Match Report 

Saturday, September, 13^th, 2003.

For the first meeting between the two clubs the Quins ran out convincing winners, in a tiring encounter played in extremely warm conditions.New signing Lee (JCB) Jones made his first XV debut for the Quins, having made three previous permit appearances for the 2^ND XV. The former Maesteg man was impressive on his first outing for the club. The Quins took the lead after ten minutes when scrum-half and captain Nick Flay darted blind from a scrum and sent Rhodri Milsom over for a well taken try. Robbie Morris converted.

A long period of inertia followed with the game being played for the greater part between the two twenty-twos’. Although rarely threatened, the Quins were still in a precarious position, just one score ahead. A dramatic turn then occurred, with the hosts scoring twenty-one unanswered points in a devastating six minute period. The scoring burst commenced with a try by winger Leon Crowe after twenty-seven minutes. A wonderful move that saw the ball move through several pairs of hands allowed Crowe to cross the line. Andrew Leighton crossed two minutes later after a rushed defensive kick led to disarray among the Ammanford receivers. Leighton, following up snatched the ball from under their noses and once he passes the initial line of defenders, there was a straight forty yard run to the line. Lee (JCB) Jones went over from a line-out in the thirty-third minute. Robbie Morris converted all three to put the Quins twenty-eight points ahead and this points scoring blitz virtually secured the game.

Ammanford regrouped and started to put together a few passages of play. If it were not for several handling errors throughout the game, then the visitors would surely have kept up the pressure on the Maesteg men. From one of their more successful passages a penalty award led to a speculative drop-goal attempt by outside-half S. Davies that sailed over. With a minute of the half remaining, the three pointer concluded the scoring.

Again the Quins set piece play was very good, but with the backs really firing on all cylinders there was little Ammanford could do to stem the tide. Gavin Ronan was again superb in both the tight and loose. He stood out when winning initial possession and in open play and such was his performance, several people dubbed the all action second row Gavinalofa Ronanaluwi.

The importance of scoring first was hammered home at the break and this the Quins did with devastating effect, just one minute into the second period. Leon Crowe somehow snatched possession out wide and went haring up the wing. The ball went through the hands of a quartet of support players, the last being Robbie Morris who crossed under the posts. Morris converted his own five pointer to give the Quins a lead of thirty-two points and himself a 100% record with the welly.

Lee Jones claimed his second try and Morris his sixth consecutive conversion in a remarkable kicking performance before a well taken blindside try by right-wing M. Davies was part of an overall revival for Ammanford. This brought the score to 42-8 in favour of the Quins.

Crowe joined Jones on a brace of tries, as he raced up the wing eluding several defenders in the process to score in the corner. Morris duly converted from the touchline.

Pressing for a late consolation try, a stray telegraph pass was seized by Rhodri Milson who galloped seventy metres upfield for an interception try and a brace of tries of his own. On this occasion Morris failed to convert, but still managed to collect 19 points in the game.

Everyone who watched the match was pleased with the performance and the way in which the forwards and backs combined to make the rugby very entertaining. Two starts and two fifty point victories is a good way to begin a season.

Saturday, September, 6^th. 2003.

It was a good afternoon for the Quins at Trebanos Park, as they ran in nine tries to one in their new surroundings of Division Three.

Trebanos are an extremely young but committed team, who were gallant to the last. It is a great credit to them that despite the Quins forward dominance, they only gifted their visitors the one try.

Coached by former Wales flanker and Neath favourite Phil Pugh, the hosts opened the scoring after a line-out infringement. A quickly taken tap penalty led to a ruck and then a dropped goal after two minutes. From this moment on it was all the Quins, with their forward domination telling as Trebanos lost their first half dozen or so scrums against the head.

Colin Roberts opened the Quins account with a short range push-over try, which Robbie Morris converted. From yet another steal at the scrum some good handling and strong running from winger Leon Crowe allowed him to cross at the corner to extend the Quins lead to 12-3 after a dozen minutes. Roberts then secured a brace of tries after a battle of attrition and a pop pass allowed him to muscle his way over and touch down once again from close range. Morris converted.

Robbie Morris snatched a try of his own and for the remainder of the half it was one way traffic for the visiting Quins. Prop Lyndon Davies was in supreme form as he continually carried the ball yard after yard, usually accompanied by a number of defenders in tow. He claimed his just reward with a five-pointer under the posts, from a typically rampaging drive. Morris converted to take the half-time score to 31-3.

Trebanos started the second half well and again were the first to register a score in the half with a converted try. The pressure was maintained by the referee with a string of penalties, but the home side were well worth their score.

If prop Davies was giving the spectators something to shout about, his second row colleague Gavin Ronan was also sending the crowd into raptures with a virtuoso performance in the line-out and in the loose. Both performed magnificently. As did scrum half and newly appointed skipper Nick Flay.

Neil Davies made his first appearance in Quins colours since embarking on a journey that took him to the University of Wales Newport, Pontypool, Ebbw Vale, Tondu, Llanharan and Maesteg. His seventieth outing for the club started with him replacing Colin Roberts who suffered a head wound, only to be replaced himself as he pulled a hamstring. Taking his place on the field was Steven David, previously of Maesteg and Maesteg Celtic. He slotted into the second row alongside brother Ryan, with Ronan taking the blindside flanker berth. Lee Sparrow also took the field to put his retirement on hold a little longer.

It is not often you score twenty points and are overlooked for a latent "Man-of-the-Match" accolade, but that is what happened to Robbie Morris. Morris glided over the line for try number six for the Quins and his second which he converted, before Flay grabbed a brace of his own with Morris converting one, as a tired Trebanos outfit found it difficult to stem an overwhelming tide.

By now Peter Jenkins had left the field with a blister problem to be replaced by winger Lee Williams. Williams who had the previous night enjoyed imbibing in his own stag night, took his customary position on the wing, while Leon Crowe joined the reshuffled back-row of Ronan and Lyons to make up an unlikely threesome at the back of the scrum.

The final try was an absolute gem. From a Trebanos scrum on the halfway-line, the hosts managed to claim possession, only for Flay to snatch possession from under the noses of the home scrum-half and No8. When caught he threw the ball back and despite being at toe level, six foot seven inch Ronan clasped the ball and embarked on a run of his own. Transferring the ball before being caught, Ronan allowed the backs to fluently pass the ball along the line to send debutant, Williams, who showed no signs of any ill effects from his exertions of the previous night, galloping over in the corner to round off an excellent, flowing counter attack.

It was a good result against an inexperienced but keen Trebanos team. Half-backs Morris, with his twenty points and Flay, played extremely well, but the pack set up the convincing win. Despite working well as a unit, despite the disruptions throughout the game, two members of that eight must be given special attention. Lyndon Davies and Gavin Ronan were exceptional performers throughout the entirety of the match.