The Black & Ambers reached their sixth final, and their first since 2003, while for Merthyr it will be their first trip to the Principality Stadium for the Cup final, although they did win the Plate final in 2014.
Newport hung on to beat Llandovery 16-12 in the first semi-final at the Talbot Athletic Ground before Merthyr pipped Ebbw Vale 10-6 at Pandy Park to complete the final line-up. Beaten in the last play at the semi-final stages last year, the Ironmen are now on course to complete a Premiership and Cup double.
The last time the two teams met in the Premiership, Newport came out on top at The Wern by a single point, so the final, the third game in the WRU’s Finals Day after the Bowl and Plate games, should be a cracker.
Two penalties from Matt O’Brien gave Newport an early lead, but by half-time an interception try by Jack Maynard, which he also converted, hauled the Drovers into a 7-6 lead. O’Brien’s third success eged his side ahead once more, but a try by Wales Seven Rugby World Cup winner Lee Williams made it 12-9 in favour of the 2016 Cup winners
But Craig Warlow’s men rallied and the Newport coach must have been delighted to see Geraint O’Driscoll finished off a superb team move to cross for a try that O’Brien converted to complete the scoring. Llandovery did all they could in the closing stages to get the score they needed to win it, but brave defence from the Black & Ambers kept their lien intact.
Two penalties from Dai Langdon gave Ebbw Vale a 6-3 interval lead over a single penalty for Merthyr by the prolific Matthew Jarvis. It was anyone’s game going into the second half and there was no more scoring until the 70th minute.
The crucial score came from scrum half Justin James and the conversion from Gareth Davies ensured the Ironmen went through to the final or the first time.
