The village of Pontyclun is one of the cradles of mini-rugby in Wales, having set up one of the first club’s in 1971, and the latest crop of talented youngsters to emerge from the vilalge were not fazed by the Principality roof being shut as splashed their way to a commanding victory.
A hat-trick from Liam Jones and two tries apiece from Luc Llewellyn, Archie Theaker and Alfie Loftus, with Jack Dean adding another, saw Pontyclun take the title.
WHAT THEY HAD TO SAY . . . Pontyclun PS coach, Louise Davies
“It’s just been an amazing day from start to finish. The team worked so hard to get here and it was a huge achievement. Fair play to Model, they never gave up.
“We brought all of Year 5 and 6 with us to support the team, about 130 of them, which is a big part of the whole experience. It was great for so many pupils from the school to get involved and see us win.”
The game’s first try saw Model CIW’s backline stretched, with a great turn of pace from Llewellyn on the wing to finish in the corner. The lead was quickly doubled on the opposite wing, this time Theaker the beneficiary of a quick penalty.
Pontyclun added a third shortly after through an advantageous interception on the try line, with a fourth following through Theaker again dummying to create space to finish in the far corner.
Tries five and six came just before the half-time break. Llewellyn scored his second before Liam Jones scored his first with a fantastic line-breaking run and individual try to send his side into the break with a 30-0 advantage.
The second half saw Jones swiftly add his second of the game, bundling through the Model CIW defence to cross the whitewash.
Following this, Alfie Loftus scored a quickfire double. His first was arguably the highlight of the game, showing skill and awareness to dummy his tackler to finish superbly. The match finished as Jones scored his team’s 10th of the game, completing his hat trick.
WHAT THEY HAD TO SAY . . . Model coach Rob Evans
“What a day for the players and the school as a whole. I’m just a father who got involved with the coaching because my son was playing, but the headmistress, Mrs Bowen-Price and the two teachers who helped with the coaching, Daf Jones and Tom Harvey, got completely behind the rugby.
“They did so well to reach the final and now we have the Urdd finals to look forward to in Aberystwyth. Coming to play at Principality Stadium, especially with the roof close, is a day these boys will never forget.
“Hopefully, it will be the start of their rugby journeys, not the pinnacle, but they will always remember it. You should have seen their faces light up when they walked into the ‘Home’ dressing room. It was priceless!”
THE LINE-UPS
John Rees Cup Final (10-a-side)
Model Church in Wales School: Hari Caesar, Bobby Stephenson, Jayden Turton, Cai Powell, Steffan Herbert, Elis Pearce, Evan Davies (captain), Sean Fernandez, Oliver Evans, Daniel Davies, Alfie Tume
Coach: Rob Evans
Pontyclun Primary School: Hudson Bowen, Liam Jones, Logan Phillips, Jack Dean, Sonny Wheeler, Lucas Waters, Taylor Theaker, Reeve Tucker (captain), Alfie Loftus, Ruan Dyer, Archie Theaker, Luc Llewellyn
