Fixture

BARRY COMPLETE DOUBLE IN HARD FOUGHT MATCH

After a nail biting finish against Llanishen RFC last week when they won by the final kick of the game, Barry expected it to be a slightly easier 80 minutes last Saturday when they entertained bottom of the table Llantwit Fadre RFC at the Reservoir Field. It was hoped, with home advantage, that they could complete the double on the visitors having won the first encounter between the two sides 27-22 last September.

After some wet weather the preceding week, followed by a frost the night before the game, the ground was in surprisingly good condition as Llantwit Fardre elected to play with the slight breeze having won the toss.

With ball in hand Barry attacked from the kick off and put early pressure on the visitors with the result that they knocked the ball on and gave the first scrum to Barry. From this first set piece it became immediately imminent that Barry were going to have a hard time in the scrums when Llantwit Fardre pushed them off the ball and won it against the head. From this scrum the visitors set up their first attacking move only to knock on in over exuberance.

After 10 minutes play Barry flanker Luke O’Sullivan broke away from a line out and sped for the visitor’s line only to be stopped by an illegal shoulder charge. The resulting penalty kick by Kyle Baross was successful and Barry moved into an early three-point lead.

Barry knocked on from the re-start and from the resulting scrum Llantwit Fardre set up an attacking move which was stopped metres from the Barry line by full back Tiernan Scott who managed to get the ball into touch. A take and drive from the line out by the heavier visitor’s pack was stopped just short of the Barry line and from the resulting scrum the ball was fed to the Llantwit Fardre winger who crashed over the line for the first (and as it happened the only) try of the match. The resulting conversion from wide out was successful which put the visitors into 7-3 lead after only 15 minutes’ play.

After the re-start play was fairly even between the two sides for the next 20 minutes or so with both sides setting up attacking moves only to be denied scoring by the opposing defence. During this period of play there were a number of obvious incidents of foul play by Llantwit Fardre which were not dealt with by the referee much to the annoyance of the Barry supporters. After one such incident front row forward Ben Such had to leave the field after being illegally shoulder charged.

As half –time approached there was another ugly incident which resulted in yellow cards being given to one player from each side when one of the Barry players retaliated to yet another illegal move. One final move by Llantwit Fardre was foiled by the Barry defence and the ball was picked up by flanker Luke O’Sullivan who ran a full 40 metres or so before being brought down in the oppositions 22 metre area. From the resulting scrum the ball was won by Barry and they again attacked for the next few minutes or so without any rewards for their efforts before the referee’s whistle brought the first half to an end.

With Barry playing down the slope with a slight breeze behind them gave them a slight advantage for the second half. A penalty was awarded to Llantwit Fardre for Barry being caught offside. The kick found touch well inside the Barry half and from the resulting lineout Llantwit Fardre attacked the Barry line only to knock on once again and give a scrum to Barry. The ball was won by Barry and Baross’s relieving kick ended up well inside the oppositions 22. From the resulting lineout Barry knocked on and gave the scrum back to Llantwit Fardre from which they were able to set up an attacking movement only to knock the ball on themselves. From this scrum Barry won the ball and in trying to gain ground Baross kicked the ball directly in to touch whilst being outside his own 22 metre line. The game was quickly becoming a comedy of errors with no real advantage being gained by either side.

After 20 minutes or so play of the half an infringement by one of the Llantwit Fardre players inside his own 22 metre line led to a penalty being awarded to Barry which was duly converted successfully by Kyle Baross to bring the Barry score to within one point of the opposition.

From the re-start Llantwit Fardre attacked strongly and came close to scoring only to lose the ball on being stopped by a resolute Barry defence. With ball in hand it was Barry’s turn to attack only to be stopped by a determined Llantwit Fardre defence. From the resulting scrum the ball was kicked back into the Barry half and a movement set up by their backs which once again was stopped by the opposing defence. This was very much a pattern of the game with both sides setting up attacking moves only to be stopped by good opposition defence or losing possession by knocking the ball on.

With the light failing and time ticking away it looked very much like Barry were going to lose the game by the odd point. With the bit between their teeth they were attacking the Llantwit Fardre line time and time again only to be stopped by their defence who frankly seemed to be offside on a regular basis. When all seemed lost and full time imminent, Barry were at last awarded a penalty for offside and the reliable boot of Kyle Baross kicked the vital points to give Barry the lead by 9 points to 7. Barry only had to consolidate their position by keeping the ball in hand for the last few minutes of the game, which they were able to do so and thus win a hard fought difficult game.

This was not a classic by any stretch of the imagination, but it was certainly not helped by illegal play, more often than not by two members of the Llantwit Fardre pack. Everyone appreciates that rugby is not a game for softies but rules are in place to prevent actions that are likely to cause injuries and the referee failed to pick these up. Congratulations however must be given to the Barry squad for showing guts and determination in what was a hard fought match.

Team: Alyn Evans, Ben Such, Jacob Brooke, Jamie Oaten, Rob Williams, Jake Goodfellow, James Hadfield, Luke O'Sullivan, Kyle Barros, Richie O’Sullivan, Tomos Perry, Dave Provis, Matt O’Sullivan, Brad White and Tiernan Scott, .

Replacements: Glyn Jones, Lucas Davies, Dominic Busuttil and Curtis Miller.  

Next Match: League fixture Saturday December 30th versus Penarth RFC at Penarth K.O 2.30 pm.

Barry RFC Mega4 Lottery Numbers for Saturday 16^th December: 4, 16, 17, 22. No winners this week so prize increases to £7,850. 

The club would like to wish all their supporters a Happy Christmas and a Prosperous New Year.                                                                                                             

                                                                                                                                                                      CWH