Fixture

With the Taff’s Well pitch deemed unfit to play, it was left to Kelvin Shorte and Llanishen rugby club to save the day when the Cardiff club offered to be 'Taff’s Well for a day' as the ‘home’ side hosted Nantymoel who were bolstered by a number of permit players from other sides who are used to playing at a much higher level. Having already beaten the visitors early in the season, Taff’s Well were to encounter an altogether different side who were intent on a very physical confrontation leading to several outbreaks of disagreement between the players during the game but it all made for a compelling match which in many ways could be a watershed match for the girls as they continue to learn the finer arts of the game.

The opening minutes saw Taff’s Well apply early pressure with a series of penalties taking them towards the Nantymoel line but all too often, they were undone by a series of transgressions which enabled the visitors to clear their lines. As Nantymoel collected their thoughts and worked themselves upfield, it took a mighty collective rearguard action to keep them at bay typified by a great tackle by centre Lauren Hughes on her opposite number. With the visitors starting to test and tease, full-back Keri Tucker was rock-solid as she caught a number of high balls and ran out of defence with an assurance that JPR Williams would have been proud of.

As Nantymoel started to ramp up more pressure, they were to win a scrum against the head in the Taff’s Well half for scrum-half Natasha Lockyear to find left-wing Kerry Maddison who raced over for a well-worked try to open the scoring. There was to be more bad news for the home side as series of missed tackles out wide led to the softest of tries as Nantymoel full-back Laura Warren made the most of her opportunity to race 40m and score under the posts for outside-half Jordie Rees to convert to take the score to 12-0 which was no way a reflection of the way the Taff’s Well girls had been applying themselves throughout the first half – tons of effort but maybe a touch of nativity in critical moments which meant that the home side were to trail by 12 points at the half-way stage.

                    Half-time score:  Taff’s Well Ladies 0 v 12 Nantymoel Ladies

                                                          Second-half

As the niggle started to creep in, coaches Craig Field and John Davies decided to bring on Georgia Teuma and Georgia Fricker who were to add more steel to the proceedings but not before Nantymoel had added another try through outside-half Rees to stretch the score to 17-0 much to the frustration of the home crowd as Taff’s Well were now on the end of an uphill struggle, much of their own making. From this point on, the home side were to fight fire with fire with a series of crunching tackles and aggressive clearing out at the breakdown led by No8 Kayleigh Cushion which ultimately led to a Nantymoel knock-on and a scrum on the visitors 22. From a neat break by outside-half Katrin Davies, Taff’s Well won another scrum and thanks to a great surge forward to put them on the front foot; the forwards were now able to put a series of impressive pick and goes to create space out wide for pacey winger Kirsten Hicks to score a fine team try to get just reward for their efforts.

Buoyed by their success, the pack stepped up a gear which was to cause several face-to-face encounters as the girls not only stood their ground but started to get on top. With more quality possession starting to flow, the backs started to get some good movement together as they passed through the hands but the result could have been so different if runners had looked outside at critical moments to put away players in better positions than themselves rather than take the ball into contact, a point not lost on the coaches.  After sustained pressure, Taff’s Well were awarded a penalty which was quickly tapped to take play into the visitors 22 but as Nantymoel were penalised another 10m for not retiring, another quick tap enabled the ball to be fed to centre Lauren Hughes for her to  cross the whitewash for another well worked try to bring Taff’s Well right back in the game. With minutes remaining and the home side well and truly on top, Nantymoel were asked plenty of questions but were able to man the pumps and hold out until the whistle with a 17-10 win they just about deserved because they made the right decisions at the right time and built a lead which was always going to be difficult to overturn.

                  Final score:  Taff’s Well Ladies XV 10 V 17 Nantymoel Ladies XV

The Verdict

This was a rather bad tempered affair as the Nantymoel pack set out to intimidate Taff’s Well with one or two nefarious tactics but this pack is growing in stature every game and to be fair, they have stood the test against every side they have played against this season and managed to finish the game on top. Nantymoel to their credit, looked a much improved side from the earlier encounter bolstered by several permit players who managed to have influence when it mattered and there can be no complaints about the loss as they took advantage of every opportunity they were presented with.

As I mentioned earlier, this could be a watershed game as the girls are realising that they can compete against much more experienced players and once they gain the benefit of playing regularly together for a season and coming to terms with some of the basic tenets of the game, they will become stronger and stronger as it’s plain to see that they’re improving game by game. Outside-half Katrin Davies again showed much promise with full-back Keri Tucker providing a touch of class at the back but the backs need to be far more aware of players who are in better positions outside them and if they can improve on their spatial awareness and off-loading game, they have plenty of runners who can cause damage out wide and they will become more and more of a force to be reckoned with.

Props Jamie Knight and Ruth Wilding are maturing as the season progresses and are getting through some serious shifts in the loose in a pack which was augmented by the efforts of No 8 Kayleigh Cushion who was the pillar of the pack and my ‘Man-of-the-Match’. This was a match that could have been won but for the lack of early concentration and a clock that could have done with a few more minutes being added on to it. Don't forget to check out the superb pictures taken by Chris Edwards at the match, just follow the link.

# A special thanks to all the guys at Llanishen RFC for stepping in at the last moment with the pitch, clubhouse and use of the kitchen, sincere thanks from all the girls, you saved the day!

                                     Press here for match picture gallery

Dave Beese     davecbwales@gmail.com

Match report:  Treherbert 1st XV 3 v 10 Taff's Well 1st XV  - WRU Bowl 5th Round

Match report:  Pontyclun 2nd XV 7 v 15 Taff's Well 2nd XV 

Match report:  Taff's Well Youth XV 50 v 7 Dinas Powys XV

This week's fixtures:

Sat 21/1/17

Taff's Well 1st XV v Pentyrch 1st XV - (League) The local derby, don't miss it!

KO 2.30pm

Sat 21/1/17 

Old Penarthians 2nd XV v Taff's Well 2nd XV (League)

KO 2.30pm

Sun 22/1/17 

Morriston Ladies XV v Taff's Well Ladies XV (League)

KO 2.30pm