Treorchy 59 Barry RFC 13
INJURIES and Bank Holiday unavailability meant Barry were always likely to be on a hiding at Treorchy.
Reduced to a bare 15 players, and unable to field a full complement of front row specialists, they had to opt for uncontested scrums, which meant dropping a player, leaving the Bombers with just 14 on the pitch from the start.
Treorchy, second in the table, inevitably took advantage, using the extra man effectively to run in seven first half tries. Barry could so easily have folded, but to their immense credit they refused to give up and battled on to the end.
“We knew we were underdogs going into this one,” said head coach Liam Scott. “A lot of the tries they scored came from having that extra player. But we kept in the fight. I can’t fault the heart.”
Treorchy only managed to make their man advantage count after 25 minutes, Barry having held the Zebras to 19-8 at that point. But the signs were there, and Treorchy, aided as they were throughout by some interesting official decisions, were able to run through the gaps for another four tries, giving them a 45-8 half-time lead.
With the game effectively over by the interval, after Treorchy added their eighth try in the first minute of the second half, another torrid time looked likely. It didn’t happen. Treorchy scored one more try, but Barry dug deep, began to take the game a bit more to their hosts, and responded with an excellent try of their own.
“When we did get into their 22 in the first half, we came away with points,” said Scott. “We limited them to just two tries in the second half and managed to score one of our better tries of the season.
“The boys dug in, we managed to have a go, and I’m proud of them for staying in the game. The challenge is to keep that mentality when we go into other games.”
Barry’s first-half response had seen Owen Rees convert a penalty in the 14th minute, and Dave Evans get on the end of a catch and drive, following a penalty lineout, to score a try in the 25th minute. Wayne Jones got Barry’s second try in the 61st minute, rounding off a fine move which had started deep in the Bombers’ own half.
Treorchy scorers. Tries: Matthew Evans 5 minutes, Jordan Lloyd 7, Gareth Dafydd 18, Dylan Williams 27 and 39, Logan Hutchings 29 and 41, Liam Lloyd 36, Jack Roberts 49. Conv: Jordan Lloyd seven.
Ken Watkins
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