Fixture

Tries:  Hollister, Penalty (2)

Cons:  Scott (2/3)

Pens:  Scott (1/2)

Barry 2^nd XV entertained Rumney on a brisk Tuesday night in the Mallet Cup quarter final.

With work commitments interfering with various players’ availability, coach Rhidian Scott and manager Ken Chow were forced to dig deep into the club’s resources to field a competitive XV, especially with numerous late withdrawals.  Jason Thomas started his first game of the season, whilst there was a welcome return to the wing for Luke Bounds.

The difficulty in team preparation saw Rumney take the early initiative as Barry struggled to get any meaningful possession or territory.  With the elements against the home side as well, the first half seemed to be a matter of damage limitation.

Barry struggled in the line-out despite Thomas’ best efforts, and the away side duly took the lead when they stole home ball from the set piece, gaining precious territory which saw them score a simple try with a backs’ move.  The conversion was kicked to give them a 7-0 lead.

The home side were unable to find any cohesion to their attack play, and were forced to feed off their defence to turn over Rumney ball.  It was not enough, however, as the visitors doubled their lead following prolonged pressure on the Barry line.

The green-and-whites finally upped their ante as they became more aggressive in the contact area – a tactic that served them well in last season’s victory over the same opponents.

Their renewed aggression earned them a penalty opportunity which Tiernan Scott duly converted.

This gave the hosts momentum as the interval neared, and after slick passing in the backline gave Rhys Knapman the freedom to utilise his pace, he was cruelly up-ended just before the line.  The resultant penalty saw Barry recycle the ball before James Hollister crashed over to score.  Scott was unable to add the extras to leave the half time score 8-14.

Harry Moyle was introduced at half time to give the team extra impetus to overturn the six-point deficit, and he combined excellently with John Miles and Curtis Miller to earn his side precious territory.

With Liam Ring also into the fold Barry began to dominate the scrum as Rumney ran out of ideas.  Incisive runs from Bounds, Chris Deyes and finally Dave Williams brought the home side within striking distance, and as the resultant scrum marched towards the away line, the Rumney pack disintegrated and the official had no option but to award the penalty try.

Scott’s conversion meant that Barry had a slim one-point lead, but despite being down to 14 men, the visitors came back strongly and had a rare foray into the home twenty-two.  The class showed when they struck ruthlessly on the blind side, outnumbering the Barry defenders to gain a converted try.

The game reached its dying embers with Barry still trailing by 6 points.  The hosts brought on James Sullivan for a final throw of the dice, and the substitute prop forward’s carrying earned his side a penalty in front of the posts.

Turning down the three points, Barry tapped and went with the clock ticking, but further infringement from the Rumney defenders saw the official produce another yellow card, reducing them to 13 men.

The hosts had no hesitation in opting for the scrum, and from the resultant set piece Sullivan, Hall and Hollister dismantled their opposition as the Barry juggernaut rolled towards the line, and the referee awarded a second penalty try.

A nerveless conversion from Scott meant that all Barry had to do was hold on for less than four minutes.  The fly-half’s boot meant that Rumney had to run from deep to try to induce an unlikely comeback, and their hopes were extinguished when Bounds made a superb man-and-ball tackle on his opposite number.  The resultant scrum was solid and Scott was afforded the luxury to kick the ball out of touch to end a pulsating game 22-21 to Barry’s favour.

This was one of the best performances by Barry 2^nd XV to date and just shows how far the team has progressed in the past seasons.  The management are delighted to be working with such a talented and dedicated group of players.

Barry advance to the Mallet Cup semi-finals where they will face either Cardiff Saracens or St Josephs 2^nd XV, to be played on Tuesday 19^th April.

Team:  Gill; Knapman, Provis, Williams, Bounds; Scott, Mepham; Hall, Hollister ©, Thomas; Deyes, Dutton; Clarke, Miles, Miller

Replacements:  Ring, Sullivan, Moyle

Subs not used:  Jones, Russell

Man-of-the-match:  Bounds