Ponty minis have a good day at Nelson

Pontypridd under 8's Development and under 9s teams contested the  Nelson  RFC Tournament on Sunday 7^th May.

At under 8 level, a great final performance of the season on a baking hot day saw some great rugby from all the teams involved, especially Pontypridd.

Pontypridd 15 - 5 Tonyrefail
A slow start against Tonyrefail saw the boys came away with a 15-5 victory. The turnovers they had were high, but turning possession into points was just a little trickier.

Try scorers Lucas Hickman (2), Callum Pearce (1)

Pontypridd 5 - 5 Ystrad Mynach
Against Ystrad Mynach the boys had definitely their toughest match of the day, and the 5 - 5 draw proved it. The boys played a mature game and didn't let Ystrad's tough tagging stop their own game plan.

Try scorers Lucas Hickman (1)

Pontypridd 15 - 5 Nelson
The game against Nelson was another good game for the boys, who by now had been waiting for literally hours for the chance to play, as the pitch they were playing on was being shared with the Under 11s.

Try scorers Samuel (1), Callum Pearce (1), Rhodri Smith (1)

Pontypridd 30 - 10 Risca
Going into the last game against Risca saw three teams (Ponty, Nelson and Ystrad) in with a shout of winning the tournament. It was essential that Ponty came away with a win to stay in with a chance. The boys didn't let us down as they put 6 tries past Risca. That was their work done for the day.

Try scorers Samuel (2), Callum Pearce (1), Dafydd Smith (1), Josh Barnes
(1), Iwan Cavil (1).

It was all down to the final game of the day between Ystrad and Nelson. It was simple - if Nelson beat Ystrad, then we would win the tournament, but if Nelson lost, then it would mean that us and Ystrad were all square on points. Nelson played a great game with all the Ponty parents behind them as well, but in the end they lost by one try.

So it was down to the judges to work the try count out as both teams were all equal on top of the table. Unlucky for the boys, they lost out on winning the tournament on try count, even though they were unbeaten on the day. The boys put in a tremendous amount of effort, with loads of hours just stood about waiting for the next game. But all the parents, friends and coaches would, I'm sure, take their hats off to the boys for not only a great day but a great season.

This was the last day of the season for the combined Under 8s and Under 7s
and it'll be really strange next season not seeing all the boys playing for
the same age group, but  all boys have learned loads from all
the coaches and will continue to enjoy playing open rugby. A really big
thank you to all the lads who played for the Under 8's squad this season, to
all the parents/supporters who stood in freezing wet pitches, to all the
parents who have helped in many different ways either with making the tea or
raising money, and finally to all the coaching staff who put in hours of their own time to work with the boys. See you all next season!!


Ponty Development 6 Nelson Development 0

After a long wait, the young lads finally had their big game and a chance to build on the last few weeks of great rugby that they have been playing. They didn't let their parents and supporters down with a brilliant game, full of superb tags, good passing, great hands and loads of tries. Jay Jones made the most of the 'go faster' stripe in his hair to put four tries on the board with Rhys 'Little' Britton and Iwan 'if it moves I'll tag it' Cavil also putting their names on the try list.

All the boys played brilliantly and next season they will, I think, be unstoppable. A special mention must go to little Dafydd Lloyd who donned the Ponty shirt and played the second half. He put in a great run and also tagged a few lads as well! He can't wait for next season to begin and start playing for the development side and if today is anything to go by, he'll have no trouble fitting right in!

Under 8's and the Development squad on the day was:
Dafydd Lloyd, Samuel, Owain Morris, Rhys Grainger, Gruffydd Lloyd, Callum Pearce, Daniel Griffiths, Lucas Hickman, Rhodri Smith, Dafydd Smith, Josh Barnes, Jay Jones, Harley Jones, Joseff Brown, Rhys Britton, Callum Tucker, Keillan Mahoney, Iwan Cavil and Chris Temple.

Under 9's at the Nelson Tournament

Pontypridd 50   Tonyrefail 0
Tries: James Stallard 4, Ben Stephens, Keiran Hughes, Greg Mogford, Chris John, Rowan Thomas and Jordan Powell.

Pontypridd 60   Ystrad Mynach 5
Tries: James Stallard 4, Greg Mogford 2, Chris John 2, Dewi Morris 2, Jordan Powell and Luke Deeley.

Pontypridd 25   Nelson 0
Tries: James Stallard 2, Rhys Blacker, Chris John, and Greg Mogford.

Pontypridd 25   Risca 0
Tries: Rhidian Spencer, Dewi Morris, Grant Jones, Ben Stephens and Keiran Hughes.

Pontypridd under 9's are undefeated for the second year running. They have had an excellent season, winning the Treorchy tournament last September, and following this by winning tournaments at Barkers Butts (Coventry), Pontypridd and at Nelson, all in the last three weeks.

The tournaments in the last three weeks have seen the boys playing a total of 12 games, scoring 91 tries and conceding just 2.
A superb season, well done boys.