Penallta welcomed Cwmgors RFC to Trinity Fields for what turned out to be a glorious day for rugby, with the sun shining and a healthy following from both sides, this all contributed to an entertaining game of rugby from both sets of youngsters . As Cwmgors will be attending the Leicester Tigers rugby tournament in May Dean arranged this fixture which gave both sides a chance to play the RFU U11 rules which differ slightly to our WRU Pathway with mauling, full ruck laws, competitive scrums and lineouts all part of the game at U11 across the bridge.

So with the scene set Cwmgors kicked off the game and from the start the Penallta youngsters showed their intent with some free flowing rugby with ball going through the hands which is something we have worked hard on over the last couple of weeks. The early encounters were tight between the two sets of forwards with Cwmgors showing they had come to make a game of it. As the half went on Cwmgors were gaining the upper hand in the set pieces at line out and scrum time but the Penallta defence stood strong and kept the visitors at bay. Penallta did gain advantage in the loose with some good driving maul play and effective rucking which gave the backline a good platform to work from. Penallta’s first half tries came from Matthew Howells (2), who again showed off his side step and Kieran O’Leary who after receiving the ball from across the backline showed his pace and sense of the try line to cross for his first score. All tries were converted by Lewis Stevens.

The second half allowed Penallta to make some changes throughout the team to allow all players to take part in the game, following a quick half time coaching session in scrumaging the Penallta pack started to compete at the set piece which complimented the efforts in the loose. With Penallta enjoying plenty of possession this resulted in a further try for Matthew and another cracking solo effort from Kieran. Not to be outdone Josh Williams put himself on the scoreboard in his normal abrasive barnstorming way and rounded off a momentous display which earned him the Man of the Match award, not only was he a real nuisance with ball in hand but his defence around the field more than matched his attacking prowess, a massive effort!! (Even though he did miss one tackle!) Once again dead eye Lewis converted all tries

I think everybody would agree Josh's partner in crime in the Second Row, Jordan Stokes, pushed him hard for the MoM award with another marauding display around the field, both in attack and defence, the pair seemed to click and brought some beef to the pack in both the set piece and the loose. Jordan also captained the side today and once again showed maturity before, during and after the game which all helps to the team ethos the coaches are looking to build throughout the team.
All in all this was a good entertaining game played in the right spirit, and all players who took the field were a credit to the side. It was good to see Elliott back after his appendix operation; and the new additions to the squad are also starting to gel which all stands us in good stead for the 15 aside game next year. Well Done ALL; keep it up!!

We would like to thank Cwmgors for travelling down to play us; the game was played in a fantastic spirit and was well refereed by their coach (as our Ref forgot his Zimmer!) The visiting boys, coaches and parents made it an entertaining afternoon of rugby which was followed by a few beers in the glorious sunshine, now that’s what rugby is all about. We wish them well for the rest of the season and look forward to playing them in the final of the Butlins tournament, and off course, followed by a few round of refreshments of the alcoholic type!