Tenby United 29 pts.

Tumble 20

Andrew Price, Molson Coors and FBM Holidays sponsored Tenby United 1st XV took advantage of a brief break in the wet weather on Saturday to welcome Tumble to Heywood Lane in Division Three West.

With the Seasiders being plagued by injuries in their backline of late and losing their last four outings, they have worked extremely hard in training to improve in certain areas and strengthened the squad with new signings in key positions.

The United team were anxious to exorcise the demons and get back to the winning ways they had been so accustomed to for much of the season.

It was a good start from the Seasiders, putting pressure on a Tumble side who had certainly come with confidence and were keen to run everything, even from deep within their own 22.

The stern Tenby defence and strong attacking runs from number eight Patrick Roberts and youth centre Greg Caine were beginning to cause problems for the visitors early on and with just five minutes gone, fullback Thomas 'Turbo' Lewis was able to punish them with a well-struck penalty, giving his side the lead.

Both sides had come to play open expansive rugby and ran the ball well, but it was Tenby who had the slight edge and were very strong in defence, stopping every attempt Tumble made to breach their lines, with Lloyd Thomas, Dan Colley and Roy Osborn all putting in some big hits.

It was the home side who also had the edge in attack, with the forward eight supplying quality ball for the backs to run, with Nicky Guymer, Johnny Palmer, Roberts and Gareth Edwards rucking well to ensure quick ball was recycled.

After both teams played some attractive rugby, it was the United who would cross the line for the first try.

This came after some clinical backs play. With the basics being done well, Greg Caine was able to run in the first of his brace of tries out wide. The conversion was unsuccessful.

Following some even phases of play, it was Tumble's prop Dan Owen who barged his way over to score five minutes later after a strong and well-worked driving lineout from his side's pack pushed the Tenby eight within inches of their line; this score also went without the extras.

Despite the Magpies closing the gap, the Seasiders kept the pressure on and did not panic. They recycled possession until they worked themselves to within striking range, before Lloyd Thomas threw a lovely inside ball to effervescent flanker Roy Osborn, who drew two defenders before jigging the pass to Caine, who wasn't going to be stopped from 10 yards, and the six-foot-plus centre crashed over for his second try of the game. Turbo stepped up to close the first half with the conversion, which sent his side into the interval 15 points to five to the good.

If you blinked when Osborn caught the restart, then you would have missed what was probaly one of the quickest and best tries of the season.

As he caught the ball near the touchline, he saw that the visiting defence was all over the place and decided to run it.

Drawing the Tumble winger, he gave the pass to United winger Greg Lees Griffiths, who showed confidence in his pace and skill to have a go at the score from well inside his own 10-yard line.

He beat one defender and chipped ahead on the halfway line, rounding another defender on the Tumble 22, before gathering the ball and going in for the try. With Lewis adding the extra two points, Tenby found themselves 22-5 up after less than one minute of the second half.

Tumble's Steve Hewitt took the next points with a penalty following some Seasiders back-chat on 44 minutes, but it was another superb solo effort which saw Tenby's other winger Simon Stanford score after he caught the ball on the halfway line and managed to weave his way through for the try, leaving as many as six defenders in his wake. Lewis again added the two points.

This, howeve,r was to be the home side's last score of the game.

Tumble struck back with two tries of their own late on through Gareth Jones and Kieran Richards, with Hewitt only manging one of the conversions.

The Seasiders battled well for the remainder of the game but, despite some strong runs and well-worked moves, they weren't able to cross for another try, but were more than happy to grind the clock down and finish 29 points to 20 in the lead, taking a much-needed win and bonus point.

Thanks go to Mike Carrington, of Newey and Eyre, for his continued help and for the sponsorship of the Tenby United 1st team's insulation tape, which is an essential in any rugby player's kitbag.

Tenby United: Thomas Lewis (Kial Keane), Simon Stanford, Greg Caine, Dan Colley, Greg Lees Griffiths, Lloyd Thomas, Will Crockford, Patrick Roberts,Roy Osborn, Luke Hansford (Richard Rossiter), Gareth Edwards, Luke Dedman (Wyndham Williams), Rob Clarke, Nicky Guymer, Johnny Palmer.

Tenby United 1st XV travel to Amman United for their next league game on Saturday, February 16, and any of you who have followed Tenby rugby over the last few seasons will know how much of an important and well-contested game this is.

So the club is urging the people of the town to make an effort to support the boys in this game, which promises to be a hard fought and very entertaining encounter.

If you are interested in travelling on a supporters bus, please make enquiries with Dominique in the club or ring the club on 843501.