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Mudlark Liam’s a hit, nose to the ground, like a pig in ....dirt!

Tonyrefail 24-10 Cae

Our first visit to Tonyrefail for three years and all parents were delighted, ah, yes, that’s the ground by the bowling rink, ample flat parking for all...Eh, what’s that you say? It’s not that pitch this time? You go up a hill and then take a sharp right....

It was also noted that Lewis was here to watch for the first time this season, we all hoped this wouldn’t bring a change of fortune....hmmm....

First half: Ton 17-0 Cae

After the sunny weather and big wins of our first four matches, a rude awakening was awaiting the team today and it was character building stuff that will stand the boys in good stead for the rest of the season.

The weather was atrocious, it poured down all game and from the kick off the  home pack dominated. To be fair, as well as being big, they were very, very good as well. The opening try came from a faultless opening five minutes, during which they kept it tight and slowly worked the ball forward until going over.

If our boys thought this was just a blip, a repeat scenario five minutes later showed them otherwise and it was 10-0.

We were generally outfoxed by the opposition this half, they played the conditions more intelligently, keeping it tight, whilst whenever we had the ball we knocked it on within seconds yielding possession in our own half to the opposition. One such mistake led to a lovely move from them, finished off with a cracking show and go for a converted try to end the scoring at 17-0.

As the half wore on the boys started to compete as they got to grips with the game and a few fifty/fifty penalty decisions at the breakdown went against them.

Credit where it’s due, this was as good a first half performance as you will see from an opposition side this season, if it wasn’t for a desperate last ditch tackle  by little Ry it would have been a bigger score.

Second half  Ton 24 - 10 Cae

If there is one thing we do know about these green clad warriors of ours, it’s this, you might knock them down but you won’t keep them on the floor.

Up against the severest of odds and at a time when you might have expected heads to drop, they fought back in a way that should make them and all parents proud.

Tom, as fly half, won’t have a more difficult day than this all season, he didn’t get the ball all game without being flattened by a thunderous tackle within seconds, but took it  all without complaining and kept battling.

This wasn’t a day for the backs to excel though, it was a game for the mud lovers...

Suddenly we started to win turnovers and with possession denied them Ton began to slow down.
Bang! Charlie explodes! With that trademark hand off, he is away and runs half the pitch to score, I’m not sure JPR in his pomp would have enjoyed being last man and confronted by a rampaging Charlie..

Ton as expected come straight back at us, decision after decision goes against us and they are inches away from the line...a tackled is made and Liam is in like Flynn and over the ball, yes, a loud blast on the whistle, their lad is holding on....but no, the ref has seen an earlier indiscretion and it goes their way.  From the pen, they score.

The game is even now and we are giving as good as we get, Liam is again first to the breakdown and all over the ball like butter on toast, he can’t be moved and we get a penalty, which is taken quickly and Charlie again gallops away to score and round off today’s proceedings. 

Man of the Match 

Was Liam for a tenacious non stop effort, scrapping, spoiling and battling for the entire game as if he was Peter Reid circa 1985.
When asked what he put his fine performance down to, he replied “it’s my Dad, my Brilliant Dad, it’s all down to him!”  When I released him from the headlock he mumbled something else but it wasn’t worth writing down....

I wouldn’t miss our next game, be good to see how the boys respond, onwards and upwards...