Llandovery will go into the new season with a much changed coaching team following the departure of Head Coach Lyndon Lewis, writes Huw S Thomas.

Lewis has moved to Aberavon and it will be his former assistant at Church Bank — Euros Evans — who will take over the Premiership reins at the Towy Valley club.

The former hooker who made his mark with Dunvant when they were at the top table of Welsh rugby has had great success with Coleg Sir Gar where he is Director of Rugby and there is much optimism at Church Bank that he will lead the club forward this season.

The experienced Evans has a new coaching team with the arrival of ex-Newport and Cardiff fly half Simon Davies from Tata Steel and Gareth Potter from Ammanford.

The Ammanfird club are naturally disappointed to lose Potter's services but he goes with the committee's best wishes in his climb up the coaching ladder.

Llandybie-born Davies who has coached Wales U16s will be assistant coach and Potter will look after the defence whilst former Llandovery captain Lloyd Phillips has been appointed conditioning coach after the departure of Richard Hardy to Carmarthen Quins.

On the playing front the club are delighted with the signing of a talented back in former Cardiff Blues full back Will Thomas who has played for Wales 7s and is an excellent goal kicker.

He is joined by Bedwas fly half Jack Maynard who learned his rugby under Euros Evans at Coleg Sir Gar and who was capped at different age group levels.

Carmarthen born Maynard was give limited opportunity at Bedwas but will challenge for the fly half spot vacated by last year’s leading points score James Garland who has moved to Aberavon.

Other new arrivals are ex Llandovery College captain and hooker Dafydd Hughes and lock Colin Markham — another Old Llandoverian — who is big, strong and in Evans’s opinion “of huge potential.”

Flanker Stuart Worrall who was outstanding for Narberth against the Drovers in last year’s Swalec Cup will add strength in depth to the back row.

Evans is under no illusion about the stiff ask ahead.

“We don’t have the big budget of other clubs but there is always a great team spirit at Church Bank and I’m confident that we have a squad of players that will hold more than its own in the Premiership.”

Garland and wing Richard Williams are the only two players missing from last year’s squad and the captaincy goes to Luke Lewis whose leadership qualities are well known to coach Evans from the hooker’s days as captain at Coleg Sir Gar.