Llanelli 19 v 53 Whites
19 Sep 2009 - St Helen's
Swansea maintained their perfect start to the season with a 53-19 demolition of local rivals Llanelli. The Whites’ backs and forwards worked in tandem and it was former Llanelli flanker Luke Jones who stood out for his hard work in defence and at the breakdown. Full back Nicky Thomas continued his remarkable scoring record against the west Wales men with a hat trick of tries on his 100th appearance for the club.
The Whites started well as a Tom Isaacs chip through caused panic in the visitors’ defence but Dale Ford managed to track back and clear to touch. The Parc Y Scarlets men took a fifth minute lead when centre Scott Williams left the Swansea defence at a standstill and scored a well taken try under the posts. Luke Richards converted.
Flanker Rob McCusker held onto possession after the tackle allowing Gareth Owen to open his side’s account with a penalty goal. Thomas scored his first try after a strong run by Chris Shelmerdine sent Owen racing through a gap in the defence before he sent the full back over. Owen converted.
Scrum half Tavis Knoyle came agonisingly close to scoring from a quick tap penalty but he was held up over the line. Richards equalled the scores with a penalty goal after David Blyth failed to roll away after the tackle.
A surge forward by Andrew Joy sent Isaacs on a blistering run past the first line of defence before he fired out a scoring pass to Thomas. Owen converted. A big hit on Williams by Owen secured turnover ball and Thomas broke through the defence to send Prydie on run to the line for Swansea’s third try. Owen converted.
Richards narrowed the deficit to nine points with a penalty from half way after the visitors crept offside in midfield. A crunching tackle by Marc Popham on Aaron Shingler forced the lock to hold on after the tackle but Owen failed to convert the penalty from half way.
Half time:- Swansea 24 Llanelli 13
The visitors were first on the scoreboard in the second half courtesy of a Richards penalty after the Whites’ forwards piled over the top of a ruck. Blyth picked up a loose ball and charged into the heart of the Llanelli defence before prop Shaun Hopkins illegally killed the attack and was promptly given his marching orders for ten minutes.
With Llanelli a man down in the pack, a well worked scrum from close range saw the home side work an overlap from which Shelmerdine glided over to score in the corner. Owen converted. Llanelli cut into the lead with a penalty goal by replacement Steve Shingler after the Whites were caught offside in midfield.
An infringement in the scrum gave Swansea another penalty which Owen duly converted. Owen scored the Whites’ fifth try after powerful drives by Roy Jones and Richard Kelly set up an attacking platform for Leigh Bevan to send the fly half over. Owen missed the conversion.
Shelmerdine helped orchestrate another attack but the final pass from Owen went behind Bevan and into touch. Two minutes later Bevan ghosted through the middle and fired a pass out wide for Prydie to score. Owen converted. Thomas rounded off a superb victory with his third try as he gathered an Isaacs chip through to score. Owen converted.
The win keeps Swansea at the summit of the Premiership although they face their toughest match yet next week with second placed side Aberavon making the short trip to St Helen’s.
Full time:- Swansea 53 Llanelli 19
Venue:- St Helen’s, Swansea
Weather:- Sunny, 17C
Competition:- Principality Premiership
Referee:- Jon Mason
Swansea scorers:- Owen (2 Pens, 6 Cons, Try), Thomas (3 Tries), Prydie (2 Tries), Shelmerdine (Try)
Llanelli scorers:- Williams (Try), Richards (Con, 3 Pens)
Man of the Match:- Luke Jones
Swansea team:- 15 N Thomas 14 T Prydie 13 T Isaacs 12 C Shelmerdine 11 N Jones (rep: L Bevan) 10 G Owen 9 R Wells (rep: D Karauna) 1 L May (rep: R Jones) 2 A Joy (rep: S Baldwin) 3 A Clatworthy (rep: R Davies) 4 D Blyth (rep: S Kiley) 5 R Kelly 6 L Jones 7 B Lewis 8 M Popham (rep: P De Snyder)
Match Gallery
|
