Swansea 42 Llandovery 24
Bottom side Swansea caused the shock of the SRC season when they not only beat but outplayed Llandovery at St Helen’s writes Huw S Thomas
The saying “Some days you’re the pigeon, some days you’re the statue” was never truer.
The Drovers came fresh from an outstanding SRC Cup final display in which they had beaten Ebbw Vale 39-7 and were hot 1/12 favourites to beat a side that had won just twice in seven months.
Llandovery had not lost to the All Whites since August 28 2010 but here they were second in every department against a revitalised home side that did the basics better, were more aggressive around the ball and finished off moves more clinically than the shell shocked visitors.
It was the last time for the Drovers to play on the historic 149 year old grass pitch of St Helen’s before it is replaced with an all-weather 4 G surface under Ospreys development plans for the famous old ground.
The All Whites must have been inspired by the reunion presence of their many stars of yesteryear – Scott Gibbs, Garin Jenkins, Stuart Davies, Richard Webster, Kevin Hopkins, Aled Williams and many more.
“They must have motivated our players to produce the best performance of the season” smiled Swansea President Stan Addicot and few disagreed with the comment.
“It will give us new momentum for the approaching play offs.”
As for Drovers, they are experiencing a curate’s egg of results as the season draws to a close.
The brilliance of the wins against RGC and Ebbw Vale has been contradicted by the heavy defeats at the hands of Cardiff and now bottom side Swansea.
Leaking seven tries against Cardiff, then six against Swansea will have done their confidence little good and they now looks almost certain to finish out of the top two with all its advantages of home draws in the play offs.
Collectively and individually, the All Whites had the upper hand with their two best players – full back Harri Houston and scrum half Matthew Aubrey in great form.
Houston’s dodging, side stepping counter attacks continually threatened and were of a quality deserving of a call up to the senior Ospreys squad whilst Aubrey’s intuitive play at the base of the scrum earned him a hat trick of well taken tries.
Llandovery were off colour for all but the first five and last ten minutes of the match, the other 65 minutes in the firm grasp of the home side.
Fly half Jack Maynard dummied through for an early score but by half time two tries from Aubrey and ones from prop Daf Davies and lock Chris Thompson had given Swansea a 28-12 interval lead.
Only a desperate tackle from full back Jac Davies had stopped Houston scoring a quite brilliant solo try and all Llandovery could muster was a gallop and pass from lock Joe Powell to send in scrum half George MacDonald.
14 points in two minutes then put the game to bed as centre Joe Thomas and the immaculate Aubrey raced in past flimsy defence to allow dead eye fly half Josh Phillips to kick his fifth and sixth conversions.
A yellow card for replacement hooker Jamie Cox affected home rhythm and with replacement half backs Lee Rees and Ioan Hughes injecting more pace into the game, late efforts from wing Harri Doel and back row Stuart Worrall did, at least, salvage a losing bonus point for the ruffled Drovers.
*** Aberavon are the visitors to Church Bank this Saturday in the last scheduled home game of the regular season.
Swansea
Tries: M Aubrey (3), D Davies, C Thompson, J Thomas
Cons: J Phillips (6)
Llandovery
Tries:J Maynard, G MacDonald, H Doel, S Worrall
Cons; J Maynard, I Hughes
Swansea: H Houston; I Glynn, C Dodd, J Thomas (capt), Lewis Edwards; J Phillips, M Aubrey; D Davies, W Austin, K Hire, C Thompson, B Roberts, J Greaves, C Davies, C Bowden (capt)
Replacements; J Cox, C Jones, E Thompson, Liam Edwards, O Thomas, I Temblett, T Rees, I Cornelius
Llandovery J Davies; H Doel, K Abraham, R Jones, L Morgan; J Maynard, G MacDonald; j Hughes, H Thomas, B Watkins, E Scragg, J Powell (capt), E Sheldon, S Worrall, J Evans
Replacements: L Tucker, T Davies, G Jones, C Howell, F Thomas, Adam Warren I Hughes, L Rees,