Pontypridd v Neath – Match Preview
On Saturday 13th January Pontypridd RFC welcome Neath RFC to Sardis Road, the Indigo Group Premiership match kicks off at 2:30pm.
The two teams met earlier in the season on Saturday 30th September at The Gnoll and in a match that yo-yoed for eighty minutes, it was Ponty that earned a slender win by a 23-22 scoreline. Neath’s last visit to Sardis Road was over five years ago on Saturday 6th October 2018 and that match yielded 114 points – Pontypridd winning by 76 points to 38.
Pontypridd have lost their last two matches in agonising fashion, both by just a single point against Llandovery and Ebbw Vale – the top two teams in the league. Neath, on the other hand have been buoyed after two wins on the spin against Aberavon and Merthyr. The Valley Commandos will be hoping to get back on the winning trail against the Welsh All Blacks on Saturday.
TEAM NEWS:
Ponty have made four personnel changes and three positional switches to the XV that lost narrowly away at Llandovery last Saturday.
In the backs Joseph Scrivens returns at flyhalf which sees Ben Burnell and Garyn Smith both moving one place across the backline – Ben to 12 and Garyn to 13.
In the forwards Tom Devine and Curtis Greenslade are drafted back into the starting line-up having appeared off the bench last week. Sion Parry is another promoted from the bench to starting XV, Cally James moves from blindside to openside flanker.
On the substitutes bench there are returns to the matchday squad Gavin Parry and Louis Rochefort-Shugar.
The absentee list – Niko Matawalu is still a couple of weeks away from a return whilst Aled Ward is recovering from a bump. McCauley Rowley suffered a serious jaw injury against Llandovery and faces an extended spell on the sidelines. Rob Jones is away on leave whilst Ryan Wilkins isn’t available until we play Pontypool on 27th January following his recent red card against Cardiff. Meanwhile, after a review Curtis Greenslade is free to play and will not face any further sanctions for his red card against Cardiff.
The Pontypridd team selected to play Neath is as follows:
15. Josh Phillips. 14. Liam Lloyd. 13. Garyn Smith. 12. Ben Burnell. 11. Dale Stuckey. 10. Joseph Scrivens. 9. Harvey Nash.
1. Tom Devine. 2. Curtis Greenslade. 3. Tom Harper. 4. Macauley Cook. 5. Chris Dicomidis. 6. Cally James. 7. Sion Parry. 8. Kristian Parker (c).
Subs: 16. Gavin Parry. 17. Ben Stephens. 18. Morgan Bosanko. 19. Joe Miles. 20. Cai James. 21. Joel Raikes. 22. Kyan Lewis. 23. Louis Rochefort-Shugar
SUPPORTER INFORMATION:
Tickets – Admission on Saturday will be £12 full, £10 concession access-all-areas and under 16’s free if accompanied by a paying adult. You can purchase tickets on the day or to save time (which is recommended to miss the queues) you can use our online e-Ticket system, link – Pontypridd v Neath 13/1/2024– The club has increased the range of tickets now available to cover small groups (2 people) and large groups (4 people). We also have a family ticket for our Youth and Mini & Junior sections.
Supporter access is via the Clubhouse end of the ground only as the Pwllgwaun end remains closed.
Club Shop – To purchase your Ponty RFC merchandise, the Club Shop will be open from 1:00pm until 5:00pm.
The Grandstand Bar – This will be open for both sets of supporters before, during and after the match.
Live Sport – The Clubhouse will be open at midday and there’s a feast of live sport on our screens throughout the afternoon. Chelsea host Fulham in the Premier League’s early kick-off and that’s followed by lots of live European rugby throughout the day – Exeter v Glasgow kick proceedings off at 1:00pm.
Former Players Association – The Ponty RFC FPA are holding their annual general meeting prior to the match. The following recently published article contains all the key details – FPA AGM Saturday 13th January 2024
Supporters Club trip to RGC – The PRFC Supporters Club have organised a trip to North Wales over the weekend 12th – 14th April 2024 when the team play RGC on Saturday 13th April. Deposits of £50 per person are now required and Chris Kingsbury will be collecting the money at this Saturday’s match. Also please note that full payments need to be paid by Saturday 27th January when Ponty play Pontypool at Sardis Road. There are eight spaces left on the excursion, for more information or to book please contact Chris on 07863 160130.
