Fixture

Saturday November 16^th

Maesteg Quins 23 – 20 Ystrad Rhondda

Specsavers-WRU Championship

Sitting in seventh spot with sixteen points, Maesteg Quins entertained last season’s runners-up Ystrad Rhondda. Peculiarly the Blues had gathered just five points from their six fixtures so far this season. Those five points all came in the opening game of the season against newly promoted Ystalyfera. Since then Ystrad had not taken anything from their matches and only ‘Fera sat below them in the table.

Members of the ‘Blue Army’ were keen to point out their club had not lost many players in the close season. They highlighted three of those fixtures were against Pontypool, Narberth and a full strength Neath. Yet neither could they fathom the defeats to Tata Steel or Trebanos. Their fanatic following could only attribute the list of losses to a lack of confidence.

Quins knew whatever had happened in the previous two and a half months had no bearing on this encounter and prepared for what was to happen in the next eighty minutes. A vital eighty minutes in regard to the entire season, even at the eight matches mark.

It has been a good start to the campaign for the coal black and blood reds, winning four of their previous seven matches. In their inaugural Championship season, Quins’ three match winning streak was the longest they had accumulated. This was a chance to break a personal best and make it four victories on the trot. This was certainly a case of make hay today, because Ystrad will not be in the doldrums for ever. It is a matter of ‘when’ not ‘if’.

Early unenforced errors disrupted Quins’ momentum. It appeared Ystrad were struggling to cope with the Quins' scrum and a set-piece penalty allowed Tadgh McGuckin to kick a forty yards goal.

On twenty minutes Ystrad of old reappeared. Created by fly-half Greening’s well timed pass, visiting centre Davies cut open the Quins defence with an angled run. It looked as though the Blues would score the game’s opening try only for a last ditch tackle and steal from Keiron Watkins to defy the attack. Sadly, Watkins added some unnecessary physicality to the event. Not only did he gift three points to his opponents, he was shown yellow. Rhys Truelove levelled the scoring.

As can happen, the team shorn of personnel redouble their efforts. Despite the presence of Williams at hooker and the potent Foukes at loose-head for Ystrad, Lewis Francis and Ronan to the power of two were having a rare old time, with the scrum becoming a rich source of gaining ground and points.

Cameron Jones proved such a livewire, it was advisable to wear rubber soles when in his presence. He zipped off when a scrum penalty was awarded on half way. In the visiting twenty-five he was felled by a high tackle and McGuckin belted the angled kick over.

McGuckin received the ball in attack and cleverly cut-back inside to put Lee Ronan through a gap just inside the twenty-five. It looked as though the Quins centre was going over, but a transfer to Jones allowed the scrum-half to romp home untouched and McGuckin converted.

Next came an exhibition of how to run onto the ball and dissect a defence from broken play. A Quins clearance lacked direction. Running onto the ball at pace and giving perfectly timed passes, allowed Jarrod Llewellyn to run up the wing before changing angle and whizz under the posts. Trulove converted.

Ystrad nearly took the lead. Gathering a loose ball, it was instantly cross-kicked left into wide open spaces. Jarrod Llewellyn again roared on to the perfect bounce to gather and seemed on his way over. From nowhere, the recently returned Watkins lassoed the left-wing’s legs, preventing what seemed an inevitable score. When Rhondda were penalised ten yards from the Quins line, the emergency as well as the half was over.

It seemed the Rhonddaites were gaining the upper hand. The Blue Army felt their team’s season was going to be resurrected here and now. Behind the pack they played with a little more accuracy. Realising they had to get the ball down to the other side of the field as quickly as possible, they made a better fist of getting to and playing in the right areas of the field. True enough, Truelove was given another opportunity to level the scores for a line-out indiscretion and he took it.

This parity was short lived when a Lee Ronan carry was terminated by another high tackle. McGuckin’s penalty put the Quins back ahead.

Another feature of this match was the wonderful execution of the choke tackle. This usually occurred when first at the scene were two or more of the following: Lee and Jay Ronan, Steve Williams, Tutt and Healy to work in tandem.

Despite a strong scrummage, control was lacking and the Blues stole the ball on half-way to move close to the Quins try-line. Sensing blood, Ystrad booted to touch. Another feature was the near unblemished success rate of the Quins line-out, while sometimes self-inflicted, sometimes a result of top defensive work from the hosts, the visitors were less effective.

The line-out was lost, but the clearance did not go dead. Moving the ball to the extreme right hand touch-line, Rhondda then slickly sailed the ball wide left where they had arranged a mismatch of Don King proportions. Full-back Dunning exploited this, rounding his opponent and scoring in the corner. Truelove converted and the Quins trailed for the first time.

Just over ten minutes remained and the Quins trailed 16-20. Enduring an extended hiatus in attacking potency and points scoring, at this juncture the result of the match was only going one way. Quins had to shake themselves from this stagnating torpor.

Dunning booted a carry back straight to touch, putting the hosts deep in the Ystrad twenty-five. Pushed backwards to half-way Quins were awarded a penalty that dropped short. Dunning’s clearance was belted up-field, but drifted infield while aloft.

With the match in the balance and even at this early stage a season, make no mistake, the Quins were looking down a barrel. A year ago in this very fixture Kieron Watkins fluffed his lines and knocked-on a perfect pass with the line at his mercy.

This time he gathered on his own ten yards and looked at what was in front of him. For all intents and purposes from sixty yards out; it looked like the traditional gather, gallop and Garryowen. Spying a space between two follow up players, he sped through it. 

Next a trio of tacklers were evaded by switching direction from a forty-five degree angle infield to an oblique tilt back towards the fifteen yards line. Bruno Tonioli would have gushed at the full-back’s fabulously fast Fandango feet that allowed him to side-step two more defenders. With an inward zig and an outward zag he left them glued to the spot. 

The skill element of the one man assault was over, now determination came to the fore. Inside the twenty-five the Quins full-back pinned back his ears and made the line. Despite the superb skill on show, a score had not yet been made. With the crowd roaring their approval, three more covering defenders moved into the strike zone increasing the trepidation. Would Watkins go himself or pass? Would the pass be taken? Would the moment of magic come to nothing with a well-timed tackle and a scoring opportunity dissolve?

As fanatical fervour raised the decibel level to ear-splitting intensity and pushed Watkins on, he powered through the first tackle with another outward angle change and swat away. Quins’ full-back then clutched the ball firmly to his chest and took on the next two tacklers. Pumping piston legs saw Watkins power through and take the final duo over the try-line with him, closely followed by a mobbing from all his team mates.

This singular act of individual brilliance transformed the mood. McGuckin extended the lead to three with his conversion and as if to honour this fantastic score, Quins defensive efforts were trebled. Any act of ill-discipline would offer Ystrad a score-levelling or match winning score. Although tackles flew in and turnovers were aplenty, the breakdown was highly disciplined and tightly marshalled by referee Gwyn Morris. 

The Rhonddaites’ accuracy deserted them as they manfully tried to run possession and eclipse the Quins. The hosts held out by winding down the clock and secure that personal best fourth consecutive win which is a great achievement.  A win that moved them to sixth in the table. It would be fantastic to make it five.

Next Saturday sees Quins visit Pontypool!