Penybanc fielded a young side, many of whom will still be eligible for Youth rugby next season and did what no previous Tigers side has done in recording a victory over the Warriors.
Despite very poor conditions, both sides were keen to get a game on and the enthusiasm kept up to the final whistle in what was a fine contest, especially considering the conditions. Both sides looked to run the ball with some neat skills on show.

After early jostling Penybanc scored the opening try, Jac Benger and Ryan Pengram combined well all match and carved the space for the 1st try. Heulyn Evans and Finn Quick also put themselves about early on as the Warriors had to hang on. The Llanelli side showed their mettle with Gwilym Lewis putting in a big hit on Richard Thomas whilst Tony Whittaker and Ivan Albrightson also did well. For the Tigers though, it wasn't just the youngsters like Dan Slattery but old heads like Cellan Harris and Mathew Rees guiding the way. Their main strike weapon certainly won't be playing youth rugby next year; veteran Terry Northam sliding over for two tries.
The Warriors changed tactics and used their big runners to make holes, Will Browne and Mark Lewis paving the way for Captain Dai Haines to charge over and open the Warriors account.

The sides both scored early in the 2nd half, with Warrior Gareth Ladd capping a fine game but the Tigers still held the upper hand with Alex Phillips standing out. Joshua Morris helped make another score to keep them clear.
The hard work of Tom Edwards and Andrew Evans helped the Warriors go forward though and they finished strongly. Man of the Match Simon Day managed to force his way over despite good defense from Shaun Watkins as the game entered the final quarter.
The Warriors had the last word, John Horwood and Lee Rowlands showed up well, Rich Evans helped win yet another ruck and there was just enough room for Nathan Murphy to cap another fine game with a try at the death.

The match was a credit to the two clubs. Penybanc showed the basis for a good youth side next season and made a donation to the Warriors tour. Penybanc will be hoping for a similar result in the derby with Betws next week whilst the Warriors next match will be on March 18th in Burry Port.

Penybanc (inc) Jac Benger, Sam Benger, Ryan Pegram, Heulyn Evans, Finn Quick, Dan Slattery, Alex Philips, Joshua Morris, Shaun Watkins, Cellan Harris, Richard Thomas, Mathew Rees, Terry Northam.

Warriors: Ivan Albrightson, Tony Whittaker, Lee Rowlands, Tom Edwards, Simon Day, Nathan Murphy, Gwilym Lewis, Dai Haines (Cpt), Richard Evans, Will Browne, John Horwood, Andrew Davies, Mark Lewis, Gareth Ladd.
non changing subs (cos it was too wett!!!) Huw Jenkins, Richard Llewelyn.
Changed but didn't get to the field before the final whistle: Dion Mitchell-Lewis

Warriors tries: Day, Murphy, Ladd, Haines. Man of the Match: Simon Day

Thankfully the pitch was half decent and we managed to get a game on, thanks to the ref and the enthusiasm of the players. Although he had man of the match, Simon Day spent the 1st part of the game worrying about getting dirty, especially his shoes but even he was ahead of Flash and Rich Llew who wouldn't even get changed. The game really was of a decent standard with some good skills. It was also very enjoyable with both sides playing in the correct spirit. Dai Haines made a try scoring comeback alongside Tony Whittaker who has battled back from an ingrowing toenail that has kept him out for the 1st half of the season. Lee Rowlands made his 180th appearance in the club's 260th fixture.

Afterwards it was back to the clubhouse and Wales v Scotland, which was quite fun for about 40 minutes. Anyway, Hapus and Dean cleaned up on the score sweep, Bambi gave Ian Lloyd the low down on Luke Charteris while Terry Bach and Jason 2 Guns bonded over penalty celebrations. Nice to see the basis for another youth team in the Valley and their initiations were quite entertaining.

There wasn't time to get the match program printed up but you can have a look/download it here: http://www.pitchero.com/clubs/llanelliwarriorsrfc/d/documents.html?group_id=2408