Llangwm 22 Narberth 17

Venue: Pill Parks
Referee: Dave Byrne

Llangwm Youth ended a run of defeats with a hard-fought victory over Narberth thanks to a display of true courage, grit and determination but not before Narberth had thrown everything at them in a gripping match, which was in the balance right up until the final whistle, writes Jonathan Willington.
 
For those of us old enough, flip back 40 years to a classic Pembrokeshire League encounter between the Wasps and the Otters. Wind, rain and mud aplenty, two old rivals hammering away at each other, scrums and lineouts aplenty, little in the way of wide play and two sets of passionate supporters roaring on their players. That was this game in a nutshell and those supporters rightly applauded as 40-odd mud-splattered young men left the field exchanging handshakes and smiles after literally giving their all in a game played in a fantastic spirit.
 

Llangwm gain early ascendency

 
Llangwm came out of the traps with real intent and went ahead after only two minutes, skipper and prop forward Kieran Sinclair barging his way over from close range. Narberth conceded a succession of penalties with Llangwm showing good control to go through numerous phases to set up the score, fly-half Oscar Willington converting for a 7-0 lead.
 
Narberth looked to hit straight back setting up good field position and hammering away at the try line. Strong carries from No.8 Callum White and hooker Charlie Reynolds put them within range but resolute defence from Llangwm saw Narberth concede a penalty allowing Llangwm to clear their lines.
 
After 12 minutes Willington kicked his team to within five metres of the Narberth try line with good lineout ball from second-row Tom Jenkins setting up a series of forward drives. Once again good phase play and ball retention, a real feature of the game from both teams, saw the Narberth defence become narrow. Scrum-half Osian Sutton fed Willington who stepped outside his marker and threw a long pass to winger Sonny Zipperlen, who found himself outside the last defender and he dived over to extend Llangwm’s lead to 12-0. Several minutes later, Willington extended the lead further with a sweetly-struck penalty from 40-metres following a Narberth infringement.
 

Narberth show real resolve to recover

 
If Narberth were somewhat frustrated, they certainly used that frustration to their advantage as they refused to lie down. They moved upfield and second-row Harry Brown, who impressed with an all-action display, secured lineout possession on the Llangwm 22-metre line. White went on a front peel to establish a platform, recycled ball saw Reynolds, who made countless yards throughout with his strong ball-carrying ability, punched a hole and quick ball was popped to Tom Faletau, the second-row forward crashing over to reduce Llangwm’s lead to 15-5.
 
The fifteen minute period before half-time saw both sides show great endeavour in the difficult conditions. Fly-half Tom O’Toole sought to get his back line running as well as using his boot to put the Llangwm back three under pressure. The Narberth pack worked tirelessly and carried effectively setting up a couple of scoring opportunities that went astray. For Llangwm No.8 Jenson Ritchie made an excellent 40-metre break upfield but like their opponents, Llangwm couldn’t apply the finishing touch.
 
But on the stroke of half-time Narberth grabbed a deserved score as their efforts were finally rewarded. They mounted a period of real pressure, forcing Llangwm to concede several penalties. Prop Noah Jenkins and flanker Callum Goeman drove into the heart of the defence and good recycling set up the opportunity to feed Reynolds who saw off the attention of three defenders to score a richly deserved try as reward for his tireless display.
 

Llangwm grab crucial first score of second-half

 
A half-time score of 15-10 reflected what a close contest this was with the next score vitally important and it was Llangwm who grabbed it with their third try eight minutes in. A driving maul went close but from a close-range scrum Ritchie picked up, took the contact and slipped a neat offload to Liam Miller who beat the defenders to dive over, Willington converting to give Llangwm a 22-10 lead.
 
The belief in the Llangwm ranks was visibly growing as they sensed victory was in their grasp. Prop George Nicholls and second-row Dylan O’Loughlin carried hard whilst full-back Iestyn Preddy and replacement winger Josh Owen really stood up, both making several crucial covering tackles. Willington kicked well out of hand whilst centres Miller and Joe Johns were prominent in attack and defence.
 
For Narberth Reynolds was stand out with Brown very prominent. White made lots of hard yards as did Goeman and Jenkins. Dewi Thomas at centre made numerous powerful bursts, which kept the Llangwm defence on red alert. When Narberth shuffled the pack replacement Sid Castree made a big impact with ball in hand, Ashton O’Riordan also looking very assured and dangerous.
 

Narberth claim the final score

 
As the game wore on and conditions worsened Narberth continued to press, needing to reduce the deficit. The final quarter of an hour saw them mount significant pressure on Llangwm but try as they might they failed to convert this into points. However, with what turned out to be the final move of the game Narberth established a good position midfield with the ball landing in the hands of Castree who fought off several defenders to reach the line, O’Riordan converting to close out the game.
 
It really was a Pembrokeshire classic and whilst it isn’t possible to name every player in this report, all of the 43 players involved deserve huge credit for serving up such an exciting and enjoyable game in tough conditions. These two sides are next due to meet in the Youth Cup semi-final in what promises to be another pulsating encounter.
 
Llangwm: George Nicholls, Seth Hughes, Kieran Sinclair, Tom Jenkins, Dylan O’Loughlin, Alfie Elrick, Finn Phillips, Jenson Ritchie, Osian Sutton, Oscar Willington, Kieran Lewis, Joe Johns, Liam Miller, Sonny Zipperlen, Iestyn Preddy.
Replacements: Isaac Hitchings, Riley Thomas, Jack Phillips, Josh Owen, William Harries.
 
Narberth: Noah Jenkins, Charlie Reynolds, Jack Monk, Harry Brown, Tom Faletau, James Owen, Callum Goeman, Callum White, Gethin Llewellyn, Tom O’Toole, Archie Griffiths, Dewi Thomas, Owen Wooff, Morgan Bethel, Dan Coaker.
Replacements: James Thomas, Morgan Crow, Sid Castree, Jake Levitt, Tyla Beeken, Ellis Phillips, Sam Morris, Ashton O’Riordan.