It was a night on which Morgan Lloyd was able to put one over on his older brother Evan as Ebbw Vale turned into their own worst enemies with an error strewn performance. Proud Pooler needed no second invitation to take advantage and were worthy winners in the end.
It meant that ahead of the remaining fixtures this weekend, the three Gwent clubs occupied the top three positions in the table.
“That’s the poorest we have played all year, we simply weren’t at the races. Our line-out failed and we didn’t deal with the ball in the air,” was the verdict of Ebbw outside half Evan Lloyd.
As for a beaming younger brother, Morgan, the Wales U20 and Dragons academy scrum half, he was delighted to have earned the bragging rights in the first game he had played against Evan.
“Our replacements did a great job when they came on and gave us extra weight up front. It was a bit nerve-racking in the last five minutes, but it was a great win for the club and the fans, who have been waiting for a long time for this,” said Morgan Lloyd.
Playing with the wind and the slope, The Steelmen got off to a great start with a try from Ryan Jenkins which Evan Lloyd improved after only six minutes. Pooler responded via the boot of Matthew Jarvis as he kicked a penalty and then converted a superb solo effort try from centre Joel Mahoney, who raced in from 40 metres.
That made it 10-7 to Pooler, yet by the break they found themselves trailing by seven points. Evan Lloyd kicked a penalty in the 39th minute and then had a long, speculative pass out wide deliberately knocked on by home wing Walker Price.
Referee Craig Evans gave Price a yellow card and then ran to the posts to indicate a penalty try. That made it 17-10 to the visitors, with a one-man advantage for the first 10 minutes of the second half.
That didn’t deter Leighton Jones’ men when they came out for the second half and it wasn’t long before Pooler closed the gap. This time they squeezed over from close range, with Wales U20 prop Dylan Kelleher-Griffiths getting the touchdown.
Jarvis’ attempted conversion hit the post as his non-kicking foot slipped on impact. Evan Lloyd landed another penalty to make it 20-15, but then lost prop Morgan Davies to a yellow card for repeat offences at the breakdown.
Now it was time for Pooler to go in for the kill. Alex Craig muscled his way over from close range moments after coming on as a second row replacement and Jarvis’ conversion pushed Pooler into the lead at 22-20 with 10 to go.
One more penalty from the ice-cool Jarvis then completed the victory. Now it’s just the small matter of travelling to the home of reigning champions Llandovery next week to keep their winning run going.
