Tenby United 14 pts. Gorseinon 15

Emotions were running high on Saturday when G. D. Harries and Sons sponsored Tenby United welcomed old rivals Gorseinon to Heywood Lane for what is traditionally a tight and hard fought encounter.

With the Seasiders strengthening and improving week on week, they were confident that the win they have been searching for would certainly come, and, with a lot of hard work being put in on the training paddock and on the recruitment front, they were the better team from the outset and went into the half-time oranges seven-nil to the good.

After that, the lead changed hands three more times until the ’nip and tuck’ affair was finally settled through what seemed so cruel a blow to the home side in the dying moments of the game.

The United started strongly from the off, with honorary Seasider Jonathan Rogers, back at Heywood Lane on permit from our Championship neighbours Narberth RFC, controlling the territory battle through some intelligent and accurate kicking.

The back row of Timoci ‘Big Jim’ Kaumaitotoya, making his return to the Seasiders after transferring back in the week, Jason Ronowitz and Roy Osborn, who was on permit from Premiership side Carmarthen Quins, also played their part, working as a unit to pin the visitors in their 22 metre area with some superb defensive work and turning the ball over almost at will so that the dangerous Seasiders backs could strike.

Once the illustrious back row, along with skipper Harry Bolton and his second row partner Rob Weston, had worked hard to turn over the Gorseinon ball at the breakdown, scrum-half Luke Conbeer was able to set Rogers and the backs loose and, with the impressive centre pairing of newly-signed Scott James and Mark Heywood running hard and drawing in the visiting defence, wingers Jack Guerreiro and Greg Lees Griffiths along with fullback Dan Colley were able to run in the wide channels,, where they caused major problems for Gorseinon.

It was from one such run from the centre pairing that the first try of the game came.

Scott James made a lovely break before finding Ronowitz in support with a well-timed pass; Ronowitz sold the would-be defenders a dummy that Barrie John himself would have been proud of and then cantered in under the Gorseinon posts for a cracking try, which Rogers converted to give the home side a well-deserved lead.

The United continued to pile on the pressure, with the majority of the first half being played within the Gorseinon half, and it was only thanks to some determined and brave defensive efforts from the visitors that the half-time score wasn’t bigger than seven-nil to Tenby United.

Gorseinon levelled the scores early in the second half and it seemed that they had received a stern talking to by their coaches at half-time as they looked a different side after the oranges.

The score came through a well-worked driving lineout and the powerful shove got prop Fenton Holder over the line for the touchdown, which fly-half Rhodri Phelps converted.

After some evenly contested phases of play, Gorseinon took the lead for the first time when powerful centre Andrew Steele forced his way over for an unconverted try and the scoreboard read Tenby United 7 Gorseinon 12.

The game edged into the last 10 minutes and neither team seemed to be able to breakdown the other’s defence enough to threaten a further score of any kind, until the Seasiders and their supporters nerves turned to jubilation when a superb touch of skill from wing Greg Lees Griffiths lit up the wet and windy Heywood Lane gloom.

Lees Griffiths broke a tackle on the halfway line and chipped ahead. Chasing his own kick, he managed to charge down the Gorseinon clearance attempt and beat their fullback in the race to ground the ball, which was now inside the visitors’ in-goal area.

Rogers converted the try and put his side back in front by two points and the lead now belonged to Tenby United by 14 points to 12 going into the final two minutes of play.

It looked like the win the United had worked so hard to earn was finally theirs, until referee Matthew Thomas whistled for an offence deep in Seasiders territory.

Phelps stepped up for Gorseinon and, despite the pressure, slotted the kick straight between the uprights to the sound of the final whistle and in doing so gave his side the win by just one point and broke the hearts of the home side, with the final score on the board reading 14-15 in the visitors’ favour.

Tenby United have another big game tomorrow (Saturday) as they welcome Whitland to Heywood Lane for the local derby game which is sure to be a cracking game. Kick-off is 2.30 pm.

Tenby United fielded: Dan Colley (Aaron James), Greg Lees Griffiths, Scott James, Mark Heywood, Jack Guerreiro (Joe Criddle), Jonathan Rogers, Luke Conbeer, Roy Osborn, Jason Ronowitz, Timoci Kaumaitotoya, Rob Weston, Harry Bolton (capt), Lyndon Jones, Wesley Bonser, Rob Clark (Rob Luly), Dan Allen, Marcus Read.