Fixture

Taff’s Well were looking to build on a good win against the previous week’s opponents Llanishen but with the injury list rising still, there was very little for the travelling faithful to shout about as the Quins stuck to their ethos of running rugby.

Poor Kick Costs

The Taff’s Well pack had been scrummaging well over the past few games and even with a more lightweight look to it - the plan would be to lay a foundation up front to counter the dangerous home backs. Unfortunately, the Quins hadn’t read the script and forced Taff’s Well onto the back foot from the off and when a poor clearance kick was fielded, scrum-half Zach Bartlett scampered over for a simple conversion opportunity and a very early lead.

Déjà vu Disaster

If you thought this was a minor aberration, then you would be mistaken as moments later, a replica poor kick out of defence saw the ball ran back through some awful tackling which saw another very soft try and a twelve– nil lead after just eight minutes. There was a fleeting moment of optimism as although a penalty won lineout 5m out was called back for not-straight, the Quins managed to bungle the attempt to clear from the resultant scrum which enabled second-row Daryl Mota to crash over and bring the visitors back into the game.

More Poor Tackling

The Quins were looking to profit from a Taff’s Well defence which looked shaky at best and only a series of knock-ons stopped them from making more capital on the front foot. With the Taff’s Well line under pressure, the ball was worked to full-back Ronan Barrett who ran from deep at pace to feed left wing Chris Tottle who made ground before chipping through behind the defence. Quins full-back Paul Adams did well to gather and send the ball back downfield which enabled Taff’s to attack against a retreating defence and earn a penalty in the process but outside-half Matthew Hurley was unable to convert against the wind and repeat his success rate of the previous week.

Baffling Decisions Stoke The Touchline

The man in the middle was starting to cause quite a stir with the travelling support and players with a series of decisions in which they obviously didn’t see eye-to-eye with which meant the Quins were able to profit from a series of close penalty won lineouts with some slick passing and movement which would lead to Ake Davies increasing the lead with a try converted by outside-half Spencer Lumby. Worse was to follow as left-wing Dafydd Franklyn appeared on the left wing to chip over the top and gather to score a smart solo effort which meant the home side would take a well-earned 22-5 lead into halftime. An ambitious Quins backline was doing all the damage against a defensive line that was in charitable mood and Taff’s Well would have it all to do if they were going to get anything out this match.

Half-Time Score:  Cardiff Harlequins 22 v 5 Taff’s Well

Second Half

Following a short retirement, ex-Captain and prop Gareth Gibbs did his best to inject some urgency to the proceedings with some bullish charges which saw camp set-up on the home line but the game reverted to type with another penalty given against the men in black. Prop Ben Atkin got into the act with some clinical clearing out at the ruck as the visitors looked to up the tempo. As play went into the Quins 22, a desperate defensive kick pedalling backwards saw the ball go dead and a scrum awarded which saw the pack getting the ram-rods going to surge forward and earn a penalty.

So Near But…

Some quick thinking saw the ball played and carried towards the line but the charge was halted by players who were clearly not ten yards from the point of the penalty. It was left to the pack to conjure up another penalty but with a scrum awarded as the referee remembered he didn’t play outside-half as scrum-half Gwilym Edwards found him with a pass. From the ensuing scrum, the disappointment and frustration was audible as a bad pass brought the passage of play to an end with a knock-on.

Taff’s Well On Top But…

It was now all Taff’s Well but through a mixture of good defence and a lack of penetration, there were no points to show for their efforts which looked to cost dear as the Quins again broke loose with some fine handling to outflank the Taff’s Well defence and send left winger Franklyn hurtling for the line for an almost certain try.’ Cometh the moment – Cometh the man’ was definitely the mantra for scrum-half Edwards who’s never-say-die attitude saw him eat up the yards in covering which enabled him to pull off a superb try-saving tackle to save the day and a  try which would have effectively sealed the game.

Barry on the Burst

From the resulting lineout, the ball was worked along the line from deep which eventually saw big-second row Jon Barry stoke the boiler and charge off in top gear up the left touchline to nicely combine with wingman Tottle but as play went into the Quins half and with one man to beat, the tackle was good enough to snuff out the danger.

Hurley Gives Hope

Hope sprang eternal as from a 5m scrum, Matthew Hurley put in a superb kick over the top to land in the hands of flying winger Tottle who had nothing but an empty field in front of him but there were vastly contrasting opinions on the touchline to that of the referee who brought play back for offside. Taff’s Well toiled away securing decent possession and territory but for all the huffing and puffing, there was no real purpose or confidence when trying to go wide. That said, Matthew Hurley gave a ray of hope as from a quick tapped penalty, he helped himself to a try to bring some respectability to the scoreline and the opportunity to maybe get a losing bonus point but the game was to end as it started. With minutes remaining, another awful clearance kick was gathered for an easy run-in try to the corner by left-wing Dafydd Franklyn which proved to be the final nail in the coffin and a miserable end to a miserable day for Taff’s Well.

Final Score:  Cardiff Quins 29 v 12 Taff’s Well

The Verdict

The loss today was a double whammy for Taff’s Well as Aberdare had a great win against Abercwmboi which turns the lower half of the division into a real dogfight. In truth, Taff’s Well never really got off the bus as poor kicking – which turned out to be a feature of the day – let in two early tries from whence there was no real recovery. The Quins gave short change up front and the backline were good to watch as they repeatedly threw the ball confidently to get their wingers into the game and with devastating effect.

Injury List Grows

Poor defence almost cost last week’s game and it reared its head again today as the Quins backs cut loose with conviction using a lot of off-the-ball movement which proved troublesome for the Taff’s Well defensive line.  There was a lot of head-shaking with regards to a number of decisions made by the man in the middle but they were not the reason why Taff’s Well lost and why the Quins gained their first well-earned win of the season. The injury list continues to grow with news that another two players will be sidelined for at least the rest of the season and coach Rhys Watkins will be wondering when the dice will start rolling for him.

Standouts

Not a great day for standouts but in the forwards, Gareth Gibbs showed up well with Daryl Mota and Ben Atkin - when he came on, having their moments as did centres Matthew Wright and Ryan Smith who carried till the end. One to confine to the history books I’m afraid as thoughts centre around the visit of high-flying Cilfynydd next week and an opportunity to put a disappointing performance out of mind.

Dave Beese     davecbwales@gmail.com