Barry RFC 29

Llanishen RFC 20

BARRY RFC scored four tries in a bonus point win against Llanishen at the Reservoir Field last Saturday, with the victory moving them up to fourth in the table.

Kicking-off up the slope, Barry immediately camped in the visitors 22 after being awarded an early penalty. Winning the resultant line out they drove into the heart of the visitors defence and crossed for a converted try with only minutes of the game played.

This early break gave them confidence to play the expansive game they like to play but despite the possession they enjoyed a mixture of bad luck and poor execution saw the visitors line remain intact.

With both sides throwing the ball about there were bound to be chances at either end, and it was no surprise when Llanishen opened their account as Barry lost the ball on half-way for the visiting backs to break through some poor tackling to cross for a try which went unconverted.

Buoyed by their success the following minutes saw the game played mostly in Barry territory, as the visitors pressured the Barry line only to be thwarted by solid defending and unforced errors.

Their efforts were rewarded as Barry were penalised at a scrum allowing an easy kick at goal, which when successful, gave them a one point lead.

Barry came back on the attack as they took a scrum against the head and gained some 50 metres before the move broke down but earned them a penalty which Barros calmly put between the posts from around 45 metres out and put Barry back into the lead.

Now it was Barry's turn to get on top as the game turned again. A break from the home 22 gained 70 metres and looked likely to lead to a score, only for the referee to penalise them.

They kept up the pressure and got their reward as a loose ball found Evans in space to cross unopposed and with Barros kicking the conversion Barry moved into 17 - 8 lead.

Before half-time Barry were to add to their tally after a bout of recycling from a counter attack gave Hadfield a try and another Barros conversion gave them 16 point half-time lead.

Early minutes of the second half were even with both sides eager to attack but meeting some stubborn defending. Clear chances were few and far between but the better of those went the way of the visitors.

The stalemate was finally broken as Llanishen drove the line out following a penalty award to break the Barry defence for a converted try to reduce the deficit to nine points.

Llanishen piled on the pressure as Barry became scrappy both in attack and defence, but despite this they won another scrum against the head and took play to the visitors line.

The visitors completely messed up the line out and Hadfield was quickest to react to the loose ball to get the try which put Barry into the lead by 14 points.

Barry were still under pressure as their defensive kicking was not effective and with Llanishen prepared to attack from anywhere the game looked far from over.

This was underlined as a series of moves saw them take play close to the Barry line where a driven line out saw them cross for an unconverted try.

The final minutes of the match were tense but Barry managed to thwart all Llanishen's efforts whilst at the same time still creating chances of their own.

This result was probably a fair reflection on the game in the end and as the season draws to a close all games can be tense affairs, reflecting the efforts of the players in what has been a hard season.

This Saturday Barry travel to Penarth in a league fixture, kick-off at 2.30pm.

Finding a winner of the club lottery still goes on as last week's numbers, 6, 11, 14 and 23 were not matched. This week's jackpot will be £4,350.

Anyone interested in holding a function at the clubhouse should contact Carol on 01446 734806 after 7pm.