Steelmen show their cutting edge

Feb 18 2008 by Phil Blanche, Western Mail

Ebbw Vale 62-7 Tondu

EBBW VALE breezed into the quarter-finals of the Konica Minolta Cup with the biggest win of fifth-round day.

The match programme made reference to the last occasion the two sides met and the Tondu’s 12-6 victory back in season 1990-91.

But there was never a chance of that being repeated, the Steelmen posting four tries within the opening half-hour and going on to register six more in the second half.

Chief tormentors were centres Greg Roberts and James Lewis. They enjoyed a steady steam of good ball sent out wide by fly-half Chris Anderson that enabled them to set up a hat-trick of tries by flying wing John Williams.

Establishing forward superiority early in the game resulted in Vale electing for scrummages rather than penalties and the Waterwheelers, with no-one working harder than flanker Matthew Morgans, had little answer.

Their solitary score, a try from skipper Sam Rees, received a huge cheer from the Ebbw crowd, who also showed their appreciation of two tries in quick succession from their own 18-year old prop Aaron Coundley.

Ebbw Vale: Tries – J Williams (3), A Coundley (2), G Roberts (2), S Hunt, A Bevan, W Thomas; cons – C Anderson (6)

Tondu: Try – S Rees; con – D Thomas