home team very much on the front foot, and the second try soon followed as David Berrow showed great power and determination as he drove through the heart of the Abercynon defence to score.
The team then settled in to a powerful and fluid rhythm of play, with the forwards rucking and mauling well, and the backs showing great verve and adventure in their running and handling. This excellent level of play was rewarded with further first half scores for Gus Maughan, and Jon Davies (2) with the half time whistle seeing the home team leading 33-7.
The coaches asked for more of the same, and it was difficult to find fault with any aspects of the team's performance. Abercynon ran the ball back in a spirited fashion at Brecon, but the defence was very aggressive, with great pressure being put on the visitors. This was highlighted by one crunching hit from Morgan Davies on his opposite number!
The visitors came with a big pack of forwards, but this perceived strength was nullified by the strong driving play of Rowan Starkey and David Berrow. Additionally, the visitors kept the ball off the floor and this resulted in a number of mauls taking pace through the game. Harry Preece, Rhys Evans, and Ben Amphlett were outstanding in the ripping of the ball, and when it came to Brecon having the ball, they returned to the fast rucking game favoured by the coaches, and secured a high percentage of possession for the backs to cut loose.
Gareth Price showed great adventure at fly half, and marshalled his backs well. They showed a huge willingness to run the ball at the opposition at every opportunity, and Gus Maughan, Sammy Hellard, and Iwan Parry all showed great flair. Iwan also fielded the loose kicks from full back and returned the ball with interest every time. Additionally, Jack and Rhodri Powell-Jones played key roles in this attacking game, and Rhodri has developed the London bus approach to scoring tries - wait for one and then they all come - having now scored three times in the last two games.
Brecon's high tempo style of play brought a further flurry of second half points, with tries being registered by Dafydd and Gareth (2), in addition to the those scored by Rhodri as mentioned above (2). Conversions were added by Ben and Jon, and the final score showed Brecon as being convincing 64-14 winners.
In addition to the positive aspects mentioned above, scrum half Ben Amphlett had possibly his best game for the team, his competitive nature seeing him playing as a very effective extra back row forward. Coach Paul Amphlett also mentioned Dafydd Edwards in despatches, with Dafs adding a tackling zeal to his usual running game.
All the players performed brilliantly, and the team is growing in confidence and composure with every game. As the season moves towards the "business end" with tournaments and cup games coming up, it is important that this level of confidence is maintained, and that the team continues to play with great enjoyment.
With players to come back after injury and illness ( Llew and Tom) there is real competition for places in the squad, and this bodes well for the run-in to the end of the season.
WELL DONE AGAIN!! KEEP PLAYING!! ENJOY!!
PS Good luck to Llewelyn Stephens as he takes part in the trials for the East Wales Under 11s in the near future!
Match Reports U11 2009