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Junior Archive: 11-12

Stats and Awards
Under 7s
Under 13s
Under 13 Notes
Under 16s

 

Stats and Awards

Tries Scored
  U-12’s U-13’s U-14s U-15s Total
C.Sheedy 46 30 28 20 124
J.McLean   41 29 20 90
R.Lewis   19 28 16 63
J.Chambers     28 29 57
O.Davies 11 10 10 12 43
M.Al-Habsi 28 13     41
J.Pattison 14 7 14 2 37
A.Corfield 10 9 7 10 36
J.Sweeney 3 8 10 14 35
L.Williams   4 13 8 25
J.Thomas 3 9 9 1 22
C.Tonkin 7 5 7 2 21
S.Lane     8 12 20
J.Beere 10 6 1 2 19
A.Fedeli 10 7     17
L.Thomas       16 16
C.Meehan 10 6     16
R.Farrah 6 2 4 3 15
J.Viggers 8 2   5 15
R.Hill 4 3 3   10
L.Ford 1 5 3   9
J.Peckham 7   1   8
H.Hibbs 8       8
S.Evans       7 7
J.John 7       7
J.Baraz 7       7
D.Jones 2 3 1 1 7
B.Parker 4       4
R.Harries       2 2
O.Thomas 2       2
J.Dunne 1     1 2
A.Wilkinson       1 1
           
           
  U-12’s U-13’s U-14s U-15s  
Played 24 24 25 22  
Won 21 18 23 14  
Drawn 1 0 1    
Lost 2 6 1 8  
% 88 75 92 64  
           
  U-12’s U-13’s U-14’s U-15s  
POY C.Sheedy J.Thomas C.Sheedy A.Corfield  
MIP C.Tonkin J.Sweeney O.Davies R.Hill  
MPP J.Thomas J.McLean R.Lewis J.Chambers  
           
Tournament History        
12s – District, Maidenhead and Guildford    
13s – Aberdare, St Peter’s        
14s – Blues Cup, District, St Peter’s      
15s – St Peter’s 7s, Cleve 10s      
           
Tries Scored
  U-9’s U-10’s U-11’s Total  
J.Beere 19 21 22 62  
R.Farrah 12 12 12 36  
J.Peckham 13 10 12 35  
J.Pattison 2 6 25 33  
J.Viggers 13 7 13 33  
M.Al-Habsi   5 27 32  
O.Davies   8 17 25  
B.Carey 21 2   23  
H.Hibbs     20 20  
C.Meehan 2 1 15 18  
R.Hill   6 9 15  
D.Fathers   1 13 14  
A.Fedeli 6 1 5 12  
L.Ford   1 8 9  
D.Jones 2 2 5 9  
J.Sweeney 2 1 4 7  
J.John     7 7  
J.Gallagher 3 1 3 7  
L.Williams 6     6  
A.Corfield     5 5  
J.Dunne   1 4 5  
T.Brookefield   4 1 5  
G.Witts   2 2 4  
C.Tonkin     3 3  
J.Baraz   2 1 3  
C.Sheedy     2 2  
B.Parker   1 1 2  
A.Evans 2     2  
Jake Vella 1     1  
A.Brown   1   1  
    U-9’s U-10’s U-11’s  
  Played 17 26 31  
  Won 9 12 23  
  Drawn 0 3 1  
  Lost 8 11 7  
  % 53 46 74  
  U-8’s U-9’s U-10’s U-11’s  
POY J.Peckham J.Viggers R.Farrah B.Parker  
MIP J.Sweeney B.Carey J.Pattison C.Meehan  
MPP   J.Beere O.Davies M.Al-Habsi  
Tournament History        
10s – Thornbury        
11s – Worthing and St Peter’s        

 


Under 7’s Match Reports 2011-12

Sunday 21st April

Report by Aled Time for a guest scribe again this week as our great leader had to disappear up North….rumours that the league scouts have spotted his coaching skills and tapped him up are firmly denied. A first for us all this weekend with a tournament up in Pontyclun. Difficult decisions to be made as we had to limit to 15 and decide on tactics…should we go for the burger or the hot dog at lunch? (I went for the burger and am still paying for it today). Promise of bright skies soon turned to disappointment as the floodgates well and truly opened…this unfortunately would play into the hands of the other teams and test our philosophy of free flowing rugby (or ‘total rugby’ as others have coined our style) to the max. Still, firm words of encouragement from the Chief, and the Tigers and Panthers (presumably chosen by Denfa due to common sightings of these creatures in Splott) were suitably ‘pumped’ for their first match. Chepstow first up…boys reminded that Chepstow is nearly in England which was enough to stir them into action (sorry Bedders senior). Bedders (junior) decided to take them on single handed and promptly scored 4 with Dylan Yarwood scoring a fifth. Bedders junior now only eligible for Wales due to appearance in an under 7s tournament based in Wales (WRU rule 53.2, byelaw 4, otherwise known as the Shingler ruling). Chepstow limited to a single score with the boys tagging for their lives. Final score St Peters 5, Chepstow 1.    Next up were our hosts Pontyclun. Another two brilliant halves of rugby with the try scorers this time being more evenly spread: Gruff, Kieran D, Kane, Harry B, Finn and Matthew. Brilliant tagging kept our hosts to a single try in each half. Special mention to Kane and Joel in these matches for nearly knocking themselves out with try saving tags…fantastic commitment and no doubt some scars to show their schoolmates for their efforts!. Final score St Peters 6, Pontyclun 2. Two wins under our belt and by jove there was a sniff of something special in the air (either that or the burger was already doing its worst). Next up the local derby…Rumney. The two teams knew each other inside out, what with this being the 4th or 5th fixture between the 2 this season, and a tight match was predicted. An important toss won and time for Thursday night’s training ground move to be pulled. Tap to Finn, switch with Gruff. Red sea (or in this case blue and black sea) promptly parted. Gruff runs in from half way unopposed. 1-0 St Peters but more importantly a grin on Denfa’s face like a Cheshire cat (for those who wish to see the replay ask to see Matt’s video). A tight match subsequently ensued with fantastic commitment from both teams but Rumney scored 3 and despite one being pulled back by Eamonn we just fell short. Final score Rumney 3, St Peters 2. Match 4 was Llantwit and again a tight, competitive game. Nip and tuck all the way with Eamonn dancing in for 2 and Kieran D also scoring a couple, including a fantastic pick up off his toes for one…clear signs of a ‘back garden dad-son skill session’ there (to be fair, Ant’s hands are closer to the floor than most….not that there’s anything wrong with being short!). More good straight running from Dylan B, Evan, Rohan, Kai and Harry F. Scores went back and forth, with a third win denied at the death by a match levelling Llantwit try. Final score St Peters 4, Llantwit 4. The boys then stirred themselves for the final match of the day, this time against the Zebras of Treorchy. Another great effort with a couple of early Dylan Yarwood scores giving us the upper hand and some more great tagging by Dylan B, but a run of 4 unopposed scores was enough to give Treorchy the victory despite a late score by Finn. Final score St Peters 3 Treorchy 5. A 4th placed finish overall but a really tight tournament and great to see that we were very competitive in every match. Many thanks to Pontyclun for hosting such a wonderful day. Brilliant news to hear that Dylan Yarwood was chosen as runner up player of the tournament – well done Dylan. Thanks to all the guest scorers and to all the mums and dads for their efforts (special mention to the emergency gazebo suppliers). Really well done to all the boys for a fantastic series of performances – very rewarding to see all the hard work in training paying off. Roll on Abergavenny. Aled

Sunday 14th April

away 7-11 W the rocks v st peters W3-2

Report

Llandaff v St Peters After a late call to arms,the rocks had at last got there wish of a game this sunday Thank you Matt Sween.A pool match against Llandaff. late notice of the match and the hoilday season in full swing we only managed to put out 15 players. The Bishops had 7 there older boys away at pencoed tourny. the game was set of two halfs of ten mins we putting out a team in each half. Ant our tactics coach took a fine warm up session before the off! our match stato Helen “blackberry” Howell Llandaff won the toss and open the score with a well worked first try.if we thought this was going to be an easy day our eyes were certainly opened Jordan steadied his men and Harry B scores St Peters 1st try, with a bullocking run.! Game On. St Peters hold up Llandaff on a tight field. the ref trying to control the offside called the teams to order and play resumed.Try for Dylan Yarwood St Peter`s 2nd try. Llandaff 2nd try comes after some fine tagging and determined running by the cathedral boys . Dylan Yarwood scores his 2nd try,after a loop round, face as ever covered with a grin the Cheshire cat would be proud off. Finners crosses after some fine two handed running? . Llandaff score there 3rd try ball grounded just short but such effort by the llandaff players should always be rewarded and the ref looked at me i knodded and the try was given . the ref starting to hit his stride and seeing the boys from both sides now giving there all let the game flow while still enforcing the obvious no complaints by either side . the rocks restart the egg outed and rugby ensues llandaff tagging and for the first time support by the rocks ends with a well worked team try Finners scores . Llandaff score try 4 almost a carbon copy of of the last this time the ball worked from one side t`other this time the bishop grounded the ball well over the line by far there best try . Harry B ended the half just as he had started with a fine finish, a lovely balanced runner. with tagging hands to match scores 6 th try. first half ends with the rocks ahead by 2 The Rocks got the restart after half time and made short work of scoring, with Gruff running in to the corner. Llandaff replied immediately, 5-7. The Rocks played the phases, to again attack the far corner, as Ciaran Brown went over with a lovely decisive step inside and no hesitation the first time this year well done Ciaran i know you could do it . not to say he is backward in coming forward, Ciaran always wants the ball and will do his upmost to get it!!crossing no fewer than 13 times this year !! 5-8. Again, Llandaff came back, 6-8. with good team play The restart saw Evan “Gray” Ryan run through to the near corner, we have a first class second row in the making here long legs that eat up the ground carries the ball well and likes to dog up the hard yards straight and true showed a fine eye for the out side today. the scots do it all the time breed em big and he has the flowing locks to boot ! !  6-9 Gethin off loaded to Ciaran Brown, who opened up, but ran out of room on the far wing.not getting his step in to action this time? Llandaff possession. Llandaff ran out of play, Rocks possession. Gethin the other half of our powerhouse of the future rocked up twice with good str8 running ball in two hands off loaded to Noonie, Great run by Ollie of to the left ate up the ground but tagged at the death. taggs back on and both sets of players in fine formation saw the Restart and Joel broke the try line, 6-10. Joel and Finn Ev the quite men of the team but fierce players always doing the hard work i think when contact comes these two will be viing for the flank getting down and dirty getting on with the nuts and bolts of the game . both run well ball in hand . Llandaff grafted at the restart and we’re rewarded, 7-10. Rocks put the pressure on Llandaff and Gruff ran in for try 11, well i say ran! danced, pirouetted, and stepped his way over. 7-11. Llandaff played the phases, but the Rocks held their line, finishing the game 7-11.Aled mustered his troops well in this half a great all round performance from all Thom D, Kian, Harley, Kieran D all playing there part making tags linking well and enjoying themselves Dylan B a little quite today carried the ball well but had informed us !! that is, me and his dad, that he had indeed pulled a hamstring !he was holding the right part of his leg at the time . he had a late night sleepover at Finners Gaff!! . me thinks he was saving himself for the next match . the Rocks V stPeters or rangers V Celtic, scottish steve not impressed when steptoe annonced his boy would be playing for rangers! Aled V Ant it is then! both coach`s reputation on the line, daggers drawn game face`s on. Tournament rules knock on no diving for try`s offside and all that game begins with ants boys ball in hand a stale mate ensue both teams being called for offside the teams looking a lost, then the ball moves bedders looking for space tagged ball to yarwood dives over for try . disallowed Aleds men take the ball up through Kian rugby breaks out ball to ground . change over ball to finners from Geth bounces off a player to the ground gets to feet and scores 1-nil gruff takes up the mantle tiptoed his way over 1-1. harley on the return off loads to Kieran D a fabulous run ball in two hands dodging and advancing up the field a full 30 yards . the best run of the day by far . off loads to Dylan B who`s hamstring had miraculously got better cross`s for his 14 of the season 2-1 Yarwood again makes ground but dives again a little harsh maybe but we are ORF 2 abergavenny in three weeks!to be disallowed for the second time. half time 10 mins played and only 2-1 this game is a little different with full rules . second half begins with both teams playing some fine rugby tagging making ground Thom d broke through a couple of times and support players watching in stead of getting to the ball saw the defense realign and snuff out any further attack then it happened Yarwood took off steadied himself at the line though about diving over but never touch down 2-2 all. next try the winner ball went up the field taggs and support in equal measure took the game to “Old Firm” status! pressure on , up stepped Joel to score the winner “when the going gets tough the tough get going” sprang to mind. Ants team have the bragging rights. Training thursday Steptoe

Sunday 1st April

Score

7 -8 w

Report

A trip up to Treharris today a wonderfully warm early spring morning to play the Phoenix . a quick chat with the coach`s the promise of two games quickly dashed as they were training with the 7`s and 8`s combined. Treharris with the bare 7. Rhydaveln mentioned by both of us and i surprised to find out that Treharris had only been beaten once this year! this was to by the great Rhyd there coach explaining that he had written a report to the effect that Treharris should always expect to work hard for there results !! with this endorsement ringing in my ears expectation was was adjusted. The game was set of one match 10 mins each way 7 aside . we again with 24 players rolling subs was the order of the day Helen Howell “Wifey” to lucas the pen howell who is away Stagging it this weekend is our Stato ! St peters started brightly Bedders scored 1st try a fine solo effort with the boys in support bedders subbed.tis being the order of the day all who score are off Harsh but fair Treharris scored from the restart, st peters reached 6 tags ,change over Treharris ran and passed , Gethin pulled off a fab tag but Treharris scored 2 nd try. Finn Evans after some fine tagging and inter passing over the line for st peters 2nd try. The phoenix hitting there stride with some lovely hands and steps , the rocks tagged them out, Evan and Evan ran and dodged Evan Ryan not seeing the line and being unselfish outed the egg to gruff who danced and pushed the ball out wide evan weston seeing the runnaround, backtracked, to the blind open? and scores st peters restart and 3rd try for Treharris just on half time. 2nd half Eamon opens the 2nd half with a 4th try for st peters. Treharris female player Savavnah a star runs in the 4 th try for Treharris. Griff scores 5 th try for St peters came off grinning form ear to ear. Quick 5th try from Treharris. Rhys Bowen storming run, just tagged short of the line. Matthew evans scores st peters 6th try after some firey tagging . retstart treharris ball in hand Really good tagging by Finners Balchy Ioan isolating lone players Rowan sweeping up the support runner . great all round team play, however, Treharris run over for 6 th try great support by the phoienix . the match was well and truly on now neither side giving way, you can see the heart in both sides. Fab running by Kane for st peters grounded the ball 7th try. Treharris come back with a quick 7 th try the restart being there “coup de gras”. a long time camped on the teharris try line and some stout defending by the phoenix saw the game turn into a fine tactical battle Aled keeping his nerve and mustering his troops The phoenix coach getting his defense sorted and they displaying a gutsy defiant backbone Last try scored by Gruff to make it an 8-7 win to st peters .A fantastic match with this slim win we have seen a great improvement this week after two weeks in training passing before the tag and the way the newer members have pitched in and are coming through now Kian displaying a n appetite for the game Cai running skills and determination Harley following the ball and looking for space Luke becoming a good team man all rounder picking his support runs and most important of all the boys even with the mass subsittions not crowding the balll spreading and defending and RUNNING FORWARD Ioans seems to have gained great tagging hands and awareness of space Evan Ryan is looking to express himself we are mighty proud of you to day boys only the second team to beat Treharris is in deed a red letter day . Save for some diving tries and some fine reffing both sides my have scored more! offside played well and a few snatched balls and offside interception picked up by the ref. who also used his discretion well for the odd knock on and forward pass that would have spoiled the flow of the game. remember all the boys and girls are six and seven and the skill level by all on show both sides was outstanding Welsh rugby at grass roots is in safe hands. !!!Note training thursday and can all parents get there registration forms in as well Well done all Steptoe

Sunday 25th March

 

Report by Denfa

Llandaff North 9 -11 w Its official summer has arrived well not quite spring has sprung !know one being caught out what with the hour being lost to father time .LLandaff north Away, many a boxing day encounter in years gone bye playing rugby with hangovers and big bellies after the christmas feast. Arrived to find Lee mustering his troops to find out he had only 8 Players he having to lend the 8`s a few to bolster Llandaff`s depleted side .we had our usual 28 with many away for holibobs !the match was set at three 10min halfs 7 aside . Scotish steve our Stato for today.Steves mind on other things his beloved Celtic playing Rangers in somthing called football?

later Steve was heard to say the the ref was as bad as Pentrychs  i dont know what he means . The rocks kicked orf and llandaff took the first 2 tags well the ball popped out to Maximus who pinned his ears back and made of to the end zone touchdown1-0 llandaff returned the effort double quick Tian and Evan combining well to score 1-1 a period of stale mate broke out with both sides = tagging Lee the ref controlling the game with compassion and fairness off side being called and room for all players to show there wares . llandaff edged ahead with some fine running 2-1 Luke black more and Evan Ryan having some nice runns to be tagged Kian getting his hands on the ball and proving that he is a rugby man now !Rowan support today was exceptional and was unlucky a couple o times Harley 2 got in on the act with some nice evasive running . llandaff pounced on a loose pass and lickity spit bang over Evan went grounding the ball this time firmly with both hands . Lee`s pep talk paying dividends.3-1. cai took the restart of to rowan rowan back to Cai and Maximus again with the wind at his heels scored 3-2 Second Third ,landaff caught us napping and scored a fine solo effort tian eating up the ground 4-2. t Aled steadied his gang.they took to there task with gusto Llandaff too tagging the rocks back turn over ball and llandaf were away again to be called back the ref seeing a tag missing from one of his runners . restart and the rocks tagged llan back Mathew “evo” Evans sen his chance and took it well 3-4 again llandaff tagged out Evan weston took of on a lovely running ball in two hands went through llandaff at will to be faced at the death with a fine last ditch tag evan swept the ball quick time to Ollie “clarkie” Clark running in support to cross for his first try in the green and black 4-4 llan return with a score quick feet by tian shipped the ball out and over they went 5-4 the game in full swing up stepped Tom thumb a nice changed of direction saw him score his 15th try to date 5-5 subs were made Kieran D ever ready to take the ball up made ground Kane at his side Gruffs dancing feet gathering llandaff in to a tight whirlpool of players! Ioan ball in hand got caught just short and the ball over to Llandaff. Ollie Noon tagged with Clarkie like dervishes taggs being spilled to the floor like confetti at a Romany wedding !!Noonie had a mad dash beating a trail to be tagged ,ball spilled from a fine pass, and llandaff ever ready dashed away to score6-5 wih time almost up the rocks got them selves in a nice place Kd from support stepped and stopped looked away and passed the other ,Thumb taking his chance with a wide run to cross for his second of the day 6-6 (third period) the rocks ball in hand showed some fine skill but llan tagged them still. llans players at it,with little res. The rocks were up for it a tagged them back for Joel and Finners to team up Joel taking the glory 6-7 . llan spreading the ball after each tagg saw Finn and Bedders combine to give Bedders a sniff down the right 6-8. llandaff still up for the fight shimmied and cajouled there way over 7-8. llandaff looking to move the ball dropped a chance Eamonn sized the nettle and ran from half way to score7-9 llandaff made good ground the rocks tagging like crazy!( they seem to understand what team is now and are playing for each other) couldn’t stop llandaff from scoring 8-9 Allessandro “Muzzy” showed a clean pair of heels but was corner flagged and into said corner looked up for support Balchy always on hand took the ball beat the trap with ball firmly in two hands rounded the last and scored 8-10 the game drawing to a close llandaff saw there chance 9-10 with the opportunity of a draw, Lee let the game flow and the ball turned over twice both sides playing great rugby llan trying to get the draw and the rocks doing there best to keep them out the ball slipped to muzzy danced a little flipped the ball out Bedders took a tagg and Eamonn finished with his second try 9-11 whistle blew, game over! a round of applause from all there! and three cheers to both sides!. Lee handled the game with a firm hand both sides giving as good as each other excepting all decisions ,off side was observed, no one ,not one player went to touch ball in two hands and the passing by both sides a treat to watch . both teams have come a long way since September. Parents of both sides be very proud of yourselves. finally Saul ran his sports relief mile and missed today well done Saul.” last training on a friday this week from April thursday 17.30 Steptoe

Sunday 11th March

Report by Denfa w6-10 w 7-8 d 5-5 l 8-6

Report

A lovely early spring morning at llanishen not a pitch we have visited before by the time the games were organised we were 29 strong John the llanishen coach set out the pitches and we agreed to four matches we fielding two teams of seven and two teams of eight all having a half each our scribes today Charlie and Lucas and photos by Nigel”pappy” bowen .                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                      

The first half started with a good passage of tagging, passing and dodging. Before Eamonn passed to gethin who had a free run in try 1-0 straight from the kick off try llanishen 1-1 At this point it became clear we had a very picky referee calling the boys back for minor infringements but it is a vital lesson to be learnt; play to the referee, that goes for the parents as well as the boys, this scribe had apologise to the referee for challenging his interpretation of the rules. Anyway when play was allowed to continue a typical Finnley try 2-1 try llanishen again equalising 2-2 try Llanishen then had a breakaway 2-3 try while the rocks were camped in there half 3-3 Mathew Evans short run try llanishen, then followed a great passage of play 3-4 great run will breakaway 3-5 inter passing Kane 4-5 llanishen leaving the score4-6 half time whole team changed.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                              

The first of 3 Disallowed trys happened straight after the restart the referee penalising boys diving for a try( it’s in the rules diving isn’t allowed) and if tagged whilst going over we have allowed these try’s all season but not this ref. Dylan yarwood and Dylan Balch harshly treated. However after 6 tags the ball returned to the rocks the ball spun out to Rhys Bowen, maximus ran full length of pitch to score the try of the day before with a huge grin he ran back up the touch line. It served to remind anyone wound up by the ref what the game is all about kids enjoying themselves!!! then despite taj tagging like mad llanishen 7-4 try Oliver noon stormed over in the corner 8-5 try quickly followed with Dylan Yarwood try actually allowed 9-5 Llanishen scored one more before Rhys got his second 10-6 final score a good win New game Eamonn opened with a score and was clearly back to his best form 1-0 try however Llanishen scored 2 quick try’s 1-2 try despite some great tagging by all the boys Llanishen again ran in 2 unanswered try’s 1-3 1-4 try but maybe it was the sound of the Irish llanishrn coach or the spring air eamonn was on fire after tagging 5 players in a row he got the ball and passed to Rowan 2-4 before he ran in the last score of the half Eamonn 3-4 halftime team swapped except Eamonn was kept on and he again scored Eamonn 4-4 llanishen scoring a try before Finnley again levelled the scores Tagging like mad all the boys should be mentioned but Rowan, Dylan Balch, Mathew all tagged brilliantly 5-5 Finn scored again with a nother try from Llanishen 6-6try to top his day Eamonn scored again 7-6 with Luke diving over for a great score(diving was allowed by this referee) try 8-6 Llanishen scored in the last move of the game finishing off 8-7 St Peters v Llanishen – First Match Llanishen scored first. Great tagging from both teams saw possession change twice, before possession sat with the Rocks and Harry Beddal was opened up to bring the Rocks level. St Peters tagged for their lives, tagging out the home team and then fought back to put Ciaran Brown over the line, 1-2. Llanishen came right back with a try, but the Rocks had the last say as Ciaran Davies ran in on the half time whistle, 2-3 to the Rocks. Second half and Harry Beddal connected with a pass from Cai, 2-4. Some great supporting play from Llanishen saw them run in, 3-4. But the Rocks replied with a great run down the wing from Ciaran Davies, 3-5. Harry Beddal tagged like a boy possessed and stopped a great run by Llanishen. Change possession and ‘Bedders’ threatened with a run, but the Rocks were tagged out. Llanishen scored, 4-5. Llanishen fought for the last try and were rewarded on the final whistle, 5-5. Llanishen v St Peters- Second Match Llanishen started in possession. St Peters tagged well, but Llanishen played to their better players, as Henry ran in the first try 1-0. Great running from Elen and Gruff weren’t enough for the Rocks who were tagged out. Change of possession and Llanishen again played to their strengths, Henry running in again 2-0. A great supporting run from Harry Beddal, saw him step over 2-1. The ‘dial six to start’ approach refereeing peaked when Harry Beddal got a smack in the nose for his troubles. The resulting nose bleed saw the half time break. It was hoped that the second half would see a more consistent approach to off side and travelling beyond the tag. Thom opened the second half for the Rocks, 2-2. Moments later Saul Hurley ran in a third for the Rocks, 2-3. Llanishen replied 3-3, but a great run from Ioan, pulled the Rocks back in front. 3-4. Llanishen again came back, 4-4. A forward pass from the Rocks saw a change of possession and Henry ran in their 5th, 5-4 Llanishen. Alessandro danced his way to the end 5-5. Henry was gifted a few yards to give him the advantage of six foot to the line 6-5. Alessandro again ran like thunder, 6-6. Llanishen scored (Henry again) 7-6 and the last say of the match again went to Llanishen, 8-6.                                                                                                                                                                        

Some great rugby today by all players llanishen playing there part in a feast of rugby both teams and all coachs on both teams encouraging the players Aled Matt and Jordan full of praise for all the boys. my memory of this day will be maximus sprinting down the left wing as if the child catcher outa chitty chitty bang bang was after him and luke blakemoor running the length of the field on the left wing to cross.Aled informed me that all was well on the other pitch and i had missed some great team rugby . Matt almost got to use the first aid kit but bedders who is made of stern stuff sleeved his blood away . Well done to all our players today you all stuck to the job Taj welcome back after a break now your well again .Also well done William in your first game at the Rocks with one training session under your belt we have found yet another player a special mention for Ioan who is finding his feet and has a bright future in the game . The team spirit is coming on well and the boys and our Elen keep going even when it seems the situation is lost that is the sign of TEAM. when a last desperate tag means a drawn match. I am proud of you all Steptoe

Sunday 4th March

Report by Denfa Today we were on the road away to Glamorgan Wanderers at the world famous Memorial Ground. Many times the graveyard, ending the rocks cup run`s and the poaching of past players dreaming of glory making there way to the other side of the river the search of the limelite. The Wanderers for many a year,Feeding Cardiff with talent.Sam Wauberton you know the welsh captain? past player! snapped up by the blue and blacks. The second team pitch being out of action waterlogged “no change there” we were afforded the use of the first team Pond . The boys lit up they were to play in there first stadium. Stands, barriers and a burger-van, !!We had a mere 22 players glammy had about 12 one game of ten aside was arranged rolling subs . match report by Charlie “wolfie” Balch flowering up by steptoe Glamorgan wanderers On a muddy pitch the boys gathered. The rocks opened the scoring with a great run down the touch line by Kieran Davies 1-0 glam wand quickly responded try 1-1 mud kicking up from the fliers heels. Finnley Davies opened his account for the day with a jinking run 2-1 But again Wanderers equalized 2-2 Straight from the kick off Dylan Balch ran straight through the middle with a quick little off load to Gethin try 3-2 But the boys from Ely again equalized 3-3 The rocks went through the phases always gaining ground before Finn Evans managed to break the defence for a well earned try 4-3 try. Then with a typical run Dylan yarwood scored 5-3 the mud was flying thick now and hands were getting cold some of the younger ones from the wands were looking a little lost. Sam asked me if he could have a run i had a word with there coach who let the little fella have a trot and what a trot straight down the middle tags being ripped but his face etched in effort i couldn’t blow the whistle, dropped over the line like “charlie faulkner back in the good old days” and his face reminded me on charlies.his team as delighted for sam as sam was for crossing the line (i dia gress) try 5-4 playing some good rugby the rocks scored again this time a well deserved try by Tom Mc 6-4. Another bullocking run by Dylan Yarwood On permit to play as this was his dads old patch Try 7-4 the wanderers stepper pulled one back two handed running and a fine change of direction 7-5 Half time teams swapped ends things looked a bit odd at this venture i counted 13 wanders and the size of player had changed somewhat Gethin had shrank ? Glamorgan wanderers scored 7-6 tout sweet responding quickly the rocks scored again Finn Evans again with another classy run 8-6 try  Wanders Pulled one  back “big lad” trundling down the right touchline 8-7 Finn Davies scored again in typical style bobbing, weaving, ducking and diving 9-7 now the game was on and tagging had been replaced by semi contact as the mud had its way with the boys tags were hard to come by and the ball was lost once with Maximus looking quite puzzled when the egg was of loaded to him the size three had turned into a fullsized mud pie!! of again the Ely boys scored again. 9-8They certainly werent for giving up! nor we’re we with the rocks camped on the Ely try line eventually Cai broke over for a try 10-8 try another Glamorgan Wanderers try saw the score 10-9 before a brace of try’s by Dylan Yarwood made up his fourth 12-9. There was enough time for Glamorgan Wanderers to get into double figures 12-10 final score. Muddy marvelous day out. Evan w ,Evan r, Ioan, Tom d, Kane CAI Gruff Harry Mathew eamonn all played there part slipping pass`s supporting and offloading the ball well Maximus got away a couple of times and Kieran d got a try only to be called back as he had no tags not that the wanderer`s said a thing Saul tagged him self to a stand still both teams stayed with it and Gary Couzz there colorful coach said that he loved every minute of it . the second half carrying on ,until they had really churned up the first team cemetery end.  Pitch This is when the news was broke that we had played the under 8`s in the second half Thats why it seemed that Geth had shrunk. see pictures on teamer . thanks again to “pappy” for the action shots. our apologies to our under 8`s who were waiting for there turn . off to the club for sausage and chips curry sauce for the more adventurous. and thank you to Matt Huw and Jordan for keeping the boys warm with drills during the match everyone got on and played there part and if i missed your boy out of the commentary i can only say sorry as i was enthralled in the match with the keenness and bon amiee of both sides no complaints or moans by either sides players and parents alike . my pleasure . Steptoe

Sunday 26th February

Report by Denfa WE Welcome to a warm late winters day Rhydfelin a late start as the boys from the Rhondda got misdirected to ceadelyn park they hard a bare 7 players we again had 30 turn up to do battle a four quarter fixture was agreed. the match stats and report by Lucas the pen    a great turnout again this week still had five or six missing St Peters v Rhydfelin – 1st Match The game started at a pace not yet seen at the Harlequins. And a period of end to end rugby was broken by a beautiful switch pass by Rhydfelin, to open the scoring for the visitors, 0-1. The Rocks came back playing the phases, with Dylan Yarwood going over in the corner, 1-1. RhydfeLin came straight back, 1-2. Dylan Yarwood scored again, 2-2, but Rhydfelin again replied, 2-3. Gethin Howell equalised, but Rhydfelin had the last say in the half, 3-4. A complete change of side for the Rocks, saw fresh legs keep up the intensity. The Rocks were so eager to use all they’d learnt, they often forgot to get their tags back on. Both teams eager to win, but it was the visitors that again took the advantage, with quick feet seeing the try run in, 5-3. The Rocks battled back and Cane was rewarded for his tank city,5-4. Rhyfelin didn’t rest and came straight back, 6-4. St Peters were tagged out from the re-start and Rhydfelin capitalised, 7-4. A fumble saw Rhyfelin get possession and quick feet saw their 8th, 8-4. The Rocks had the last say, with a great run for Finley Davies getting a consolation try. Final score 8-5. St Peters v Rhyfelin – 2nd Match Again, quick feet combined with a switch of a quality, most under 7s could only dream of Rhyfelin opened the scoring with relative ear. St Peters were tagged out and Rhyfelin’s natural winger, Gabriel ran the line straight as a die, 0-2. St Peters Tom McCallum replied, but Rhydfelin came immediately back down the line, to score a third, 1-3. An unfortunate decision of a Rocks player to take a water break, saw Rhydfelin get the overlap, 1-4. Rhydfelin had the last say in the half, 1-5. St Peters also saw a full change of squad, and Dylan Yarwood opened the half for the Rocks 2-5. The restart saw the visitors play the phases and score, 2-6. Some great supporting play from Rhys saw him rewarded with a try, 3-6. Dylan Balch forced the turnover from a dropped Rhyfelin ball and Alessandro ran 2/3rds of the pitch 4-6. Rhydfelins passing and speed saw them rewarded again, 4-7. The Rocks were tagged out, possession Rocks. Possession turned again and another trade mark switch saw Rhydfelin offered their choice of space, having the last say 4-8. The skill level on display today by Rhydyfelin was exceptional scissor moves dummies and some fine discipline in tagging and onside was afforded to a really good outfit the coaches must be so proud of there boys .Out playing the rocks in most departments, the beauty of having a small squad paying dividend`s .there support for both teams also made for a great day for everyone , a good rapport with the Ref saw banter flow with good humor I, having great difficulty with misspronuncation , the rules of the game, trying to even up a slightly one sided game with some seamless adjustments so both teams got to run and tagg in even amounts. was taken in good spirits by the home and away support .and we hope to give them a better game in the near future, i thank Gary for the three cheers for St Potters. and most of all well done to all the players who stuck to there tasks and there were some periods of play by both sides that needed no reffing or coaching and was a pleasure to watch. Cheers to Jordan who took the last match as coach his first time in the middle. training next Friday and we might very well try the Rhydyfelin switch i have Garys number but i fear his fee will be beyond our purse-strings WELL DONE All Steptoe

Sunday 19th February

Report by Denfa ribena away W 6-7 D 7-7 L7-6 L8-7

Report

After a lay orf of three week`s The weather abated for us all to gather down at Caedelyn park. only 25 players again!!! . we had new tags, acquired by the pen Lucas Howell . shirts however still AWOL absent without leave !! Manda you are excused the Fahys passed on your message hope everything went as well as can be expected . A frosty morn with a few parents turning up the worse for wear you know who you are thank you for getting your lads there a Stirling effort!! Ribena had a mere 20 players.Ten aside was the game! A somewhat cramped pitch in the vast south Savannah that is Parc Caedelyn. Ribena won the toss scoring with a pass and a run they are up for  it . the rocks tagged out rather easily with ribena rampant ripping making light work of the rocks possession a few quick tags and they are away again 2-nil Aled steadied his tribe and got some order gruff danced a bit, Maximus Rhys Bowen stayed with him seized his chance and with a nice step and a little shimmy touched down with full game face in evidence. ribena ran well and the rocks tagging left a lot to be desired some nice support work saw them over for the third , Ciaran b carried well and Kieran D ran true , ball out to Nial to canter over hands firmly at his side not a hint of hand off well done Nial.a quick turn around with a dropped ball Tom Mc THUMB pouncing on it cat like, swept the pigs baldder to Allesandro who turned on the gas to score 3 all . half time and some stern words from Aled saw the ball in hand with the rocks tagged out ribena pushed the ball out wide and a try was scored by a lad whos feet and step at the death gave rise to a gasp and cheer . a lovely run and a well deserved round of applause by all that had witnessed it. Mikey Rogers pulling on the green and black for the first time” well a London Irish shirt if the truth be known ” had a trot out aged just 5 never looked out of place. not phased in the slightest. A permit was granted for Mikey to play after turning up for three weeks to train with his big brother Eamonn the step who by his standards was having a quite game the narrowness of the pitch and some fine tagging putting him on the back foot . but he played with his little BRO ribena turned on the style with great support play scored again after a turnover for foot , (foot mind you a foot in touch ” coach ribena shouted foot in touch” there six and seven playing at parc caedeleyn on a sunday morning . never ran out of touch never went down the line skipping in and out of touch ,no a foot in touch Any old up i gave it ,  sigh? ) saw them score a again . tagging again being the culprit “note to self tag training next Friday ” the rocks set themselves up in the left hand corner and Tom mc did a neat runnaround to cross unopposed ribena again ran and passed with their coach full of encouragement egging them on crossed. the end was neigh gruff stepped up with a fine finish touching down 7 6 ribenas in  favor. to a game that looked like getting away from the boys . Second game ribena won the toss and ran the length of the park to score again a turn over saw them 2 nil up after a couple of “minuets” they weren’t singing  quite but there coach certainty was vocal !! Tom Mc crossed for a nice solo effort and ribena saw old name from the past score for them “Ringo” Lucca his name he told me after i made the mistake of calling him after his pater. “thats my dad I`m LUCCA” nice work Mark. again tagging being the short fall of the rocks game let ribena in at will . something of a mystery as we have tagged well all year ? Allesandro however steadied  the ship to score  and Caine got a fine little cameo try Rhys popped up with a fine aggressive little effort for his second of the day “pappy what are you feeding him !! Nial again got in on the act to put the egg over the line .Tom Mc got a second of the match  and Gruff got his second of the day . over all ribena had the better of our lads but not a man gave in, effort the winner ribena got eight try`s to our seven and deserved there wins a little over zealous rule disputes and questioning of the refs choices by the ribena faithful ignored i might add . they forgetting two disallowed trys by our lads for tagging at the point of scoring because the tags were fab and the effort by the tagger should be rewarded in the spirit of the game a great day but NO Invite back for sausage and chips !!!! this is what we crave!! this is what we play for . Gethin was not best pleased   Match Report by Lucas Rhiwbina v St Peters 3rd Game There was an icy wind blowing south from the Rhondda valley Bedders opened the account for St Peters with a great run down the wing, 0-1. St Peters held their line well, but knocked on. Again they held well, but Rhiwbina’s intense offence won through, 1-1. St Peters replied immediately, with a strong run from Dylan Yarwood, 1-2. Bedders and Dylan Balsh tagged like men on fire, but Rhiwbina finally broke through, 2-2. Again St Peters came back, 3-2. Rhiwbina again scored, 3-3. A great run from Gethin Howell put the Rocks 5 yards short of the line and they spread the ball along the line, to put Dylan Yarwood over the line, 3-4. A great double tag from the Rocks was enough to stop Rhiwbina equalising on the whistle. Half time score 4-4. Rhiwbina had the restart, but the Rocks tagged them out and with change of possession, Bedders made a great run for the line, 4-5. Rhiwbina again restarted and quickly equalised, 5-5. Dylan Yarwood danced his way from the restart and scored his second, prompting an impromptu tag check from the ’relaxed Rhiwbina coach, 5-6.Mathew Evans got his chance and took it well to get his first for the club 5-7 Rhiwbina where unfortunate to be tagged out, as the best pass of the day and run in was denied. After a great couple of minutes of tagging on both sides, it was Rhiwbina that was to have the final say in the match, running in just before the final whistle. Final score , 6-7. Rhiwbina v St Peters 4th  Game St Peters took advantage of a turnover and Dylan Yarwood off loaded to Cane, to open the scoring 0-1. Rhiwbina came straight back, replying 1-1. Rhiwbina battled there way up the pitch to take a second, 2-1. Bedders was unlucky to step into touch and the change of possession, Rhiwbina scored 3-1. Bedders though was rewarded from the restart, running in to the corner 3-2. St Peters scored again, 3-3. Rhiwbina worked the phases and retook the lead, 4-3. bedders had a run from the restart, but Tom Davies improving every week stepped into touch. Rhiwbina scored from the restart, 5-3. The Rocks had the last say of the half, as Dylan Balch ran in. Half time score 5-4. Gethin ‘Goliath’ Howell opened the second half scoring with straight and true run to the line, 5-5. Gethin then took another run up field, with players bouncing off him, to score 5-6.there coach checking Geffs taggs to see if they were sown on ? What a Strange Man !! Some great rugby, saw Gethin connect with Bedders, for the Rocks to extend their new lead, 5-7. Rhiwbina scored a breakaway try 6-7. Great run through traffic from Mathew E, was denied. Rhiwbina had the final say in the match getting the equaliser in the long second half, 7-7.   (steptoe)again tagging it was reported was not at its best,  Kane Matt Luke Tom all played there part with great efforts.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                   As did everyone who played today. three weeks lay off is hard enough we will get the warmer weather soon and everyone who came today played! This is our future, and boys progress at different rates some have off weeks !some burn slowly,? ” have heart and fire in your bellies and effort will be rewarded”. scoring try`s is fun and get the headlines but dont think for one second that we don’t see all of your efforts There is no “I” in team . and if you were not mentioned it doesn’t mean that you are not appreciated strength of character is as important as speed and deftness ” once more into the breach dear friends” as a bloke once said!!. Two weeks Ago Remember troops, we trained when all others stayed at home, wet cold orrible evening it was and you were all there , that what makes my heart sing I am proud of you all STEPTOE  

Sunday 22nd January

Report by Aled ap Daffadd A guest blog this week as our head coach and spiritual leader was away on a course learning how to control children…look out all ye who attend training this Friday. This report will thus look a little different with correct spelling and use of new grammatical terms like full stops, commas and capital letters! Thanks as always to Lucas for keeping an eye on the scorers and providing the following summary: St Peters U7s v Treharris After Friday’s near Baltic training conditions, Mother Nature returned to her calmest with a dry day and no wind. The visitors travelled down to the Big Smoke, wide eyed with amazement, with a small squad of eight. As always, the Rocks weren’t short of a sub or two, with a squad of over 25. So it was decided that a three pronged approach be best suited to getting all players a run out. First Game (1 period of 10 mins) Treharris opened the scoring straight from the opening whistle, with touch, pass and a sprint down the right wing. The Rocks restarted, but were tagged out merely metres from the line. Possession changed and Treharris came back strong, but ran into touch on the left wing. It gave the Rocks the opportunity and Gruff connected with a great pass, 1-1. Treharris restarted, but ran out of room on the left wing. Possession change, and the Rocks played their tags, until Gethin was open on the left and ran the diagonal to score, 2-1. Treharris took advantage of the Rocks positioning, and sprinted full length for a try, 2-2. Treharris ran in a third, 2-3. The Rocks again came back strong and playing the phases, got Ciaran over for their equaliser, 3-3. Both teams held fast for the last 60 seconds and the half (third) ended 3-3. Second Game (2 halves of 10 mins) The Rocks opened the scoring with Niall opening their account. Treharris came straight back with an excellent try, with three Rocks players seeing the tags slipping through their hands, without purchase, 1-1. The Rocks came back with Tom McCallum stepping over for their second. Treharris danced for their second, 2-2. Eammon Rogers sprinted down the right wing for their third. 3-2. Treharris came straight back for an equaliser, 3-3. Maximus was tagged metres short of the line, followed by the Rocks being tagged out. Treharris played from left to right, to take the lead. Another strong run by Maximus, saw the ball passed to Harry Foley, who ran in for a confident equaliser, 4-4. Treharris’ Savannah restarted, passed to Jay, who ran in for their 5th on the halftime whistle, 4-5. Teharris started with possession in the second half and took no time to score, 4-6. The Rocks restarted, but lost possession, but then defended strongly, to tag out Treharris. Gaining possession five yards from their try line, Eammon Rogers ran the length to score, 5-6. Treharris came straight back, as Savannagh scored yet again for Treharris, 5-7. The Rocks played the phases and Tom McCallum danced his way to the line, 6-7. Treharris scored quickly, but Niall showed strength, running in to reply, 7-8. Full time. Third Match Treharris again started in possession, and ran the phases to take a first scalp, 0-1. Tom ran the wing from the Rocks restart, but was found with a foot in touch. The restart gave Treharris the opportunity, which they took 0-2. The Rocks again played the phases and were rewarded with Saul ‘smiler’ Hurley’s opener, 1-2. The Rocks tagged Teharris out and Dylan Yarwood equalised, 2-2. Savannagh lost a tag, but restarted handing the ball to the scorer, 2-3. A fantastic run from Alessandro, saw the Rocks draw level at the whistle, 3-3. The whistle saw the end of U7s play for the day. Thanks to all the coaches and parents for another great day, there’s definite signs of progress. Denfa, please come back, all is forgiven! See you in training on Friday.

Sunday 15th January

Report by Denfa 4-7 6-7 6-9 6-6

Report

first of all i would like to address the ethos of the under7s Inclusiveness thats what we are about everyone to play whether they are new to the club or older members everyone will get a game it was cold today and players standing on the subs bench is part of the monster we have created, game time is valuable but participation is the aim.we had 31 players today ALL played Harvey Mathew with only a training session under their belt performed well and if they were let go so to speak we would not have unearthed there obvious talent i, we will keep this going untill the end of the season I , we will not exclude anyone from the u7`s if they turn up to train they will play if it means we have to run two sides next year i will look into that i am sure there will be a way aroud this . Todays performance against Rumney a well trained side with talent but also a settled side with little or no subbing we did our selves proud to keep the games as close as we did with the dissruption of our super subbing mums and dads bear with us your boys done good i ,we will get more tags and shirts .here are the match reports lucas the pen and scotish steve were our reporters and stattions cheers bedders and chalie for sub masters and pappy bowen and paul fahy great photo`s again here goe`s 1st game due to a late request only the try score`s Dylan yarwood 2 trys, alessandro 1 try and a n other got the last try like all good clubs a n other will feature through out . if you know of our mystery try score`r let me know . the game i am told was a little one sided but the rocks kept the faith and played with heart subs being the difference . not because the subs came on rather that the subs gave the rumney boys the edge with continuity being the twelfth man 2nd Game Rumney started the match in possession, running the phases for their first of the game, 0-1.St Peters restarted in kind and grafted from side to side of the pitch, with Alessandro getting the Rocks first, 1-1. Rumney came back straight away, to take a second, 1-2. St Peters restarted but a fumble lead a turnover and Rumney took no time to take advantage, confidently running in a third, 1-3. St Peters tried to break the Rumney defence, but we’re tagged out in the mid field and Rumney went for the line, 1-4 The Rocks ran in a consolation try just as the half time whistle came, 2-4. Second half started with Rumney again in possession and despite valiant tagging in defence, Rumney opened the scoring 2-5. A fantastic tuck and dive by Cane, saw the Rocks pull one back, 3-5. The Rocks then held their line well, tagging out Rymney, but the visitors replied in kind. Rumney then played the tags and ran in their 6th, 3-6. Dylan Balch was denied a text book Balch try in the corner, but the restart saw Gethin Howll take the play to the far side of the pitch, take the tag and the touch and pass lead to Finlay Davies running over.4-6. St Peters battled Rumney and the bitter cold again and Harry Foley ran over the line, 5-6. Rumney put another on the board. 5-7. But the restart saw Gethin, Dylan Balch and Dylan Yarwood connect for a try, 6-7. Gethin Howell was disallowed a great tag, as Rumney got their 8th, 6-8. Rumney also had the last say in the match, as they finished the game on a high, 6-9. other team matchs 3 and 4 joint stats by mattfoley and scotish steve    Harry B scored a fine effort niall crossed after a run from evan weston ball in two hands joel crossed after a great run from mathew like ryan giggs with his man u shirt on set up the quick ball for joels effort a great jinking run from maximus Bowen face etched in effort up the right wing Harry B (bedders on hand to receive a popped pass to cross the white wash again nial ran well with his hand off hand kept firmly by his side off loaded to tom (thumb Mcallum to score an amazing jinking try ball firmly in two hands showed the vision of a bennet in full flow Harry b crossed in the corner. Kai got his first try for the green and blacks with a fine lay off from the staight running evan ryan nial bundled over the line joel romped through for his second of the day ciaran brown and harry b crossed to keep there tally going and Caine with hands out of pockets showed us all that we have a fine talent in the making crossed with a turn of pace that grampy larry would have been proud of not forgetting flamming Eamon whos try at the start was missed by our collate rs but was recorded by matt foley Finners made a tagg to behold and this score might very well have been wrong and st peters stole it but i have to keep with the information i have . A very interesting day with as always rugby winning out again                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                thank you to rumney for providing stiff opposition gabby tom jack Hilly Kieron and the rest of the blue and blacks played a fab and a some what expansive game what with the pitch being set extra wide today Aled Huw and Matt again thanks for your continued efforts all the best “till next week i bid you all well” Step toe

Sunday 8th January

Report by Denfa Again we play Pentyrch, this time at sea level we had a mere 32players this week and with altitude training paying dividends we only managed a draw and three losses but with substitution`s playing a big part in the flow of rugby. this played in pentyrch`s favour and the settled side ran out worthy winners of the day BUT every one played with gusto and aplomb and all tagged dodged and ran as straight as they were allowed by the opposition here are the reports from our now regular Hacks First Charlie “Wolfie” Balch As the sides lined up in the quagmire of a pitch Sonny the nemesis was glimpsed. Eyes narrowing and game faces on “0nce more into the breech my friends” echoed around the Harlequins the thunderer roared and the game commenced. Fortunately the skills hadn’t been forgotten and very quickly with some slick passing from Rowan and Finnley our flyer Eamonn was released 1-0 now Pentyrch had possession they tapped and passed to Sonny 3 rocks descended on him, no try scored he was human!! Possession regained and lost Pentyrch scored 1-1 try then the faces came back on and the ball raced out to Oliver Noon, the master of the game face, nothing would stop him – charging down the wing dived into and through the mud to reappear looking the image of Gareth Edwards he had opened his tally for the rocks. Cheers all round 1-2 Half time and he still hadn’t scored. A quick try by Pentyrch followed 2-2 but the ball got to Finnley Davies who, throwing the most outrageous dummy, found the gap that fed Eamonn 3-2. Closing down and great passing was the order of the day, but still Pentyrch sneaked a try 3-3. A quick restart and the ball found its way to sonny who for the only time today was given an inch 3-4. Dylan Balch charged into his favourite corner 4-4 but tired legs running through mud led to more open spaces both sides see sawed possession but Pentyrch scored 4-5 but in the dying seconds Harry Beddal stepped forward and just before the thunderer reached the lips 5-5 great game well played. The boys skills have improved fantastically this last year and the look of pride on Oliver Noons face was what it’s all about. 2nd game The second game started in the same manner some great passing and tagging Pentyrch scoring eventually, despite the mud (the boys loved it but try pushing a pushchair through it!!) both sides wanted to run Pentyrch scored just before halftime 0-2. As soon as the whistle blew the boys huddled knowing they were still in touch, they could easily pull this back. However a whisper in MattFoley ear and we were told the pitch was needed so it was decided full time. Hands shaken, backs slapped and hips hoorayed, it was sausage and chips time. secondly Lucas “he of the quill” Howell the trychs opened in possession strong defence from the rocks denied the try and a turnover by Nial followed by A run of two thirds of the pitch saw him open the account for the rocks 1-0 trychs got the restart and played the phases to draw level1-1 a great run by Evan W down the right wing brought the rocks second2-1The tyrchs tried to draw level but wre tagged out by the rocks a wild pass from the rocks saw thr tyrchs geta turnover but a great tag from tom thumb slowed them down but with a touch and a pass they ran the diagonal and level they drew2-2 halve time st peters got the restsrt and played all the phases untill Gethin forced his way over in the corner3-2 trychs came back strong and took no time for there equilizer3-3 Nial took a strong run from the restart tagged close to the line one more tagg saw the ball turn over. What ensued from the restart was what the ref “our Steptoe” said stopped the game after pentyrch scored there try “that was Rugby “ THE tyrchs ran true and passed well with the rocks tagging and throwing themselves in to defence tagged them out then the trychs attacked the offence with the rocks throwing the ball about looking for support and the tyrchs tagging for all they were worth the rocks grafting well for tom “thumb” mcallum to cross the white wash 4-3 the game was stopped with a shout from steptoe the ground went quite and he announced “That was rugby” (well done both sides by George i think you get it)i digress again the trychs came straight back to score to level once again 4-4 the rocks were out tagged and the tyrchs scored the wining try 4-5 to the tyrchs                                                                                                                                                                     (steptoe being his own man played extra time as his pride in what he just saw got his juices flowing and i lost the the rocks the match but what a match after a three week lay off both teams played with heart and soul and i would say although i am biased to a degree that that was the best game we have played in and against and the opposition the best as well . i see years of true rivalry with PENTYRCH and long may it continue . Bravo bravo bravo “2nd match the trychs opened the game but failed to capitalize on there possession running out of space with the turn over Gethin Goliath Howell opened his legs up for a 3/4 pitch run to open the score for the rocks 1-0 the trychs came back straight away to return the favor-1 the restart saw the tyrchs intercept to run in the second1-2 St peters camped on the trychs 5 yard line to be out tagged the trychs now settled with a side without the subs to spoil thre flow ran in to score there third try 1-3 this game was cut short as a whisper in Matts ear that the pitch was needed for the blues cup match and the whistle blew to end another splendid game Its 2012 and the boys are back we need shirts again from players who did not make it and can everyone look in there bags as we are short of tagg belts and taggs i will en devour to get more kit for the teams having almost 40 players is a problem but a good problem . we are becoming a more than a team more like a small hamlet and once again Ollie Noon well done son . we sold 25 calenders raising £175 well done!! any one who still needs a calender they will be on sale in the shop for the knockdown price of £3 i thank you steptoe

Sunday 18th December

Report by Denfa Last game before the christmas break . A phone call to say the pitch was frozen and the game was off However out my back the ground was soft and a quick call to Mr Helan the defector and we both agreed to meet down the rocks and see if it took a stud It did indeed take a stud in fact it was perfect Me thinks to much Christmas cheer was imbibed the night before and some heads were a little thicker than the norm.”The young bones groan, and the rocks below say lets play”   Tony`s boys and of course Gabby were 9 strong I`m afraid we were down to 22 as the sickness had gripped a few. Huw our very own GOK Wan turned up with 25 santa hats for the players a d a fetching team photo was taken By Pappy Bowen “see team photo” We arranged for a match of two halves with nine aside we two teams of 11 playing a halve each with rolling subs . the under twelves turned up for a session and were shown the way to the training pitch again in good repair we had the heady heights of the second team pitch 2 weeks on the run as our status of the real rocks deserved (joke)Rumney dominated the first three minutes with some fine support work and the slight slope scoring 2 tries through good support work our boys tagging well but loosing possession when ball in hand ? this did not deter the men of minster rd with a fine handling display of there own the game fell into a stale mate the rocks getting to grips with the wedge of the flying varsity all though it had morphed into a block and rumneys support strategy was paying dividends. some minor injuries to both side knocks brought both trainers on only for both boys one from each side to wipe ther noses clear the tears away and usher the medics back to the side lines tony and myself very proud of both men . no harm by either player but more a pride not to let there side down . no player was hurt and we would not condone keeping a player on i might add up popped Tom davis to strike a blow for the rocks with the right side opening up he dashed to cross for the rocks first a full nine minutes after kick off a very tight first halve rumney spill the ball and with time being called and a chance to level after maybe a few more tags than normal my whistle pea frozen to the steel sides of the thunder the halve ended 1-2 in rumneys favour Second halve and rumney in the flow our second 11 took to the perfect pitch Dylan Yarward found the bal in his hands and took off at amighty lick to score on his seventh birthday 2-2 runy to there crdit returned the score with some encouragement from the supporters 2-3 Tom thumb tagged for all he was worth and the egg returned to the rocks for finners to be denied at the death ollie noon pounced and a quick off load back to finners saw him score with a dive in the corner not strictly allowed but a fine effort which Mr helan called the try seeing effort as the only critria 3-3. Gabby proved a thorn in our side and scored a fine solo effort relooping around the back carian brown Stylie 3-4 now the rumney players in fine form strted to hit there stride the second 11 still recovering from a long wait tagged well but failed to add another score as again the to bullocks from rumney showed the way forward by going forward a tactic that will hold there future up the hill 3-5 3-6 at last a period of flowing rugby by the rocks some nice steps by Kiran davies Gruff Ciaran and Finn evans maximus luke Balchie and Kane with Allesandro running out of space (steptoe not being a good tactiction had set a long narrow pitch DOH!!!) Wide and short should have been the order of the day Ciaran finished the day off with a nice try and the end was blown . both sides shook hands and three cheers rang out to ding dong merrily on high To the bar for cakes and pop . Amanda noon providing the vitals bright green cupcakes loverly . a hush descended around the bar and charlie “wolfie smith ” made a a small speech and the parents had made a collection for all the coach`s and cases of beer were handed out A very nice touch and very much appreciated . i must add that the parents to a man and woman have been very supportive of the team and a vital part of the st Peters family never once complain g of the extra length of training the last minute changes to match’s and of course turning up what ever the weather has provided knowing that it is all good character building stuff even if a lot of it is to do with pig ignorance on our behave all the coach’s have made sterling efforts this first full year and i thank all of them Matt, Aled, Huw and Ant the support of all of you is very much the reason we are here today We have picked up players every week since we started and even with 8 players away sick with various ailments we still took 22 to the field today a great effort by all each week i give jobs to dads and mums and they do it with out complaint i am very proud of all of your efforts . on that note we also sold 24 calenders for the cause  Thanks Ange x . we have a few left and if you want one drop A line on the web site or teamer i will get them for you with that i leave you in this year 2011 played every week missed one traing session and scored over a hundred tries with over 40 boys and girls representing the Rocks not bad for the youngest side playing . i must add John Saunders turned up to train the pebbles but the rumors of abandonment put an end to his session he still had double figures but gave his tribe a well earned rest .The pebbles are here and are here to stay in safe hands with a fine coach and team around him i can only see a bright future foe the club . Merry Christmas and a happy new year training first Friday of the new year be there or be square all the best steptoe £7 for the calendars ithank you

Sunday 11th December

Report by Denfa ok first  mums and dads  can i take this opportunity of reminding every one that  the shirts are the most important part of our system you must en-devour to return your shirts if your “son daughter little darling cant make it ”     this week we were four shirts short But over ten players short i we dont want to look like Raggedy Rovers At petrych this week we had four players in there own kit. I dont want to have to collect the shirts every week and have to dish them all out again, you also dont want to have to take it in turns to wash all the kit your wallpaper will be peeling of over your radiators . i dont want to collect subs and get them laundered  it wont work we agreed at the start that this is the best way There is No I in TEAM this is what being part of a team is all about Effort!!!! I know it is sometimes impossible to get the shirt here but Ten shirts tell me that complacency has set in   We are the Under 7`s and we are strong as a team. “Dont make a good man bad ”   so please please please let me get what i want Second, The Calenders have arrived they are fab great Christmas presents for the family and a bargain at £7 each i have them email me if you want them i will bring them to training Cash only £3.50 for the club £3.50 for the supplier   thank you Third we have forms for membership that need to be filled in you get the use of the club facilities and the chance for international tickets and for the grand total of £4.17 a month direct debit we have forty players yet only a few have joined the club as family members we need to get this sorted i know that many of you have put your forms in and haven’t had the debit sanctioned yet   this is in hand please try to fill in the forms return them to me or pop them upstairs behind the bar for the attention of Joanne Smith cheers  I hope i haven’t head mastered you to much but we have to address things I THANK YOU   DENFA “steptoe” Any old up this week we were guests of Pentyrch rfc or as we fondly call it Upper West Taffs Well this report is our guest hack and regular contributor Charlie  ”Wolfie Smith” Balch                                                                                                           Well here we are up Pentyrch again the last time it was a glorious summers day, how different today was. Pentrych kicked off and scored straight away. Although the Pentyrch try scorer had a hat pulled right down over his head there was no disguising the mazy running, it was our nemesis from last time, Sonny. After he scored the first he ran in two more unanswered try’s. The rocks regrouped and started to teag and get possession. The ball popped out to Harry Foley who took his try well. Instantly being substituted on came Dylan yarwood who quickly grabbed a try 3-2. Harry(the other one) Bedders  had a trip and despite a bloody mouth and sore ankle refused to stop playing, thats the spirit!! Sonny had another kinking run but this time passed the ball for another Pentyrch try. 4-2. Harry Foley ran over for another try as he went off after being substituted shouted to his Mathew he was refereeing that £2 try bonus. 4-3 Finnley Davies tackled heroically as did Harry. A quick tap off by Dylan Balch left Finn Evans in the clear. Great try 4-4.  The weather worsened and with just 30 seconds left on the clock the ball found its way to Sonnys hands and dancing round some brave diving tags managed to squeeze a try in the corner. 5-4 to Pentyrch This report by steptoe scores by Simon hurlo hurley On the lower pitch the Tyrchs won the toss , chose to play down hill and the wind at here backs  The ball out swiftly to Joe the step and in a flash 1-0 to trych the rocks got tagged out easily and Rohan slipped the ball to jacob he crossed double quick 2-0 again fortune favored the tyrchs and there pressure in the tag got the better of the lads some slippery dodging saw tyrch3-0 nil up slippiddy   the rocks took the ball up the right for Saul to cross 3-1 the tyrchs tagged out and the egg moved hands for Flamming eamonn to keep up his record of scoring in every match he has played in 3-2 Tyrchs took the ball down to lets it loose Luke in his first game picked it up and started a fine move up the right again tagged four times the ball found its way to Rhys MAXIMUS Bowen who stepped of his left foot around the back and backed himself to the line 3-3  the tyrchs now level stepped up a gear and joe the step combined well with Mogs morgan who had tagged well moved the ball back to Joe who mesmerized all of us with a fine try . 4-3 with time being called steptoe ignored the sands of time with the ball in play to see saul score his second of the day4-4 halve time Aled girded his loins and briefed the the boys that tagging was the key A quick  sub was made Gethin to the field oooo`s from the crowd as all 6ft 3 of him took to the turf looking every part the gladiator Gruff tapped the ball and of he went wind at his heels surprised the crowd with a deft step to the left to cross 4-5 Tyrch were having none of this and drove the ball up the hill  Jacob scored through he middle 5-5  Thom davis in his second game for the rocks scored his first try in the green and black5-6 then the trychs saw red the ball like a hot potato moved well between all players with Nile tagging like a demented octopus failed to stop Mogs Morgan get his first try for the TRYCHS the crowd cheered a popular score for the home boy    The rocks slipped the ball out to Guff who danced his way clear to be tagged short a quick pass to eamonn and a return pass lickity split saw Gruff cross the white wash 6-7  with time being called again the reff ignored the bell to see trych push there way up the field just as they made the last pass the ball spilled free for callum to pounce on the abandoned egg and he was a way  with the ground falling away from his feet had a n easy debut try 6-8  A fine effort by all   With the trychs team off for a party Scott the coach split his posse up into a six and a seven and the second round was under way .   again the trych s chose the slope and were of to a flyer with the maidens of the team playing some rugby  not mentioned in the first match as they were the workhorses of that game tagging and sweeping behind the defense to keep the rocks at bay   scored in the left corner a magnet for both sides1-0 the rain now showed its hand and the cold had indeed set in the ball hard to catch saw trychs score a 2nd  2-0 . the rocks returned the favor Finners scoring after his first try was denied   diving over and keeping up his tally with flamming 4 ahead so he tells me!! 2-1    tyrch  kept up the pressure and Rohan a natural leader rallied his boys for the step to weave his magic   3-1  callum now acquitting himself with the rules scored a fine touchdown     3-2 halve time was called Little early this time the weather turning rather wild . the rocks tapped and passed the ovum to harry B “bedders” the bedraggled battler bowled his body down the park touchdown 3-3 the weather now affecting both sides the ball spewed from trychs grasp Evan “R siezed his chance a step to finish to the left scored on returning to the side line was heard to say to his dad thats a £2 bonus  dad !!3-4 the trych returned the score 4-4    With  a tapp and a smart change of pace Kane ball in one hand then the other and finally in both hands  a trait i believe he has gained from his mum took his score well 4-5.Pent returned up th park the pace now slowing as they were only 6 and we had subbed at will crossed through the step Joe having a splendid game through out but only because his side played with gusto5-5 Tom thumb  maccullum       who must me mentioned as with every game tagged and retagged got his chance running with educated hands scored 5-6  the tyrchs quickly spilled the ball for Evan weston  to pick up the charge with a cry of two hands saw evan return the ball down field looking as balanced as we have seen him run finished the match with what we all thought to be the try of the day 5-7 to the rocks . all players got off to the club house double quick time it was freezing . forth game i got to the game to hear that the rocks were 6-2 down with Saul scoring eamonn getting his obligatory try but the news that Sonny had found a friend in Baily and they had run the show scoring three tries  apiece  Scott was about to blow when Gruff took the ball side stepped shimmied hitch-kicked swerved dummied steadied him self saw the gap backtracked started over again finally crossing  Scott exclaiming i Just got to give that  and that was the try of the Day3-6 to the TRYCHS  we looked around to find we were the only people on the park apart from the under 13 who had kicked off we were first out and last in both Scott and myself we very proud of you all  a great spirit and gamesmanship and a mutual respect by players and supporters alike we all repaired to the bar where pasta and meatballs chocolate cake and orange squash were wolfed down  an impromptu game of tag ensued with both sides taking part when have these kids had enough geee!!!! Oh to be young again cheers for you r time steptoe denfa  And thank you to ALED HUW and MATT who led the teams with there  encouragement is always appreciated

Sunday 4th December

Report by Denfa

Score

8-6 6-3

Report

Scottish Steve collated this match Cymru Caerdydd ,were our opposition today and we were promoted to the second team pitch ,real grass!!, nose bleeds were had as we strode on to the pitch chest`s pumped out .CC Had only 8 players so we had to play two games we fielded 12 players in each side 8 aside with rolling subs Steptoe reffed ?well blew his whistle every now and again The rocks won the toss and kicked off the ball passed once and flamming Eamonn jinked his way to score before the pea in the thunderer had stopped1-0. CC went through there tags and the rocks returned the ball to the line quick time 2-0 Nile, making his debut score. CC then started to move the ball well with some fine inter-passing finding there own stepper Conner a red headed billy whizz2-1 The rocks straying offside and not retreating turned over the ball. Only for CC to spill the ball and Ciane leapt on the ball made off in the direction of the try line to be tagged short off loading the pigskin to Evan who ran a nice corner line angle to cross in the corner 3-1. a little confusion ensued with CC losing the ball and then retaining it settled down and passed and looked for space for there stepper to cross again 3-2 the rocks returned again from the kick of through Dylan B in a typical strong run stepping off both feet 4-2 Again CC advanced down towards there goal to be thwarted by Niles relentless tagging having and fist full of taggs in both hands . Time for a redress taggs returned . and with the whole of CC avoiding Nile like the plague scored straight up the center By Dylan a little tough nut 4-3 Halve time Coaches debrief and the game was on CC game came together with the side passing on the run and more boys getting involved a bad clash of heads brought a brief respite both players being very brave Nile and his co head banger were asked if the were allright and both rubbed there bonce`s and returned to the game with out complaint in fact the CC player passed , and got the return to score a heroic try 4-4 the rocks then had a purple patch Finners scored twice with dives but one was disallowed as a double movement was detected 5-4 Flamming E ran a length with dodging and weaving that is fast becoming his trade mark6-4 Gruff set on on a fine run with an exaggerated dummie that even i took from five yards behind to cross with class and a little grin playing over his face very pleased with himself 7-4 CC hit there stride themselves with two fine try`s all from great passing and support getting to grips with the pace of the game came right back in to the match7-5 7-6 .With the match coming to the end “Mr Bedders the clock” calling 1 minute to Rhys” Maximus “Bowen got the ball with 15 yards to go saw his chance for glory and crossed the line kept on running and would still be running now if someone haven’t stopped him scored his first Try for the club I think he has scored more but he was adamant that it was his first , and his Dad “Pappy ” bowen had promised him a surprise present 8-6 he whistle blew for the end both sides shook a fab match played in part to a standard well beyond there years . Match report by Lucas ” the scribe” Howells Finn opened the scoring within seconds of the first whistle A great run by Kieran passing to Dylan Y brought the rocks second CC pulled one back running the phases 2-1 A lull in play was broken by Saul`s run ten yards passed the goal line to take the rocks third 3-1 Gethin caught the defensive line napping effortlessly breaking the line 4-1 Second half saw both teams exchange possession , until Dylan Y ran half the pitch4-2 CC got lucky when gethins was denied his tag from five yards 4-3 Expert tagger Joel opened up the lead again 5-3 A GREAT RUN FROM KANE put another try on the rocks lead 6-3 St Peters held there line through the final whistle final score 6-3 . Alessandro ran in 2 extra tries only to ground the ball short of the line both times Clear through with the line beckoning scored 2 fine trys only to realize twice he was a full 15 yards short and 15 yards clear of the chasing pack it was a long pitch Aless, Ciane, Kane and Thom Davis have fitted in like “hand in glove” Taj `s spirit is indomitable, and it was a pleasure to see both the noons Ollie and Ed playing like the brothers in arms that they are, welcome back ED. I must also mention Cymru caerdydd spirit, only 8 players playing 40 minutes and letting our boys field two full sides with subs a great performance and on another day ,with a full complement of “men at arms” would have easily been able to run out winners thank you boys, a great effort you are a credit to your coach’s Thank you, to Jonatan for reffing the second match and for given us our fist whistle for a “knock on ” CC did it and he blew !!  A hard task master, but also he coached both sides, as the game went on . this is what the game is all about cheers to Cymru and we look forward to the return fixture Steptoe

Sunday 27th November

Report by Denfa  

Score

8-8 9-9 6-5 5-4

Report

Try scorers: Finners 2 Finn, Dylan Y ,Saul Joel ,Ciaran B, Kieran D 8-8                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                               Finners 2 ,Gruff 2, Ciaran,Dylan Y,Alessandro, Joe,l Finn 9-9                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                 Evan W. Evan R ,Eamonn 2 ,Bedder,s, Niall 6-5                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                             Eamon Evan W Tom Gethin Bedders 5-4 A Movember morning raised its head with the news that we had sickness in the camp. Our first time in charge and the the troops had fallen. ALL with Delhi belly !! What were we to do only 24 players!!!. All resplendent in there tash`s , and The ladies had out done there spouse with some fine growth of there own ? The rugby started on time and both sides threw the ball about . Niall scored on debut and Callum in his first game tagged well, and generally ran about enjoying the fact that his grampy Dobbin was here to watch him . Big Tom played well for his first game .Cricc had an outstanding player in Sam who ran and stepped of both feet with ease .all four games were close.falling down seemed to be the order of the day the pitch being very “cloggy”, the boys found it hard to find a stud .     All of the new players are finding there feet and you can see the improvement in them all . some fine dodging and some slick support work were the features of the game for the rocks and cricc got to grips with forming a line by the end of the day . a crowded pitch saw the end to single sprints to the line .Taggs slipped off and players slip Kev O’Brien Sporting the “FullGRAV” took the team photo for next years calender .(7.50)orders please as soon as you can !!! this was the first time the players had come a cross our kev “a hairy man, in a long coat, with a camera ” they all put on there game faces and listened to every thing Kev said . ???? well almost everything . boys straight up stairs for sausage and chips to be greeted by There mums in the kitchen. Shwalia ,Carwyns mum taking control of the reigns with Ange Rebbecca and Mel dishing out the Fodder . Helen, Anne Mari and Emma sold the tickets for the raffle and prostrate £ 140 was raised and split between the clubs food bill and Prostrate . Helen to her surprise won the raffle and immediately donated the wine to the Christmas raffle the Saki has not been claimed yet and could go the same way. AH SO!!! Thank you to all the girls for there help in making this our fist time a fun time . Cheers all of you ! you should all be very proud of your selves                                                                                                                                                                Steptoe

Sunday 20th November

Report by Denfa 6-6 4-9 7-7 7-4

Report

On an overcast mid Movember morn, Cowbridge came to town , under slate grey Victorian skies,the dairymen brought the full might of the countryside with them. two pitches were set up . narrow and long .enabling Fridays coaching session to take full effect. support being the skill “o” the week                                                                                                                                                                                                                                       the following report was collated and scripted by this weeks guest Hack, Charlie Balch pictures provided by Paapy Bowen                                                                                                                                                   Cowbridge opened the scoring straight from tap off, this served as a bit off a wake up call for the Rocks, many of them having rushed to the game straight from family mass. Finnley Davies made a trade mark ducking and weaving run, with shouts of two hands Finn, a well timed pass was made to Saul you ran straight and true for his first of the day. It seems the penny has dropped and everyone was looking to pass and move but then up stepped the Cowbridges secret weapon, Harry Ritson, with the first of his NINEtries of the day!! There heads not going down and passing out wide to Tom McCallum who added yet another try to his tally.But up came Harry Ritson again who ran straight through and past the rocks who were left in his wake to get his second 2-3 great full length of pitch run Recovering the rocks regrouped but they got the ball to Harry again scoring in the corner for a change. Refusing to let their heads drop and relishing in this new found passing game the ball was spun out to Dylan Balch, who unusually for him ran straight down the middle of the park instead of his usual corner 3-4, a jinking run from James drew the scores level 4-4 Until Harry scored again for cowbridge 4-5 another great straight run from Finn Evans 5-5 despite some great tagging from our new rock Taj Harry scored again but in the last move of the game the ball was passed through at least three pairs of hands ending up with Finn Davies 6-6 honours shared The second game the Rocks were relieved to see the back of Harry but Cowbridge the scoring 1-0 followed by another quick try 2-0 Saul Hurley wasnt having any of that, and scored his second of the day with a full length of the pitch dash. try 2-1 try However Cowbridge scored again 3-1 Moving the ball along the line saw the ball end up in Dylan Balch’s hands, seeing his favourite corner beckon he didnt dissapoint 3-2 try However the rocks line was again beaten by straight cowbridge running 4-2 However the rocks try of the day although finished by Finn Evans was started with a great pass from James to Dylan Balch who spun out to Rowan flicking on to Finn Davies who passed on to Finn Evans, a try worthy of the BaBa’s .Some great probing runs from Gruff and the usual speedy darts from Alessandro with more fine tagging by Taj didnt prevent cowbridge scoring 2 unanswered tries 6-2 Saul Hurley to his own surprise scored his hat trick try 6-3 Finn Davies holding the ball with two hands dived over for another 7-4 But Cowbridge scored again although no Harry on this side all the side scored with 2 quick tries cowbridge 9-4 But a great straight run from ko for Finn Evans 9-5 final score   thanks Charlie Report collated by Helen Howells scripted jointly by steptoe                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                          Harry” bedders ” beddall opend the days play with a fine up the middle try1-0 followed after a dropped ball with Flamming Eamonn skooting up the park after some slick tag handling to cross the whitewash 2-0. cowbridge girded there loins to bullock there way up the strip with some fine support work to score 2-1 a fumble restart saw there flyer pickup and weave his magic to touch down 2-2 . Shock horror cowbridge again bridged the rocks defense slack tagging did for them 2-3. the rocks steadied themselves for a match and Harry B returned the favor after a slick before the tag pass from swivelhipped Rowan. shipping the ball with ease into the path of Bedders 3-2 (note to paul, rowans dad, you missed it )(Nieve his daughter was making her debut with the pebbles. under jon saunders )i digress not for the first time ?3-3       half time.                                                                               cowbridge stsrted tagged out .Some great straight running by Evan weston released Gethin to bullock his way to glory4-3. the dairymen return with style 4-4 again cowbridge tagg out the rocks and slip the ball to there stepper 4-5, a tense period with furious tagging and a little physicality taking place by both sides all in the spirit of the game ensued the match being reffed by cowbridges cauiliflowerd supremo being of the forward varity let it go .no complaints by either side both players and supporters alike .cowbridge broke free and put it across the line 4-6. Evan Ryan picked up a pop ball to see the line beckoning and remembering his coaching ran straight as a dye through two players grasping at his tail scored his first try for the rocks . (Dad “scotish steve ” Spain stag weekend missed it )5-6 cowbridge shuttled there way forward try count 5-7 Ciaran brown not featured much this game came up with a stunner 6-7 and harry B finished with a mad cap dash full length right wing to close out the game 7-7. Ref blowing full time honors even                 second match Evan weston scores after 20 seconda 1-0 bridge draw level 1-1 the rocks tagged out the bridge cross again 1-2 again fabulous tagging and the rocks are bereft of ideas the dairymen cross again 2 un answered trys 1-3 . Gethin stepped up to stop Cowbridge getting there fourth and the game started to turn. Bedders got his 2nd 2-3 kieron davies shimmied his way through 3-3 Half time Bedders opened up with a fine run to cross. Ciaran found his feet and stepped up and through a tackle to break the line 5-3 cowbridge woke up to put together a fine period and scored with a determined drive up the left flank5-4. Tapped of start a gallop from gethin, saw him cross for his second, bedders finished with a flourish after the ball ,like a hot potato skipped from hand to hand like a barbarian training session down barry island7-4 . The ref blew at full time.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                a tunnel made by the boys, and both sides trooped through. three cheers echoed around the Harlequin`s from both sides, the applause was heard in the royal oaks beer garden. A great day both teams evenly matched both refs playing the game to the ful, Matt for st peters and Big Rich for cowbridge. well done to Ants animals and Huws hero`s our on the field coaches whose efforts are well appreciated Aled came late on as Gruff had a tennis trial and wanted to get in some rugby before the day was out. the team is coming on great and with new boys fitting in with ease . Taj being our newest and after one session showed that he is not far behind the pack and his effort both on and off the ball was noted by all three coach`s and me well done Taj. Carwyn Ollie Matt Rhys as the pictures show were all over the park doing there stuff with enthusiasm i am proud of all of you . the man  of the match this weeks go`s to Finn Evans OUTSTANDING                                                                                                                                                                                         Now for next week we must get there by 10;15 we are cooking it is movember all kids to don a tash ,The  ladies are at the stove ,selling both raffle tickets ,and colecting for prostate cancer . This is our first time in the kitchen and first time that we have the responasabillty of making an impact at the club . thankyou all for your offers of help Shelly and Don will be on hand for advice ,and i will pickup the raffle tickets on friday . lets do this!!!   Ange will be head chief ,Claire is Raffle matron ,and Helen will get the oppositions food tickets sorted .Becca &Mel are on pots and pans( i mean sou and pastry chiefs) and Emma is going to relive every one of as much cash as she can Blag. cheers again all STEPTOE

Sunday 13th November

Report by Denfa       6-5 lost 3-5 won

Report

A beautiful, autumn day up the Gwent valley playing Croesyceilliog known as the Cockrels.Or the” Cocks ” So the rocks V the cocks. A fabulous setting at woodland Rd, with the green and black teams streaming all over the verdant fields of Cwmbran. The cocks teams emblazoned in red and yellow the hue of autumn strewn about the ground, mums and dads ambling around – some nusring hangovers, all the players eyeing up there opposition wondering if they were to play them big boys over in the corner with full beards the scene was set . We split the team in to 2 both having ten players , The Cocks agreed to play us twice they having only ten players . The Cocks tapped of and tagging ensued,change over ball and a quick break by flaming eamonn saw the rocks open the scoring 0-1 The cocks returned the score with there stepper crossing with a fine run .Steve the cocks coach and ref had introduced off side and the teams coped admirably with the new rule and mostly listened to him . The game was a quite slow affair with adjustments to tags and kit but with all the rules being applied both sides played very well and were evenly matched .Dylan Yarwood opened his account with a stuttering start and a angled run for the line 1-2 a turn over ball saw yarwood eat up the ground to get his second 1-3. the cocks went through the phases to be tagged out . and the whistle blew . The cocks ran in a try from the start2-3 . then something went awry both teams started to pass the ball forward for no reason and i mean forward Steve explained and they both settled down again . Rhys tagged like a demon ciaran brown stayed on side and the team had great shape about them Ant and Huw doing a fine job corralling the boys. the cocks equaled the score with a move down the left . a wide pitch helping the boys from both sides to find space .. Dylan balch Tagged well and Kieron davies and evan ran straight and true . both eating up the ground some fine tagging by the cocks stopping progress . the ball turned over from a dropped pass and they were away 3-3 . A start and move along the line with tag pass tag pass tag pass with the rocks in great support ollie Noon involved twice , saw ciaran make a strong run to off load to Yarwood for his hat trick 3-4 the game drawing to a close up stepped Joel to finish the scoring for the rocks3-5 . then disaster the cocks score . 4-5 turn over 5-5 . steve the ref playing advantage and letting the game run from dropped and slipped pass`s the cocks finished with a flourish and scored at the death 6-5 no complaints a great game played very well by both sides. and reffed to within an inch of its life. with fair advantage been given to both sides . WELL DONE REF . a good rest was had by the cocks with the under 8`s playing a game and our boys watching with intent “(well not really) a pile on, and an impromptu Exodus to the far end of the field to welcome Uncle Kev who had biked his way up from cardiff his Lycra`d brow glisting in the mid day sun. it had taken him 2and half hours to get here . and he missed eamonn play ” go ead uncle Kev ” Second match. The rocks in possession got tagged out and change over ball saw the cocks step into touch driven wide by a pursuing rocks defense, James mcaid made a brilliant tag to stop a certain try, in the midst of the action. Finners scored from a couple of tag pass`s and a weaving run 0-1. Griff playing his second game to make up the numbers carried the ball well and passed out of hand with out being tagged put Alex the Italian stallion on a run that left every one in his wake . 0-2 . the cocks returned the score with a good drive up the left 1-2 the ball sent to rowan who passed in double quick time to Harry Beddall who weaved and danced his way over from the half way line with out hand being placed on him Applause broke out from both sets of supporters 1-3. the cocks were thwarted again by another fine tag from James ripping the tag with relish and shouting TAGGGGGGG at the top of his voice. Finn evans ball in two hands scored at pace . 1 4 the cocks hit there stride and returned two un answered try`s 2-4 3-4 half time, Tom “thumb” Maccallum tagging like a mainiac. Steve turned the sides round in quick fashion and a tense game ensued with both sides listening to there coach`s and steve the ref. all players tagging and observing the off side . then it happened again the stallion picked up the ball from rowan again and he was off striding out getting faster and faster the cocks admiring there quarry from afar . our boys stood in awe and watched the crowd stunned into silence crossed the line grounded the ball and jogged back adopting JJ Wiliams gate looking at the ground smiling softly to himself . the cocks returned the ball up the park ,James mcaid thrust his hand out tagged for the final time and Steve blew . 3-5 to the rocks . a great game a tunnel was made and all the players went through, to three cheers and we all repaired to the cocks cricket and rugby club for sausage and chips where if you get the chance Visit . up stairs is a great picture of Mike Burgess about to crush Gareth Edwards . the man of the match Was james macaid for his great tagging . you dont have to score try`s to be the be the man of the match the team is the most important thing we have to offer, and all- though Dylan got three Alex got two. The effort by james and the way he did his job made him stand out head and shoulders above all the players today well done james . to days stats were provided by Scottish Steve who is off on a stag weekend next week much to his wife’s dismay . steve hails from glasgow and football is his game . however he has com e to embrace rugby and is off to watch cardiff in france thanks for you efforts steve . Steptoe

Sunday 6th November

Report by Denfa

Score: 6 Match`s

On a fine Movember morning with ten minutes before kick off Glamorgan wanders turned up to play. A quick reorganization and two pitches were marked out and a three way tourny was started. First up The Rocks V LLanishen. Llan kicked off in possession and ran to touch, after the coach wanted touch to be hand over ball ??Finnley and Eamonn interacted stunning straight down the left wing to score finners with the touch down 1-0 llan then ran straight to touch ?hand over. some straight running and a quick tagg pass to Harry Beddal who scored his first in the green and black. 2-0 restart to touch ? Gruff and Alex inter-passed and GRuff scored with a lovely change step at the line 3-0 restart llan ran to the right touch agin with there coach bellowing in there ears . game stopped llans coach warned and Taggball at the touch was introduced llan ranthrough the phases and tagged out . Dylan Yarwood scored with a flowing run and the score 4-0 . half time Llan passed and scored 4-1 we returned with harry beddal scoring a blinder from half way5-1 . llan returned the score with a few visit’s to touch but started to gain confidance 5-2 Evan Ryan ran straight and true off loaded to eamonn who off loaded the Yarwood who crossed with gusto.6-2 llan had a purple patch missed taggs made it 6-3 and a lost ball which Ben picked up ran the length 6-4 the rocks steadied the ship with joel running in a fine solo effort 7-4. a mix up with the llans passing saw Alex run in a try that Gerald Davies would have been proud of on the left wing eating up the ground like a gazelle8-4 eamonn finished the match at the death with a try again down the left . 9-4 match analysis by Scottish steve Evans dad cheers Stevie the following report and score were provided by Paul Fahy recruited at a moments notice As our resident Hack Lucas was drafted in to coach one of the sides Scores for matches today. Rocks V Glam Wand’s Glam 0-1 Eamonn length of pitch to equal 1-1 Gethin Howells try disallowed forward pass (shame on you dad) Finlay Evans 1st try 2-1 Glam just on half time 2-2 Half Time Rocks 2 Glam Wands 2 1st score glam 3-2 Harry Foley scores Smiling all the way 3-3 Glam score 3-4 Saul tears them to bits 4-4 Rowan scores 5-4 Glam 5-5 Finlay Evans 2nd try 6-5 Full time Rocks 6 Glamorgan Wands 5 Rocks V Llanishan Llanishen score 17 secs 0-1 Finlay Evans nips over for his hat trick for the day 1-1 Llanishen 1-2 Saul’s second of the day 2-2 Llanishen try on 7 mins 2-3 Ollie Noon called back after a promising run for a false start Half time Rocks 2 Llanishen 3 Finlay Evans on fire 4th try to level it 3-3 Llanishen try 3-4 Eamonn Rogers second try makes it 4-4 Llanishen score 2 quick tries to make it 4-6 Rocks tagged out under pressure Llanishen try score 4-7 Llanishen pick on loose ball to score 4-8 Llanishen try score 4-9 Eamonn Rogers 3rd try makes it 5-9 Llanishen try finish strongly to win deservedly 5-10 Full Time Rocks 5 Llanishen 10 this match was the last and this report is not in order of play Glam wanted to play there 8`s so i agreed as all experience is good . Rocks V Glamorgan Wands Big Boys Eamonn Rogers 1-0 2mins Glamorgan try 1-12min 45 Harry Beddall 2-1 3min 50 Dylan Yarwood 3-1 @7min 46 Glamorgan try 3-2 @8 min 50 Allesandro on 10 mins Half Time Rocks 4 Glamorgan Wands 2 Finlay Evans no 5 after 1 min 5-2 Glamorgan try 5-33 min 30 Gruff Rhys try 6-3@4 min 30 Glamorgan try 6-4 4 min 45 Dylan Yarwood try 7-4 @7min 20 Finlay Davies try 8-410 min Full Time Rocks 8 Glams Big Boys 4 A fine result for the boys who had learned they were playing the Big Boys and relished the challenge. some great play by the rocks . Pauls report how ever is concise and to the point and is also a very exiting read i have to curb my coloring in of events and stick to the “MEAT” cheers Paul paul is rowans dad My other SLAM twin The rocks V lannishen finlay Evans scored 1-0 then saul Hurley ran in a blinder 2-0 harry beddal got one 3-0 eamonn ran in 2 5-0 finally harry foley got another cheers simon this result is by memory and i am afraid simons mind is not what it used to be Llan did score but Si cant remember . it was there second match so we will give them 4 as they improved as they played on in the tourny now that the touch was abandond as a bad idea . The rules will be enforced as the boys improve and i think pour boys are ready for the rules to be applied but we have to help all the players from both sides and enjoyment is the key we stopped Glammorgan Wanders from passing forward by the end of the tourny and Llan from running to touch small steps to a greater game come the new year Offside will be introduced and be part of the game, the rocks glamoran wanders Finn Evans opened1-0 glammy returned 1-1 saul 2-1 finn evans 3-1 glammy 3-2 eamonn 4-2 glammy 4-3 glammy4-4 eamonn5-5 finnley 6-4 half time Finn evans 7-4 eamonn 8-4 glammy 8-5 finnley lenght of the feild 9-5 glammy again 9-6 finnlley again to eamonn 10-6 and the deed was done The man of the match this week isHARRY BEDDAL who on debut scored 4 trys and played like a vet only one training session dad you must be very proud . Finn Evans 5 try`s was revised to Six well done Finn .Rhys, Lilly, Jon JO well done tagged great and are improving very week . Ollie and Edward a good all round performance Ollie is playing like an old pro not glory hunting but doing the hard work for the team Tagging is more important than scoring and i see a blind side flanker developing nicely Matt as always job done this sweeping role and defending that you have given yourself is working well . these boys and girls are the bedrock of a club. and just to say we were missing 4/5 players due to illness. and one player played while still suffering talked his mum into it and got on with it well done KD Now then on the 27th all kids to have a tash or beard drawn or stuck Getthin stop shaving Dude? we are promoting Movember prostrate Cancer Cricc are coming tashed up . we also need mums to sell raffle tickets and do the food or Dads this is our first time doing the food and it is our chance to be come Part of the St Peters family . Girls you can spare the” immac” for a couple o weeks and out do the men JOKE . My Tash is reminiscent of Wurzel Gummage cheers for all your support Steptoe

Sunday 30th October

Report by Denfa 3-1 3-4 9-2 4-6 rumney score first

Report

Four games played today. Tony the defector and my self decided to play an experienced team and an inexperienced team so first up was the teams that have played the game and have a grasp on the rules this game was played with all the rules as far as we could without offside and blatant forward passes ?Progression being the aim ! game one rumney scored first .1-0The Rocks came straight back at the Blues being well Shepherded into touch change over ball .Rumney took advantage and ran in another tout sweet 2-0. Again the rocks tried to break the defense but they tagged well and battened down the hatch`s . rumney finished in possession and at the whistle it was 2 -0 to the blues .St Peters started the second half strong and dominated the rumney half.they were tagged out with no score. with possession rumney showed there class. and with only one pass ran the length to score 3-0. St peter`s somewhat bemused at this juncture . rallied themselves . a slick passing move saw Eamonn rogers dance over for a score .3-1 .. Point to note . this change of play with the new rule being added foxed our boys and kept running out of space . looking to move the ball and looking for gaps . inadvertently ran to touch hence the ball being turned over . a lesson learned noted and digested . . the close support of rumney being the feature of the game . some might say THE FLYING WEDGE has made an ugly return to the game . tagging was attempted and mainly got but the close supporting runner got a pass trundled on and so on . “Humpf” Martin johnston would have been proud !! nough said ? Second match. the two inexperienced sides . the match started roughly as the first rumney scored1-0 and then possession changed hands before rumney scored a second 2-0 . With a minute to go Ciaran brown pulled the deficit back to in at the half 2-1 down . A stiff talking to by “steptoe” with running straight and holding the ball in two hands ringing in the boys and girls ears. saw the start of the second half the rocks started well but a stay pass stemmed progress. the rocks Rallied again with Saul Hurley getting his first for the club with a shilly and a shally and a firm grounding of the ball got the drawing Try . 2-2 Rumney returned the ball tagged out . and some determined running by Evan……. ball held firmly in two hands as if the last loaf of bread ever to have been baked was in his sole command . galloped over the line . His first game for the club after one training session . i know we have found a second row of the future well done Evan .. 2-3 the rocks turned over the ball with the other evan…. taking his chance well all though ball under one arm corner flagged himself over . again first game for the club. Bravo mon brav!! 2-4 this leaving the rocks with a bit to spare rumney wedge themselves up and scored 3-4. Note Lilly St peters first girl to play and our very own Spice girl had a great debut and has also made us the proud owners of a pair of twins. the o`briens and the noons .A special mention to James Mcaid who tagged with spirit , Keiron davies who tried to get the ball moving and oliver noon who`s determination is showing more and more every week . and has probably the best game face of all of our players,and he means it . fab . the third game our inexperienced side against there better side . The rocks defense was strong and saw some great tagging. however it was rumney that crossed the line 1-0 rocks came back but a foot in touch saw the hand over and a fractured rocks defensive line meant it was only time before rumney ran in there second 2-0 the rocks battled back for again the touch being the best defense for rumney turned the ball ran in a fine try .3-0. the fourth was quickly dispatched and the rocks were 4-0 down. restart and a fumble saw rumney gain a fifth 5-0 Second half started with the rocks running through the phases with evan… getting on the scorecard 5-1 . turnover from a rare rumney mistake saw Ciaran brown snaffle up the ball and with the line at his mercy trotted over all the while looking for support 5-2rumney replied in fine style wedging the ball up the field 6-2 there followed another touch turnover and rumney crossed again . 7-2 . Oliver noon launched himself with a now familiar Noon run straight and true only to put a stud in touch . turn over rumney score .8-2 a fumbled ball and Gabbi the rumney spice girl ran in her third or fourth try and took the opportunity well as is her want a very fine player indeed final score 9-2 . Note a sterling effort by our team three debutantes and a couple of players who are making progress not by steps but by strides . and of course when luck sometimes go`s against you you pick yourselves up knuc


Under 13s Match Reports 2011-12

Thursday April 26th (Blues Cup Semi-final)

Pontypridd 24 St Peter’s 0

The Game Nothing much to report.  The game was a shocker for the Rocks and excellent for Ponty who played with greater application and commitment.  It was 14 – 0 at half-time from two long range converted tries and, having absorbed a bit of St Peter’s possession (albeit in their own half) Ponty scored another two from closer range in the second.  Good luck to them in the final. Report by Gwyn Williams

Saturday April 14th

St Peter’s 50 Banbury 17

The Game A Saturday fixture in the Easter holidays saw a few players missing, but the those available put in a good performance against our new friends from Banbury RFC.  The final scoreline flattered the Rocks a little bit, but reflected their ability to use the overlap to score tries at regular intervals. The first try came on six minutes from the Banbury nominated Man of the Match, Tom Meehan, taking a pass from Steff after he had picked up from a 5m scrum.  Daf converted well, as he did for the next score from Ben Thomas, who broke through after good interplay between the outside backs.  Banbury were proving tough opponents, especially in the forwards, and  came back with an unconverted try on fifteen minutes, only for St Peters to respond two minutes later with an excellent try from Ioan, who did well to jink through the defence when it had looked that the backs had run out of space.  On twenty minutes, Ben got his second try and the scoring for the half was completed by the visitors with a length of the field effort from a tap penalty.  Half-time score 24 -12 to the Rocks. The second half saw Ben T score his hat-trick try after two minutes, only to be trumped by Tom M, who ran in a further three on  twelve, eighteen and twenty minutes to bring his total for the match to four.  He benefitted from being given space wide out and used his strength and speed to get around the cover each time.  Throughout the game there were some excellent barnstorming runs from the forwards, notably Rhydian, Dylan and Joe M and some eye-catching breaks from impact substitute Oli.  Daf converted three on the tries, the last of which brought up the fifty point mark, but the visitors were to get the last word, with a bouncing ball from a kick though confusing the Rocks defence and enabling Banbury to recover the ball to score.

Thanks to Donna and Nicola for cooking and to all who provided food for the buffet, including the mystery crisps.  We are sure that the really friendly Banbury crowd had a good time and we plan a return trip to Oxfordshire next year.

Tries: Tom M x4, Ioan x1, Ben T x3 Cons: Daf x5 Match Report by Gwyn Williams

Thursday March 29th

St Peter’s 39 Crossley Heath School 19

The Game In weather more suited to mid-summer than late March, the Rocks welcomed visitors all the way from Halifax.  Crossley Heath are a well drilled and organised team and their impeccable behaviour is a credit to their school.  They provided stiff opposition for a St Peter’s side that was a little flattered by the final scoreline. The Rocks started by fluffing the kick-off receipt, but soon reclaimed the ball with the backs setting Tom M free to score on the wide left.  However, any thoughts that this was going to be an easy game were dismissed as the visitors came back with a strong driving game.  Possession was turned over a number of times before Sion did well to force a penalty on “the jackal”, which was well converted by Ben T.  And it was the same player who turned creator for the next score – putting through the sweetest kick for speedster Rami to collect well on the bounce and run in under the posts. Ben converted. Towards the end of the half a third try came after a series of “pick and drives” was well defended by the visitors, only for them to see the ball go down the line for Josh to score.  Right before half time, Crossley Heath got a deserved try with a series of drives softening up the Rocks tacklers to put a man over near enough to the posts for a good conversion to be made.  Score at the break 22 – 7. With most of the subs on for the second half, the first meaningful action saw the Rocks mess up the visitor’s scrum to gain possession and quick transfer of the ball to Tom M, now in the backs, to run in from distance into the left corner.  Crossley Heath came back with another close-quarter try and conversion, before Joe M was able to cleverly score from a five yard tap penalty – changing direction to the blindside to squeeze in at the right corner.  Ben T, on fine form with the boot, narrowly missed with the conversion.   Once again, the visitors refused to lie down and came back with another try from the hard-working forwards. However, the last word came from the Rocks, with the ball boomed along the line until, at last,  a well timed pass saw Tom M set off on a run which demonstrated speed, strength and a mean hand-off to score his hat-rick try. A good game played in an excellent spirit and well refereed by Barney, who very much enjoyed the unseasonal climate for a good run around. Tries: Tom M x3, Rami x1, Josh x1, Joe M x1 Cons: Ben T x3 Pens: Ben T x1 Match Report by Gwyn Williams

Sunday March 25th

Llandaff North 0 St Peter’s 27

The Game Firstly, we would like to welcome a new player, Oli, and to his family to our club. The match,  played in conditions more suited to cricket than rugby,  a lot of positional changes and a new player meant the boys had to dig deep to overcome a much improved Llandaff North side. The rocks should have been two tries to the good in the first 15 mins but a lack of a dive and poor communication cost us these chances.  To be fair  to the North boys they tackled very well.  Our first try was scored by Tom after some good play by the backs and our second by Dylan after some pick and gos from the pack. Both went unconverted – 10 nil to the Rocks at halftime. After a few choice words from the coach and a couple of subs, the second half started as the first ended with the Rocks on the attack.  The game went 10 minutes before the first scrum and it was noticed that St Peters only had 14 players on the field.  Cries of sack the coach were heard around the ground (I think that I should stay in on Saturday nights) and after a few near misses Ben B scored a very well taken try (conversion was missed).  Ben then put in a great run and chipped the ball over the fullback´s head. Unfortunatley, the ball didn´t bounce our way with Ben T just knocking on. Then the boys decided to throw the ball about and Sion went over for a well deserved try. Finally, the best try of the game was again scored by Ben B showing great pace after the ball had gone through many pairs of hands. Ben T converted and the final five minutes was all about the rocks defence with some fantastic tackles coming in from all 15 players, well played both sides.  Thanks to Ben B, Ben T, Tom, Stef, Joe and Ioan for all playing out of position. Things to work on: 1.Arriving early and at the correct venue 2.Could all non coaching parents please refrain from coaching the team as it is upsetting the players, Don, Dai and myself 3.Patsy’s maths Tries: Ben B x2, Tom M x1, Dylan x1, Sion x1 Cons: Ben T x1 Match Report by Patsy Nolan  

Sunday March 18th

Penarth 0 St Peter’s 31

The Game For our second visit of the season to our friends at Penarth, there was a sense of deja vu……….

  • It was cold, wet and windy – Check
  • Wales had won a vital match the day before – Check
  • Many of the parents (and the coach) had sore heads after celebrating Wales’ win – Check
  • The boys played a brilliant game – Well, not quite………

It was certainly not the quality of perfomance that we saw at the start of the year and credit should go to Penarth who were well organised and effective at the breakdown.  Nevertheless, the game started with some terrific teamwork from the Rocks, with a charge from Connor O’B, quick recycling and the ball passed down the line, and Ben T cutting in intelligently to keep the move going.  The ball was transferred through a number of pairs of hands to release Ioan, who beat two players to race over at the posts.  Daf converted. The Penarth response was impressive, with an attack culminating in an intelligent kick which the Rocks back three did well to field. Penarth remained on the front-foot and benefitted from some silly infringements by St Peter’s including one for “lazy running” that would make an Irish front row forward proud.  It was not until the fifteenth minute that the Rocks put together some fluid play, with the ball eventually coming wide left to Owain, who threw a trade-mark dummy to go over.  The conversion was missed.  Again Penarth came back, but were thwarted and Ioan made an excellent break-away.  Unfortunately, he was only supported by SPO and was turned over.  Just before half time, some decent build-up play saw the ball passed to the blindside, where Joe M did well break through the last line of defence to go over.  The conversion was missed, but the Rocks were flattered by a 0 – 17 half-time lead. The second-half saw a series of replacements and positional changes, with Ben T looking comfortable at 10 and Ioan showing some lovely touches in the centre.  The forwards displayed a bit more intent at the breakdown too, although coach Patsy was still pulling out what hair he has left as the sloppy errors continued.  That said, there were two very good tries in the half.  The first an individual effort from Rami who was given a bit of space by good passing and showed a turn of speed to blast away.  Ben T converted well.  The second was a team effort with the ball recycled by the fowards to set the backs off to the left, good support from the back-row and Joe M realeased in mid-field to break through a tackle and score at the posts.  Josh N converted.  In between the tries, Tom M had broken away, but was denied a try when he was rightly penalised for a dangerous hand-off and, on the final whistle, Josh M was unlucky not to be award a try after a well worked drive by the forwards saw him over the line, but with Penarth hands also on the ball. A good victory, but a performance that was a bit of a Grand Slam hangover.  Well done to Penarth for excellent defence throughout.  

Sunday March 4th (Blues Cup Quarter-final)

Llantwit Major 0 St Peter’s 53

The Game The heavy overnight rain made for a heavy pitch at Llantwit, although the day brightened up sufficiently for an open game.  The Rocks were quickly into their stride with a scrum against the head on half-way and Daf dummying the defence and going through the gap.  His well timed pass put Ben T in under the posts to continue his hot streak of scoring.  Daf converted and repeated the feat a minute later when the Rocks (even with a botched kick off call – you know who you are) managed to pass the ball down the line to Tom M to run in form distance.  A few minutes later Daf switched tactics with a well chased kick resulting in a defensive scrum 5 yards from the Llantwit line.  Sion scragged the scrum-half and the forwards won possession for Josh Nolan to burrow over. The tide continued with another scrum against the head resulting in the ball getting to Sam, who jinked through some weak tackles to score a converted try.  He got another 5 minutes later, benefitting from a quick tap penalty at first receiver and going over from 5 yards.  Next to go on the score-sheet was Ben B, touching down after spoiling work and a kick through from Rami.  The seventh and final try of the half was a crowd-pleaser, with Ruairí picking up a spilt line-out ball and jinking his way over from 15 yards out.  Daf let the conversion go and the Rocks led 0 – 41 at half-time. A committed Llantwit team came out with intent in the second half and were more effective at the ruck and in the tackle.  Nevertheless, the Rocks forwards were generally in the ascedency with Connor O’B and Dylan to the fore.  After a series of forward drives, Rhydian powered over from a yard.  St Peter’s rounded off the scoring with the last try a mirror of the first – scrum ball moved to Daf who open the defence to send Ben T in at the posts for a converted try. Well done boys. Tries: Ben T x2, Sam x2, Tom M x1, Josh N x1, Ben B x1, Ruairí x1, Rhydian x1 Cons: Dafydd x4 Match Report by Gwyn Williams

Sunday February 26th

St Peter’s 38 Droitwich 20

The Game A beautiful spring day at the Harlequin Ground saw the early arrival of our new friends from Droitwich (for the many people who asked where exactly this is – up the M5, just north of Worcester – and take note please, because we’re going up there to play them next year). With the conditions set for a cracking game of rugby, the boys from both sides did not let the spectators down.  Right from the off, it was clear that it was going to be a match played at a fast tempo with full commitment.  The Rocks were first on the scoreboard, gaining good field position and using the forwards to ‘pick and drive’ and send Dylan over the line for his first try for St Peter’s .  Daf put over a very good conversion. Droitwich came back with all guns blazing and, after their threat on the left was repelled, counter-attacked from the relieving kick to score a lovely try on the right. The conversion was missed, but they were back onto the attack from their own ten yard line after the Rocks conceded a penalty shortly after the kick-off.  With the ball passed wide out right, excellent support play saw them over the line.  Again the conversion was missed, but another try came straight from the kick-off, with the confident Droitwich backs punching holes in the St Peter’s defence.  The tide was stemmed briefly, with the Rocks tackling hard, but five minutes later Droitwich got a fourth, high-class, try with direct running and excellent support play.  The conversion was missed, but the visitors were up by 20 points to 7. With the Rocks well and truly (erm……) rocked, it was time to tighten up and take control of possession and, all credit to the boys, that is exactly what they did, again using the ‘pick and drive’ to work their way up the field and the force of Connor O’Brien took him over the line.  Daf scored another good conversion and repeated the feat minutes later when lapses in the visitors concentration saw Ben Thomas take advantage and score wide out left. Thanks to Daf’s conversions, the Rocks went into half-time with an unlikely 21-20 lead.  And recognition should also go to Daf for the way that he managed the game from outside half.  He had all the composure and sound execution that was missing from the Wales’ number 10 yesterday. With Patsy away at the football (sorry about the result, Pats), it was down to Don to deliver the half-time rocket.  And, fair play, it was pretty effective, although there was a touch of fortune in the Rocks try three minutes into the second half – the ever alert Ben T picking off an interception deep in the Droitwich half to score beneath the sticks.  Daf converted. The game continued with both sets of forwards highly committed, but the Rocks perhaps getting the edge and giving the backs better ball to work with.  And it was Ben T who took advantage with an impressive charge to the line to complete his hat-trick.  Daf missed the conversion. Even being 13 points up, there was still tension amongst the St Peter’s supporters, probably in the knowledge of what they had seen from the visitor’s backs in the first half.  So it was good to see the team playing for field position and using the forward platform to control the game, with Steff to the fore in much of the play.  The scoring was rounded off with the ball worked down the line to Ioan, who did well to get over wide out in the right-hand corner.  Daf missed the conversion. A really good game between two excellent sides – we look forward to plenty more encounters in the future. Tries: Dylan x1, Connor O’B x 1, Ben T x3, Ioan x1 Cons: Dafydd x4 Match Report by Gwyn Williams

Sunday February 19th

Rhydyfelin 0 St Peter’s 48

The Game With a bare 16 players available, there was a bit of mix ‘n’ match (in the forwards especially) today, which made the win very satisfying.  Ben T showed both speed and strength to score 4 tries, but there were impressive performances across the park.  The forwards performed very well in the tight, with stand-in hooker Sion W putting in a great shift and some outstanding “picking and driving” from front, second and back rows. The first try came on 5 minutes after pressure on the Rhydyfelin defence secured a scrum 20 yards out.  The ball was transferred quickly to SPO who took the direct route to the line.  Three minutes later, the forwards embarked on a series of drives to tie in the defence and release the midfield, with flanker Tom M providing the extra man to score in the corner.  The scenario was replicated on the quarter hour, with Ben T profiting from the space this time.  And just before half-time the same player burst through weak tackles to sore again. Daf converted to make the halftime score 0 -22 to the Rocks. St Peter’s took off Rhydian at half-time, after the forward had got injured in making a barnstorming 40 yard run, and replacement Ahmed put in his best performance to date for the side.   The tempo was also maintained by the other forwards, making inroads from the kick off and setting the supporting runners free to allow Tom M enough room to score in the right corner.  Five minutes later Ben T completed his hat-trick, battling over from 15 yards for a converted try.  And he was to get a fourth shortly afterwards, when aggressive defence from Rocks forwards and backs saw the home side drop the ball in midfield, with Ben scooping up the gift to score under the sticks. The best was saved until last, with the Rocks using the forwards to drive out of their own 22.  Assured carries from Connor O’B, Steff and Joe M saw the Rocks beyond the halfway line and the ball was sent to the right for players to draw and give and set Rami away.  The winger, who had, until now, been constrained by a narrow pitch and good tackling, finally had enough space to get around the defence and score under the posts.  Daf converted at the final whistle. An excellent team performance. Tries: SPO x1, Ben T x4, Tom M x 2, Rami x1 Cons: Dafydd x4 Match Report by Gwyn Williams

Sunday February 12th

Llandaff 0 St Peter’s 34

Tries: Daf x1, Raf x1, Sam x2, Joe M x 1, Rami x1 Cons: Dafydd x2

Sunday January 29th

St Peter’s 63 Rhiwbina 7

The Game The scoreline today was probably a bit more impressive than the performance.  Although there were some great individual tries, cohesive team play was infrequent and decision making was not always good.  That said, tries were aplenty, with Raf (something of a nemesis for Rhiwbina) getting three and Sam finishing with four. The match was played on a remarkably good surface, with no sign of the wind that dominated last week’s game.  The Rocks kicked off and were immediately on the front foot when Rhiwbina infringed the offside line.  However, with St Peter’s returning the favour by holding on to a ball in the tackle, Rhiwbina were able to clear to touch.  Unfortunately for them, the resulting possession was turned over in midfield, with the ball transferred down the line for Raf to score.  Daf put over a good conversion, but missed the next, five minutes later, after the backs had set Raf free to score from distance.  And the Rocks were quickly on the score sheet again – straight from the kick-off, Ben B linked with the forwards setting Tom Meehan on a mazy run from the half-way line.  Daf hit the post with the conversion attempt. With the forwards picking and driving sometimes effectively and sometimes far too loosely, Joe M was unlucky not to get a short-range score, hitting the line with the ref unsighted.  Nevertheless, it was the forwards that laid the foundation for the next try with an excellent counter-ruck.  Daf switched direction to put Sam into space, and the full-back went in at the posts for a converted score.  The half was rounded off with Raf’s hat-trick try, breaking tackles to score in the right corner.  Half-time, 29 – 0 to St Peter’s. Four minutes into the second half the Rock were over again, with Rami given space to round his man and put on the after-burners to score.  From the kick-off, the forwards gave good ball to Josh N to set the backs free, and they passed to Sam to score wide out right.  Three minutes later, good running from Tom M and Rami took  the ball to ten yards from the Rhiwbina line and Josh Mc was unlucky not charge over.  Not to worry, though, as SPO was on hand to burrow through.  With all the subs getting on, and the Rocks maintaining dominance of possession, Sam was able to break through again for his hat-trick try.  Daf converted. Rhiwbina then showed that their spirit was not broken and made their way up the pitch to score a converted try of their own.  The Rocks were not finished though, and Sam threw a big enough dummy in midfield to have time to speed over under the posts.  Josh N converted.  Sam then showed that he had been reading “The SPO Book of Uncompromising Tackles”, by lining up his man and knocking him back 5 yards to turn over the ball.  Owain saw a huge blind side and charged up from full-back to take the ball at first receiver and run in from 20 yards, with no need to even throw a dummy. Thanks to Dai for refereeing Tries: Raf x3, Sam x4, Tom M x1, Owain x1, SPO x1, Rami x1 Cons: Dafydd x3, Josh N x1 Match Report by Gwyn Williams

Sunday January 22nd

Treorchy 12 St Peter’s 12

The Game There were echoes of another 12-all away draw from ealier this season, as the team could be both criticised for indiscipline (being on the wrong side of a heavy penalty count) and commended for the spirit that they showed in the last 15 minutes. It was clear from the start that the strong wind was going to be a factor that would dominate the game.  It was so strong and blowing from one and of the pitch that defensive kicking was likely to get only ten or fifteen metres.  Treorchy won the toss and decided to play against it in the first half, conceding territory and setting out a forward based game from the off.  Loose play from the Rocks, compounded by a series of penalties, made for a poor start.  It was only after the mid-way point that the ball made it some way across the backline, with interplay eventually seeing Ben T go over in the right corner for the only try on the half.  Try as they might, the boys could not get any flow to the game, with the wind making even passing difficult.  Treorchy were disruptive at the breakdown and the scrum and were happy to go into the break only 5 points down. It was the home team that came out firing in the second half.  With the wind at their backs they pressurised St Peters from the off, scoring in the right corner and narrowly missing the conversion.  Worse was to come from the Rocks, with the weakest tackling seen this season allowing a Treorchy player to charge through under the posts from 20 yards for a converted try.  It was at this point that the boys were told some home truths by the coaching team behind the posts.  The long and short of it was that the boys needed to “man-up”. And “man-up” they did, getting some field position despite the wind and putting in some cohesive movement with the ball.  Eventually, Rami was given a bit of space around the half-way line.  Despite running into a force 10 gale, the wing pinned back his ears to out-strip the defence and, importantly, run around behind the posts to give Daf a straightforward conversion. With the scores level, the final 10 minutes became a “backs to the wall” defensive effort.  The boys made tackle after tackle and became more effective in clearing away the Treorchy players who were disrupting the ball at the rucks.  However, with the balance of the penalty count equalling that of the first half – the Rocks infringing more than three times as much as the opposition – the boys were rarely out of their own 22.  Nevertheless, the defence – led by the relentless Daf – held on to the final whistle for a valiant draw. Thanks to Treorchy for their hospitality, especially for feeding some of the parents as well as the boys.  Certainly the best chips of any away visit this season. Tries: Ben T x1, Rami x1 Cons: Dafydd Match Report by Gwyn Williams

Sunday January 15th

Nelson 0 St Peter’s 46

The Game A beautiful frost-free, yet bracing day on top of a mountain in Nelson saw the Rocks make a number of changes in personnel from last weeks cup match.  And it was a pretty good performance against a side with a big forward pack.  From the kick-off, the Rocks put pressure on the Nelson receiver and forced them back towards their own line.  After a couple of attacks, the ball was tranferred to Sam who put a kick out to the left flank.  The defending player retrieved the bouncing ball, but was robbed by Tom Meehan who beat the cover to score.  The scenario was repeated shortly after the restart, with Sam kicking and Tom  fielding the ball to score in same place.  Josh N converted.  From the kick off, Joe M looked to be galloping away for a 70 yarder, but was bravely brought down by the final defender.  Nevertheless, the first half “Tom show” was capped with a third try from distance after a scrappy phase of play and the Rocks were 17 – 0 ahead. Flowing play was not easy on the heavy ground, but the next try saw a ball stolen inside the Nelson half, releasing the midfield in the unlikely form of Rhydian, who performed a text-book “draw and give” passing to Ben B for an easy run-in.  Josh N converted to make the half time score 0 – 24 to St Peter’s There were further changes in the second-half, which started with an excellent tackle by Joe R to turnover possession.  After a number of phases, the ball was transferred to Raf in midfield who had too much gas for the defence.  Nelson’s hefty forwards were keen to carry the ball and there was some excellent tackling from the Rocks, not the least Josh Boys, with a couple of trademark head-oners.  The next try saw Ben T take a beautiful line to score at the posts to give Josh N a straightforward conversion.  Sam then showed his speed to run one in from 60 yards, but the best was saved to last, with the forwards winning ball in their own half and Ben B cutting in from the left and passing to Sion W who exchanged passes to Connor O’B and set Tom M on a run in from 30 yards. Nelson were still battling at the end and defended their line heroically to prevent the Rocks forwards from scoring another try.  Our thanks to them for the fixture and for their hospitality. Tries: Sam x1, Raf x1, Ben T x1, Tom M x4, Ben B x1 Cons: Josh N x3 Match Report by Gwyn Williams

Sunday January 8th

St Peter’s 54 Aberdare 3 (Blues Cup Round Two)

The Game Another strong performance from the squad saw the Rocks through to the last 8 of the Blues Cup. There were five tries in each half, reflecting dominance in both the forwards and the backs. The boys started on the front foot with the forwards providing quality ball to Josh Nolan to set the backs running.  With the over-lap in evidence, SPO preferred the direct route and was stopped inside the twenty-two.  However, the ball was quickly recycled and passed down the line, giving Sam space to go over in the right-hand corner.  The difficult conversion was missed, but a second try was to come almost immediately, as Steff caught the restart and the ball was taken on by forwards and backs to Tom M, who out-stripped the defence from the half-way line.  Another awkward conversion attempt hit the post. A keen Aberdare side came back into the game and a series on infringements by the Rocks culminated in a successful penalty goal making the score 10 – 3.  However, the respite for the visitors was brief – from the restart, the two Sions robbed the Aberdare player and the ball was passed out to Sam to score.  Shortly afterwards, Rami, showing electric pace, looked to be away on the left wing, but a fantastic tap tackle from the last defender brought him down.  Aberdare got the ball  from the resulting line-out, only for SPO to put in a brutal tackle on his opposite number to get it back.  The forwards were on hand to drive on and release the backs, giving Raf space to score in the right-hand corner.  There was time for one further try in the half – a quick penalty went from Daf to Sion W to Tom M at pace to score in the left corner.  Again, the conversion was too far out – Alison Meehan is going to have a word with Tom about this.  Half-time 25 – 3 to the Rocks. The boys maintained the uptempo pace into the second half and an infringement by Aberdare five yards from their own line saw Joe M take the direct route, carrying over a few defenders to score.  Daf converted.  An exceptional bit of skill from Joe saw him on the scoresheet again – fielding a clearing penalty from Aberdare on the touchline by tapping the ball down to himself and setting off on a lolloping run to score wide on the left. There were a few mistakes from the Rocks, but it is always good to see these corrected in a positve manner and this was exemplified by the forwards when a crooked throw from Dylan was followed by a scrum against the head and, after an exchange of kicks, the backs set Rami free to score wide out left.  The next try had smacks of Mike Phillips v Ireland, with a clearing kick fielded by a mystery spectator and Tom Burns taking a quick throw, releasing the backs for Sam to score his hat-trick try.  Daf converted.  Sam was not finished though and, from the restart, the ball was quickly transferred to give the speedster a run in from distance. Daf hit the bar with the conversion attempt and the ref blew for full time. All credit to Aberdare who stuck in throughout the game, especially their tireless Number 7 who was excellent at breakdown. Many thanks to Gareth Baber for refereeing. Tries: Sam x4, Raf x1, Rami x1, Tom M x2, Joe M x2 Cons: Daf x2 Match Report by Gwyn Williams

Sunday January 1st

St Peter’s 63 Llandaff North 5

The Game Remarkably, the dismal Christmas weather held off for a couple of hours and, with the pitch in pretty good nick, the fixture with our friends from Llandaff North was able to go ahead.  However, with the known unavailabilities and call-offs due to illnesses, the Rocks were unable to raise a full 15.  All credit to Josh Boys, who tried to give the game a go, but was suffering badly with asthma and was unable to play and also to Connor O’Brien who answered the call to play from his sick-bed and managed a quite outstanding performance. Llandaff North were in a similar situation with player numbers, so the game was 13 a-side, which probably benefitted the Rocks in offering more open space to the speed merchants.  The opposition were also unfortunate to find that the St Peter’s players who were able to play, all on good form despite some swapping around of positions.  We are blessed with some exceptionally talented and versatile players and seven of the tries were scored by two back-row forwards playing in the backs. The standard of play, with controlled recycling and direct running was impressive, and the Rocks’ tries came at a steady rate despite committed defence from the Llandaff North players.  The first was from SPO, bashing his way over on four minutes after the forwards had taken position five yards from the line.  Two then followed from the strong, balanced running of Tom Meehan.  Ben Burton then switched off the left-wing to take the ball from Sion W to score the fourth try. If there was one critisism of the backs early on, it was that they were not straightening up the line – meaning that they were not getting the ball to Rami in space.  However, this was remedied on 18 minutes, when the winger showed his pace to out-run the defence and score close enough to the posts for Daf to put over a good conversion.  Excellent passing then saw Ben Thomas score in a similar position and Daf converted well to conclude the scoring for the half at 34 – 0. The second-half started with Llandaff North in determined mood, but this attitude was matched by the Rocks forwards with Dylan, Connor O’B and Connor Beere making impressive charges and also putting in solid close-quarter tackles.  They freed up the backs for Rami to get his second and Tom M to get numbers three and four.  Ben Burton also completed his hat-trick with two second-half tries, the first showing his pace in getting away from the cover to score from distance.  Daf converted two. There was still time for Llandaff North to get a well deserved try of their own – the forwards working hard to get field position and their strong centre burrowing over from three yards. Thanks to Dai for refereeing. Tries: SPO x1, Ben T x1, Ben B x3, Rami x2, Tom M x4 Cons: Daf x4 Match Report by Gwyn Williams

Sunday December 11th

St Peter’s 51 Pencoed 12

The Game Today was as good a team effort as we have seen this season.  There was not one player who did not put in a performance that they will be proud of and the coaches should be equally satisfied to see the work put in on the training field so well executed by the players. An all action start from the Rocks saw early pressure rewarded with a penalty, expertly put over by Daf on the 3 minute mark.  The early domination was interrupted when a Pencoed player got an interception and went the length of the field to score.  The visitors were ahead 5 – 3, but St Peter’s continued to control possession with direct running from Joe M, Dylan and Connor O’B.  It was only handling errors that were letting the boys down, but SPO remedied in typical fashion by taking the direct route to the line on 12 minutes and again on 16 minutes, both from 15 yards out.  Daf converted the second and one two minutes later from Joe Miles, after the forwards had expertly controlled the pick and drive and Connor O’B had offloaded intelligently rather than go to ground with the ball.  SPO went over again on 23 minutes, but the referee was unsighted and was unable to give the score.  Not to worry though, the hat-trick try came two minutes later as the centre broke through more tackles to go in under the posts.  Daf converted – half-time 29 – 5 to the Rocks. The half-time break did nothing to slow down the tempo and what followed was almost perfect rugby.  From the Pencoed kick-off, the forwards took the ball on, released the backs out to the right, then recycled quick ball two or three times to send the ball along the line for Raf to score in the left-hand corner.  To prove it was no fluke, the next kick-off went almost exactly the same way, with Raf finishing off equally well for a second try in as many minutes.  The Rocks had scored twice and Pencoed had not touched the ball other than to kick off.  It was a level that St Peter’s could not hope to keep up, especially as Pencoed continued to tackle hard, but another good try was to follow when the backs got Rami free on the right and he out-stripped his man and the cover defence to score behind the posts. Daf put over the conversion.  The ever-impressive forwards continued to mix up play between charging runs and the pick and drive, before Tom Meehan, who was prominent throughout, brought up the 50 points with an unconverted try.  With the substitutes coming on, there was a crowd pleasing tackle from Josh Boys, before Pencoed got better fluidity to their own game.  They got field position through Rocks indiscipline and recycled well to put their excellent number six in at the posts for a converted try.  This was the player who stayed down at the final whistle and the good news is that he up and around in the clubhouse later.  We hope to hear a similar story about Connor O’B, who left the field with a neck injury. Final score Rocks 51 – Pencoed 12. Thanks to Dai for excellent refereeing and to Trudy, Suzanne, Negam and Rebecca for the catering and raffle. Tries: SPO x3, Joe M x1, Raf x2, Rami x1, Tom M x1 Cons: Daf x4 Pens: Daf x1 Match Report by Gwyn Williams

Sunday December 4th

Abergavenny 3 St Peter’s 31

The Game A mild December day in Abergavenny started with a bit of hanging about waiting for a junior football game to finish.  Bizarrely, it was the second away game in a row that the team played on a pitch without rugby posts.  However, unlike the Cowbridge fixture, the boys adjusted immediately and produced some excellent rugby from the off.  A few minutes in, the forwards were producing good quick ball.  A charge from Joe M penetrated centre-field and the ball was spun left for Sam to score.  Daf converted. Even better was to come with sustained pressure and an excellent charge by Connor O’Brien producing quick ballwhich was shipped to Ben, taking at pace and scoring from 20 yards. Again Daf converted and later put over a penalty to move the Rocks 17 – 0 ahead.  Abergavenny, who showed continued commitment and competed hard at the breakdown, put pressure on the St Peter’s line at the end of the half, but the defence held solid. The home team came out strongly in the second-half and converted an early penalty.  The Rocks, bolstered by half-time substitutions picked up their tempo and the forwards asserted themselves with a series of “pick and drives” culminating in Boysie dabbing down in the right-hand corner.  Daf put over an excellent conversion. After some good runs from Tom M and Dylan, it was Rami who was next to touch-down – taking the ball 20 yards out and cutting through weak tackles to score in the goals.  Daf’s conversion was to be the last kick of the game, although it felt that there were a good five or ten minutes to play.  Unfortunately that meant that final sub, Ahmed, did not get a run out. Thanks to Abergavenny for the excellent after match food.  According to my sample of customers, the best so far this season. Tries: Sam x1, Ben x1, Josh B x1, Rami x1, Cons: Daf x4 Pens: Daf x1 Match Report by Gwyn Williams

Sunday November 27th

St Peter’s 35 Bridgend Sports 19

The Game Only the second home game of the season saw the visit of Bridgend Sports, a side that we have not played previously and one which contained a number of very good players. The Rocks started where they left off on Friday night, at a blistering pace and with an early try for Ben T in the second minute.  With domination of possession, there was an inevitable second when a large overlap was exploited with Raf going over after seven minutes.  Both were wide out and went unconverted. The Sports’ coach implored his big and abrasive forwards to get more into their game and they responded by recycling possession and, capitalising on Rocks infringements, got a player free to score near the posts after thirteen minutes.  The kicker lost his footing on a heavy pitch and the conversion was missed. The Rocks were… erm…’ rocked’, but responded immediately, with a sweeping movement down the field culminating in Joe M going over from 10 yards out.  There was a further try to come when good recycling saw Tom M (now playing in the backs after an injury to O) put into space and finishing well on 21 minutes.    The wide-out conversion was missed – halftime score 22 – 5. The second-half started with infringements from Sports, punished with a penalty goal from ‘Man of the Match’ Daf.  However, the opposition was in no mood to lie down and came back with a sweeping move, setting their lively left-winger free.  He chipped ahead and looked favourite to score when he was impeded in trying to re-gather the bouncing ball.  A penalty-try was awarded and converted. Again the Rocks came back and SPO got a typical bustling try from 10 yards out, retrieving a loose ball and going over in the left corner on 12 minutes.  A fractious period followed with the standard of rugby dipping with indiscipline from both sides.  However, it picked up with an excellent try from Tom M on twenty-three minutes, which was ‘trumped’ by the Sports’ winger two minutes later who beat his man and the cover defence, starting in his own half and scoring under the posts.  That was converted by a drop-kick to end the game.  Final score 35 – 19. Ending on a downbeat note – unfortunately Owain, who went off mid-way through the first half, has fractured his foot again.  It is really sad to hear this for a player who had just come back from an injury lay-off.  Best wishes and get fit soon O. Tries: Ben T x1, Joe M x1, SPO x1, Raf x1, Tom M x2 Cons: Daf x1 Pens: Daf x1 Match Report by Gwyn Williams

Friday November 25th

Blackwood 0 St Peter’s 34

The Game Our sincere thanks to our new friends at Blackwood for their terrific hospitality.  We look forward to a return fixture in February. It was a new experience for many of the boys to play under lights, but one that did not seem to phase them at all.  They came out firing and 3 minutes in, there was a piece of individual class from Ben T, taking the ball on a reverse pass from Daf and breaking the first tackle before a beautiful step took him away from the cover defence to score. The Rocks continued in the ascendency with very good recycling from the forwards and excellent distribution from Josh Nolan.  Blackwood’s well organised defence held strong for a good ten minutes, but was finally broken after Rami was set free on the left wing and used his pace to score.  Daf converted.  The attacking intensity continued and the Blackwood line was breached for a third time when the hard-working Joe M went over after a number of phases of well presented ball from the forwards.  Daf converted – half-time score 0 – 19 to St Peter’s. The second half saw a number of changes of personnel, starting with Owain at scrum-half, and the forwards continued to give him good ball to work with.  Blackwood remained combative at the breakdown, but the Rocks were on top form and worked their way down the pitch to the right-hand corner.  The forwards couldn’t seem to make up their minds on what to do next, so SPO entered the fray with a bit of no-nonsense bish, bash, bosh and scored. As Blackwood came more and more into the game, the Rocks showed that they could also defend – none better than “Man of the Match” Josh Boys, who was back to his best with some great tackles.  And it was from aggressive defence that the ball was turned over on half-way and passed quickly out to Raf, who rounded his man and raced over to score. Blackwood are clearly a good team and were unlucky to meet the Rocks on one of their best days.  They continued to press and missed out on a try when Joe M dislodged the ball from the hands of a player as he went over the line.  Further misfortune was to follow when a loose kick went to Tom Meehan on half-way and the flanker-come-centre- come winger pinned his ears back to score from 40 yards. A final score of 34 – 0 was maybe a touch flattering, but it was undoubtedly a outstanding  performance against quality opposition and the game was a fantastic advert for rugby at u13 level.  The experience was equally good off the pitch, with the warmth and friendliness of the Blackwood families making it easy for adults and children to mix in the clubhouse afterwards.  A great rugby night. Tries: Ben T x1, Rami x1, Joe M x1, SPO x1, Raf x1, Tom M x1 Cons: Daf x2 Match Report by Gwyn Williams

Sunday November 20th

Cowbridge 5 St Peter’s 15

The Game A strange day in the Cowbridge – things didn’t seem quite right from the start.  The more eagle-eyed supporters spotted that it was that the goal-posts were missing from the pitch.  Times must be hard in the Vale. It is odd playing without the orientation that the posts give to the players and perhaps this contributed to a disjointed performance from the Rocks.  Things didn’t really ‘click’ – quite the opposite of the team’s performance against Penarth earlier in the season.  That said, there were some good individual performances – SPO (until he went off injured at half-time) was at his abrasive best in defence and there was some strong tackling from the likes of Siôn Williams and ‘Man of the Match’ Joshua Macauley.  It should also be said that Cowbridge are a very good side with some outstanding individual players of their own. The first score game after 12 minutes, with SPO picking up a spilled ball in the middle of the pitch and breaking through a number of tackles to race clear and score from 30 yards.  An excellent score that included a hand-off on Joe Mile to give himself a bit more space! The second try was another individual effort, this time from Sam, who chipped ahead, fly-hacked to the line and did very well to ground.  That was just before half time.  Daf did not convert, as there were no posts. The second-half saw team changes, with everyone getting a good run out.  Stef impressed with his tackling and with ball in hand, but generally the team was below par and Cowbridges excellent number 7 was making some great steals at the breakdown.  The Rocks did put a few coherent attacks together and on 22 minutes Tom M did very well to reach out and place the ball over the line after a team attack down the left flank. Cowbridge came back immediately and got a well deserved score of their own.  They finished the stronger side and it would be good to play them again at home (and with goal-posts), if the fixture list will allow. Tries: SPO x1, Sam x1, Tom M x1 Match Report by Gwyn Williams

Sunday November 13th

Rumney 0 St Peter’s 19 (Blues Cup Round One)

The Game Another tough encounter with our neighbours Rumney eventually resulted in a convincing victory, although it was not a faultless performance.  Most of the mistakes came in a nervy first quarter, with the opposition at their most disruptive and the Rocks failing to execute the basics of the game.  That said, St Peter’s were always the more likely to score and they did so after 10 minutes with the ball going down the line from right to left and Sam making a clean break.  He was chased down 7 yards out, but excellent backing up from SPO saw the centre scoring wide out.  The conversion was missed. The rest of the half was disrupted by one long injury and a couple of others to Rumney players.  Their centre was taken off after typically uncompromising defence from SPO.  And there were two other notable tackles – Rami bringing down the Rumney No 8 after he had broken down the left flank, and Sam making a classic fullback’s tackle on the dangerous winger, stopping him from the last line of defence.  Half time 0 – 5 to the Rocks. Half-time saw coach Patsy “reading the riot act” and the response to those words of inspiration was a much more incisive performance from the boys.  In truth, some aspects were good all game – the scrum was consistently strong, with the front-row dominant and Siôn Williams doing some destructive tackling on the opposition put in.  The line-out was also effective, although the “drive” was not executed well in the first half.  This was remedied in the second, and it was from a line-out drive that the game opened up for Ben Thomas’s score.  During the passage of play, Josh Nolan took unselfishness to a new extreme – passing a ball that was already over the try line and releasing to Ben who did well to batter through the defence to score under the posts.  Josh said that he thought that it was the 5 yard line.  Erm, yes – confusing things, these lines!  Dav converted. And by now Daf and was controlling field position with some excellent tactical kicking.  The ‘coup de grâce’ was delivered by ‘Man of the Match’ SPO, released in midfield and breaking a handful of tackles to score near the posts.  Daf converted. Rumney came back in the last five minutes, but never threatened the Rock’s line.  All in all, it was a satisfactory victory.  Not the best of the season, but the boys got the job done. Tries: SPO x2, Ben T x1 Cons: Daf x2 Match Report by Gwyn Williams

Sunday November 6th

Treharris 0 St Peter’s 55

The Game

O is for ‘Outrageous’

Firstly, apologies to those in the ‘convoy’ and all the others that got lost.  Sorry for leading you up the world’s steepest hill and for the off-roading down by the river-bed.  It wasn’t really my fault, but we will try to get clearer directions next time. When we did find the pitch, it was possibly the most picturesque in Wales.  And the boys produced some rugby to match the quality of the venue.  It was a dominating performance in the first half which blew away the opposition.  Sam (playing in the centre) was first to score after 5 minutes, crossing wide out left after good recycling from the forwards.  Joe Miles was next over two minutes later after a break by Tom M and excellent link work by Ben Thomas.  Tom then got a try of his own, after a run out of defence by Man of the Match, Ben Burton.  Daf converted the last two. Fifteen minutes into the first half, there was a change of tactic from the Rocks, with the forwards taking over.  First, they executed the “pick  and drive” effectively from the base of the ruck, with Joe M going over for his second try.  Then they drove a maul from a line-out take by Ruaridhi with Tom M breaking away to score. There was still time in the half for Sam to cut through in the Rocks half and out-strip the defence to score.  Daf converted.  And then the highlight of the half saw the return of Owain’s outrageous dummy, with the crowd favourite going in under the sticks after duping the defence. Welcome back O.  Daf converted. The second half saw coach Patsy ring the changes, with a debut for Ahmed in the second row.  Welcome Ahmed. There was a stalemate for the first 10 minutes, with excellent defence from Treharris keeping the Rocks out.  Eventually, the deadlock was broken when the backs put Rami into a bit of space and the winger used all of it (on the narrow pitch), to turn his opposite number on the inside and then strip him on the outside – a lovely try.  Shortly afterwards, the final act was a hat-trick try from Sam, after good work from the forwards.  Daf converted. Tries: Tom M x2, Sam x3, Joe M x2, Owain x1, Rami x1 Cons: Daf x5 Match Report by Gwyn Williams

Sunday October 23rd

Cardiff and Vale District Tournament – WINNERS

In the end, the boys managed to retain their title and pick up another attractive trophy. In fact, they really did retain the Under 12′s cup, according the inscription on the base at least! Along the way, they only conceded one try – unfortunately the only one of the game – to Rumney, so not a perfect day, but some excellent rugby in the latter stages and a convincing victory in the final.

Another Eastern European Gymnast has one less Trophy

Well done to Sam Wall for winning Man or the Tournament.

Group Stage: St Peter’s 10 Llandaf 0

The boys made a good start against a tough Llandaf team, who may well have gone further in the tournament had they not been drawn in a group with the Rocks, Rumney and Cowbridge. The first try came from Raf, wide out on the right and after good recycling work from the forwards. The second was from Sam after a excellent run and offload from Tom M. There was no score for the rest of game and while the Rocks line was never threatened, Llandaf played with typical spirit. Tries: Raf x 1, Sam x1

Group Stage: St Peter’s 20 Cowbridge 0

This was a convincing victory, with result not in doubt from early on. The first try-scorer was Sam, after a break from Ben T and good support and offload from Sion W. Ben B was next over, following an excellent kick return from Sam. Raf then got one after the ball was passed swiftly down the line. In the second half, Sam got his second after good work from the forwards. Unfortunately, Ben B was unable to play any further part in the tournament, after injuring his wrist. Tries: Raf x1, Ben B x1, Sam x2

Group Stage: St Peter’s 0 Rumney 5

This game was the only low point of the day. The Rocks were well on top for the first half, but contrived to mess up chances with clumsy play and poor decision making. Worse was to come in the second half, with Rumney’s exceptional Number 8 picking up at the base of a scrum and scoring from 30 yards out. It was late in the game and there was no way back for the Rocks.

Semi-final: St Peter’s 20 Pentyrch 0

The loss to Rumney meant that the Rocks played the winners from the other pool -Pentyrch. The first half was “the Tom Meehan show” with the wing scoring a hat-trick of tries: the first a run down the line; the second after runs from Raf and Joe M; the third an opportunistic effort from a turn-over 40 yards out. In the second half, the win was sealed with a try from Steff, after good work from SPO. Tries: Steff x1, Tom M x3

Final: St Peter’s 30 Llanishen 0

The Rocks were denied the opportunity to play Rumney again, when a spirited Llanishen side defeated then after a drop-goal shoot out in the other semi-final. On the balance of play, it was a deserved victory and a tough final was expected. In fact, the boys had saved their best rugby for this game, with the forwards providing a never ending supply of quality ball and the backs cutting free. There were three ties in each half and, even before the first, Ben T had knocked on in the process of trying to touch down. It was not long afterwards that Daf had scored, after excellent interplay with Sam. SPO then joined a maul and carried over half of the Llanishen team to score. Tom M then picked a loose ball to score a third from distance. In the second half a cracking blind-side burst from Sam resulted in him scoring the fourth try, swiftly followed by the fifth from Tom M, who caught the kick-off and ran the length of the field to touch down. There was still time for Tom Burns to go close, before Joe M got a well deserved try from a 5 yard scrum. Tries: Daf x1, Tom M x2, SPO x1, Joe M x1, Sam x1

District Winners

District Winners

Well done to all and thanks to the coaches and parents Tournament Report: Gwyn Williams

Sunday October 16th

St Joseph’s 7 St Peter’s 48

The Game After the disappointment of Wales losing yesterday, spirits were lifted by a trip to Heath Park to play against our friends “the Joes”. They have been very unlucky over the years, consistently losing players just as they look to be building a competitive side and they were down to 13 today. That said, they are a well drilled team, with a good shape to the backs and provided good opposition when brought up to a full complement of 15 by borrowing Connors Corrigan and O’Brien in the first half and Ben T and Stef (and Connor Beere for a bit) in the second half. The Rocks were in experimental mood, with a number of the players given to opportunity to test themselves in unlikely positions. The starting half-backs were Williams and Miles and they showed some brute finesse is distributing the ball to willing runners. SPO was very happy at Number 8 and picked up from the base of a scrum 15 yards out to rumble over for the opening try. Sam converted that and then one of his own when he was set free to run in from 35 yards for the second try. Rami was next to score, over-lapping on the outside after Tom Burns had made good ground and out-pacing the cover defence. Not bad for a second-row. The next two tries were from SPO, following play like a good back-rower and hungry to score. The second-half started with a déjà vu – SPO scoring again, although this one was very well constructed with some excellent off-loads in mid-field. The next try was a good finish from Ben T, which was well received by the crowd, as it was for the Joe’s. Equally popular was the next score for Ruaridhi, who worked hard all game and took his opportunity well in the right corner. A final try was to come for Tom Meehan, who scored from distance, breaking a couple of weak tackles and an embarrassingly feeble attempt at one from Ben T. Tries: Tom M x1, Sam x1, SPO x4, Ruaridhi x1, Rami x1 Cons: Sam x4 Match Report by Gwyn Williams

Sunday October 9th

Penarth 0 St Peter’s 60

The Game There was some very impressive rugby from the boys today, resulting in ten well deserved tries. It was very pleasing for the coaches to see structured build up play, good decision making and excellent finishing despite the poor weather conditions. The Rocks started on the front foot, with excellent passing, support and recycling sending the ball first along the line to the left and then back down to the right, giving Tom Meehan enough room to score. Tom was to get a second from similar build up play, with players off-loading before contact and working the ball into space. The impressive start was continued with a try for Sam after the same incisive style had created space from twenty metres out. The Rocks were 15 – 0 up after just ten minutes against a good Penarth side who had not really missed a tackle. The next phase of play saw quick thinking from Joe M to charge down a relieving kick from a Penarth defensive scrum and score under the posts. Daf converted and then sent Raf in with a beautifully weighted through-kick. Not to be outdone, Sam then did the same for Tom M to touch-down for his hat-trick. The kicking game almost produced a third when Daf put one down the middle, but SPO, having out-paced the defence, was unable to ground. Nevertheless, 36 – 0 at half time was reward enough for some high quality rugby. While the backs were taking the plaudits and the points, the forwards were also putting in a shift. The front-row dominated the scrum, and there was some excellent scavenging from the loose forwards. There was also some direct running from the ball carriers – Joe M, Dylan and Connor O’B and the next back to benefit from their efforts was SPO, closely followed by Ben T with a well deserved score. The ninth try was possibly the pick of them all, with the ball going through hands of nearly all of the team before getting to ‘Man of the Match’ Tom Burns, who had the presence of mind to take out the defender and return the ball to Stef to score. Josh N put over a good conversion. Tries are nice, but aren’t always the high-light of the game and, despite some sublime attacking rugby in the rain, it was a cover tackle from SPO – 3 minutes from time and with his side 50 points to the good – that epitomised the excellent attitude and team ethic of the boys. With the winger away in space SPO tracked back a good 30 meters at full pace to hurl himself into the tackle from behind and prevent the score. There was further reward for the Rocks with a last try from Joe M, ignoring a 17 man over-lap to carry several people over the line instead. That was converted too, although I’m not sure who by – the rain and the effects of celebrating the Welsh victory over Ireland had finally taken their toll. Tries: Tom M x3, Sam x1, SPO x1, Joe M x2, Raf x1, Steff x1, Ben T x1 Cons: Daf x4, Josh N x1 Match Report by Gwyn Williams

Sunday October 2nd

Newbridge 0 St Peter’s 47

Notices: To save people time and help them not to get lost, we will put directions to away matches on the Under 13′s Fixtures page . Also, if it helps, for those who want to do car shares/travel in convoy, we can meet at the Mothercare car park on Newport Road and travel together for away games. Again, I will put information on the fixtures page. The Game A baking hot day for our trip to Newbridge saw the Rocks play some champagne rugby in the second half and eventually turn out convincing winners. However, the start was much more tentative, with some players out of position and others in new combinations. The pack was especially slow to get going, so it was lucky that SPO was on top form. He scored a first try from a typical barnstorming run after 10 minutes and then another (on 14 mins), recovering Daf ‘s beautifully weighted kick into the vacant full-back area. At the end of the half, he turned provider, after a trademark ‘shove off’ (SPO doesn’t do hand-offs) and break, he sent Rami in under the posts. Daf converted all three. Half time 0 -21, to the Rocks. Daf began the second half with a sublime dummy to open up the Newbridge defence and then an outrageous second one to beat the full-back and score under the posts. The forwards had woken up by now and there was more intervention from the back-row and especially from Man of the Match Connor Corrigan. There were some excellent passages of support play, punctuated by some scrappy stuff at the break down, an area where Newbridge were at their most combative. But when they did get the ball into space, the Rocks were always a threat, with Ben Burton not appearing at all out of place at full-back and Rami looking absolutely electric on the left-wing. It was Rami who was to score next, from an arcing run on the half-way line, beating the cover on the outside and to cross the line in the corner, but run around under the posts. At this point Daf had 5 from 5 kicks, but was not able to convert the next team try, with excellent inter-play between backs and forwards seeing Joe Miles drag defenders over the line to touch down. Daf did get the final kick though, after Rami repeated his feat of ten minutes earlier to score from the half-way line. That was the third try of an impressive hat-trick. All in all, a pretty good performance and an excellent result Tries: Rami x3, SPO x2, Joe M x1, Daf x1 Cons: Daf x 6 Match Report by Gwyn Williams

Sunday September 25th

St Peter’s 18 Pontypridd 10

Notices: A get well soon message from all players and parents to Owain, who has broken something in his foot. We hope to see him back within the expected 6 weeks, although this will be a respite period for referees. The Game This was a fixture that gave the Rocks an early opportunity to avenge the defeat in the Blues Cup Final at the end of last season. Ponty are a well drilled side with some outstanding individual players, so the outcome would be decided on two factors: who ‘wanted’ the victory more; and who played the better tactical rugby. On both counts, it was St Peter’s, with committed tackling and a masterful use of the kicking game from Daf in the second-half. It was very impressive to see any one of the boys who made an error or missed a tackle, get straight back to make amends. The performance was not error free, but it was a thoroughly deserved victory. The Rocks were first to score, about 10 minutes into the game, with the ball passed down to the right-wing and Tom M and Raf working Sam into the corner. The wide-out conversion was missed. The try roused the Ponty side, who were aggressive and combative at the breakdown. It was not long before they equalised, through the big kid who was the Rocks nemesis in the Blues Cup final. The teams pretty much cancelled themselves out for the rest of the half, before St Peter’s made a concerted attack on the Ponty line out left. The reward came in three points from the boot of Daf (our first ever penalty goal) after a high-tackle by a defender. The Rocks went into half time with a slender 8 – 5 lead. The second half saw Daf turning the opposition defence with a series of kicks that were well chased by the Rocks backs and forwards. The game was being played mostly in the Pony half and the under-pressure defenders handled in the ruck to concede another penalty, which was well converted by Daf. The kicking game was to bring further rewards with panic on the Ponty line leading to a offside penalty 5 yards out. After Dylan had a crack at the line, the ball was recycled to Steff, who used his power to get the touchdown. The try was well converted by Daf. Ponty were not in the mood to take a defeat lying down and rallied to get more of the ball in the final quarter. Excellent tackling (especially from Man of the Match, Ben Thomas), saw the attack thwarted. However, Rocks indiscipline gave Ponty a series of penalties and they eventually got over the line, only to be held-up by desperate defence. The relief was short-lived as Ponty were able to score in the corner with 4 minutes remaining Ponty were unlucky with a series of injuries and could not sustain their come-back. St Peter’s closed out the game with the comfort of an 8 point margin, something Scotland could have done with against Argentina this morning. An excellent team performance. Well done boys! Tries: Sam x1, Stef x1 Cons: Daf x 1 Pens: Daf x 2 Match Report by Gwyn Williams

Sunday September 18th

St Peter’s Tournament – WINNERS Well done Rocks

The Trophy (that it would’ve been nice to get)

Well, what a day! Just what you need when you have got up at 4 am to watch a stuttering Wales defeat Samoa – 9 more hours of rugby! Was it worth it – of course it was, with the Rocks bringing erm…..home (we were already at home) the erm…..trophy (there wasn’t one) with some fantastic rugby, both in the rain and late sunshine. A long day culminated in our most impressive rugby in the semi-final and final. ‘Peaking at the right time’ is a good habit in any sport and the boys got this very right today.

Well done to Tom Meehan for winning Man or the Tournament. If it wasn’t Tom, it could have been a number of others with Dylan, Joe, Rami, all of the Connor’s, both the Ben’s and SPO all having very impressive days.

Thanks to the coaches and to Matt Sweeney for arranging the event.

Group Stage: St Peter’s 24 Newbridge 0

A very good start against a team that we have never played before. There were two tries in each half. The first was well finished by Raf. Daf broke through from close range for a second after good work from the forwards. In the second half, Joe broke through the middle around the half-way line and showed both strength and a turn of pace to score at the posts. He was followed in for another long range try from speedster Rami, also from half-way. Daf converted the last two.

Tries: Rami x1, Raf x 1, Daf x 1, Joe M x1

Cons: Daf x2

Group Stage: St Peter’s 20 Penarth 0

Rami was on the scoreboard early in the next game too, with more impressive finishing on the right wing. With the forwards dominating up front and producing excellent ball from rucks and from charging runs, the space opened up from the backs to go down the line to Tom Meehan, who got a try in the first half and two more in the second. Excellent rugby in very poor weather conditions.

Tries: Rami x1, Tom M x3

Group Stage: St Peter’s 5 Rumney 0

Strangely, after a long rest and some improvement in the weather, the performance level dropped against a typically abrasive Rumney side. Perhaps the Rocks were a bit too keen to win the physical battles and forgot their rugby brains. The latter was certainly the case when Tom M stepped over the dead-ball line, when he should have grounded earlier for a try. At half-time, it was 0-0 and things were getting a bit nervy. The deadlock was eventually broken when Siȏn Williams charged down a defensive kick from Rumney and had the presence of mind to chase down the bouncing ball to score just inside the corner of touch and the dead-ball line.

Tries: Siȏn W x1

Group Stage: St Peter’s 5 Llandaf 0

Again, this was a more nervy encounter than it probably needed to be. Llandaf put in their usual gritty performance and St Peter’s did not use the ball as fluidly or as intelligently as they had in the first two matches. That said, things started off very well, with good recycling from the forwards and the ball spread wide to Ben B, who showed his versatility by finishing off an excellent passage of play with a convincing winger’s try in the left-hand corner. From there on, it was an indisciplined performance from the Rocks, with a string of infringements meaning that they were under presure for most of the second-half. Only desperate defence, including holding up a player over the line, meant that the victory was secured and the team went through to the semi-final as group winners.

Tries: Ben B x1

Semi-final: St Peter’s 32 Llanishen 7

Things got better in the semi-final as the boys raised their game, with an excellent early try from Tom Meehan after the backs passed the ball crisply down the line . Even then Llanishen came back into the game after sloppy cover defence from the Rocks saw their outside-half scoring under the posts, having broken tackles in mid-field. He converted, putting his team into the lead. This inspired the Rocks to play some of the best rugby of the day, coming back with an individual steal and run-in from Ben B straight from thr restart. The next try, from Tom Meehan came after an excellent charging run from Dylan and good support play. Even better was to come in the second half, with good direct rugby seing the ball recycled from the forwards and good passing allowing Joe M to show his power to score under the posts. Daf converted. That style of play saw the Rocks continue to dominate and two further tries were to follow from the hard working Connor O’Brien and SPO. Both were very well deserved.

Tries: Tom M x2, Ben B x1, Joe M x1, Connor O’B, Siȏn O’B x1

Cons: Daf x1

Final: St Peter’s 25 Talywain 0

The final was against the unbeaten Talywain, who had dominated their Pool and then ground out an extra time win against Rumney in the semi-final. Right from the start, the Rocks were on their game, nullifying the opposition threat and creating room for the backs. Daf mixed up the attack cleverly with a kicking game and the opposition, who had not been beaten for some time, were never really in the game. The first try came from a blindside move creating space for Tom M to power over. Then Rami was able to show his pace, rounding his opposite number and scoring out wide. The pressure continued, with punching runs from the forwards and Ben T showing strength to go over from Dylan’s off-load. The victory was rounded off with two long range tries from Tom M, to give him a second hat-trick of the day and secure the “Man of the Tournament” trophy. While these plaudits were well deserved, it was a fantastic whole-team performance that created the opportunities, with a well disciplined defence ensuring that Talywain were not able to get their talismanic No8 into the game.

Well done to all

Tries: Tom Mx3, Ben T x1, Rami x1

Tournament Report: Gwyn Williams

Sunday September 11th

Dinas Powys 0 St Peter’s 55

First up, welcome to three new players – Joe Rees, Ben Burton and Sam Wall have joined the squad and all made their debut for St Peter’s today.

The Game

This was a good fixture for the Rocks, helping with our objective to get all members of the squad as much game time as possible this season. Our thanks to Dinas, a well organised side who put up a good fight, but did not have the strength across all positions that we are fortunate to have at St Peter’s.

There were four tries in the first half for the Rocks to:

  • Rami – after a break from Tom Meehan and good recycling from the forwards
  • Owain – from a blind-side break on the right-wing. Converted by Daf
  • Josh Nolan – a scrum-half poacher’s try that was well deserved for an unselfish team player who could teach Mike Phillips a thing or to about quickly getting the ball away from the breakdown. An excellent conversion from far out by Daf
  • Rami again – from the half-way after a charging run from Rhydian had broken up the defence. Converted by Daf

The tries continued in the second half for:

  • Ben Burton – with good support of a run by Tom Burns after the ball had been passed down the line. Converted by Daf
  • Sam – showing his pace to beat the defence from long range. Another excellent conversion from Daf
  • Raf – after Sam had fielded a kick in his own half
  • Tom Burns – finishing off a flowing team move, showing good strength to get to the line from 15 yards out
  • Raf again- benefiting from good handling from the Rocks, and a tired opposition, to score from long range

In between the tries, there were strong performances from the front five and unselfish play from the back-row to get the ball out wide as often as possible.

Note to all props: when you try an ‘around-the-backee’ show-boating pass and it goes three yards forward, there is a danger that you will look like a right banana.

Note from Patsy: “Please could all players bring their jerseys to training on Wednesday”.

Tries: Rami x2, Raf x 2, Owain x 1, Josh Nolan x1, Ben Burton x1, Sam x1, Tom Burns x1

Cons: Daf x 5

Match Report by Gwyn Williams

Sunday September 4th

Pencoed 12 St Peter’s 12

The Game

This is a difficult game to review. On the face of it, perhaps the team should be criticised for indiscipline, having infringed somewhere in the region of eighteen times, whereas the home team (to my recollection) were penalised only twice. By the same token, they let a 12 – 0 first-half lead slip to end up drawing a game that they should have won. However, the performance was generally very good (especially considering that Daf, Stef and Tom Meehan were missing) and the boys put in a fantastic effort to come back after conceding 12 points in the second-half to score what appeared to be a last minute winning try through Joe. The referee, quite inexplicably, chose not to award it and the game ended on unsatisfactory note.

Looking back, the first-half was pretty much dominated by the Rocks, with an early try close to the posts from the charging Joe Miles after the ball had been retrieved from an attacking kick from Ben (who also got the conversion). A second try looked like coming from Raf, who latched onto another of Ben’s kicks and picked up beautifully, but was unable to keep his balance and stumbled with line at his mercy. A second try did come after a blind-side break from Ioan was supported by Connor O’Brien who carried defenders over the line to touch down. Half time: 12 – 0 to the Rocks.

For the second-half, Josh Boys, Ruairi, Tom Burns came on for Connor Beere, Connor Corrigan and Rami, all of whom had performed impressively. Pencoed introduced an effective kicking game and, bolstered by a steam of penalties and free-kicks for Rocks infringements, got back into the match, scoring just after the fifteen and twenty minute marks. The climax came with St Peter’s applying pressure deep in the Pencoed 25 and were eventually awarded a penalty, tapped to Joe, who showed great strength to get over the line to touchdown. Unfortunately, the referee felt unable to give the try.

It was not a good ending to a match between two strong sides. We look forward to a return game later in the season.

Tries: Joe x1, Connor O’Brien x 1

Cons: Ben x 1

Match Report by Gwyn Williams

Friday September 2nd

Llanishen 10 St Peter’s 61

The Game

This first clash of the season was a game of four quarters, with both teams making many changes to give all the players a run. For St Peters, this included a number of the under 12′s, none of whom looked out of place and Ioan Davies looking especially impressive.

After a couple of early incursions by Llanishen, the Rocks took control of the first quarter, with impressive runs from our two new players – Joe Miles and Man of the Match, Dylan Lawley. It was Joe who go the first try after excellent driving and support play by the forwards. That one was converted by Ben. There was then a hat-trick from Raf, all out wide on the left wing and all finishing off excellent teamwork. The first after a run from Dylan and the second from a classy offload from Tom Meehan. In between, there had been a bazing run and beautiful offload from Steff.

It was much of the same in the second quarter, with the Rocks scrum dominant and the forwards recycling the ball efficiently. A try for Tom Meehan was followed by one for Connor O’Brien from a penalty after an excellent run and link play from Josh Nolan. Further driving from the fowards saw Tom Meehan in for a second try.

The third quarter started with Joe catching Ben’s restart on the full and starting a move that saw Tom Meehan complete his hatrick, converted by Josh Nolan. Further excellent driving and support play saw two further tries for Sion Williams and Connor O’Brien. In between, Llanishen nicked a try of their own after confusion in the St Peter’s ranks saw them take the ball over their own line without touching down. Llanishen’s number 10 was as shocked as anyone to have scored simply by touching the ball.

The Rocks brought on all of the younger players for final quarter and there was some excellent running from a number of players, not the least Tom Burns and the charging Rhydian. Llanishen got another score from the excellent inside centre, before Tom Meehan rounded off the scoring with a fourth try.

All in all, it was a ver good start to the season and our thanks to our friends at Llanishen for hosting us.

Thanks to Barney Miles for an excellent refereeing performance.

Tries: Tom Meehan x4. Raf x 3, Connor O’Brien x 2, Joe x1, Sion W x 1,

Cons: Ben x 1, Josh Nolan x 2

Match Report by Gwyn Williams

Annual Awards – 12 Noon Saturday 19th May

Please bring a plate of food.  There is loads of sport on TV that day, so people are welcome to stay down to watch after the awards.

Please let Patsy or Gwyn know if you cannot attend.

Abergavenny Tournament is OFF

Everything is under water

Blues Cup Semi-final @ Pontypridd – 26th April 6:30pm

The game is at Pontypridd School.  There will be a coach from the club.  Contact Patsy for details.

Blues Cup Semi-Final News

We have been notified of the draw in a mail from the Blues: Blues Cup Semi Final draw to be played by 29th April Under 13 Pontypridd v St Peters Mountain Ash V Llanishen Referee to be appointed by G Knowles ( South ) & M Jones( North )

Abergavenny Tournament

This is on the weekend of 5th and 6th of May.  Our tournament is Saturday 5th, but camping is available all weekend for £40.  Alison Meehan is collecting money – please get it to her by Sunday 1st April. More information:http://www.abergavennyrfc.co.uk/downloads/Tournament_Info_2012_Poster_&_Info.pdf

April 1st – Game off

Training at the club from 12 noon to 1:30

 

Blues Cup News

The final semi was played last Sunday and well done to our friends at Llanishen for getting through. We don’t know when the draw will be, but the semi-finalists are:–  St Peter’s–  Mountain Ash–  Llanishen–  Pontypridd

Mar 10th – Guess the Score Winners

Two entrants guessed correctly for the Wales/Italy match.  One on Josh M’s sheet and Dylan, from his ownWho said prop’s were thick?It was a shame that there were not more entrants, but those that participated are building up their own tour funds

February Newsletter 

Please notesome corrections from the print-out.  I forgot to include Ben Burton in the welcomes, as he also joined after the start of the season. My apologies to the Burtons, especially as Ben has played so well.  Also, we will not do the “Guess the Score” for the England game – we’ll go for the Italy game to give more time for collecting. Dear FamiliesIt has been a while since the last Newsletter, so the first thing to do is welcome players that have joined at and from the start of the season – Sam Wall, Joe Rees, Ben Burton and Ahmed Elhenawy.  Recently, Ioan Davies had also stepped up from the u12’s. The season has gone very well so far, with the boys winning the St Peter’s Tournament in September and the District Tournament in October and reaching the quarter-final of the Blues Cup.  Please note: The q/final game (v Llantwit Major, away) will be on 4 March, KO 11:30. There have been some notable team performances, not the least Penarth away, Ponty and Pencoed at home and a battle against the elements at Treorchy.

Game Recordings

 You may be aware that Pat O’Brien has kindly been recording some games this season.  In order to raise funds for the squad, he has been asked to make CD copies to order at £3 a game or £5 for two games.  Currently Aberdare (Blues Cup) and Rhiwbina are available.

Tour 2013

 You will be aware that we have been looking at the alternatives for a tour next year.  The general feeling on an Agent arranged tour to the South of France was that this may be too costly.  Although there is plenty of time to fundraise (see below), we do need to get a Tour Committee together (say 4 people).  Rebecca Nolan has said she will volunteer, so please let her or Patsy know if you are happy to help.

Abergavenny Tournament 2012

 This is on the May Day Bank Holiday Weekend Sat 5th & Sun 6th May 2012.  Please put in your diaries and we will probably do a block booking (Alison Meehan has kindly volunteered to coordinate).  Details for tournament/camping etc are on the Abergavenny website: http://www.abergavennyrfc.co.uk/default.asp?contentID=579

Fundraising

We have taken the view that there are three ways to raise funds: Sponsorship – if anyone knows of an individual or company that would like to be associated with our successful team, please let us know.  Apart from the performances on the pitch, we may also be able to reward sponsors with access to international tickets.  Team Fundraisers – such as ‘Bag Packs’, Race Nights and organised events (such as a 7’s tournament at the end of the season).  If there are volunteers to run a fundraiser, please let Gwyn know. Hopefully, we will also raise some funds from match recordings.  Individual Fundraising – In the past we have facilitated this through running raffles where the majority of the money raised goes to the individual player’s tour account.  Currently, we are doing “Guess the Score” for 6 Nations matches.  For the Wales/Scotland game, the 11 that took part raised about £300.  Please could others make an effort for the coming Italy game.  It is the easiest and most direct way for the players’ families to fund a future tour.  We will also introduce “Scratch-cards” (sourced by Nick) which will be for players to raise money directly.

Fixtures

In order to get good, competitive fixtures for next year, we will need to carry on travelling outside Cardiff and are preparing to look further-a-field into England.  We will endeavour to have the list available at the earliest opportunity. Any other queries, ideas or suggestions, do contact Gwyn or Patsy. St Peters Under 13’s

Quarter-final Blues Cup Draw 2011/12 – Feb 10th

Our opponents are Llantwit, who beat the St Joseph’s in the last round.  There is no date set for the game yet. Llantwit Major RFC v St Peters RFC Llandaff RFC v Pontypridd RFC Gwernyfed RFC v Mountain Ash RFC Rhydyfelin RFC v Llanishen RFC

Rd 2 Blues Cup Draw 2011/12 – December 8th

Our opponents are Aberdare, who had a bye in the first round.  Other interesting fixtures include Treorchy v Ponty and Cowbridge v Llandaf (which was also a tie that Llandaf won in the first round, so probably a mistake). To be played on or before 15th January Treorchy          v          Pontypridd……Winners -Pontypridd Beddau            v          Llandaf………….Winners – Llandaf Gwernyfed      v          Rhiwbina………..Winners – Gwernyfed Llanishen         v          Cricc……………..Winners – Llanishen St Peter’s         v          Aberdare…………Winners  – St Peter’s St Joseph’s      v          Llantwit Major….Winners – Llantwit Barry               v          Rhydyfelin…………Winners – Rhydyfelin Treharris          v          Mountain Ash…. Through –  Mountain Ash

Rd 1 Blues Cup Draw 2011/12 -November 1st

Builth Wells RFC V Rhydyfelin RFC Gwernyfed RFC V Ynysowen RFC Mountain Ash RFC V Brecon RFC Treorchy RFC V Merthyr RFC Pontypridd RFC V Penarth RFC Cowbridge RFC V Llandaff RFC Dinas Powys RFC V Beddau RFC Treharris RFC V Dowlais RFC Llandaff North V Rhiwbina RFC Pentyrch RFC V Llanishen RFC Rumney RFC V St Peters RFC Bye: Aberdare RFC; Barry RFC; CRICC; St Josephs RFC; Llantwit Major RFC

Letter from the District

Oct 12th Dear Player As you will be aware, the WRU has stopped representative rugby at U12, U13 and U14 level to allow you to play for your school and club as much as possible in these formative years without any potential pressures of selection/de selection/extra training and playing. Replacing this will be school and club festivals through the season where WRU and Blues coaches will be in attendance to keep an eye on how you progress with the emphasis firmly on enjoyment.  Some of these have been run successfully to date and will continue to do so throughout the season. Alongside these will be open door skills days in the October half term and Easter holidays.  These will run at Leckwith Athletics Stadium in Cardiff with the first one taking place on Friday 28th October: 900-1130: Under 12 / Year 7 Players 1130-1400: Under 13 / Year 8 Players 1400-1630: Under 14 / Year 9 Players These days will be based around the key skills required in the game and will be delivered by WRU and Blues coaches.  Places are limited to the first 100 kids to register at each age group in each area and the days are open to all.  No nominations are required, it is open to all players within the area.  To register please go to: https://sites.google.com/site/wruskillsdays/home At U12 and U13 level, these days are solely focused on up skilling you as players. At U14 level we are looking to select a squad of 45 in both Cardiff and the Vale in early January 2012.  Those selected will then go on a 10 week rugby development programme through to mid March and play 3 games at the end.  This will act as selection for the Dewar Shield at U15 level although the door will always remain open for any kids new to the game or who develop at different rates. Every Year 9 school team and U14 club side will be watched between now and Christmas and coaches/teachers spoken to in preparation for the U14 squad selection.  With the places limited to 100 for the skills days per area we are fully aware that we will not be able to see everyone.  Be assured all club and school teams will be watched and coaches spoken to prior to selection taking place. I look forward to seeing you later this month. Yours in rugby, Richard Hodges Blues Rugby Development Manager

Pre-season Newsletter

Dear Families This Newsletter is to give an update to players and families since the end of the last season.  Communication We are now using a free internet/text service called ‘Teamer’ to inform people of upcoming training and games.  Please let Gwyn know if you want additional numbers to be notified (the service is free). Please let Gwyn know in advance if there are dates players/helpers are unavailable: Email: stpeters.gwyn@googlemail.com  Tel: 07843 420 510 Training As you know, training has been taking place across the holidays and will continue on:

  •  Wednesdays at 5pm
  • Sundays at 11pm (when there is not a game)

The coaches (Patsy, Don and Dai) have developed a training programme to encourage the kids to take greater responsibility in working through various routines each week.  In addition to this, players have been asked to build up fitness levels over the summer.  There has also been a focus on ball-work, so we have purchased 20 brand new Gilbert training balls from Under 13’s funds. New/Old Players Dylan Lawley has already started training with the squad and is a welcome addition at prop.  Joshua Boys will not now drop down to the Under 12’s, so we welcome him back, even though he never went away.   Regretfully, Zac Willliamson has decided not to continue with St Peters this season.  We wish him well in his rugby future. Player Development/Squad Targets Our objective is to give all players the opportunity to be the best that they can at the sport.  We want to keep them at the club for life.  We want to offer equal playing opportunities for all and we will seek to get a balance of fixtures that supports this aim.  For some, there is a genuine possibility of further opportunities with District U14’s, Cardiff Schools at u15, and even playing for Wales Under 16 in three years time, and we want to maximise their chances of doing this.  As a squad, we want to win the Blues Cup and challenge in big competitive tournaments. Discipline: Now that the children are getting older, disruptive behaviour will be less tolerated.  If players cannot behave appropriately, they will be excluded from both training and selection for games. Fixtures As they stand can be found at:  http://stpetersrfc.co.uk/jnr/junior-teams/u13s-2011-12/under-13s-fixtures/  Home games will kick off at 11am We also hope to arrange a small number of mid-week games under lights. Tournaments and Tours As stated above, we aim to seek out tournaments in England that will really challenge the squad.  These may involve an overnight stay and our thinking is not to look for an additional tour this year.  Helpers We are most appreciative of the help that family members put in last year and ‘sharing the load’ will become increasingly important as the boys get older.  To this end, we would ask for as many volunteers as possible.   It would be excellent is all parents could look to help in some way.  Please let Gwyn know if you can help with any of the following: Food before game (bananas/jaffa cakes etc) – Volunteer please Sponsorship/Fund Raising – Volunteers pleaseCooking rota for home games – Volunteers please Thanks to: Medical – Sahir Video – Pat O’Brien Pitch set-up – John Paul Water/Line – Nick Referees – Gwyn/Dai Rule Changes Players and parents will be interested to know that the rules changes this year.  These are: SCRUM: Scrum-half can follow round the scrum in accordance with normal IRB Laws. Number 8 pick-up is allowed LINEOUT: Full uncontested with lifting. Only ten metre catch and drive allowed. The attacking jumper can only be contested when the lineout has ended (the lineout ends when the ball travels beyond the fifteen metre line, the ball is taken into the five metre channel, the ball leaves the line of touch, or the ball carrier moves beyond the line of touch). Penalty: free kick to the non offending team. KICKING: The non scoring team kick to re-start with a drop kick. Kicking is allowed anywhere on the field. PENALTIES: Penalties/free kicks the ball must be propelled from the hands. A penalty kick at goal will be allowed for offences committed only in the 22 metre area. Any questions or suggestions Please ask Patsy, Dai or Gwyn



Under 16’s
Fixtures(*Blues Fixtures on following Wed) MATCH REPORTS BELOW FIXTURES

Sept 4th *

Sept 11th – Rumney(A) won 51 – 5

Sept 18th *

Sept 25th – Cefn Fforest(A) won 18 – 7

Oct 2nd – *(Blues game on 2nd)

Oct 9th * –

Oct 16th – Llandaff(A) won 53 – 0

Oct 22nd – Stoke(H) won 47 – 5

Oct 30th – Rumney(H) won 32 – 18

Nov 6th *Pentyrch(H) won 25 – 8

Nov 13th – Blaenavon(A) won 34 – 0

Nov 20th *Pontyclun(A) won 45 – 7

Nov 27th Pontypridd(H) won 45 – 0

Dec 4th – *Abergavenny(A) lost 21 – 19

Dec 11th *Bridgend Ath(H))(Blues game on 11th) won 8 – 5

Dec 18th – Llanishen(A) won 10 – 9

Dec 25th – xmas

Jan 1st – xmas

Jan 8th – Pentyrch(A) * won 41 – 12

Jan 15th – Caerleon(A) * won 37 – 10

Jan 22nd – St Mary’s OB(A) *( semi) won 67 – 7

Jan 29th – Cefn Fforest(H) won 20 – 19

Feb 5th – Abergavenny(H) *cancelled

Feb 11th – Luctonians(A) cancelled

Feb 12th – Pontyclun(A) *cancelled

Feb 19th – Caerleon(H)*(Final Wed 22nd Feb) lost 57 – 19

Feb 25th – Huntingdon(H) won 59 – 7

Mar 4th – St Peter’s 12s Tournament – pool stages

Mar 11th – Llanishen(H) won 35 – 0

Mar 18th – Pontyclun(H) cancelled

Mar 25th – no game

Apr 1st – Rumney(H) won 51 – 13

Apr 8th – no game

Apr 17th – Marbella(A) won 43 – 7

Apr 19th – Gibraltar(A) won 35 – 0

Apr 28th –

May 5th(Sat) – Abergavenny Tournament

Gibraltar(A) 19/4/12

The boys were showing signs of fatigue by this stage of the tour due to the excessive late nights but they still managed to raise themselves for one final effort against a big Gibraltar outfit. Jack Beere and Jack Allwood scored early tries on this good quality artificial surface at the Military Base although the strong winds were causing a problem with handling. Further tries were added by Jack Pattison, Andrew Corfield, Jordan Viggers and Rob Lewis(2) to make the final score 35 – 0. Gibraltar were excellent hosts and played the game in a great spirit which proved to be a wonderful way to end the Tour. All that was left was to prepare for Kangaroo Court on Friday night!

Marbella(A) 17/4/12

St Peter’s 16s stepped into the unknown with a game against one of the strongest teams in Spain in the holiday region of the Costa Del Sol. On a lovely sunny evening the game began with the Rock’s dominating their bigger opponents at the tackle area but they had to work hard before the first score came from Rob Lewis after a few phases. Luke Williams then went over in the corner after some excellent approach work by most of the team. The St Peter’s defence was causing mayhem in the Marbella back line and from a couple of errors Jordan Viggers and James Mclean managed to cross in quickfire fashion and the score was 24 – 0 once Callum Sheedy added a couple of conversions. To their credit the home side never gave up and were finally rewarded with a converted try. Sheedy then ghosted over, Lee Ford crossed in the corner and Tom Jeffs rounded off more good team play for the final try of the match, Sheedy converted two of them to make the score 43 – 7. Marbella were a competitive outfit and will undoubtedly give teams a good battle in the future and showed us good hospitality in their clubhouse afterwards.

Rumney(H) 1/4/12

This proved a bit of a mismatch with St Peter’s running out winners by 51 – 13. Tries were scored by Luke Thomas(2), James Mclean(2), Joe Sweeney, Jack Allwood, Ryan Hill, Jack Beere and Shannon Lane, with Thomas adding 2 conversions and Rory Harries 1. Conor Tonkin and Jack Allwood had very good first halves and James Dunne and Geraint Witts were competitive in the breakdown area. Alan Wilkinson, Beere and Jack Chambers also had effective games.

Llanishen(H) 11/3/12

St Peter’s started well to score a couple of tries through Callum Sheedy and a training ground backs move from Jack Pattison, Sheedy converted both to open up a 14 point lead. Lots of passes were going to ground and the home side were looking very rusty. Jack Chambers managed to score a couple of tries either side of the break and then Luke Thomas crossed with the last move of the match, Sheedy converted all of them. James Dunne and Andrew Corfield, playing openside, had excellent games in the forwards while Sheedy controlled things at outside-half and Thomas and Chambers looked a good combination in the centre.

St Peter’s Tournament 4/3/12

St Peter’s didn’t manage a win on Sunday but still performed well in a tough group of Abergavenny, Cefn Fforest and eventual winners Hornets. In the first game against Abergavenny Luke Thomas scored a good individual try but Abergavenny equalised and the score ended 5 – 5. The second game was an extremely tough contest with Cefn Fforest and this one finished 7 – 0 to the visitors. The final match proved the most interesting as Hornets had beaten the other two teams convincingly and were a little shocked at the Rocks ferocity in the open exchanges. Andrew Corfield latched onto a great kick by Rory Harries and made the score 5 – 0 after about 5 minutes. The Hornets rallied to make the score 7 – 5 soon after. A great competive effort in the second-half held the visitors to this single score and provided them with their closest match of the day. In all the matches good performances came from James Dunne, Alan Wilkinson and Joe Sweeney in the forwards and Rory Harries and Andrew Corfield in the backs.

Huntingdon(H) 25/02/12

The u16s welcomed a Touring side from Huntingdon and ran out easy winners by 59 – 7. Tries were scored by Jack Pattison(2), Luke Williams(2), Luke Thomas(2), Joe Sweeney, Alex(u15s), Lee Ford, Andrew Corfield and Jack Chambers. Conversions were added by Corfield and Alex(15s). A pleasing aspect of the game was the performance of the 4 under 15s who played, Sam at hooker, Conor and Adam at 2nd row and especially Alex who looked a great prospect at outside-half.

Caerleon (H) 19/02/12

In a very competitive first-half both teams scored 3 tries and honours ended even at 19 -19. Caerleon had looked dangerous from the off scoring almost immediately out wide after a number of line breaks and their big runners were causing lots of problems. St Peter’s replied soon after by recycling some quick ball which was passed right to Jack Chambers to score with Callum Sheedy adding a good conversion. This simply spurred the visitors on and they scored two converted tries to make the score 19 -7. For the final 15 minutes of the first period the Rocks managed to string some phases together and scored two tries through Sheedy and Andrew Corfield, Sheedy converted one to level the scores at 19 – 19. Caerleon upped the tempo in the second-half and a combination of aggressive competition at the breakdown area and strong running proved too much for the home side who fell off far too many tackles to concede 6 unanswered tries The final scoreline of 57 – 19 was a fair reflection of Caerleon’s dominance on the day and provided sweet revenge for St Peter’s big win at Caerleon a few weeks ago.

Cefn Fforest(H) Sun 29/1/12

This proved a very good, hard game of rugby with the home side just shading it with a late try and winning by 20 – 19. With a Development Semi-Final being played on Monday and a number of last minute cry-offs St Peter’s had to reshuffle a few positions and quickly conceded two converted tries after some good forward pressure from the visitors. Gradually as the half wore on the boys began to get a flow to their game and moved the opposition’s big, heavy pack around. This eventually resulted in a Luke Thomas try wide out. From the restart Joe Sweeney and Rory Harries combined to set Jack Chambers away on an excellent run which ended with the big centre crossing in the corner from long-range. Both tries went unconverted and the Rocks trailed 14 – 10 at the break. In the second-half St Peter’s dominated for long periods but failed to take any of the try scoring chances. Cefn Fforest then managed to have some pressure of their own and worked an opening to cross wide out making the score 19 – 10 with about 15 minutes to go. The boys then showed great determination to grind out the win with close-range tries from Joe Sweeney and then Josh Thomas. Neither of these were converted and the final score was 20 – 19. The front row of Rob Lewis, Thomas and Ryan Hill performed well against large opponents, while the backrow of Conor Tonkin, Jordan Viggers and Sweeney worked hard and look a well balanced unit. Chambers and Luke Williams tackled hard in the centre and Jack Patterson continued his good run at standoff.

St Mary’s Old Boys(A) Sun 22/1/12

With the squad affected once again by Blues South commitments and call-offs this trip to Bristol was another chance to test the growing strength in depth at St Peter’s. Carrying on from last week’s excellent performance at Caerleon the intention was to start well, however, 2 minutes into the game, after some weak tackling, St Mary’s took a 7 point lead. This spurred the Rocks into action and against a strong wind the ball was kept in hand and eventually after numerous phases Luke Willaims crossed for a try with Jack Pattison converting. The strong defence was pinning the Home Side deep in their own 22 yard area and from a series of close drives Ryan Hill powered over, Pattison added the conversion again. This pattern of play continued for the rest of the half with the hard-working James Dunne getting a deserved try and Williams adding a second. Immediately after the break the Visitors added an excellent team try to put an end to the contest with Joe Sweeney crossing from close range after great support play near the St Mary’s line, Pattison added the conversion. Rory Harries was causing mayhem with his accurate box-kicking and from the resulting pressure Luke Thomas finished nicely and Owen Davies went over for a quick double as the flood gates opened. Sweeney drove over the line for his 2nd and Harries pounced for an opportunist effort. The final try went to Jack Beere after more good support play and Pattison(2) and Harries added the extras. The pack played superbly once again securing the ball regularly at the breakdown and Alan Wilkinson, Ryan Farrah and Geraint Witts were effective in this facet of play. Andrew Corfield had a brilliant first half while Tom Jeffs was a clear man of the match with his tackling and running causing the Home Side problems all day.

Caerleon(A) Sun 15/1/12

St Peter’s started the game superbly with Alan Wilkinson setting the tone with some aggressive drives. The contact area was being contested keenly and the Rocks forwards committed extra numbers to the breakdown to control possession. Rob Lewis, playing well at openside, and front-row colleagues Josh Thomas and Jack Beere were prominent in this area. The first score came from a turnover deep in the St Peter’s half as the ball was moved swiftly by Andrew Corfield and Jack Chambers to Owen Davies on the right-hand-side. Still with lots to do Davies dummied his way over from the halfway line. 10 minutes later Lewis powered over from longrange beating 6 players to score an excellent individual try and Jack Pattison converted. Caerleon managed to score from close range using their big forwards to good effect. Just before halftime Jack Chambers went on yet another powerful run, using his big handoff to swat a number of defenders, and Beere showed good awareness to stay in close support to pick up the offload close to the line and score. The second half continued in the same vein with Corfield and Pattison controlling the game at halfback. Pattison added a close-range penalty after more Rocks pressure and then Corfield nipped over in the corner to put the game beyond doubt. Joe Sweeney made some good ground from N08 and James Dunne was continuing his good form at 2nd-row. After a good move from a scrum involving Sweeney and Corfield space was created for the much improved Dan Jones to finish smartly in the corner. Luke Thomas went on a good run after the Rocks moved the ball wide and Chambers deservedly finished off to cap a strong performance. Caerleon did score a late consolation try but the visitors finished on the attack with Joe Peckham nearly scoring in the corner. Ryan Hill and Tom Jeffs both played well in a brilliant performance from the pack, while James Mclean, Geraint Witts and Lee Ford maintained the quality when they appeared off the bench. This was probably the best performance of the season winning so convincingly by 37 – 10 away to such a strong side as Caerleon.

Pentyrch(A) Sun 8/1/12

After a reasonably well matched 1st half St Peter’s finally got into their stride and ran out comfortable winners by 41 – 12. The game was dominated by an outstanding performance from outside-half Callum Sheedy who controlled the contest from start to finish to end up with 26 points including a hatrick of tries. The other scores came from Tom Jeffs, Luke Williams and Rob Lewis. Josh Thomas and Jack Beere had excellent games in the forwards and Owen Davies was rock solid in the centre.

 

Llanishen(A) Sun 18/12/11

On a cold and frosty morning the U16s met a determined Llanishen side and were fortunate to come away with a 10 -9 victory. In an extremely scrappy game neither side could put together any phases and the visitors had only a Callum Sheedy penalty to show for their efforts. After the break Llanishen responded with a penalty to draw level but then St Peter’s managed to put together the only completed move of the match for James Mclean to run in from 50 metres, Sheedy converted to make the score 10 -3. From this point on the game degenerated into a mess and the home side converted a couple of penalties to reduce the deficit to 10 -9 with 10 minutes to play. Crucially the Llanishen kicker left the field injured and his replacement missed a last gasp attempt to win. Strong performances in the forwards came from Ryan Farrah, Alan Wilkinson, Rob Lewis and Andrew Corfield, while Rory Harries, Callum Sheedy, James Mclean and the excellent Owen Davies stood out in the backs.

Bridgend Athletic(H) Sun 11/12/11

Due to District commitments the Rocks were once again very short and had to borrow a couple of the u15s again to make up the numbers. However, this determination to carry on playing regardless of the regional games has meant an impressive 11 games since the start of the season while other sides haven’t played much at all. It turned out to be a physical game in muddy conditions and contained lots of handling errors. The home side started well but could only manage a Luke Thomas penalty to show for their efforts. The highlights of the half were some mazy running by Joe Peckham, a few crunching tackles from Dan Jones and Conor Tonkin and some strong driving play from Joe Sweeney. Just before half-time Bridgend managed a try by their impressive centre and took the lead 5 – 3. In the second-half the forwards worked really hard to win ball against the bigger Bridgend pack and James Dunne, Tom Jeffs and Geraint Witts were at the forefront of this effort. Jack Pattison kept the side moving forward at scrum-half and Jack Chambers came into the game more with his direct running, whileLuke Williams was excellent as usual in defence. A close range effort from Corfield settled this low scoring match and after a couple of flare-ups the boys managed to close the game out. This game showed the sort of character and commitment we have been looking for from the team this season. 

Abergavenny(A) Sun 4/12/11

St Peter’s just managed to scrape a side together and left Cardiff with just 12 players in the hope of using some of the u15s to make up the numbers. Thanks to Abergavenny for lending us three players, who all tried their best, and also to the u15s who supplied us with Will, Adam and Max. Initially everything began well and Andrew Corfield scrambled over after a break by Luke Thomas, adding the conversion to his own try. Playing with the wind Abergavenny kicked well to exert some pressure but good handling after a turnover set Luke Thomas free down the left to run 70 metres to score under the posts. Unfortunately, Corfied missed the conversion and the Visitors now led 12 – 0. The Home Side managed to create some more pressure and from a weak clearance kick their speedy right winger cut inside and out to score in the right corner. This try was superbly converted. Outside-half Corfield made another excellent break and showed good vision to find Lee Ford supporting well on the inside who managed to run in from 25 metres to score next to the posts, Corfield converted this one to make it 19 – 7. The Rocks tried to hold out until the break but the Abergavenny fullback ran a nice line off a short pass to score with the last move of the period, once again this try was expertly converted. Turning around with the wind leading 19 – 14 St Peter’s were now the favourites to win but they failed to convert a number of chances by making silly mistakes. Rory Harries looked to have scored in the corner but the ref failed to see the grounding and disallowed it and after this point Abergavenny came back into the game, eventually getting the ball to their speedy right winger who crossed wide out again. This try was superbly converted by the home kicker and proved to be the winning kick as the game ended 21 – 19 to Abergavenny. James Dunne, Geraint Witts, Tom Jeffs, Alan Wilkinson and Joe Sweeney worked hard in the forwards, while Ford, Corfield, Harries and Thomas tried hard in the backs. Everyone who played deserves a pat on the back for ensuring that we could fulfil the fixture after a few cryoffs on the morning.

Pontypridd(H) Sun 2711/11

On a perfect day for rugby St Peter’s welcomed Pontypridd to the Harlequins and ran out comfortable winners by 45 – 0. However, the first half showed little of what was to come as Pontypridd competed strongly at the breakdown and used the strong breeze to pin the home side down in the corner for long periods resulting in a half-time score of 0 – 0. Conor Tonkin led the defensive effort by putting in some excellent hits and was joined by Rory Harries and Rob Lewis. With a couple of changes at the break and the wind at their backs the Rocks set about confirming their superiority with a couple of quick fire tries. Moving the ball wider away from the Ponty forwards resulted in some quality tries. Luke Thomas continued his try scoring run with a quick hatrick, Jack Chambers and Luke Williams both dived over in the corner, while James Mclean once again showed great pace and balance to score a long-range try. Harries and Callum Sheedy controlled things at halfback with Sheedy kicking well from hand and also adding 5 conversions. The last try deservedly went to hardworking flanker Ryan Farrah who crossed after a chargedown to cap his usual excellent performance.

Pontyclun(A) Sun 20/11/11

The Rocks faced a Pontyclun u17s side this week and prepared themselves for a physical battle. In a competitive opening 20 minutes the boys dominated possession and territory but could not put the points on the board. Finally, close range tries by Rory Harries and Tom Jeffs, both converted by Callum Sheedy, took the score to 14 – 7 at the break, after the home side managed a breakaway try. With the result still in doubt Sheedy added a penalty to push the score upto 17 – 7 and then the team’s fitness began to show. Jordan Viggers managed to force his way over from a maul, and James Mclean showed excellent pace to run in from long range, Sheedy converted both, and the score was now 31 – 7. Jack Chambers capped a very strong performance by barging his way over and Conor Tonkin showed some intelligent support play to cross with the last move of the match, both scores were converted by Rory Harries, to make the final score 45 – 7. The foundation for this excellent result was laid by all the forwards who fronted up superbly to their older opponents. Special mention must be made of Jack Beere who had a fantastic game, Viggers who turned over ball throughout and Jeffs who is proving to be a great addition to the team. Sheedy controlled things as normal and Chambers was powerful in attack and defence. Mclean came on at half-time and had his best performance in a while showing tremendous speed and an appetite for defence. Well done to everyone!

Blaenavon(A) Sun 13/11/11

St Peter’s were away at Blaenavon this week and travelled up into the mountains knowing little about their opponents. After a fairly tough opening quarter the deadlock was broken by yet another Luke Thomas interception try with Jack Pattison converting. After some good driving play by Rob Lewis and Owen Davies the second score came when Dan Jones dived over in the corner. The Rocks led 12 – 0 at the break and now turned around with the advantages of wind and slope. Straight from the kick-off Lewis went on another charging run and after the ball was recycled Jack Chambers ploughed over. Thomas benefitted from a charge down to put Jack Beere over for an easy score which was converted by Rory Harries. After lots of close quarter driving play it was very pleasing from a coaching point of view to see Ryan Farrah being driven over by Ryan Hill from 5 metres out, showing good communication and patience. Lastly, after some smart passing by the backs, Joe Peckham capped a good all round performance with a try in the corner to make the final score 34 – 0. Lewis, Beere and the ever improving James Dunne were prominent upfront, while Harries, Thomas and Jones did well behind.

Pentyrch(H) Sun 6/11/11

On a lovely sunny Sunday morning Pentyrch were the visitors to the Harlequins Ground and took part in a very competitive game. The Rocks started well and after a few phases and some early pressure in the visitors 22 Callum Sheedy ghosted over in the corner. The good start continued with the in- form Andrew Corfield sneaking over in the corner after some good approach work from the forwards who were recycling the ball very well, Sheedy added the conversion. Pentyrch came back well and kicked the ball effectively into the corner building pressure with their strong driving play from the resulting lineouts. Eventually the breakthrough came for them when their prop managed to force his way over from a ruck close to the line. With the score at half-time 12 – 5 to the home side it was anyone’s game and Sheedy once again proved the difference by going through the card by adding a neat drop goal and a penalty to his earlier try and conversion. Pentyrch managed to add a penalty of their own after somemore pressure close to the Rocks line making the score 18 – 8 with 5 minutes to go. St Peter’s had the last word when scrum-half Lee Ford capped an impressive performance with a close range try after some excellent build-up work from Rob Lewis and Jordan Viggers, Sheedy converted to make the final score 25 – 8. James Dunne and Tom Jeffs had effective games in the forwards with Dan Jones and Luke Thomas playing well on the wings.

Rumney(H) Sun 30/10/11

This was the second game against Rumney this season and it was good to see them back to full strength after their internal problems at the start of the year. Consequently it was a much tougher challenge and the game remained close right until the end. Eventually St Peter’s triumphed by 32 – 18 with tries from Jack Chambers(2), Owen Davies, Lee Ford, Luke Thomas and Andrew Corfield, with one conversion from James Mclean. Standout performers were the backrow of Ryan Farrah, Rob Lewis and Jordan Viggers, as well as Corfield, Chambers and Davies in the backs.

Stoke(H) Sat 22/10/11

St Peter’s welcomed a touring side from Stoke on Saturday and ran out winners by 47 – 5. In an entertaining game lots of good rugby was played. Tries were scored by Jack Beere, Josh Thomas, Jordan Viggers, Owen Davies, Jack Chambers, Andrew Corfield and James Mclean, with  a conversion by Callum Sheedy. Owen Davies was outstanding.

Llandaff(A) Sun 16/10/11

The u16s beat Llandaff by 53 – 0 with tries scored by Luke Williams(2), Callum Sheedy(2), Jack Pattison, Andrew Corfield, Lee Ford, Jack Chambers and Jacob Preece, with Sheedy adding 4 conversions.

Cefn fforest(A) Sun 25/9/11

The boys managed an 18 – 7 win away at wet and muddy Cefn Fforest. All the forwards deserve special praise for sticking at it against a much bigger pack and keeping their discipline in very testing circumstances. After a big fight, that included all the home team substitutes(which was way out of order!), the game settled down and proved to be a hard fought, even contest. Callum Sheedy slotted over a couple of penalties and there were opportunist tries for Jack Pattison and Luke Thomas, one converted by Sheedy, which made the game safe. Special mention must be made of Jordan Viggers, who led the side with great commitment, Josh Thomas, who competed throughout, and Joe Sweeney and Conor Tonkin who put their bodies on the line for the team.

Rumney(A) Sun 11/9/11

St Peter’s Under 16s proved much to strong for an under strength Rumney outfit on Sunday running out 51 – 5 winners at Riverside Park. Jack Chambers scored a good hat-trick and Luke Thomas added a brace. Others scorers were Jack Beere, Andrew Corfield, Rob Lewis and Josh Thomas(who actually scored for both sides), Callum Sheedy added 3 conversions. Jordan Viggers lead by example and was joined in an impressive backrow by the superb Rob Lewis and the underrated Ryan Farrah.

Tries(includes all games this season upto and including 19/4/12)

17 – Luke Thomas

16 – Jack Chambers

11 – Andrew Corfield

9 – Luke Williams and Callum Sheedy

7 – Jack Beere and James Mclean

6 – Rob Lewis, Jack Pattison and Lee Ford

5  – Joe Sweeney and Owen Davies

3 – Ryan Hill, Josh Thomas, Jordan Viggers and Tom Jeffs

2 – Ryan Farrah, Jack Allwood and Dan Jones

1 – Rory Harries, Conor Tonkin, Jacob Preece, James Dunne, Joe Peckham and Alex Lloyd

Conversions/Penalties/Drop Goals

36(C) 6(P) 1(DG) – Callum Sheedy

7(C) 1(P) – Jack Pattison

5(C) – Rory Harries

3(C) – Andrew Corfield

2(C) 1(P) – Luke Thomas

1(C) – James Mclean

1(C) – Alex Lloyd

Squad

Forwards – Josh Thomas, Jack Beere, Joe Sweeney, Geraint Witts, Jordan Viggers, Alan Wilkinson, Conor Tonkin, Ryan Hill, James Dunne, Rob Lewis, Ryan Farrah, Tom Jeffs

Backs – Rory Harries, Andrew Corfield, Lee Ford, Callum Sheedy, Jack Pattison, Luke Williams, Luke Thomas, Owen Davies, Jack Chambers, James Mclean, Dan Jones, Jack Allwood, Joe Peckham, Shannon Lane

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