Gwernyfed Athletic 29 Monmouth Druids 11..

GWERNYFED Athletic achieved consecutive bonus point victories in Division One of the Gwent, Newport and Pontypool League over the last two Saturdays.

They opened up a ten-point lead over Risca, their only rivals for the title, although, with games in hand, the men from Gwent are probably still favourites to notch up another league championship.

A trip to Chepstow saw the first victory, a 41-5 demolition of the home team, with six tries notched up in a good workmanlike performance from the Gwernyfed team.

Halfbacks Gareth East and Gareth Dodd controlled things well, with Dodd scoring 19 points, while, in an excellent forward display, Anthony Workman, second row James Evans, and replacement Matthew Hargest were prominent.

This was followed, a week later, when Monmouth Druids travelled to Trefecca Road and were defeated by 29 points to 11. The bonus point was secured with four tries, a brace from Tom Powell supplemented by one each from James Aplin and Gareth East. With only two players starting in the pack from the previous week, the much changed home team were less dominant than seven days earlier.

While Monmouth’s first line of defence was consistently breached, with James Aplin and, in particular, Tom Powell prominent, lack of support meant that there was only limited clean possession from resulting mauls, where Monmouth competed well.

Nevertheless, Gwernyfed eventually held sway, leading to two tries in each half. Monmouth responded with a penalty and a second half solitary try along with a drop goal with the last kick of the match.

Ten wins in eleven League outings illustrates a successful season for Gwernyfed’s seconds.