Narberth nil Merthyr 51 pts.

Having met in the SWALEC Cup a fortnight ago, the Otters knew what a force the Merthyr squad were. In preparation, the coaches had put the squad through some really intensive and aggressive routines.

The strongest squad available was selected, with some powerful support on the bench.

On the day, it seems Merthyr came with an even stronger squad and in the first half produced a power that at times seemed endless; their nickname of ‘Ironmen’ seemed entirely appropriate.

The Otters won the toss and selected to play towards the clubhouse and into the gale. With hindsight, the score may not have been so severe first half had the Otters decided to start playing downfield.

Merthyr kicked off and, using the strong wind, immediately put the Otters under pressure, gaining a penalty, although fullback Mathew Jarvis saw his kick sail the wrong side of the posts.

The Otters, with fierce and resolute tackles, attempted to keep them at bay and challenged at every opportunity, which in the first half was not too frequent.

At six minutes, the Ironmen had a second penalty, but Jarvis again failed to find the target.

At the first scrum, the Ironmen pushed the Otters back towards the five-metre line. It was an ominous moment since the Otters frequently outscrummage the opposition. This with the constant forceful drives in their phases really put pressure on the Otters, but it was clear their training had prepared them well and they held out, with fly-half Ianto Griffiths and his partner Jonathon Rogers kicking the opposition back.

Unfortunately, on 13 minutes, the Otters were penalised at the breakdown and this time Mathew Jarvis was successful with his kick.

The pressure was relentless and three minutes later, the Ironmen chose to kick for the corner. Using a rehearsed lineout tactic, Merthyr appeared to form a maul, but the ball was slipped to the blindside and lock Craig Lock crossed in the corner for an unconverted try.

The Otters managed to mount a few phases, but with the Ironmen lying close to the Narberth scrum, lineout and rucks, they were able to snuff out the drives forward.

On 25 minutes, Jarvis was able to add to the score with a penalty after the referee adjudged the Otters had infringed at the breakdown.

The Otters were not getting the rub of the green and supporters were making clear their feelings at some of the decisions, or lack of them.

Four minutes later, wingman Alex Howman crossed on the far side when, after an intense period of pressure, the ball was moved from left to right and with the defence outflanked by the attack, he was able to race over the line for another unconverted try.

Then three minutes later, scrum-half Mathew Downes scored under the posts, which enabled Mathew Jarvis to convert, making the score 25-0. Two minutes later, the other wing, Daniel Parry, scored a try, again converted by Jarvis.

Then immediately before half-time, their prominent number eight Phil Rees, who was a continual threat, scored a try, converted by Mathew Jarvis, giving Merthyr a half-time lead of 37-0 and a bonus point.

It was clear from the stand that the continuous resolute tackling was taking its toll and gaps were appearing, enabling Merthyr to punish with four first half tries.

Second half the Otters saw more of the ball. Unfortunately, a penalty scored by Mathew Jarvis on 46 minutes gave the Ironmen another three points.

A minute later, the Narberth coaches replaced Ollie Evans with Ryan Rees and Rhys Lane replaced Jonathon Rogers.

Merthyr proceeded to attack the Otters’ line and won a scrum near the five-metre line, which collapsed. The referee reset the second scrum and the Merthyr eight pushed the Otters over their line for number eight Phil Rees to touch down, with Mathew Jarvis converting.

Then Lyndon Bateman replaced Alex Jenkins, who had given his all, while on 55 minutes, Calumn Tree replaced Lewis Wood.

The fresh legs provided extra energy for a while to stem the Merthyr onslaught, but even the aggressive Lyndon Bateman was getting knocked backwards, such was the pressure being exerted, with three men taking him out and creating yet another ruck.

Finally, Narberth brought on Scott James to replace Jordon Roberts on the wing.

The Otters began to see more ball. Whereas earlier Merthyr had managed to spoil the Otters’ lineout work, Narberth now gained good ball from the lineout, Lyndon Bateman managing to claim clean possession and eventually managed to release Rhys Lane, who made a typical dash for the line, only for Merthyr to win back possession at the breakdown and clear the attack.

Finally, a minute before fulltime, Gary Way crossed for another converted try to make the final score an unfortunate 51-0.

This was probably the toughest game of the season to date. However, when money is no object, it is possible to build a very strong squad and Merthyr look set to move up into the Premier League.

The Narberth pack played with determination, but on the day they faced a superior pack. It is a rare sight to see the Narberth scrum go backwards. The Narberth half-backs had a difficult day, being harried at every turn. There was little chance to see the backs at their best and as the game progressed the defensive line began to open enabling Merthyr to take advantage.

Later, match sponsors Hains and Lewis named flanker Llyr Morris as man-of-the-match. Morris had punched above his weight from the outset.

In addition, second half replacements, scrum-half Rhys Lane and lock Lyndon Bateman both made an impact on proceedings.

Commenting after the match, Narberth head coach Sean Gale said: “We started really well, put tackling into reality with our intense play. After keeping them out, we made some silly mistakes with missed tackles and let them in for some cheap tries.

“In the second half we stuck in there and Merthyr only scored twice. I thought that it was a 30 points loss rather than a 50 points loss. The players made the effort, but the break in concentration and the fatigue was a little disappointing.

“It has been a very tough five weeks of demanding fixtures, but we are still more than capable of finishing in the top six of the Championship.”

Narberth fielded: Johnny Morgan, Jordan Roberts, (Scott James), Gareth Owens, Ollie Reyland, Liam Hutchins, Dan Jacobs, Dan Smith, Ollie Evans (Ryan Rees), Alex Jenkins (Lyndon Bateman), Adam Clarke, Gareth Bateman, Lewis Wood (Calumn Tree), Llyr Morris.

• Three postponed Narberth Championship home fixtures will be played on the following dates: Tata Steel tomorrow (Saturday) at 2.30 pm; Bridgend Athletic on Saturday, March 12, at 1.30 pm, and Newbridge on Saturday, April 23, at 2.30 pm.