Bargoed 24-11 Swansea
Saturday April 16, Bargoed
Bargoed maintained their promotion bid with a magnificent bonus point win over Swansea at Bargoed Park on Saturday, April 16.
The victory sees the Blues retain their fourth place, four points clear of RGC who have to travel to third placed Pontypool next weekend with Bargoed away to Tata Steel. Both sides have three games left, and although Bargoed are well placed, it could well go down to the wire.
The Blues were dominant from the outset and despite playing against a stiff breeze, spent much of the first 20 minutes camped in the opposition half.
The first try came after just six minutes, when Calum Jones put a penalty into the Swansea 22 metre area, and clean line out ball gave the home forwards a platform to drive at the heart of the Whites’ defence.
The ball was held up under the posts and the defenders were sucked in before the ball was moved wide for second-row Grant Rogers to cross from short range. Calum Jones converted.
Josh Flye hit back almost immediately for Swansea with a penalty to make it 7-3 after eight minutes.
Bargoed continued to press, and should have gone further ahead when number-eight Lewis Weyman burst through the Swansea defence and offloaded to Lewis Protheroe, who was unlucky to knock the ball on.
It looked like it was going to be one of those days when Leigh Meades put James Pizey through only to be denied by another knock-on.
But Bargoed stuck to the task, and they were rewarded on 25 minutes with a confident break by outside-half Calum Jones, who found Ashley Norton on his outside. The winger had a lot to do, but outpaced his opposite number and forced his way over in the corner. Jones’ conversion drifted wide.
Swansea seemed content to play a limited territorial game and it paid off with another Josh Flye penalty just before half time to make it 12-6 at the break.
Bargoed began the second-half where they left off.
The Bargoed pack continued to dominate in the scrum and although the Whites got the ball back, number-eight Steff Jones was scragged by James Pizey and Bargoed were awarded the scrum.
The ball went wide, Swansea infringed and with the referee playing advantage, hooker Ian Jenkins burst through a gap and unselfishly passed to prop Kieron Brown to register the third try.
Jones converted from the touchline to make it a deserved 19-6 with eight minutes of the second-half gone.
The bonus point try came from a lineout just inside the Swansea half. Darren Lynch took clean ball off the top and Pizey broke with Calum Jones in support. The outside-half made 30 metres, took a tackle and quickly recycled ball saw Ashley Norton score his second try of the afternoon.
A rare defensive mistake by full-back Lewis Hudd saw the Swansea backs seize on a ball lost forward and his opposite number Phil Jones crossed for the visitors. Flye’s conversion went wide and Bargoed remained comfortably in front at 24-11 with 15 minutes left.
Both sides emptied the benches and the closing stages were controlled well by Bargoed outside-half Calum Jones pinning the Whites back and well worth their bonus point victory.
• Match report by Peter Greening of Bargoed RFC.