Fixture

Saturday October 19^th 2019

Neath 13 – 31 Maesteg Quins

WRU-Specsavers Championship

Trailing at the break on their first ever visit to the Gnoll, a reinvigorated Quins played wonderfully controlled rugby in the second half to gradually overpower Neath*.

It was a very bright start from the visitors who attacked ‘Clubhouse Corner’ incessantly in the very early stages. A Tadgh McGuckin penalty opened the scoring.

Neath found space and recycled well before levelling through a Luke Griffiths penalty.

Quins’ forwards took slight control and full advantage for a period. Driving mauls, scrums, pick up and drives pinned the Welsh All Blacks deep in their twenty-five. Ebbing ever closer to the Neath line, Nathan Ace dabbed down for the game’s first try. McGuckin converted.

Many among the Neath faithful were baying for yellow cards at almost every moment contact was made. Lewis Francis was the first of many to temporarily leave the field as the referee delivered more cards than Moonpig.

Home No.8 David Griggs wormed over for Griffiths to convert, bringing parity to the score and contest. Both kickers missed some goal shots, but Griffiths gave his team a half-time lead with his second penalty.

It began in nip and tuck fashion in the second half. McGuckin quickly restored equality to the scoreboard. However, when the Neath scrum half saw red as a result of two yellows, life wasn’t quite the same for the hosts. McGuckin converted his third three-pointer to regain the lead for his team.

Neath strove to take control, heaping great pressure on their guest. Quins assembled the barricades and defended stoutly. Not only halting Neath with tenacious tackling, but pushing them down blind alleys.

This period of united defence took the steam out of the hosts. It was especially tough going as they were dropping like skittles with replacements being replaced and poor Scott Williams suffering a double arm fracture.

Quins created space of their own and had overlaps due to fine support running. Lewis Tutt, now operating at centre, used his sevens guile and back-row nous to evade then clamber over the line. McGuckin added the extras.

Normally this would be the point when the Quins let their opponents back into the game to make it a trying final quarter. Not in this match. Within two minutes they were back on the charge. Lee Ronan executed as dainty a chip and re-gather you are ever to see. Keeping up the momentum of the move that had cracked open the Neath defence, the ball went through a number of pairs of hands. Alex Griffiths took the final pass to race the final thirty yards to score.

Try as they might, Neath were repelled time after time. Controlling affairs with an iron grip, Lee Ronan did a fair impression of Tony Soprano. Box kicking and deftly chipping to touch, the hosts were constantly turned, sent distances backwards and eventually unable to break the Quins stranglehold.

Catching Neath beneath the shadow of their own posts, a McGuckin jackal gleaned a penalty which he goaled. Playing out the remaining time, this emphatic win was the result of an excellent whole squad defensive performance and moments of excellent execution. For Neath, it is possibly the most embarrassing reverse in their history. Quins were worth every ounce of their chain-mail tight team win.

The stock phrase, ‘who’d have thought the Quins would…’ is often used. It’s time to marvel at the here and now. Was this result the greatest in the Quins’ history? When Neath are mentioned the mind conjures up many iconic figures of the past. It is certainly the biggest historical scalp the club has taken at a historic Welsh rugby venue and the match will live long, long in the memory. Those who took the field on this day will also feature in many an inexhaustible conversation on the eighty minutes that unfolded. For the faithful followers who had the greatest of pleasure and pride in watching the contest they can say – ‘I was there’.

*It is right, it was Neath