Sport

Sport – Injury-hit Barry have a tough afternoon in Abercynon

Admiral National League Division One East Central

Glamorgan Star news 23/10/2023

1 minute read

| Barry AFC have problems caused by a lengthy injury. Image: Adobe.

Abercynon 48 Barry RFC 0

BARRY RFC suffered a heavy defeat on Saturday, but head coach Mike Morgan, while acknowledging the problems caused by a lengthy injury and unavailability list, firmly laid the blame on work rate. “We didn’t work hard enough,” he said.

“Because of our work rate being so low, we made mistakes in defence, which at this level results in tries.” Two in the first 10 minutes meant the Bombers were chasing the game almost from the off.

Abercynon ran in four tries in each half, using the wide Y Parc pitch effectively to take advantage of defensive errors. Lineout problems and a patched together pack, meant Barry’s threes were rarely given a good platform. Defensively, the Bombers were often too narrow, with Abercynon using their speed down the flanks to take full advantage of this.

Morgan pointed to some good individual performances, and after he had emptied the replacements bench and made positional switches by midway through the second half, Barry tightened things up. But by then the game had gone.

The list of absentees is certainly a major factor in Barry’s problems. “We are a squad rocked by injuries, which disrupts our rhythm and continuity. We need to get injured players patched up and back,” said Morgan. “We need the same player in the same position week in and week out.”

But his emphasis remains on work rate, and he has two weeks to put things right before Aberdare visit the Reservoir Field on 4th November. “It’s not technical or tactical, it’s just about getting the work done, getting up and going again, seeing what’s in front of you, and filling holes. It’s not fitness, it’s desire.”

Ken Watkins

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