A large shirt sleeved crowd were treated to a wonderful final of the main competition and could well have thought itself in the South Sea Islands such was the warmth of the August sun and the thrilling sight of seeing two teams of Fijians gamboling about on the firmest of surfaces. It was just a shame that there was such scant support for the sevens from the first class clubs in Wales but the quality of rugby was high and the Army coach Andy Hickling full of praise for the tournament.

The first competitive games of the summer were on a short tour to Ireland when games against Carlow County and Young Munster were played. Carlow was a new fixture for Llandovery and the young team that travelled did extremely well against a first division side, (first division in Ireland is their top club competition), including a number of Australian and New Zealand members. The player coach, a South African, had played against the Lions before taking up this post in Ireland. Played in four 20 minute sessions, the score stood at 13-13 going into the last session before the greater experience, and the 30 man squad against our 19, enabled Carlow to score two further converted tries in the last session without reply. 

The second game played in Limerick against Young Munster was a return match after they had travelled to play us at Church Bank last season. Unfortunately due to the Irish set up with provincial teams taking precedence they were ‘robbed’ of internationals, Peter Clohessey, Rob Henderson and John Connolly for most of the season and suffered relegation to Division 2. This match was fought out as a 31 points each draw. 

The players who travelled are to be commended for their attitude in preparation for the games including a trip to gym/swimming pool for a recovery session after the second game. As was remarked by more than one of the travelling management “tours aren’t like they used to be”. However the front row didn’t let the side down, passed up on the gym session and joined the non players on a ‘social morning, afternoon evening and night expedition’ to explore the social side of Limerick. 

One footnote was the excellent Irish coach driver, Henry, who became such a firm friend of President Phil that I’m sure he will request him again next year. I’m not quite sure what for though! 

Llandovery did the Welsh First Division proud, sharing 10 tries with their England Division One opponents from the Midlands at Church Bank on Friday night. But they slipped to defeat because of inferior goal kicking, badly missing last year’s record points scorer, injured full back Stuart Harries. 

The Drovers, quoted at 20/1 to win the first Division, paraded a number of signings all of whom featured prominently in the four periods of play enjoyed by a good crowd of local devotees, all come to size up the prospects of the Towy Valley side. Particularly impressive were Pontypridd and Treorchy centre Gary Beaumont-Morgan and LIanelli dual registration centre Tal Selly and they will challenge midfield residents Herman Bosman, Tracy Lewis and Ben Matthews hard for a place in the side that will open against Whitland on August 31. 

The Llanelli U21 pair of prop Ceirian Jones and flanker Aled Gravelle, who crossed for two tries, did a lot of good things, with Gravelle’s reading of the game belying his young years. Another to catch the eye with his work rate was Slovenian international Luka Plesko, recommended to Llandovery by Llanelli coach Gareth Jenkins who spotted his potential on the Scarlets’ recent tour to Eastern Europe. Prop Ceirian Jones, who has had experience with Pontypridd, lock Arwel Davies (Carmarthen Quins), Pontyberem No 8 Michael Grimes and Dunvant scrum half Grant Jones all made telling contributions. The headache for coaches lestyn Thomas and Geraint Williams is going to be who to leave out of the 32 man squad that must be named 7 days before the Whitland match. 

The previous week’s tour of Ireland and the exciting 31-31 draw with Young Munster had obviously sharpened up the Towy Valley side and they established a 20-7 lead with tries from Aled Gravelle (2), classy wing Rhodri Gomer Davies and fly half Ben Matthews. But all four conversions were missed, reminding everyone how crucial will again be the goal kicking of Stuart Harries in the tough 34 match League season, and the Bees hung on with a try from hooker Alan Hubbleday, converted by new South African fly half signing Luke Smith. The first time visitors to Church Bank further reduced the gap with a try from Welsh flanker Stuart Tyrie and a self converted try by replacement fly half Steve Perry to bring them to 20-19. 

In a quality final period with both sides fielding their best available XVs, Llandovery lock Lyndon Bateman who is on dual registration with Neath galloped over for a 5th home try and it looked that his effort might be enough to secure victory. 

It was not to be as the Midlanders finished with plenty of vim and vigour to show that they will be no pushovers in the highly competitive English First Division where they will face the likes of Coventry, Worcester, Rotherham, Orrell and Exeter. Ex-Worcester wing John Baxter looked a real sprinter and with Tongan international No 8 Hesekia Fakatou leading the charge, the hard work of the pack sent in replacement hooker Geordie Houston and prop Terry Sigley for tries converted by the impressive Smith.

Leg-pulling Llandovery supporter Nigel Evans had convinced unsuspecting holiday makers that the Llandovery versus Manchester posters stuck up everywhere announced the fact that Manchester United had come to town for a friendly. But, disappointed as they were to find a rugby rather than soccer match at Church Bank, the English tourists went away impressed by the quality of Welsh First Division rugby.

Llandovery from the Welsh First Division pipped English First Division opponents Manchester in a hard fought albeit error strewn game at Church Bank on Saturday. The Drovers confirmed the good impression that they had made in the narrow defeat at the hands of another English First Division side, Birmingham, a week before and looked both ready and hungry to meet the challenge of Whitland at Church Bank on Saturday.

Manchester, with a new coach in ex-Sale and England lock, Dave Baldwin, and with a dozen new signings, had most of the possession but retained it poorly in the face of some determined home tackling. All the Llandovery back row players used - Ceri Davies, Aled Gravelle, Steve Phillips, Luca Plesko, Wayne Beynon and Aled Davies - put themselves about with great purpose and coach, lestyn Thomas faces a difficult choice in selecting three out of six for the Whitland game.

The backs showed flashes of their undoubted potential and looked more fluent than their opposite numbers but like them, were prone to some sloppy handling. Prop, Dorian Williams, looked full of pep early on and made some typical high stepping runs which set up a clever chip and gather try from fly half Neil Clapham.

Record points scorer, Stuart Harries’s conversion gave the Drovers a 7-0 lead before Manchester’s excellent ex-Bath scrum half, Ricky Pellow, reduced the leeway with a very good break and try.

A Harries penalty made the lead 10-5 but Manchester, well led by No 8, Dave Muckalt and with ex-Waikato super 12 prop, James Carew to the fore, pressed hard and it took some fine covering from centre Rhodri Gomer Davies and Clapham to keep them out.

A mix up in defence between hooker, Andrew Jones, and Harries gave centre, Craig Cooper, the chance to hack through to the posts for a try converted by Kiwi import and fly half Peter Carpenter.

Harries, as he had done so many times last year kicked the vital albeit easy penalty, three minutes from time, to edge the Drovers home.

Coach Thomas was well pleased with the Drovers’ performance. “We had top three quarters in Herman Bosman, Gary Davies, Tracy Lewis and Tal Selly unavailable and lock Lyndon Bateman on duty for Neath, so everyone is pleased at the victory over a side that confidently expected to beat us.”

See Latest News section for programme notes.

For the first quarter of the West Wales Derby Llandovery were unstoppable as forwards and backs combined to carve great holes in the Whitland defence. Within five minutes the first try of the game came when, following a scrum near the visitors’ line, centre Tracy Lewis collected a short blind side pass from scrum half Rob Walters to power his way over. Fullback Stuart Harries, last season’s record points scorer, opened his account when he added the extra points for the conversion. 

New signing, wing Tal Selly, then added a second try for the Drovers when he charged down an attempted clearance kick, gathered the ball and raced clear of the cover defence to score wide out. The former Llanelli Under 21 player also featured in the third try, a second for centre Tracy Lewis. Making good ground on the right wing he passed inside to Lewis who rounded off the move to score near the posts. The ever reliable Harries converted both to take the Drovers to 21 points. Whitland’s reply was a long range penalty kicked by outside half Daniel Griffiths. 

At this stage it looked as if the home side would go on to a landslide victory but unfortunately for the home supporters they had seen the best of their ream. Handling errors, wrong options and aimless kicking from both teams combined to ensure that neither side was able to increase their points tally during the first half. 

The visitors, obviously inspired by coach Mark Weygood’s half time team talk, took control of the second period. Within two minutes scrum half Craig Thomas, following a succession of driving mauls, had crossed unopposed near the posts. Daniel Griffiths slotted the conversion to take the score to 21-10. 

A well struck penalty soon after by Harries pulled back 3 points but Llandovery as an attacking force never looked likely to add to their try count. 

However despite spending virtually the whole of the second half attacking the Llandovery line Whitland hadn’t the skills or pace to overcome a well marshalled excellent home defensive pattern until a loose kick in injury time enabled wing Gavin Morris to cross for the visitors’ second try. The conversion failed and the game concluded with the final score of 24-15.

See Latest News section for programme notes.

Llandovery will get a true realisation of how they can expect their season to pan out when they meet defending champions Aberavon next Saturday at the Talbot Athletic ground. So far the Drovers have overcome two mediocre sides and the Church Bank fans are only too well aware that the real tests are still to come. Tredegar look as though they will need time to adjust to life back in the First Division although they could well prove awkward opponents.

Having been beaten on the first day of the season at Tondu, the Gwent side were eager to get their first positive result and when they led 16-8 at the interval it seemed likely that they would register their first triumph of the new campaign.

But the boot of Drovers’ fullback Stuart Harries proved absolutely critical as he converted four of the six Llandovery touchdowns and landed three penalties for a personal tally of 17 points.

It was an entertaining game with both sides prepared to attack but Llandovery, with centres Tal Selley and Herman Bosman particularly prominent, looked in command in the second period.

There were some marvellous Llandovery three-quarter moves and wing Gary Davies bagged a stunning hat-trick of tries to ensure that the West Walians maintained their 100% record.

See Latest News section for programme notes.

For the seventh successive season Llandovery failed to record a victory at the Talbot Athletic ground finally succumbing to an Aberavon side that were flattered by the winning margin. 

With Lyndon Bateman, Tal Selly, Rob Walters and Neil Clapham unavailable for the game the Drovers suffered another blow when goal kicking full back Stuart Harries was ruled out following a fitness test ten minutes before the kick off. The Llandovery side were actually in the lead briefly at the start of the game with two Ben Matthews penalties and later were looking likely to save the game at 18-13 when two basic errors gifted ten points to the home side and with it any chance of a comeback. 

The first try of the afternoon was scored by ex Merthyr player Kristian Owen when, following good work from the pack, the wing put a neat grubber kick past the visitors’ full back and won the race for the touchdown. Outside half Jamie Davies converted with a fine kick to record the first of his twenty point haul and give Aberavon the lead at 7-6. 

Home full back Ricky Price was the next to score with a well worked corner try. The Aberavon forwards worked several driving mauls and rucks gradually sucking in the Drovers’ defenders until they released the ball to their outside backs with a three man overlap. Former Wales centre Gareth Jones was impressive in the centre for the home side with both his charging runs and good ball distribution but the tackling and covering of the whole Llandovery side was a credit to their commitment and a Jamie Davies penalty was the only addition to the score with the home side leading 15-6 at half time. 

Immediately after the break Jamie Davies kicked his second penalty which was followed by the best try of the match. Centre Tracy Lewis broke through Gareth Jones tackle and burst fifty metres up field where supporting co-centre Rhodri Gomer Davies took a well flighted pass to finish off with a try under the posts. Ben Matthews converted to make the score 18-13. 

Llandovery who were now looking the morn impressive side finished off their own chances straight from the kick off. Instead of clearing the ball it was passed across the field without any player wanting to take responsibility until eventually it was thrown to the round forr the Aberavon replacement centre Chris Perry with his first touch to scoop it up and score under the posts to give Jamie Davies an easy conversion. A second passing mix -up resulted in an offside and Jamie Davies kicked his third penalty to put the match beyond the Drovers’ hopes. 

A final Jamie Davies try which he converted himself and an unconverted Llandovery try from outside half Herman Bosman completed the scoring leaving Aberavon with their 100% record intact and the Drovers disappointed that their own errors had such a marked effect on the final outcome.

Additional notes from our Programme:

With the continued absence of Neil Clapham and Gary Beaumont Morgan our problems increased when Rob Walters trod on a nail and was unable to play, Ceri Davies was injured and Tal Selly and Lyndon Bateman were called into the Llanelli and Neath squads respectively. The final blow came 10 minutes before the match when Stuart Harries failed a fitness test. On the up-side Jamie Roberts made his first appearance of the season as did Canadian lock Jamie Cudmore. Both came on as replacements and look as if they will have significant parts to play in future games.

However to be fair to the rest of our squad they took on one of the best teams in the Division and played very well for much of the game and the final score in no way reflects their efforts nor the pattern of play. To be fair the Aberavon side were better, particularly up front, but we had our chances in a good, well contested, open match.

With the game approaching the final quarter and the score at 18-13 the Drovers looked to be in with a chance of winning for the first time in seven outings to the Talbot Athletic Ground. But once again our old problem of lack of concentration - or thought - led to unforced errors and within minutes the score stood at 28-13 and out of our reach.

We have now leaked 71 points in our three games, twice as many as the target set by coach lestyn Thomas. The bad aspect is that many of these points were not scored as a result of good play by the opposition but our own careless efforts. To really fulfil our potential this is one aspect of our game that must be tightened up. Even at this early stage there are only six teams with a higher points against score. Yet the talent is here - only four sides have scored more tries. Let’s hope for a tighter defence (against Tondu) today.

The Drovers staged a spectacular comeback to beat Tondu in the most exciting of games at Church Bank. Trailing 28-15 with just under a quarter of an hour to go, Llandovery found new zest after some inspirational substitutions by coach lestyn Thomas.

From being a hesitant unit, they found new strength in the hungry appetite for work of the new men in hooker Aled Gravelle, scrumhalf Jamie Roberts and centre Tracy Lewis. The intelligent Gravelle was on hand to grab two tries after explosive running from lock Lyndon Bateman and then prop Dorian Williams, before Lewis’s phenomenal strength took him through Tondu tackles for the third Llandovery try in seven minutes. With full-back Ben Matthews finishing with four conversions and a penalty, Llandovery were in complete control.

Earlier, Tondu had taken their chances expertly, scoring three tries in the first half through ex Llandovery captain and flanker Mark Lewis, No 8 Karl Hocking and scrum-half Brendan Roach, the latter two from 50m out.

The Drovers clung on in the first half with tries from hooker Andrew R Jones and flanker Matthew Monaghan, but looked far from comfortable when Gavin Samuel scored Tondu’s fourth try. However, their spectacular finish was still to come.

See Latest News section for programme notes.

Llandovery scored three tries for a deserved victory against hardworking Bedwas. The visitors had too much pace for their opponents last night, although they made the most of some silly errors by Dewi Mattravers and his team.

To be fair, Bedwas also had a terrible evening in terms of injuries, losing three players during the game, including their star outside half Paul Williams. Just to add to their tale of woe, they then had their big lock Nathan Jones sent off in the 57th minute after a punch-up near the halfway line.

Llandovery showed that they are going to be a major force again in the First Division with some bright, enterprising attacks from the kickoff and they led 13-9 at the interval thanks to tries by their lock Lyndon Bateman and scrum-half Jamie Roberts.

Bedwas, who pulled off a fine victory at Newbridge last Saturday, must have been wondering why their luck had run out in an eventful first half. They lost the services of wing Paul Phillips (head cut), hooker Dean Colclough (leg) and Williams (dislocated elbow) in what turned out to be an injury-hit encounter. To make matters worse, replacement hooker Lee Pierce was sinbinned - a similar punishment to that handed out to the visitors' lock Jamie Cudmore.

In a disappointing match all of Bedwas's points came from four penalties by full- back Andrew James. Llandovery's other points scorer was full-back Herman Bosman, who kicked two penalties and a conversion.

A second version of this report:

The Drovers opened the game at the Bridge Field in a lively manner and within minutes of the kick off took the lead when lock Lyndon Bateman finished off some good work by the pack. But the attempted conversion by Ben Matthews failed and the winger went on to miss another three simple penalties within the first quarter of the game.

This inability by the Drovers to add to their score seemed to give encouragement to the home side and they began to come back into the match using the simple plan of kicking deep into Llandovery territory and using their pack for driving mauls. As a result of these efforts Andrew James was able to convert two penalties to give Bedwas the lead for a short time.

Llandovery, using completely different tactics, tried to open play up from every piece of possession even trying to run the ball out of their own 22. Eventually they re-took the lead when lively scrum half Jamie Roberts crossed for a try but although changing their kicker the conversion failed.

Just before half-time though they were successful when full back Herman Bosman kicked a penalty to take the half-time score to 9-13 in favour of the Drovers.

Early in the second half Bosman kicked a second penalty and then Bedwas had lock Nathan Jones sent off for punching. This loss appeared to inspire the home side as the remaining seven forwards redoubled their efforts and with two further penalties from Andrew James bringing the score to 12-16 the game was set for a dramatic last 10 minutes.

However a change in tactics saw the Drovers kick a long ball deep into the Bedwas half and following up quickly, forced the home side to find touch close to their try line. Winning their own ball the forwards drove for the line and replacement hooker Simon Jenkins claimed the try. Bosman converted to finish off any hopes Bedwas may have had of claiming a late victory.

The Drovers’ second game of the week, at Pontypool Park, was a very different affair to the Bedwas game, and the Drovers more than met their match in a Pontypool side full of Premier stars and ex Welsh Internationals. With all this talent around him the outstanding player and clearly the man of the match was former Gloucester, Ebbw Vale and Wales player Byron Hayward. The outside half converted all eight Pontypool tries, kicked two penalties and scored a try in a personal haul of 27 points.

Within a minute of the kick off the first points of the game came when lock Gareth Taylor crossed for the first Pontypool try, only for Llandovery to quickly respond when Herman Bosman crossed under the posts. Ben Matthews converted and the score stood at seven all in a game when over ninety points were to be recorded.

Tries came at regular intervals as both sides attempted to move the ball and play open rugby and by half time the score stood at 34-22 in favour of the Gwent side.

In the second half the home side went on to score four more tries and give the final result a much more one sided appearance than the play suggested. Pontypool’s experience was to play a large part in this decisive victory as they never wasted a chance and took each scoring opportunity as it came.

The Drovers, however, although playing an open, expansive game, failed to capitalise on three definite scoring opportunities and only had a Tal Selley try converted by Ben Matthews to show for all their hard work.

Pontypool have a very well drilled side with a number of full time professional players and will be very much the team to beat this season. Llandovery with a young squad should certainly make an impression in the coming matches and coach lestyn Thomas, despite the heavy defeat, was quite up-beat about a lot of the Drovers’ game.

Llandovery put in by far their worst display of the season when they unexpectedly went down to the Wanderers at Church Bank by the odd point in 57. Heavily penalised by referee Lynn Davies (Porth) at ruck, maul and the tackle area, poor at the line out, lacking a place kicker and unable to get any rhythm into their game, the Drovers were strangely lethargic for two thirds of the game.

The Wanderers took their chances well, scoring two tries and 19 points from the boot of full-back Jason Pocock to establish a 29-8 lead with 52 minutes gone.

Llandovery had got a well taken try by one of their better players Wayne Beynon only for the flanker to spoil a good day by getting sin-binned for holding on to the ball on the deck.

Full-back Ben Matthews got the other points with a penalty but made an awful hash of another penalty and conversion from well-nigh point-blank range which, at the end of the game, was to prove crucial.

Llandovery did wake up after the break and Tal Selley, fresh from scoring a try for Llanelli 24 hours before, twinkled over for a try converted by fly half Neil Clapham.

The sin-binning of Wanderers’ replacement flanker and ex-Drover Adrian Williams almost cost the visitors dearly.

With replacement hooker Simon Jenkins showing up well, a try by prop Dorian Williams and a conversion and two penalties for Clapham brought the Drovers to 29-28 with ten minutes to go only for the Cardiff side to defend stoutly for the remainder of the game.

See Latest News section for programme notes.

The young man performing the duties of mascot today is Rhys Lewis. Rhys is a member of the Junior Drovers under 11s, and has contributed to that team’s success in recent years (more about that later). Mae Rhys yn ei flwyddyn ddiwethaf yn Rhys Prichard, ac mae ei chwaer, Louise, newydd ddechrau yn Ysgol Pantycelyn ac yn wir wedi cael ei dewis yn Gapten Dosbarth 7Y. Maent yn byw yng Nghlos Dingat gyda Sian a Noel, sy’n adnabyddus i lawer ohonoch.

Rhys’s main sporting interests are of course Rugby, Tennis, Cycling with a little bit of soccer thrown in. In fact Rhys recently formed part of the Rhys Prichard Rugby team which took part in the Urdd Rugby tournament. Like many young boys in Llandovery he is a keen member of Llandovery Cubs and does tend to spend prolonged periods of time on the Play Station (never did understand those things!).

Finally, many of you will be aware that Rhys, Louise, Sian and Noel recently lost brave little Chloe to Leukaemia, but many of you will not be aware that Rhys and Louise showed true character during Chloe’s illness and undertook a sponsored swim in aid of LATCH a charity which supports children with Leukaemia. They raised a sum of approximately £4000 in aid of LATCH which is a sum rarely achieved by any fund raising events in Llandovery. This sort of commitment to help others is an example to us all and a glowing tribute to little Chloe.

Faced with the problem of having three centres unavailable through injury the Drovers selectors after much deliberation asked open side wing forward Wayne Beynon to fill the gap and form a new combination with the one centre still available, Tal Selley. The choice proved to be an inspired one as the new pairing grabbed four of the Drovers’ five tries and also snuffed out any attacks by The Keys through midfield.

Coaching organiser Geraint Williams was full of praise for the much-improved Llandovery defence, but was equally delighted with the way the team took their own chances to score. He paid respect to the home side for the part they played in an exciting and well-contested game.

The West Wales side opened the scoring after ten minutes when, following a ruck, a swift pass from scrum half Rob Walters gave his halfback partner Neil Clapham some room to move and the outside half jinked his way through the defence to score a fine individual try under the posts. Stuart Harries converted and then kicked a penalty while the Keys’ Gethin Worgan replied with three of his own to take the score to 10-9 in favour of Llandovery.

The Drovers went further ahead when the forwards recycled the ball through a number of rocks to finally release after the defenders had been drawn in for centre Wayne Beynon to cruise home under the posts. Harries converted.

The home side now began to come more into the game with flanker Ben Watkins outstanding in the lines out although Llandovery’s Tom Walker proved to be his equal. They were to rewarded when, following a line out near the visitors’ line, they drove the maul over the line for second row Derek Freemantle to be awarded the touchdown. Gethin Worgan converted with an excellent kick from the touchline and then kicked a further penalty to put the Keys into the lead for the first time in the game. In doing so he took his season’s tally over the 100-point mark.

With the halftime score standing at 19-17 the game seemed poised for an evenly matched second half contest and it was the Drovers who scored soon after the break to regain the lead. Outside half Neil Clapham made a delightful half break and handed the ball to centre Tal Selley on the burst. The centre had far too much pace for the defence and rounded them all to touch down under the posts.

With Jamie Roberts replacing Rob Walters and Captain Andrew Jones taking over from Ceirian Jones in the front row the Drovers scored their fourth try. Again it was the Clapham - Selley combination as the outside half threw out a long miss pass to find Selley on the outside again speeding round the defence. The centre completed his hat trick when wing loan Davies followed up a kick and with a skillful pick up and pass once again sent Selley speeding through the defence. Harries converted all three and although the Gwent Valley side mounted numerous attacks they were not able to breach the visitors’ determined defence.

The one sour note of the day was the handling of the game by match referee Simon Wytcherly, who hails from Cwmcarn less than a mile from Pandy Park. He penalised the Drovers over 20 times, prevented a certain try by Neil Clapham by penalising him for running into a Keys defender but most bizarrely having awarded a ‘try’ to Llandovery was overruled by the touch judge who brought play back for an alledged forward pass. The question here is should referees be put under the pressure of officiating for their local sides?

The Drovers have Jamie Roberts to thank for this hard won victory over a determined Llanharan side. The scrum-half, whose appearances this season have been curtailed by Accountancy exams, was in tip-top form, scoring two tries, setting up a third and bringing off a marvellous tackle that saved a certain seven points. The other major contributor to the victory was the boot of full-back Stuart Harries with a personal tally of 17 points.

The match, although exciting to the end, was a scrappy affair with too many unforced errors. Within five minutes of the start Llandovery took the lead when Roberts scored the first of his tries. Following a rolling maul the scrum-half received the ball, broke the initial tackle and darted through the defence to score near the posts. It was then the turn of Stuart Harries to contribute to the home side’s score as he converted the try and kicked a further three penalties, one resulting in a yellow card for the visitors prop, Alexander.

For Llanharan, centre Paul Morgan’s penalty was their only reply and the score stood at 16-3 at half-time.

Within minutes of the restart Roberts got his second try. The visitors were penalised for killing the ball at a ruck, and in a flash he seized the ball, took the penalty and crossed near the posts. Harries converted.

The Llanharan pack then began to take greater control of the game and, as the Llandovery eight wilted, the visitors dominated. An attempt to run the ball out of defence by Gary Davies saw the wing tackled and penalised for holding on. Llanharan ran the penalty and wing Richard Johnson crossed for an unconverted try.

This was followed by what was probably the most telling episode in the match. The Llanharan open-side flanker broke clear of a ruck on the home 10 metre line and, seeing no defenders in front of him, sprinted to the line. Crossing under the posts he stopped to put the ball down with his back to play, when unseen by him, scrum-half Roberts, at full speed, crashed into his back, causing him to spill the bail forward. At the resulting five metre scrum Llanharan were penalised and the danger was over.

This didn’t stop the continual pressure from the visitors’ pack and prop Alexander, restored to play after his yellow card, scored for centre Morgan to convert to take the score to 23-15.

Back came the home side and on a rare incursion into the visitors’ territory, a break by Roberts set up wing loan Davies for the Drovers’ third try. Harries converted.

Again continued pack pressure brought Llanharan back into the game with two tries from flanker Peter Wheeler and fullback John Hooper, both unconverted, to set up a frantic final 10 minutes. Both sides tried everything they knew to secure the three league points. Stuart Harries missed two penalties, was tackled into touch in goal as he dived for a winning score, and a second yellow card was shown to the visitors before, finally, Gary Davies made up for his earlier mistake when he scooped up a dropped pass to dive over the line to score. Harries converted and the final whistle sounded, much to the relief of the home support.

See Latest News section for programme notes.

Have you ever noticed that from time to time there appears to be a concentration of boys with the same name at the same age - no doubt there will be a glut of Brooklyns in years to come! Well today’s mascot is one of the Daniel Davies’. This one in particular is the son of Mel and Hywel and plays for the under 11s. I can remember Daniel turning up to training when he was 7 and for a couple of years, to be honest, there wasn’t a great deal of enthusiasm. However, in the last 18 months Daniel seems to have developed rapidly so much so that if he runs fast enough and hard enough he has the power to break tackles. His only problem now is getting up early enough on a Sunday morning to catch the bus!?

Ar wahan i rygbi dyw Daniel ddim yn un o’r bois yma sy’hala oriau wrth gameboy neu gyfrifiadur gan fod Ilawer gwell ganddo fod tu fas yn chwarae neu’n helpi yn Gellifelen gyda’i famgu. If only others followed his example. Rumour has it that a trumpet lurks somewhere in a cupboard but apparently it doesn’t see the light of day very often - keep at it Daniel, you’ll need a party piece when you play for LIandovery firsts.

Pob hwyl i ti Daniel a mwynha dy ddiwrnod.

Centres Herman Bosman and Tal Selly created the midfield magic for the visitors as they made most of their opportunities with some flick passing. Lock Canadian Jamie Cudmore and Tom Walker won the clean line-out possession but set the speedy Llandovery three-quarter line on several impressive raids. The visitors' pack might have been impressive in the loose but their close-knit mauling around the ball-carrier was immense with Narberth having no answer to their driving play.

Llandovery captain and prop Andrew Jones was delighted with the victory. "This was a great win and we showed that our forwards can dominate and backs can create wonderful tries."

Coach Iestyn Thomas said that attitude had played a major part. "This was total commitment by the whole side and we might not be a fashionable club but people will now take notice of our quality," he said.

Having started strongly, Narberth flattered to deceive as they failed to penetrate a strong Llandovery defence who held all the aces. After 11 minutes, the Drovers gave their hosts a lesson in how to use possession and clinical finishing. The visiting forwards recycled the ball through six phases of play and eventually worked left-wing Gary Davies clear for his seventh touchdown of the campaign. Ten minutes later, the visitors extended the lead as flankers Luka Plesko and Aled Davies continued to dominate the loose play. It was the pack that took the glory as they mauled their way to the try-line, prop Dorian Williams emerged from a pile of bodies with the ball for another try.

Led by powerful runs from lively hooker Simon Delaney, Narberth gradually worked their way upfield. Tighthead prop Andrew Howell stormed up the left-hand touchline and from the ruck simple passing gave right-wing Daniel Gravelle the room to score in the gloom of the right-hand touchline.

A penalty after just two minutes of the second half by Stuart Harrise extended Llandovery's lead to 15-5 but the best was yet to come. Three minutes later, the Drovers scored the best try of the evening. Impressive fly-half Neil Clapham picked up possession just inside the Narberth half and with an eye for the gap, and using his pace, he side-stepped his way past a bemused defence to go 40 metres for a thrilling try.

Narberth continued to win plenty of ball and five minutes from time, Centre Elgin Viddle raced clear after a huge overlap. The visitors however had the last say as Canadian Cudmore bulldozed his way over for Llandovery's fourth try in injury time.

Additional report from the Beddau match programme

I am sure that all our supporters who travelled to Narberth on Tuesday night will have thoroughly enjoyed the game. The fact that we won convincingly by 13-32 is now a matter of record but the manner in which the victory was achieved was the most satisfactory part of the exercise.

The game plan laid out in the changing rooms before the match was simple. Forward domination, no messing around and play with attitude. The actual words used were somewhat different but cannot be used here but the sentiments are similar.

The buzz amongst both players and coaches afterwards was as much to do with the way this game plan worked as with the actual win itself. The whole of the forward squad excelled, both the starting line up and the replacements. The starting eight was, Dorian Williams, Simon Jenkins, Andrew Jones (Capt), Tom Walker, Jamie Cudmore, Aled Davies, Luka Plesko and Steven Phillips. Five replacements were used, Ceirian Jones. Lyndon Bateman, Wayne Beynon, Chris Davies and Ceri Davies.

Even with this number of changes there was no noticeable change in either the pattern nor the domination. It is difficult to pick anyone out but credit must be given for outstanding work by the two locks both in the lines out and around the field, Luka for his tackling and disruption of the home half-backs and Dorian for his work in both tight and loose. Another to catch the eye was hooker Simon Jenkins who was very lively in the loose and much improved in his throwing into the line out.

The backs supported the work of the forwards efficiently and were decisive in their finishing. The try scored by Neil Clapham was a classic and even the Otters crowd applauded enthusiastically.

The defensive pattern shown by the whole side was much improved and discipline in this defence was much better also. It is good to see the penalty count against us dropping.

Stuart Harries was again in form with the boot, converting three of the four tries and also kicking two penalties in a personal tally of 12 points which takes him to 68 so far this season in the five matches he has played.

Congratulations also go to Gareth Jones who was making his debut for the Drovers. Gareth came on to replace Neil Clapham for the last quarter of the game and showed some neat touches. The former Bonymaen player will surely be an excellent acquisition to our squad.

Beddau scrummaged and rolled mauls well enough, but centre Chris Murphy apart, were short of pace behind the scrum.

With veteran Chris Davies and Luka Plesko - captain of the Slovenia side that lost 13-0 to Croatia in Zagreb last week - showing up well in the back row, The Drovers scored two early tries through young prop Ceirian Jones and lock Matthew Monaghan. The second rower sold a dummy to sprint in from 25 metres for his effort, and fly-half Gareth Jones converted the try on his Church Bank debut.

Wing loan Davies got the third just before half-time but just when it looked as if Llandovery would pull away the game fell into its most turgid phase. Jones kicked two penalties to make it 23-0 and the only skill of note behind the scrum was from Beddau’s ex-Caerphilly centre Murphy who ran strongly to all but reach the line.

With referee Fleming being counselled and lectured by touch judge Elliot, the game stalled and stuttered forward. Only two late tries by centre Human Bosman and replacement No 8 Stephen Phillips took the attention away from officialdom.

See Latest News section for programme notes.

Today’s mascot is another vital member of our highly successful under 11s - Eirwyn Richards. I think we can safely say that Eirwyn is a character, following in a family tradition of characters! Mae Eirwyn yn fab i Alun a Gwyneth ac yn byw yng Nghwmcelynen, Ffarmers. Mae ganddo ddwy whaer - Carwen a Sulwen ac maent i gyd yn mynychu Ysgol Carreg Hirfaen sef Ysgolion Ffarmers, Ffaldybrenin a Cwmann gynt. 

Eirwyn’s position is as yet undecided but his speed and side - step are indicative of the fact that he will one day be a valuable member of any backline. When Eirwyn’s playing expect the unexpected! His enthusiasm on the field is unlimited but there are occasions when his father’s enthusiasm on the touchline has to be curbed! Eirwyn played last year for Ceredigion schools due to the Education Department changing County Boundaries but his loyalty to the Junior Drovers is unquestionable. 

Diddordebau eraill Eirwyn yw rhoi help iddi Dad gyda’r praidd safonol o ddefaid sydd nawr yng Nghwmcelynen, ac mae ei draed bach cloi wedi golygu ei fod yn dda iawn mewn parti Dawnsio Gwerin yr Ysgol. Pob hwyl i ti Eirwyn a diolch am dy ffyddlondeb i’r Junior Drovers.

The eagerly awaited Tywi Valley Local Derby turned out to be a damp squib as the home side totally dominated the game. In continuous, heavy rain at Carmarthen Park the Drovers failed to adapt to the conditions and after a 40m, first minute penalty by full back Stuart Harries was pushed wide they rarely looked capable of troubling the Quins defence.

Llandovery had great problems holding on to the ball and at times it looked as if two balls were involved in the match - the dry one the Quins were playing with and one like a bar of soap that the visitors had and as the Drovers were attempting to play an open running game they very much contributed to their own downfall. The first try of the game resulted from one such knock-on gratefully received by Phil Beynon. As the Drovers’ defence hesitated for a second the lively flanker sprinted through the gap and had a clear run in from 35 metres. Outside half Gareth Bowen converted.

If the first try had an element of luck the second didn’t as, following a well-worked front peel at a line out, hooker Justin Hughes crossed in the corner. Gareth Bowen then kicked the first of his two penalties and, although the home side lost flanker Beynon with a yellow card for killing the ball at a ruck, this appeared to make little difference to the pattern of play. Bowen kicked his second penalty and the sides reached half time with the score at 18-0.

If the large band of travelling supporters felt the second half would bring a change in fortunes they were to be disappointed. Carmarthen continued to dominate all phases of play and it was only in the scrums that the Drovers gained any kind of parity. The first try of the second period was not long coming and, following a neat move in the centre, Emyr Jones received a pop-pass and ran in untouched from the twenty two. The final try was an individual effort from number eight Alan Mason who powered his way through the defence. Llanelli fly-half Bowen converted both to record a total of twelve points in his first game for the Quins.

With half the players on the pitch being substituted and the floodlights cutting through the gathering darkness the Llandovery side at last began to play some wet weather rugby. A series of rolling mauls took them into home territory but even then there looked to be very little likelihood of them breaching the strong home defence.

Newbridge looked to be in control of this closely fought tussle at a damp and cold Church Bank only to lose their composure and discipline in the last quarter and slide to defeat.

They should have taken full advantage when Stuart Harries saw red in the last quarter of the match for elbowing an opponent, but they failed to capitalise. Referee Richard Rees did his fellow Gwent men no favours, however, by yellow carding two Newbridge forwards - Matthew Griffin and hooker Darryl Williams - for offside in the last ten minutes, and with 13 men Newbridge could not cope with the increased drive of the home forwards.

Ex-Bonymaen fly half Gareth Jones kicked three penalties to take Llandovery seven points clear and keep the Drovers in a handy fourth position in the First Division.

There was little to choose between the two sides in the first half and with fly-half Jason Williams kicking well to turn the home wings, Llandovery were restricted to the one converted try and an interval lead of 7-6. The only try of the game had come after 17 minutes when Newbridge lost a valuable throw near their own line to allow lock Lyndon Bateman to charge through and give scrum-half Rob Walters the chance to dart under the sticks for a converted try.

Fly-half Williams had kicked two Newbridge penalties to cap the good work of the Newbridge pack.

Although Jones dropped a goal, Williams added two more penalties for a 12-10 lead after 53 minutes, the second coming when Llandovery’s Canadian lock Jamie Cudmore was off the pitch after a yellow card for offside.

Referee Rees then became the key figure with his profusion of red and yellow cards to leave everyone frustrated at a game which had little pattern, cohesion or fluency.

See Latest News section for programme notes.

Craig Lewis is a member of the highly successful under 11s and lives in New Road with his brother Stewart and Mum and Dad - Jo and Huw. Also residing at this address is Craig’s alcoholic dog – Budweiser! 

At Ysgol Llangadog, Craig is particularly keen on the trumpet - the residents of New Road however are probably not so keen on the practice! Keep at it Craig, one day you could become a member of a band similar to the excellent Ammanford Silver Band heard recently at the Male Voice choir concert. 

Craig follows in his father’s footsteps as he plays on the wing or at centre, but his ambition is to go a little further than his father, who was a member of the infamous Llandovery team known as Penlan’s Barmy Army. Current form indicates that he could well do so.

Strong words at half time by Llandovery coach lestyn Thomas brought about a transformation in the Drovers’ play as they turned a 17-7 deficit into a well earned 24-28 victory. Having lost on their previous three visits to Glan yr Afon Park and finding themselves 17-0 down, this was a great test of character and they fully deserved the three points that took them clear into second place in Division One.

Enjoying territorial advantage from the kick off, the visitors failed to convert this into points, conceding nine penalties and losing 50 percent