Dunvant 13 pts. Narberth 19
Below par in the first half, Narberth took control up front in the second half to score two converted tries which gave the visitors a win. The Broadacre field looked a picture at kick-off and, although there was quite a strong breeze, conditions were ideal for open rugby. The Otters looked sharp in the early stages of the match, but missed out on a chance to open the score after eight minutes, following an exciting combined move between pack and backs. It looked as if skipper Sion Brace would finish off the move with a try, but the Dunvant covering defence blocked off his path to the line and the Otters were unable to score, despite having players in support. For a while, most of the play took place between the two 22 lines, until Dunvant took the lead with a try in the left corner after 20 minutes. It came from a lineout on the left. The ball broke loose and flanker Rory Gallagher burst through from the 22 to touch down in the left corner for an unconverted try. After 30 minutes, the Otters levelled the scores with an excellent try by teenager Lloyd Phillips. Fullback Sion Brace had come up in support and received the ball from a ruck near the Dunvant 22. He slipped it inside to Phillips, who showed the Dunvant defence a clean pair of heels in a diagonal run to score near the posts and the try was converted by outside-half Steve Williams. Phillips is a product of the Narberth junior and youth system. His talent has been recognised for some years, with a place in the Scarlets Academy and in the Welsh under 19 team. He has not played many games since recovering from an injury which sidelined him for much of last season. Despite being a bit short on match practice, he has done enough to show he is a player of the future. The try at Dunvant was his first since breaking into the Narberth first team this season and should give him the confidence to make a mark in Division One and beyond. Narberth had the wind at their backs in the first half, but were unable to convert possession into points and to make matters worse, Dunvant went into the lead again when outside-half Lee Cobner kicked a penalty minutes before half-time. It was a good effort from 35 metres against the wind. A pep talk by the Otters' coaches at the interval seemed to do the trick as the visitors scored within two minutes. Centre Neil Davies spotted a gap and took a quick kick out from the 22, following a Dunvant attack. Winger Nick Jones a former Dunvant player, took the move on with a run and a chip ahead. Jones followed up his own kick and gathered the ball before being tackled. When the ball was recycled, substitute winger Mathew Davies was on hand to cut inside to score under the posts. The try was converted by Steve Williams and the Otters were in front for the first time. Within five minutes, the Otters scored again to increase the lead. The Narberth pack had caused problems for Dunvant in the scrums throughout the match. Following an infringement in a scrum near the Dunavnt line, the referee awarded Narberth a penalty try which was converted by Steve Williams. Strangely, the visitors were unable to score again, as Dunvant showed their determination not to gift the game away. Two minutes before the final whistle, replacement prop Paul Salter went over in the right corner for an unconverted try following a period of pressure by the Dunvant team, to complete the scoring for the afternoon. Although the final score did not flatter Dunvant, the Otters could have scored more points and missed out on at least three clear cut try scoring opportunities, through a mixture of handling errors and wrong options. Narberth forwards' coach Sean Gale did not mince his words in his post-match comments: " We had the wind in the first half, but played poorly," he said. Continuing in the same vein, he added: "Our lineout didn't function, our decision-making was poor and we lost the contact area. "In the second half we came out against the wind and for the first 25 minutes we looked a very good side. The lineout functioned and our scrummaging was excellent as it had been throughout the game. "Dunvant heads dropped after we were awarded a penalty try and they became a bit tired. "Overall, the performance was quite pleasing, but as coaches we are concerned that we did not function properly in the first half. "The contact area came in the end and we had plenty of chances to play and could have scored a lot more points. "Generally speaking, the team is going well and today we came away from Narberth to pick up a win for the third time away from home this season. I'm more than happy about the way things are progressing and believe that there is a lot more to come. If someone had said to me at the end of August that Narberth would be in the top three after seven matches, I would have taken it. "The front row was excellent, the scrummaging went particularly well, lock Chris James had a good game, centre Neil Davies is playing superbly and it was rewarding to see a young player such as flanker Lloyd Phillips playing and fitting into the team so well." The performance by open side flanker Phillips was recognised by the Otters' team management when he was nominated as the Narberth man-of-the- match for his excellent all round display. Tomorrow (Saturday), Narberth are home to Division Two West team Felinfoel in the third round of the Konica Minolta Welsh Cup. Narberth fielded: Sion Brace (captain) (Mike Georgiou), Nick Jones, Richard Davies, Neil Davies, Steve Martin (Matthew Davies), Steve Williams, Adrian Killa, Nathan Williams, Dan Smith, Justin Hughes, Jason Jennings, Chris James, Jamie Bohata (Matthew Davies), Lloyd Phillips Jack Mason) and Lewis Wood.