Pont welcomed undefeated league leaders Hollybush to the welfare ground last saturday. With the weather causing havoc throughout much of south east Wales, the commitee did a great job clearing the pitch to ensure the game was one of only 7 games in the East leagues to go ahead.
The game itself was a tight defensive affair and Pont had much of the possession and territory for the opening 30mins, but Hollybush's defence showed why they haven't conceded a try in their opening 6 games and held out. An excellent last ditch tackle from Tom Haddock denied the visitors their best try scoring chance towards the end of the first half but it remained scoreless at half time.
The second half produced more of the same tight defensive gameplay. Strong scrummaging from loosehead prop Emyr Llewelyn was putting his opposite number under all sorts of pressure and Pont won a couple of scrums against the head. However it was the visitors who put their noses in front when their winger Jason Grovell converted a penalty with 15 minutes to go. A deliberate knock on from Hollybush then saw them reduced to 14 men after a yellow card and from the resulting penalty Pont kicked deep into Hollybush territory. However a knock on from Pont looked to have thwartered their chances but from the resulting scrum, pressure from Pont resulted in a free kick. Quick thinking from Andew Deneen saw the ball spun out wide, great pass BY CHRIS PRICE and captain Nathan Meyrick crashed over the line for the game winning try. The ensuing fracas resulted in a red card for Pont's Michael Wake and one of Hollybush's players.
Final Score: Pontllanfraith 5-3 Hollybush
The results see Pont move to within 4 points of Hollybush in the standings with one game in hand. This week we face a resurgent Bettws side at the Welfare ground.