Fixture

Mold RFC | 1st Team 7 - 47 Pwllheli RFC | 1st Team

Match Report
09 May 2016 / Team News

Mold RFC 7 Pwllheli RFC 47

This was the third of a sequence of five away matches Pwllheli faced in the run in to the end of the season. Away successes at Bethesda and Dolgellau had come at a cost  with  several injuries including flanker Harry Roberts fracturing his eye socket last Wednesday. Thankfully he is making good progress.

Thankfully the weather had cleared by the time the Lleyn side arrived at Mold but the rain and sleet made for a slippery surface.

Pwllheli played against the slope but with the wind at their backs in the first half. They could not have asked for a better start.After only a minute Mold were penalised for handling in a ruck. Wing Osian P.Jones calmly slotted the penalty.Playing with precise and well executed phases Pwllheli  created a gap on the left. Quick passing saw second row Huw Williams put clear twelve metres out  and he brushed aside two would be tacklers to score wide out. The conversion attempt missed. Mold began peppering the Pwllheli back three with some high and long kicks but the visitor's cover was up to the challenge

The packs were generally evenly matched with Pwllheli edging the scrums and the home side the lines out. Any loose ball was fiercely contested but Pwllheli's back rowers tended to be quicker to the ball to secure possession for their backs. On fifteen minutes Pwllheli set up a rolling maul close to the half way line. They drove Mold back some fifteen metres. Scrum half and captain Nick Butterworth made a break which took him clear of the first line of defence.As he was about to be tackled he popped a pass to the supporting winger and Robin Hughes Jones soared through to score.Once again the conversion missed. Three minutes later Pwllheli again rolled back Mold's cover. Butterworth saw the gap and his pace and power saw him touch down under the posts. Osian P.Jones  added the two points to give Pwllheli a twenty points to nil lead.

On twenty four minutes Mold took advantage of having a player down who needed treatment. They worked themselves into the Pwllheli twenty two. They set up two powerful driving mauls and on the second their number eight Richard Whalley touched down. Mold's full back Tyler Bridges slotted the conversion to bring Mold back in the game. Mold's comeback was short lived however. Within two minutes Pwllheli conjured up heir fourth and try bonus point winning try.John Pugh playing at fly half wrong footed the opposition defence to touch down. Osian P.Jones added the conversion.

Mold threw everything at Pwllheli to try to claw back the deficit but Pwllheli organised defence was at its best. 

The score at half tome was Mold seven ,Pwllheli twenty seven.

Pwllheli lost a prop to an innocuous yellow card after only a minute of the second half. Aled Griffiths came on as a replacement and flanker Caron Jones was the player who had to give way. Despite being a player down it was Pwllheli who created two try scoring opportunities in the following ten minutes but they failed to capitalise.A few minutes after Pwllheli were back up to fifteen players it was Mold's turn to have a player yellow carded. Number eight and try scorer Whalley was carded for killing he ball in the red zone. Osian P.Jones stretched his side's leads with the ensuing penalty.

Unlike Mold Pwllheli took advantage of the opposition being a player short and on seventeen minutes wing Robin Hughes Jones crafted a well taken try. Osian .P.Jones kicked the wide angled penalty. Pwllheli then pulled off both their half backs .

Although Pwllheli still had the territorial advantage Mold held firm until the thirty second minute. Now playing at scrum half Robin Hughes Jones saw a gap at the base of a scrum and his pace and strength took him away from the cover to score an impressive individualist's try. The coup de grace came from number eight Tom Billington Parry who capped his comeback match with a well taken score.The match ended shortly after.

This was an impressive controlled performance by a Pwllheli side who are reaping the benefits of  regular game time following what has been a frustrating stop start season. On Saturday Pwllheli face their sternest test so far in their unlikely quest for successive League honours when they travel to third placed Bala RFC.

 

Pwllheli's seconds were also at Mold but their match did not last long. After some twenty minutes the referee pulled a hamstring and was unable to continue.

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