Captain's Blog no. 5

I can’t believe it’s been two months since my last blog and many games have come and gone in this time.

There though is only one place I can start and that is Doncaster. The support we had that day was nothing short of phenomenal. Running out to the pitch it felt like a home game and then the reception we got at the final whistle felt like we had won the BIC. All this though was overshadowed by the cheering and chanting as we entered the clubhouse. It really sent a shiver down my spine and the hairs on the back of my neck were stood right up. All the boys have said they didn’t know where to look and were shocked at the reception. In all, the trip to Doncaster was a huge success, travelling up the night before made it all feel very professional and then to win in the style we did against a professional team was outstanding. Of course the night out after the game was also kept in a professional manner and we were all tucked up by 11.

The calendar year started with a good televised win against Aberavon and of course our ex coach and captain in Kingy and Strongy. Aberavon had a very good team out on the day and we really had to dig deep to come away with the victory. The game was also, I feel, a good advert for the Premiership and showed all the doubters that the Premiership is very competitive league with a number of talented teams and individuals. After the Aberavon game we had the triple header against the English teams. Although not playing at our best, we managed to do what we set out to do and win all three games which in turn meant us finishing top of the group and having home advantage in the ¼ final. The Doncaster game I feel took a lot out of us and that was evident in the two following games against Pertemp Bees and Bridgend Athletic.

The cup game down at the Ath was always going to be difficult and to be fair to the Ath they tackled their hearts out and flew into everything. When they scored the first try I was worried a cup shock could be on our hands, but the boys dug deep and we managed to come away with a victory and into the next round of the cup. In my previous blog I mentioned the rivalry between myself, being a Pencoed boy, and all the Ath boys, so to win and to score two tries against them made me very happy.

We then had a two week layoff from playing which really disrupted our flow as we were on a very nice roll. The Cardiff game being postponed and the six nations kicking off being the reasons for our layoff. This layoff was followed by a midweek away trip down to Camarthen. Many say the Quins seem to be our bogey team but on the night we didn’t turn up as a team and were very poor. Fair play to the Quins though they deserved their victory and were better than us on the night. After the game a few home truths were spelt out in the changing room and we all realised that were are not the finished article with plenty to work on. We needed to have a dramatic turn around as there was a certain matter of a home cup game against Neath four days later. The training session on the Thursday after the Quins game and before the Neath game was one of the most intense and focused sessions I have ever been involved in, and I was very confident going into the Neath game.

Confidence is key when playing top teams like Neath and even though it had taken a dent a few days previous when I looked around  the huddle just before the game I knew there was no way we were losing that game. The changing room was electric and we took it onto the pitch and started really well taking the game to them. Fair play to Neath though they are a champion team and took what we threw at them and answered back with a try and a few penalties to give them a slight lead at half time. Chief again laid down the law with an emphasis to play and be confident in what we were doing. We started the 2nd half firing on all cylinders scoring two early tries and really taking it to Neath upfront. We again though were not helped by discipline and a dubious yellow card given to myself for a reason I can’t even explain.  Neath though were also on the receiving end of a yellow card and we were able to exploit this and score two more tries to wrap the game up. To score four tries in one half against Neath shows the type of rugby we can play but obviously we need to do this for the full 80 minutes. Again at this game the crowd pulled us through the game and the cheering at the end of the match and during really gives us a huge boost.

Last Saturday against Bedwas was important firstly to get the win and then secondly to try and get the bonus point. We were happy with the win but disappointed we didn’t manage to get that bonus point right at the end and this is due to us switching off for 20 minutes during the 2nd half. There is evidence however that Darren did get over the line right at the end and place the ball down over line which in my eyes is a try. The ref though thought differently but we only have ourselves to blame for not putting the game to bed earlier in the 2nd half.

Away from rugby, huge congratulations must go to Darren Waters on becoming the Principality Player of the Month. Darren has been outstanding with some huge performances all season. Elsewhere we have had a number of boys on Under 20 duty and they deserve a congratulations on their achievements, and shows what talent we have coming through the squad. A final congratulations must go to Adam ‘Timmy’ Thomas on his selection for the Welsh 7s team. Adam again has been one of our standout players this season both at centre and fullback so the call up and trip to Wellington and Vegas was exactly what he deserved.

Now this Saturday we have the small matter of a home ¼ final in the BIC against Llanelli followed by another televised game against Neath in the league on the following Thursday. All season you as supporters have been our 16th man and now more than ever we are going to need all the support we can get as we aim for success in both competitions. These two games will have a massive bearing on the season so I ask you loyal supporters to again come to Sardis in your huge numbers and show just how much pride and passion there is at this club.

Chris Dicomidis

28^th February 2011