Swalec Plate – Second Round

Cwmgors 0 Ystalyfera 50

A plucky, if much-changed, Cwmgors side faced a tough task against an impressive Ystalyfera, and the quality of the Division One West Central side shone through as the ran in a half-century against the Cherries at the Maerdy to ease past the hosts in the Swalec Plate.

With an ever-growing injury list to contend with - and a number of unavailable players, Cwmgors introduced a mix of youngsters and fringe players, and a handful did enough to suggest they can push for a regular first team place.

The visitors’ strong back-row unit held Ystalyfera in good stead, and the platform provided a series of openings that gave the hosts the first-half runaround as Fera romped to a 40-0 lead by half-time.

Some of the scores could have been avoided with stronger tackling and the interval margin seemed rather flattering to the visitors, but nonetheless, the Cherries found themselves outgunned in all areas.

Cwmgors failed to get the luck of the bounce at times, but it is to their credit that they came out in the second half.

Despite being on the back foot, the hosts had a real go after the interval, tackling well, restricting the opposition, and avoiding the cricket score some may have feared at half-time.

Cwmgors fixture secretary Jeff Bright praised his patched-up warriors, particularly for their battling second half performance, however, the Cherries big game comes on Saturday when they host neighbours Brynaman.

Despite the injury problems, Cwmgors managed to field a Second XV on Saturday, and they gave a bold showing before going down 17-7 at Ystradgynlais.