Ravens swoop for six tries

Jan 28 2008 by Our Correspondent, Western Mail

Builth Wells 10-45 Bridgend

IT’S back to urgent league business for The Bulls after the Ravens swooped for six tries to reach the last l6.

Skipper and full back Gareth David, aged 25, who was not born when Bridgend were cup winners in l979 and l980, scored 20 points.

He snapped up their second try and landed a penalty and all six conversions. “Builth battled hard, and now I want us to go all the way and win the trophy,” said David.

The Bulls had phases when they certainly looked better than a side with only four wins from ll Division Two East games this season.

After being relegated last year, they would hopefully bounce back to Division One at the first attempt, club president Ainsleigh Jones said in the match programme. Like Ravens, no doubt, there’s hard work to face on the league front.

Bridgend are one step away from being in their 27th quarter-final since the cup competition was revived in l971.

They went to Builth on the back of four wins in their last five Premiership games after a poor start to the season.

Builth director of rugby Justin Lewis said: “We faced a well-organised side. But I think we did ourselves proud on the day, as we did our Division and the town.”

Builth-born Mark Jones, Scarlets and Wales wing, saw centre John Thurston score all the home points, converting his 56th-minute try after earning a brief early lead with a penalty.

Thurston hit a post with another penalty attempt when Ravens were l4-3 up.

Bridgend, 24-3 ahead at the interval, added three tries in l5 minutes late in the game. As though bound by cup fever, some players were involved in a fight after only three minutes, but after that Cwmavon referee Huw Griffiths had no serious trouble.

Bridgend number eight Gareth Williams was yellow carded shortly after David’s try and Builth captain and flanker Wayne Morris was sin-binned early in the second half.

Builth had studied a video of Ravens’ l2-7 home win over Glamorgan Wanderers last month.

And as a cup day in Wales it was one to remember for two Bulls, prop Grant King and lock Luke De-Winton.

King, aged 22 and new this season, is from Durban and has friends in Builth. De-Winton, aged l9, a Welsh Colleges player, leaves in February to spend six months with a team outside Auckland.

De-Winton advertised on the web to see if there was a chance of playing in New Zealand.

At full back for Builth and coping well with the pressure was Royal Marine Rob Lloyd, on leave from his Plymouth base.

The lone home try came when outside half Dorian Davies put through a kick which Thurston followed up, just beating David to ground the ball.

Back in Builth’s packed clubhouse after the match, one observer dipped into memory –“It’s been like one of those old rugby days.”

Builth: Try – J Thurston; con – Thurston; pen – Thurston

Bridgend: Tries – D Connolly, G David, I Dobbs, G Howells, D Bishop, L Ronan; cons – David (6); pen – David