Ponty 10 - Blues 40

Sardis Road, Ponty
By Andrew Collins
August 21 2005

The Cardiff Blues played their first ever match at Sardis Road on Saturday as they took on Ponty in a pre-season 'friendly'. 2,000 turned up to watch the Region Vs Feeder Club match, about 500 of which were cheering the region.

As expected, it was a poor side that was taken to the Valleys, with Dai not being able to use his Welsh and Lions tourists, but the game still proved a intense match and a great run-out for players old and new.

There were countless political points for why the game was being played, to appease Valleys fans, to silenbce critics, as a sign of intent, but there was also a few rugby matters to sort out.

As fans know, its a long season, and you need a big squad, Saturday gave Dai the chance to test that squad and see what resources he has avalable. For example, Should Nicky Robinson be struck down again, we need to know who can replace him, last season we found Lee Thomas who did nothing to ignite an already week set of backs, but in Nick Macleod and debutent Dai Flannagan (Right) , he has 2 more natural outside halfs.

The game itself saw 8 new debuts, most of which were RFC and Blues Youth players, but significantly was the 2nd half appearence of Andy Powell, who looked angry, and happy to bend the rules to suit himself slightly, which is the kind of attitude we've missed since the Dan Baugh days.

Early tries from winger Nick Gill and hooker Gareth Williams gave the away team a platform, upon which they failed to build, going to sleep for 20 minutes before conceding a clever try from Chris Clayton. The Blues heard the alarm bells ringing before half time, and when Chris Czekaj, making only his 4th Blues appearance, crossed, Young must've breathed a deep sign of relief.

The changes were rung in the 2nd half, and with them the Blues performance dropped a little. Ponty became more passionate in their play spurred on by their ever-noisy fans. The old 'Pon-Ty, Pon-Ty' chants echoed around Sardis, yet quite sadly, like a ageing Lion, it's roar seemed more timid.

Another significant debut came from Jamie Roberts. Any fan would've been forgiving for thinking Jamie Robinson had returned early as the 19 year old showed exciting pace and flair scoring two tries on his debut. He looked strong, fast and imaginative and seemed to have a keen eye for a gap much like Robinson, and I for one am looking forward to seeing him turn out for the Blues on a more regular basis over the next few years.

Tristan Davies grabbed himself a try in-between Roberts pair, only his second since signing last season.

Dai Flannagan coverted both Tristans and Roberts' try's with ease as the Blues began to take control.

Final Score

Ponty 10 Cardiff Blues 40