Monday 25 February 2013

Rome and hosed

I went to Rome for the biennial Peroni, Pasta and Piazza Pilgrimage not feeling overly confident of a Welsh victory as the warm glow of the win in Paris had quickly dissipated.
Friday was reserved for the tourist bit and we enjoyed a rather cold and breezy tour of the sights on the obligatory open top bus. For all that it was enjoyable and was punctuated by a nice lunch in the Piazza Navona. It might have been cool and grey but at least the forecasted rain didn't appear.
The rain did appear the next morning, however, just as we were strolling down to the Colisseum for a breath of fresh air. As if by magic, hundreds of umbrella salesmen appeared. You could barely walk 10 yards without one of them looking at you pleadingly. I resisted their sales patter feeling sure that the rain would surely stop before too long. The rain if anything got heavier annd we had to take refuge indoors until it was time to catch the metro to Piazza de Popolo and thence the tram out to the Stade Olympico. It was still pouring down as we stood in the queue for the tram with our fellow Welsh supporters. The Italians did not think that joining the queue was necessary and caused bad feeling by pushing in. Funny that, since queue seems a particularly Latin looking word. I was moved to ask the price of an umbrella - 5 euros for a small one, 10 euros for a large one it seemed. Looking around it was clear that the umbrellas were not of the highest quality. A quick calculation told me that the umbrellas were costing approximately a euro per minute - not really an economic prospect. A man standing next to us was left holding just the handle when a  gentle puff of wind blew the top part away. There were discarded umbrellas everywhere. Funny that, since umbrella seems a Latin sort of word.
We eventually squeezed on to a tram and were deposited a fair walk from the stadium. The stadium was certainly impressive but not ideally suited to the weather conditions. Our seats were just under the very edge of the roof and so we were subjected every now and then to a bombardment of heavy drips. It was certainly a distinct improvement to Stade Flaminio though.
So to the match. Right from the off we looked the stronger side and yet it took a long time for us to pull clear. The weather was awful so it was never going to be a festival of running rugby. We never really felt completely confident of a victory until Cuthbert's try. Our pack was strong and Mike Phillips kept the Italian back row occupied. Defensively we were excellent and stopped the Italians getting up any kind of momentum. We got the job done and I think everyone would have settled for a 17 point margin of victory before the game. So cause to celebrate.
Some time later we found ourselves in an Irish bar watching the England v France game. For just a moment or two it looked like a French victory. That would have elevated it from a good day to a great day. It wasn't to be, however, and it looks like it is definitely down to us to stop the English. We will have to go up a few gears to do that - perhaps Scotland will take it easy on us when they recognise the task that we have. After all, can the country afford to give all those players an MBE if they win the Grand Slam?

Sunday 17 February 2013

Dungeons and Dragons


On Friday evening I had the misfortune to watch the Newport Gwent Dragons play Glasgow on the TV. They were absolutely smashed by a smart Glasgow side by 60 points and remain firmly locked in the dungeon of Welsh regional rugby. 
As a Pontypool fan, part of me was saying, "It serves you right. You made no concerted attempt to fully involve the traditional powerhouse clubs of the Gwent valleys in regional development. Instead you chose the easy option to work closely with the lesser clubs that wouldn't stand in the way of Newport RFC. Even this hasn't worked out as Bedwas and Cross keys have left Newport behind." 
The other part of me was squirming in embarrassment as the Dragons capitulated. It really was pathetic. If the Dragons had been a horse they would have put them in a burger. It was also sad to see the deterioration in the playing surface at Rodney Parade as the studs of three teams inevitably take their toll and turn it into a passable set for Lawrence of Arabia.
So to the main event of the weekend, as Pontypool entertained their close neighbours from Newbridge. Pontypool are locked in the dungeon of the Championship as a consequence of Poolergate and, on this evidence, this is where they are doomed to stay this season. They were defeated 5-33 and owed the 5 to a last minute try when the game had already been put to bed. Newbridge were not exactly a great side and blew plenty of chances by poor handling and wrong option taking but they were still more than a match for a poor and disjointed Pooler side. Whenever Newbridge managed to put a few passes together, they looked dangerous.You might argue that Pooler held them to 0-0 for most of the first half and only started to leak tries when they went down to 14 men due to a sin-binning but the writing was on the wall long before that.
There is no end to the abysmal run in sight I fear. 

Monday 11 February 2013

Wales win the highlight of a weekend on the couch

I've had a nasty dose of man flu so was unable to make the trip to Beddau on Saturday (unfortunately Pooler went down yet again this time 29-8). Instead I rather overdosed on watching rugby on the TV. When I think back I'm amazed (and I suppose a little ashamed) at just how much rugby I watched.
It started on Friday evening with the Ospreys at Ulster and I have to say I thoroughly enjoyed a really competitive match. The winning try from Bevington, the Ospreys prop was outstanding. This really whetted the appetite for what was to follow.
Saturday afternoon began with a quick look at the Northampton v Gloucester match. Not very inspriring but, as Gloucester used to be known as "the poorman's Pontypool", I always have had a soft spot for them and I was glad that they won. It was good to see Will James who played a season or so at the Park still plying his trade.
So to the Six Nations and Scotand v Italy. Scotland played an all-blackesque type of game. They surrendered possession and territory but struck clinically whenever they had a chance. Italy were the architects of their own downfall with mistake after mistake destroyng any momentum that they managed to build up. They looked like that had been indulging in a Roman orgy or two since their famous victory against France the previous weekend. It'll be a spell in the amphiteatre for the Ben Hur XV after this.
They main event in Paris kicked off at 5.00pm and I was filled with apprehension - if we lost, the wooden spoon became a distinct possibility. We kept being reminded that France were "a wounded animal" but were reassured that "Wales couldn't become a bad side overnight". As it turned out, it was a pretty poor game with both sides short on accuracy and confidence. The pitch was awful with the turf coming up at every scrum. What you couldn't fault was Wales' committment and their defence was tremendous The magic moment came with about ten minutes to go with the score 6-6. Biggar's accurate chip was collected by George North at speed just short of the French try line. He managed to use his strength and agility to get the ball down in the corner before his feet hit the corner flag. A fantastic conversion from the touchline from Halfpenny gave us a seven point lead. Even though the French looked dispirited, we didn't think that the game was over - the four Australian games had shown us that. Halfpenny eased our fears with a long range penalty but still you had a nagging feeling that we could blow it. The French harboured no such belief and their last efforts fizzled out. Wales had won at last and there was an incredible outpouring of emotion. The interview with Jamie Roberts on S4C when he was actually in tears summed up how much it meant to the team. For Wales, it will hopefully free the shackles of a long losing run and they will recapture the vim of last season. For France, a trip to Twickenham beckons and it looks rather unlikely that they will get any joy there. But if there is one team that can surprise everyone then it is the French - vive la France.
On Sunday afternoon, the Wales under 20's had an excellent win against their French counterparts showing plenty of grit and determination against bigger opponents.There was also a rather turgid affair in Dublin where England made fewer mistakes and won on penalties. The grand slam merchandising machine has put on another shift and there is plenty of overtime on offer if you are interested.
I fear it is down to Wales to stop us all suffering from English hype for the next year. On the weekend's evidence, we will need to improve massively if we are going to do the rugby world a favour. Next stop for Wales is Rome and we will need a strong performance against yet another "wounded animal'.
Next Saturday, Pooler will be entertaining the "Blue Pigs" of Newbridge let's hope we can follow the example of Wales and end our losing streak. We are a "wounded animal" aren't we?

Monday 4 February 2013

Wales Wails

It's been a bad weekend. After Pontypool's heavy defeat by Blackwood on the Friday night, I thought that at least we could look forward to a decent performance from Wales against Ireland. To start with, the match was like a rerun of the events of the previous night. Pontypool didn't turn up in the first half and were losing 37-0 at half time, Wales didn't turn up either and were losing 3-30 early in the second half. Game over, in both cases. In fairness to Wales, they did wake up in the second half and scored three tries but they had left themselves far too much to do. The problem with our power game is it takes many phases and a long time to score. Gone is the Shane magic that could change a game in a flash.
Then England took to the stage and looked purposeful and professional against the spirited but out-gunned Scots. You can just hear the looms starting up for the grand slam teeshirts, jumpers and ties.
If Wales were  50% bad then the French were 75% bad and appeared far too nonchalant. By contrast, the Italians scrapped for everything and showed no little skill in recording yet another famous victory. An Italian grand slam, now that would be something.
Back to Wales and the outpouring of nostalgia in the Daily Telegraph and The Guardian over the weekend. It was like reading an obituary for Welsh club rugby with Pontypool RFC to the fore. It really did make sad reading and we all muttered, 'I remember when...'
I think we all realise that the glory days of Welsh club rugby are gone and will never return. The WRU don't really seem to care as long as they keep filling the Millennium Stadium - but wait, even that is now proving difficult! You can't help feeling that the clubs would do better if they had their own governance structure and could organise the leagues and cups in a way that suited them better. Let the regions and the international teams plough their own furrows and stop the WRU interfering and making incessant changes to the club structure that only seem to make matters worse.
Looking forward, it's France in Paris next week. Will Wales make any changes? A few changes in the forwards would help - Ryan Jones at 6 if fit, Paul James at prop, Ken Owens at hooker, Warburton and Tuperic to play a half each. We keep being told that the backs pick themselves but surely there has to be room for someone with a bit of speed off the mark or someone who can actually beat a man with guile. This could be at scum half (Williams), outside half (Hook) or at wing (Walker). Wouldn't it be great to have someone like O'Driscoll who could take men out of the game by picking the right pass? That is just an impossible dream (this is a GH free zone!). I don't suppose there will be many changes even though the length of the losing streak is becoming embarrassing.

Saturday 2 February 2013

A Bad Day at Blackwood 2

Actually it was a worse day at Blackwood as Pontypool visited for the second time this season. This time it was in the SWALEC Cup but the outcome was the same - a home victory.
The match had been postponed from the previous week due to inclement weather. The pitch was perfectly playable if a little heavy and there was a biting wind that favoured Blackwood in the first half. Blackwood were spiky, committed and cohesive right from the kick off and quickly started to accummulate points at the alarming rate of a point a minute. Four converted tries and three penalties later they led 37-0 at halftime. As for Pooler, they were everything that Blackwood were not and although the set pieces were competitive everything else was little short of a shambles. The saying "they were lucky to get nil" never more truly described a half of rugby.
Those of us who remember the first match will be struck with the similarity. In that match, Blackwood racked up 20 points with no reply early in the second half and indeed should have scored a few more such was the gulf between the two teams. It was certainly too much to expect for Pooler to push Blackwood as they did in that game from such a monumental deficit. What we wanted in the second half was a much more committed display to salvage some pride. The second half was much more competitive but eminently forgettable. Pontypool strove hard and looked determined to win the second half if they possibly could. Both sides had long periods of pressure but mistakes and good defence prevented either side from scoring. Indeed, it was almost injury time before the first points were scored and that was a Blackwood penalty that was kicked almost in desperation when their numbers were depleted by a red card. To their credit, Pontypool never gave up trying and were rewarded with a converted try right at the death. Yes, they had won the second half - no mean feat when you consider what had gone before. The final score was 40-7 and few would argue that the margin of victory was flattering.