The Good, the Bad and the Rugby

The rugby weekend started at Pontypool Park with a special memorial match to mark the 50th anniversary of the tragic injury to former Pontypool player Roger Addison. A great example of the good heartedness of the rugby family. A Pontypool XV took on a Torfaen XV drawn from the clubs in the area on a chilly evening in front of a fair sized crowd. The Pooler team contained many players who were not first team regulars so both sides were likely to lack cohesion.

Torfaen playing down the slope settled quicker and played some good rugby to seize control of the match. Often this type of match lacks intensity with the emphasis on entertaining the spectators but both sides were certainly fully committed in a bruising encounter. Torfaen opened up a deserved 7-17 lead but Pooler, with a try from Boycott, closed the gap to 14-17 just before half time.

The second half belonged to Pontypool who played with much more purpose and they quickly overhauled Torfaen with a try from Smith 19-17. Whilst the game was played almost exclusively in the Torfaen half, it took Pooler a long time to find a way to turn possession and territory into points. In the last ten minutes they at last found the try line with Boycott and Jones crossing to make the final score 33-17.

Of course, the most important purpose of the evening was to both remember Roger Addison and to raise money for Rookwood and Stoke Mandeville Hospitals. Thanks to the generosity of all involved the princely sum of £6000 was raised on this special night.

On Saturday I went down to Cardiff to watch Wales play Australia. We are used to Wales starting a new campaign slowly but on this occasion they were virtually in reverse. Wales were awful as the Australians totally dominated the first half. If the Aussies had been more clinical, they would surely have led by forty points at the interval. As it was, they led 3-20 and Wales had failed to put any meaningful attacks in place. Wales looked sluggish and slow witted while the Australians were lively and quick to seize the ball. There were simply no redeeming features for the Welsh fans who looked on in silent horror.

The second half had to be better and it was but the improvement was marginal and not enough to challenge the Australian lead. Wales did manage a consolation try but the visitors were well worth their 8-32 victory. There is no doubt that the absence of the influential Faletau, Wyn Jones and Warburton played a part in the dismal performance but this was a really bad start for Howley and his team of coaches. It will be interesting to see what they do to produce a team that will be more competitive against Argentina next weekend.

If the Welsh were anaemic, the Irish were absolutely full-blooded as they took on the mighty All Blacks in Chicago in the evening. The Irish were everything that Wales weren’t. They played with pride and passion and not a little skill as they knocked the All Blacks completely out of their stride. They withstood a late New Zealand rally to run out clear winners by 40-29. This was the first time that the Irish have beaten New Zealand and if they continue to play like that they will be a very difficult team to beat. This match produced the best rugby of the weekend by far and hopefully it will have whet the appetite of the American public.

Next Saturday Pooler are back in league action with a home fixture against Cardiff Met and they will be hoping to further their unbeaten start to the season.

Come on Pooler!