The Glamorgan Gazette

ve=== I FOOTBALL. I fjomments on Football reach the head office. Queen-Street. Bridgend, not later post on TUESDAY mornings. Re- ports to hand after that time cannot be Serted. Selected teams tor the follow- ing Saturday can be accepted up to Thurs- day mornings. BRIBGEND. Llan^llv came, saw aud TVOU by eleven joints. Speculations that Quarelia wou.d be re-named Waterloo'# in memory of ifce down-fall of the unbeaten Sos- BaiL Fach were fore-doc men to wppointment. It is true that English League ■beams often come a eropcer at the hands o weaker clubs, but. Welsh Rubers not so «rfteri, and the better team did not lose on tifcis occasion. Llanellv are easily eleven points bettei tha-it Bridgend, and that they were that number of points better on Saturday will be eener-illv conceded. Everybody who is cap- able of being satisfied tootbally (to com a word) ought to rest content. No. one really seriouslv expected that a team "which whacked the Waikibies and which. an paper, one of the best in the Kingdom this season, would be run very closely by Bridgend. and. taking the match through, the locals have re,ason to congratulate them- selves on doing as well as they did. For it h.q.s to be remembered that the Sospans only crossed the line once in the first half. and -that but for an erratic mistake, Bridgend wogil-d have sucked' lemons on even terms. This in turn might have re.sulted in a buoy- ancy among players which might have made a difference 111. the scoring of the second half. The striking thing about the scoring was that, while many movements of the Llanelly men which actually culminated pointless, looked like resulting in scores, the two last tries came unexpectedly, though at the same "time they showed brilliant opportunism. The first try of all came after a pretty piece of sharp oassiixg. the ball travelling fast to the wi.no; man. Harry Morgan. Avho easily or(it-flanked the Bridgend defence. The second was initiated: by Arnold, and a wide pass was sent to Stacey, who beat Arthur Thomas a nd ran over. The last try of all was gained by Howe in- tercepting a long pass between the Bridgend halves nearly on. their own line a.lwavs a risky proceeding. Lewis got round the aoruni cleverly, and should have kicked in order to ck>ar his lines. Thanks to the determined play of the "Bridgend forwards, the homesters had a good df,41 of the play. and. especially after the first <ju.airteT of an hour, were frequently able to keep operations in the Llanellv half. The local pack had their share in the scrums, and brought off several dribbles, nota,bly two strong rushes towards the end of the game, dribbling the ball in one of these seven- eights of the field. They failed to expand1, however, in open work, and were beaten in the- lines out. The Bridgend backs showed little combina- tion, and though on one occasion, when Ley- ehoii ought to have run ovec they indulged in a fairly well executed passing advance, they lacked the individual cleverness of their more experienced oooonents, and could not oat-flank the very fast defence. Llanellv not only out-paced the Bridgend men, but also showed much onicker perception. The main factor in the effee-tiveness of the Sospans was their speed and facility in handling, though they frequently failed at the crucial moment through fumbling or knocking on. Altogether the play of the Llanellv backs was of very high C|U-ahty so Tar as passing or individual Tuns were concerned, and they got down to the ball in stopping rushes. Their ence was sound, as the blank on Bridg- end's side of the score sheet indicates. The fastest niaru on the field' was n n- dloubteJv Harry Morgan, the Llanellv right wingv who put in some fine individual runs, particularly one of the cork-screw order. He played to a clever centre in Tom Williams, the pair making things very hot at times. Arnold, the outside half, was quite dazzl- ing both in attack and defence, while the pick of the forwards were Tom Evans, the in- ternational. D. L. Bowen and' Stacey. Captain Gronow, of Bridgend. set his men 811 excellent example in the fine game he pJayed. and he was well suuported among the £ oi"wards by Glyn Parry and Harry Ham. Tlie J*r:<igend halves were only mediocre. I •ttttderstand. at the time of writing. that t/ho Match Committee have decided to give Ck-m Lewis a rest for a week or two. It is not intended, I am assured, to drop the plucky youngster in the ordinary sense, but Hie committee think he may improve as a result of a respite. D. Jones, of Ogmore V..1e., is to be tried at the position to-morrow. Torl Evans was again the shining star or the quartette, though the other three played a determined game in defensive work. Arthur Thomas was in good form at ba-ck, and, though he let in Stacey rather easily, he diu^ome excellent work for "his side, Tlfie bumper ''gate" indicated; a. tevival of in football in the town and neigh- bourhood. which ousrht to lilere-ase, should the locals be successful in their matches during this month with Pontycvmmer. Pontardawe, Pontypridd, and Maesteg. Many of the spectators came, of course, to see the con- querors of the Wallabies. Things football-wi&e are really froing along quite serenely, and when the dignity and tone of the grand stand come along, there will 00 a further attraction to spectators and on enhanced inspiration for players. Who would net put forward his best efforts when watched through field glasses from a palatial art and? A sportive touch was lent to Saturday's match by a number of the visitors' supporters wearing little saucepans. BOXYPENT. MAESTEG. The improved form showed by the Maesteg team against Mountain Ash gave a deal of (satisfaction to their supporters. A win for the home team was anticipated before the teams fielded, but the most sanguine suppor- ters never prophesied more than a five point victory. To beat a. team of Mountain Ash's standing is certainly no mean performance. Because tiie win proved to be one of 12 points to nil. some pessimists may come to the conclusion that the Old Firm fielded a weak side. This was not the case, although it must be admit- ted that a couple of their players were assist- ing the- Glamorgan League team at Aber- tillery. 0 However, no two players would make a dif- ference of 12 points to their side. The sub- stitutes were capable men: in fact, the one at centre, was by far the best on the visiting side, with perhaps the exception of the full back. Naturally after this welcome change in form, we expect the team to bring off some surprises in the near future, but the players, now that they have srot into proper stride, must not neglect training and fall off again. An appeal to some of the old supporters of the club to show themselves once more at the matches would perhaps not be out of place. It would certainly give much pleasure to the committee to see yon ihere. and your 'ring- ing cheers would no doubt encourage the I b players a great deal. You may be certain that you will enjoy a good game, especially if the players keep up to their present form. The marked change in the play was most noticeable amongst the forwards, who seemed to be quite a new pack, and showed better staying power. M. Gilbert was the best forward IE the field; his speed was of great advantage, and gave him his try. M. Coleman played a clever game throughout, his dribbles being very -nicely done. J. W. Da vies. who. bv the way, dropped •fche goal, played one of his usual hard and clever games. Hop Evans deserves mention for Jus sterling ulay, some of his saves being really fine The remaining players did al- most as wetl1, but were not quite so conspicu- ous as those mentionied. The display given bv the backs was a trifle I below the mark. individually they did well, but this is not characteristic of Welsh back play. It is the aia chine-like movements that all want to see. True, attempts were made at passing, but that fatal finishing movement has not been mastered. The best man among the backs was Gunn his trv was the outcome of determination and dash, which most wings Maesteg have tried seem to lack. Gunn is certainly im- proving every match. W. Thomas, at centre, played a good game considering that he only turns out now and again. He is a. good sub- statute, and the committee should take oare of him. „ „ T -o Saturday was an ott <iav icr j. H. nwro, whose plav in past matches this season has been of a high standard. It was quite the reverse against Mountain Ash. Preece is a voting plaver. and possibiv we are expecting too much of him. hut it is hoped he will be himself again next Saturday. D. J. Thomas, the right wing, gave a good! account of himself, but seemed to lack judg- ment at the crucial moment. He, like Preece. is a very voung oiayer. who will im- prove with a little more experience. The halves gave their best display of the season, Bayliss bringing off the dummy pass movement in extraordinary fashion, thus fairly baffling the opposing pair. His de- fence was sound, and he took and gave his passes admirablv. E. Evans was quite as good. one of his runs being very cleverly exe- cuted. His try, also, was the result of clever play. Sam Ackerman seems as if p is going to make a second Marsburg. He tackles fear- lessly. kicks a huge length, and saves his for- wards a lot of work. To-morrow Maesteg play Aberavon away. I y 1" With a representative team, in good train- ing. I don't think they should lose. LLYXFI. NANTYMOEL. The Xantymoel Town team on Saturday suffered keen disappointment and the loss of a bumper gate" by the non-appearance of the Glyncorrwg team. who. with depleted ,ranks. journeyed as far as Tondu, but there cried Peccavi." Satisfaction is felt that the League Com- mittee on Saturday evening last, in its pro- found1 (?) wisdom graciously consented1 to re- instate Nan-tymoot in the League, upon the distinct understanding that the age rule would in future be strictly observed. Pro- bably this is the wiser course to adopt in face of the progress Xorthern Unionism is making in South Wales just now. and I have -no doubt that the committee of the Nantymoel Club, who are all of them downright good sports, will offend no more. Xext Saturday, the Moelians visit Maesteg Rangers, who lowered the Excels' flag. The Rangers have another opportunity to break a record, for Xantymoel are undefeated, and have registered 48 points to 4. Unfortun- ately for such an important fixture, Xanty- moel are unable to field their strongest team, but I think the Rangers will find them too big a handful to vanquish. The game should, be an interesting one. C, OLD REF. NANTYMOEL EXCELSIORS. The match at the Wyndham Field on Sat- urday between the Excels and Cymmer was fa.r from interesting from a spectacular point of view. The Excels must have had one of their "off" days, for their exhibition was not one to warrant any hopes for the League Championship, and unless a radical change takes place in their general play, their future success will be seriously imperilled. Cymmer should have won, and that rather easily. Two penalties in front of goal awar- I C'mmEr, should have won, and that rather easily. Two penalties in front of goal awar- ded them, proved abortive, and the oppor- tunities afforded- the backs should have re- suited in at least two tries being scored. The Excels' forwards were badly beaten in the tight maul, for the ball came out with monotonous regularity on the Cymmer side of the scrum nine times out of every ten. The Cymmer halves, thus privileged, were very prominent, and cut out openings galore for I their threequarters, who utterly failed to take advantage of their chances. The only ray of hope the Excels had was in loose foot- work, which, under the circumstances, should have been much more resorted to. Bowden and Llew Davies. who were eclipsed at half by the visiting pair, could not oe blamed for their indifferent display. The Excels' forward rank must be immediately strengthened before their backs can hope to shine. Tom Morgans was the best threequarter on the ground, and, with Jack Bowden. the Ex- cels' full1 back, saved the ground record and their side from a complete <rout. The result —a pointless draw—was a very fortunate one for the homesters. The Excels' vrsit to Biaengarw on Saturday to meet the Infants, can only be looked for- ward to with grave concern, for the Feeding Bottle Brigade are "mustard" on their native heath, the Cow's Back. ALPINE. BLAENGARW. 1 have yet another two points to add to my little store, and, without being poetical, let's have some more. This time we took them from the new Bridgend II. team. Fine weather gave the usual crowd of spectators a chance to see a really good game of football. Our crowd had to keep behind the ropes this time. and there was none of the usual wan- dering on to the field of nlay. We offer our heartiest thanks to those who spent their spare time in fixing up the field with "postses" and wire. Xow we only want a few '"caskses" or some oranges boxes to enable the shorter or some oranges boxes to enable the shorter ones to see what is going on. As I have already said, it was a very fine game, and I can say without being accused of brag, that the Infants1 ought to have scored a, few more tries. There they're off again" was a shout often heard, but almost as often the shout was followed by "Oh. darro, mini, he's missed his pass again." You must im- prove your passing, threes. Perhaps you failed because you did not stand round pro- perly behind the scrums, and so were just a little too far forward to receive the passes. I find it difficult to reallv pick out those who were "stars" of the side. Everybody played a good hard game. Ginger Jones did what little he had to do. and the great event which he was dread- ve ing did not come off. But for the passes missed, the "threes" played a good game, and tried1 many good rounds of passing. Dick Phillips scored a try with a man to spare. Hopkins, who scored the other, had also a man to spare. 1 think Hopkins ha<s been waiting to score that try for a long time. Tucker, at half, was all that could be de- sired. He had the nippy half. Cooke, on the other side of the scrum, and did not come off second best. I hope the Lc«ague will not for- get Tucker when they want the best local in- side half. The same must be said of the forwards. Several are worth their places in the selected team. The Infants pack is improving each match they play. Jack Rees and the Bro- thers Morris nlayed' a good quiet game, with- out making too much fuss about it. That was a funny run of yours. Evan, when you butted a few men out of the way, and were only stopped when four or five men tried to get a cheap ride. To-morrow we are at home to the Excels, and anticipated stirring events. Both sides. I think, are hoping to win, and both are go- ing to try. Yet I'm readv to stake my feed- ing bottle on my I-little Inlants." FEEDIXG BOTTLE. CEFN CRIBBWR. Cefn visited Llanharian last Saturday to play a League match, the game ending in a pointless draw, although the Riders had hard lines in not scoring at least twice during the game. They were very unfortunate in having to journey minus five of their regular players, substitutes being found from the second team. Cefn did not hold any particular advantage forward, and badly missed the services of their popular skipper, William David, but a food and clever substitute was found in. Jim tenner, who -laved a really good game, as also did R. Watkins, C. Aplin, and Jenkin Thomas. George Butcher was very conspicu- ous at times, especially in the line-out. Captain Watkins was the hero of the match, but his partner. D. Morgans, was very closely watched by his opponent, and was un- able to bring off any of his sensational runs. In the three-quarter line it was quite clear that Harry Richards had recovered his old form. His co-centre, Johnny Smith, was brilliant, his fine runs and openings being the feature of the game. Cook, on the right wing, brought off a few nice runs and showed keen tackling. Uob xv-chards, on the other wing, was a little nervous during the early part of the game, but improved as the game went on. Downs, at full back. was great. He stopped apparently certain tries, and his fielding and kicking left nothing to be de- sired. The spectators were very orderly, and the players were thorough sportsmen on and off the field. Cefn 2nd team were much down-hearted when they found that they had to field a team minus their captain, J. Smith, who had been snatched up and taken away by the First team, but to their disappointment Pencoed, II. did not turn up. To-morrow the lambs are at home to Porth- cawl II., while the Firsts journey to Bettws. I rather fancv the chances of the Riders. A RIDER. LLANGYNWYD UNITED. The United met with their second defeat this season at the hands of St. Theodore's. Aberavon. whence they journeyed last Satur- day. They were, however, very unfortunate in having to field an experimental XV., inas- much as a new full-back was tried, Evans, the captain, having to go as inside half, and Howelils and Frappell to operate in the three- quarter line. Such. changes proved too much for the team, for the backs were never able to com- bine well, and, the custodian suffered at the start from a touch of nervousness. St. Theodore's scored two tries in quick succession. Having taken advantage of a slip by the full-back, Llangynwyd retaliated by scoring from a. forward rush. The second half was fasten- and more in- teresting, and both teamssoored a try each. Of the five tries scored in the match, not one was converted. See to this LIangynwyd. The game, as a whole, was not a good one as a spectacle, and too much chin-music" was indulged in by both tealns. The visiting forwards played well, but their heeling was slow and erratic. In the loose they figured to advantage, and Brooke showed a good turn of speed', saving a certain. try by means of it. The continual reference to their "gymna- sium'' seemed to be part of the Saints' play, by which they intended to scare their oppon- ents, but it did not wash with the "Ponty's," who, by the way, much resented1 the absence of the usual tub" after the match. Brynina are the visitors at Llangynwyd next Saturday, and a goodf game is antici- pated. OLD PARISH. CYMMER. Cymmer journeyed1 to Xantymoel last Sat- urday to try conclusions with the Excels. The visitors played' minus their regular half- backs and full back. yet they gave a very creditable account of themselves. After having a big share of the game, they had to '7 1 be content with a draw. They crossed their opponents line on a few occasions, but were re-called'. Cymmer would have scored again, but for the brilliant play of the home custodian,. The visiting team JJlave-d well to a man. and it would hardly be fair to single any out for special mention. THE BULL-DOG. PENCOED. Pencoed journeyed to Lhvynypia on Satur- day. The opening stages of the game we're not of a. very interesting nature, save for rather pretty bouts of passing now and then by the home quartette, one of which took the ball dangerously near the line. After scram- bling play, Parker got hold. and, running strongly, scored a good try. no goal result- ing. On changing sides Pencoed went up to the visitors' territory with a rush, and would on several occasions have scored but for lack of cohesion and want of spe.ed. Llwynypia, al- though deprived of the services of a few of their players, did very well, and just as the whistle blew were almost over. There was no more scoring, the homesters winning by a try to nil. Among the visitors worth noting was R. Morris, who played' a good forward game. Lewis at half was not at a.11 bad, but unfor- tunately the quartette did not get going very well together. PORTHCAWL. After driving to Tondu on Saturday with the intention of playing the Rangers, we were surprised on arriving there to find the Tondu team conspicuous b their absence. There was not- a single person at their headquarters. After the club writing as late as Friday asking for the fixture, and' saying they were getting a strong side out to try and lower our colours, I think their action extremely bad taste, to say the least of it. To make matters worse, we actually passed their Second XV. which, by the way, we afterwards found out contained a goodly number of first teamers in brakes, on their way to Pcrthcawl to plav the Reserves, and they had the nerve to inform us that the Ra.n- gu s were waiting our arrival at Tondu. We went on. and found we had been duped. It will perhaps be rememhere,d that Porth- cawl defeated the Hangers by a huge score early in the season,, so I suppose they took fright, especially after the match with Swan- sea II. sea II. It is interesting to note that Porthcawl TI. Avon as they pleased by 21 points to nil. SEAWEED. HEOLYCYW. A match between Xantymoel II. and Heoly- cyw. on the ground of the latter on Saturday was won by the homesters by three points to nil. Heolycyw have the making of a good junior team, but they must play more regularly to- gether. The forwards were generally "good but a few want weeding out, and they need a. lot of practice in heeling. Sim Brain, T. Gore and E. Llewellyn Avorkgd very haird iu- de,e.d. I The half-backs were off colour, but this was only to be expected in view of the referee al- lowing the opposing halves to play off-side. The threequarters played spendidly, and if they keep together in a few more matches, t hey AA-jll take a lot of watching. Jim Brain, Eili Gregory, E. Gore, and Jess Brain were the best backs on the field. The full back was off colour. ne persists in getting too far up the field and relying on flying kicks. CROSS-BAR. TALYGARN. A.F.C. By really good football, Talygam defeated Piarc Gwylllt by three goals to two. The game was fast and exciting, devoid of any unpleasant incident Avhat-ever, and the man- ner in which the referee controlled it is worthy of all praise. For the first quarter of an hour Pare Gwyllt held the upper hand1, and taking ad- vantage of some mis-kicking by the visiting backs, scored an easy goal. Talygam im- mediately pressed, and North receiving a timely pass from E. Jones, scored the equali- ser. From a free Pairc GwvHt again scored, and at the interval led by two to one. The re-start found Talvgarn pressing, aud a pretty bit of combination ended in Jones finding the net. Play then became fast 'and furious, but the Talygam backs kept the ball well up among the forwards, and fifteen minutes from call of time. North scored the winning goal. The Talygam forwards combined splen- didly, and when near their opponents' goal were always dangerous. Edmunds., centre forward, got through an immense amount of work, considering he was closely watched. Birfes, the right winger, excelled himself, con- tinually pouring in a host of dangerous