Fixture

New Panteg 33 West Mon 5

With weather conditions awful in the lead up to the game both teams were relieved when the referee gave the green light to play, as were the hardy souls who had been forking and sanding the pitch in the hours leading up to the match. Our very near neighbours West Mon made the shortest of journeys lying in a very respectable fourth place and hoping to dampen New Panteg’s promotion push. Proceedings did not start well as Panteg lost talisman and centre Natthaphong in the warm up and a hasty reshuffle was necessary with the experienced Seabourne stepping up to the mark. Despite this setback Panteg were domineering in the opening exchanges despite the conditions and West Mon were defending for their lives. The continuity of play and handling was exceptional as the hosts went through phase after phase, stretching their opponent’s defensive line to its limit. With the visitors unable to get their hands on the ball centre Lloyd Reader finished off what was the best team score in many a year as almost every player handled at least once during an extended passage of play from deep inside the Panteg half. Reader left the field shortly after this with a knee injury to further weaken the centre channel but Panteg now have serious strength in depth and bringing on replacements made no difference to the superiority.  This start visibly rattled West Mon as they continued to struggle for any quality possession and on the next attack New Panteg extended their lead further. Robust phase play was again the catalyst for the next score as inspirational number 8 Curtis Griffiths was the beneficiary of huge holes in the defence to crash over. A hugely one-sided encounter in the first period saw the returning Gwatkin dummy over for a third try before centre Collins scored his customary try using exceptional pace and strength to cross for the bonus point score before the interval.

The weather conditions worsened considerably in the second period and the error count was rising on both sides but Silver standing in at scrum half was a continual bundle of energy around the set piece. With the game degenerating as a spectacle it took a moment of brilliance to relight the crowd’s enthusiasm and prop Jordan Kennedy supplied that with a sublime score. After taking the ball at first receiver it was expected that he would pass to the pace outside, however a dummy and a thirty metre scamper saw him cross under the posts. Gwatkin added the conversion with ease as he did with a further three kicks to add to his already impressive points tally. There were times when West Mon would have given up and rolled over but this current squad of players are coached to a much higher standard and they had the honour of scoring the game’s final try from a close range lineout.

Considering the conditions under foot New Panteg will be delighted with their game management against a bigger set of forwards. The front row of Gibbons, Warren and Kennedy together with second rowers Bailey and Smith ground their opposite numbers down until there was dominance at the end of the match. Felton on the flank continues to perform at a level which inspires those around him and fellow back rower Hamer was defensively sound all afternoon. Out wide there was little opportunity for the speedsters Hinwood, Bury and Seabourne but their handling was exemplary when called upon. With such a high level of performance it was difficult to give the Man of Steel award to any individual and because of this the coaches could not decide between two of the back rowers. Felton and Griffiths shared the award as the former showed great hands and speed and was a fabulous link between backs and forwards and the latter was immense with ball in hand constantly scattering would be defenders with his appetite to carry.

New Panteg maintained their position of strength at the top of the table but are under no illusions that they will have to continue this level of performance and winning ways if promotion is to become a reality.