Crickhowell RFC - 33

Usk 2nds - 9

CRICKHOWELL’s successful season turned a little more sweeter last Friday when they were crowned Ivor Jones cup winners.

Playing Usk at Pontypool United’s ground, both teams started with high intensity but Crickhowell had the upper hand in the scrums from the off.

After half an hour it was scrum-half Lewys Cooke who broke the deadlock with a searing run up the wing to score the first try of the game, with Tom Keane converting.

Usk replied with a penalty some minutes later but almost immediately Keane slotted over a penalty for his side.

Shortly before half-time Crickhowell hooker Ed Jones was sin-binned and Usk scored a further three points from the resultant penalty, followed by a third shortly afterwards to make it 10-9 at the interval.

Five minutes into the second-half one of the Usk players was controversially red-carded and Crick began to gain the upper hand with another cooly placed penalty from the boot of Tom Keane. Next, a long kick upfield from Keane was followed up by a crunching tackle from Harry Purvis. From the ensuing scrum it was Ryan James who once again scored for his side with Keane converting.

As the subs were brought into play, captain Leon Rees burst through his opponents and passed the ball smoothly out to winger Ben Crocket who went over for Crick’s third try of the match.

Harry Summers rounded off the game with Crick’s fourth try.

The jubilant Crickhowell team lifted the cup to the delight of the traveling supporters. The biggest applause of the evening was when the man-of-the-match award was presented to Crickhowell prop Andy Nicholl.

The team was sponsored for the evening by ex-captain D. Penny of Transwave Ltd. Ebbw Vale.

With the season nearly over and with three games left to play, Crickhowell look almost certain to complete a league and cup double, a remarkable turnaround for a team that all but folded last season.