Ponty Youth post big home win over Llantwit Major

Pontypridd Youth kept up their hopes of emulating the senior team and topping their league with an emphatic 54-0 win over visitors Llantwit Major on Saturday 28^th April. 

The ten try romp was a great confidence boost before the upcoming league clash with Treorchy following the recent disappointment of losing to them in the Merit Cup.

The score ticked over at roughly a point a minute with full-back Josh Waughington scoring the first of his brace when a perfect miss-pass from Shane Hutchinson gave him space to slide in out wide and consistent pressure from the restart allowed Max Day to score the second try off the back of a rolling maul.  Although the game required passive scrums from the start, the Pontypridd lineout was working well despite young hooker Scott Pickering making his first start and with the visitors offering very limited opposition the game was played almost exclusively in the Llantwit Major half. 

Sublime passing out of the tackle by fly-half Hutchinson and flanker Ieuan Evans provided Josh Waugington with his second try and minutes later No.8 Connor Ryan broke from deep in his own territory, instigating a sweeping move that was finished by winger Jordan Rees breaking through a handful of tackles to touch down in the corner. 

The hosts’ excitement sometimes let them down when a little more composure and simplicity was required but with their main ball carriers Dillon Lewis and Ryan dominating and back-row-turned-lock Max Day impressing with his work-rate around the field the three-quarters were afforded two more tries before the break with centre Garyn Smith gliding through from twenty metres out to score before he then turned provider with a quick tap and go that was cleverly kept alive by the Ripley-esque running of Dewi Kingsbury and finished powerfully by Jordan Rees somehow battling through a bank of defenders for a second time.

The big lead allowed the whole squad to get game time and although Rees secured his deserved and well taken hat-trick shortly after the re-start, the half-time changes coincided with Llantwit Major’s best spell of the game.  A well marshalled and disciplined defence held firm and Pontypridd ended the game back in command with the fast feet of replacement winger Dale Hughes carrying him to the line before the ever industrious Tom Flye took a slip-pass to score.  The winger then scorched away from the defence to score straight from the restart after crisp handling fromHutchinsonand Smith provided the overlap before the game was brought to a close when James Kelly crashed over by cutting a sharp angle back through a well beaten defence.                                   

Pontypridd now turn their attention to the crunch league fixture with Treorchy at the Oval on Wednesday night (KO 7.15pm) with Pontypridd looking to complete a league double over their opponents and reverse the results of the cup fixtures between the sides this season.

Pontypridd Youth:

15. Josh Waughington  14. Josh Edwards  13. Garyn Smith 12. Adam Harcombe  11. Jordan Rees  10. Shane Hutchinson  9. Chris Jones  1. Paul Minty  2. Scott Pickering  3. Dillon Lewis  4. Tom Flye (Capt.)  5. Max Day  6. Dewi Kingsbury  7. Ieuan Evans  8. Connor Ryan

16. Macauley Griffiths 17. James Kelly  18. Dale Hughes  19. Blake Fear  20. Callum Reed  21. Daniel Pritchard  22. Gavin Steele      

Scorers:

Tries: – Jordan Rees (3), Josh Waughington (2), Max Day, Garyn Smith, Tom Flye, Dale Hughes, James Kelly

Conversions – Josh Waughington, Shane Hutchinson