Fixture

Sometimes the scoreline does not reflect the full story. This was a match in which Nant were made to work hard for their victory. Though ahead except for all but a brief period, it was not until the last 15 minutes that Nant could say they had a comfortable lead. It was in this time that Nant scored the last three of their eight tries to ensure there would be no comeback by the visitors.

The game was a little flat for the first few minutes with both teams seeming to be sounding the other out. This changed following Bethesda taking the lead through a penalty after 7 minutes. Within two minutes, though, Nant equalised through a penalty of their own for off-side.

Nant took their lead on 14 minutes when Elis Fôn forced his way over in the left corner following a flowing move by the backs. A second try came soon after when a loose kick was gathered by Sion Pringle. His break from Nant's 22 was halted but the ball was eventually recycled to Ifan Williams, whose run from his own 10 metre line to the opposition 22 set up the try for Rhydian Jones. Caron Davies's conversion gave the home side a 15 - 3 lead.

Nant's third try followed a line-out on 21 minutes. The ball was moved out to Caron Davies who dummied to his centre partner to open the gap which he went through and score under the posts. His conversion made the score 22 - 5.

The bonus point try came with a little under 10 minutes of the half remaining. From a scrum on Bethesda's 22, Cai Jones appeared to be going to the right but sent the ball to Pringle cutting to the left. His gliding run left the defence stranded as he touched down five metres in.

After each try, Bethesda had come back strongly. Nant had repelled their attacks but could not stop the driving maul from which Bethesda got their first try on the stroke of half-time. The added conversion gave a score of 27 - 10.

Bethesda started the second half with even greater determination than that shown in the first. However, it was Nant who got the first try. An interception by Ifan Williams, followed by several rucks, saw the ball find Caron Davies whose stretch for the line added a further 5 points to Nant's score.

Again Betheda came back and Nant were put under pressure from the restart. They appeared to have control of the ball, but a charge down of the attempted clearance kick saw the ball hacked on and the Bethesda centre win the race to score the try. There follwed a period of sustained pressure from the visitors, though Nant's defence held out each time a score looked likely. With the scoreline 32 - 15 a try or two would put a different complexion on the game.

With less than 15 minutes to go, Nant, having survived all that Bethesda could throw at them, pulled away with a second try by Rhydian Jones. From being on the defence, Nant worked their way from their own 22 to the opposite 22. The final pass saw Jones sprinting in to score. A further try soon came when Jac Ellis took a reverse pass to go in under the posts following a line-out in the 22.

As with the first half, the second half finished with a try in the final move. This time it was Nant getting the score. From a scrum on the halfway line, the ball was moved along the backs. Pringle joined the line and took the pass on the halfway line before out-running the defence to touch down. Jac Ellis's conversion of the last two tries gave a final score of 51 - 15 to Nant.

On Saturday, 26th October, nant will take on Bala in the next round of the National Cup Division 1.