With relegation now a fact, Tenby travelled to Clwb Rygbi Llambed playing for pride only, but with the home side needing to win to be assured of retaining their position in Division Three, so it was not just a mundane end of season game with nothing at stake.
The team that took to the field was missing several key players, as well as fielding some strange selections. Harry Bolton was out on the wing, Del Brace and James Davies slotted into the back row, with Wyndham Williams packing down in the front row. The lack of any Tenby replacements meant that the game was to be played with uncontested scrums, with Lampeter being allowed to use their named four substitutes as necessary. Not an ideal situation, but one that the XV who took to the field, on a bright but windy afternoon, accepted, and certainly delivered in terms of pride, endeavour and commitment.
Tenby were immediately under pressure from the off as the big Lampeter pack, with the slope in their favour, trundled towards the goal line in the form of a well-controlled rolling maul. With yards well gained, they released their backs, only to see the kick over the advancing Tenby threes get caught on the breeze and roll dead.
Lampeter regained possession and again went into rolling maul mode, but this time were stopped by a scrambling Tenby defence as they attempted to spin the ball wide, with centre Mark Heywood putting in a fine smothering tackle on his opposite number for the forwards to pile in and steal the ball, allowing Neil Powling to clear. Next into solid defensive action were Geoff Martin and Gareth Edwards with two superb covering tackles as the home side tried to stretch the Tenby defence out wide.
Over-exuberance by lively hooker Mike Lewis gave away a penalty for offside and while the new look Tenby back row were sorting out who was to mark who, winger Llyr Thomas took a quick tap and zig- zagged his way through their defence from the halfway line for a try under the posts. The conversion by Huw Thomas gave the home side a deserved 7-0 lead.
Uundaunted by this reverse, Tenby switched to attack themselves with a fine sweeping team move involving Sam Smith, who broke from a scrum in midfield, Aled Griffiths, Geoff Martin and Wyndham WIlliams (all twice), with Will Crockford, Gareth Edwards, Arthur M-M, Mark Heywood and Mike Lewis also involved, only for the ball to be stolen in a tackle, leaving Harry Bolton to rescue the situation with a double tackle on the Lampeter fullback and wing as they tried to set-up a swift counter-attack.
The uncontested scrum situation provided Tenby with the steady and solid attacking platform their game thrives on, with number eight Sam Smith using his bulk, power and speed to set-up moves off the base, allowing half-backs Crockford and Griffiths to bring the centres into action. When in defensive mode, the same platform allowed either Griffiths or Neil Powling to boot the ball clear with huge touch-finders.
With Tenby more than holding their own in the lineout, with the inspirational pair of Niffy Brace and Gareth Edwards, aided by some accurate throwing by hooker Lewis and support from their willing lifters, taking their own ball as well as a fair share of the oppositions throw in, it came as no surprise that Tenby got on level terms.
Winning a Lampeter throw in, Edwards saw the ball he stole, lost in midfield, only for Arthur M-M and Sam Smith to recover the situation with a fine double tackle on home fullback Jason Thomas. First to the breakdown, Edwards secured and fed the ball to Mark Heywood, who straightened the running line and committed the home defence, allowing quick inter-passing and excellent support play from Sam Smith (twice), Harry Bolton, Arthur M-M and Del Brace to release fellow flanker Jimmy Davies to power over under the posts. Neil Powling added the extras and the scores were level at 7-7.
All this good play and support work, however, was undone when for the remainder of the half Tenby gave away silly penalties trying to run the ball out of defence, getting men isolated in the tackle, allowing outside-half Thomas to regain the lead with three well-struck opportunities and at the end of a half that lasted 45 minutes - even though there had been no stoppages - Tenby were 16-7 in arrears.
A stern talking to by coach Chris Brace, backed by skipper Bolton, saw Tenby open the second half with urgency, and long clearing kicks, now aided by the freshening breeze, allowed Neil Powling to take play deep into the Lampeter half. Attempts to break through the defence by Sam Smith, who along with Del Brace and Jimmy Davies were more than holding their own against the more experienced Lampeter back row, Mark Wooles, the industrious Wyndham Williams and Arthur M-M, stretched the home defence who had started to give away a string of penalties for killing the ball at the breakdown or straying offside.
The Tenby cause was aided when influential number eight Aled Thomas had to leave the field injured.
An example of how the wind was freshening was more than adequately demonstrated when fullback Arthur M-M hoofed the ball clear from inside his own 22, only to see it run dead and a scrum back ordered.
With passive scrums already in place, referee Evans suddenly introduced passive lineouts when he surprisingly penalised Niffy Brace for challenging his opposite number. From the penalty, Thomas increased the lead to 19-7.
Striking back, Arthur M-M made a searing break and in the ensuing maul Lampeter were again penalised for offside. Neil Powling took the score to 19-10 and Tenby were still in with a shout.
The next two minutes, however, proved to be the turning point of the game, with referee Evans blowing and shouting for a forward pass by the home side, only to suddenly change his mind and award a penalty against Tenby. Thomas pushed the lead out to 22-10 and this was increased further when nippy scrum-half Llyr Jones spotted a gap at a breakdown and scampered through some weak tackling to link with winger Thomas, who strode over for his second try.
The added extras took the score to 29-10 and Tenby were left to reflect what might have been. Rather than give in and let the home side walk away with the points, Tenby dominated the final 15 minutes, testing the home defence with attack after attack, with bundle of energy Harry Bolton and young outside-half Aled Griffiths also putting in excellent chase and tackle stints which kept Lampeter deep in their half.
The pressure was maintained when a move involving Edwards, Wyndham Williams and young Geoff Martin was stopped, with direct running centre Heywood held-up over the line. From the ensuing scrum, another team effort, this time involving Arthur M-M, Will Crockford and Wyndham Williams, ended with Harry Bolton being adjudged to have knocked the ball on while scoring, a claim Harry vehemently denied, as only Harry can.
All this industrious effort was rewarded at the death, with Gareth Edwards cunningly letting a throw-in go through his hands to allow the alert Sam Smith to charge through the spread-eagled home defence for what turned out to be the last score of the match and a 29-15 reverse for Tenby.
It was an excellent team effort by the 15 that travelled, as well as the support personnel, a fact well appreciated by the Tenby supporters who made the long journey north. Despite the somewhat strange formation that took to the field, everyone with a red and black shirt on played themselves to a standstill and did Tenby United proud.
Tenby fielded: Arthur M-M - Tenby Auto Centre Car Sales; Mark Wooles - Tenby Glass; Mark Heywood - N. D. Toy and Partners Ltd, Independent Financial Advisors and Mortgage Brokers; Neil Powling - Anne and Jeremy Rossiter, of Londis Stores, Manorbier; Harry Bolton (capt) - W3 Designs, Affordable Web Design; Aled Griffiths - Rossiters Funeral Directors, of Tenby and District; Will Crockford - Pam Pam Restaurant, Tenby; Wyndham Williams - Lewis, Lewis & Co. Solicitors; Mike Lewis - John Boot, of Lydstep; Geoff Martin - Bay Tree Restaurant, Tenby; Chris Brace - Alan Jones, Tenby United RFC chairman; Gareth Edwards - Rumbleway Caravan Park; Del Brace - Gavin and Dudley Scotcher, Capital Roasters Coffee Co.; Sam Smith - Mike Brace Home Maintenance Service; James Davies - Neil Finlay Car Sales.