Monmouth 1st XV were back down to earth on the training field this week after their defeat at Bargoed on Saturday, not because the they were so much better, as the 14-34 score-line might suggest, but more because Monmouth could be said to have given the game away by a succession of errors.

On a glorious if windy day Monmouth dominated the first half as we have come to expect with the pack winning the set pieces with relative ease. Matt Taylor was his usual bustling self behind the scrum and the Dave Croudace kicking machine predictably brought two penalty goals inside ten minutes and then crowned that when in the 30th minute Monmouth won a scrum against the head, by running left and with a neat dummy found a gap opening up through which he scored a try near the posts which he converted..

Bargoed having replied with only one penalty, a 10 point lead at 13-3 seemed to be fair reward at the turn around when inexplicably Monmouth players were casual in their defence of a Bargoed short penalty in the 38th minute allowing a converted try from a looping close quarters move in the corner which was converted. When Bargoed picked up a penalty against the run of play on the stroke of half-time to equalise at 13-13, they could not believe their luck.

But with Monmouth's forward superiority all should be well despite playing into the wind? Some hope that would soon prove to be!

Although the front five still played well, a combination of wrong options, ill-advised kicking away of possession, handling errors and unnecessary complexity, played into the hands of Bargoed's livelier back row and more penetrative and pacey backs, for Monmouth to fall progressively behind to converted tries more in the 10th, 20th and 30th minutes for a thoroughly disappointing second half and a final score of 13-34.

On the day Bargoed proved the better but how much of this was down to avoidable errors will be the focus of discussion with the Coach because it may be significant that until Saturday, Bargoed and Monmouth had not played any of the league front-runners, Fairwater, Bedlinog and Cardiff HSOB and those are the three next league matches to come for Monmouth.

Next week sees a friendly home against Pontllanffraith with Fairwater being the visitors on 26 October.