Caldicot have not visited Monmouth for a good few years and after a 52-6 drubbing with eight tries scored against them, they are probably wondering whether it was worth the short journey.

On a cold but dry day, and after committee members had spent a full 45 minutes clearing the pitch of bottles smashed there during the week by the town’s mindless vandals, battle commenced and Monmouth soon found themselves on the wrong side of the referee’s interpretations of the laws. After only five minutes Caldicot went into a three point lead from a penalty.

Competition between the forwards was intense with the Monmouth pack almost back to full strength and the pressure they were exerting eventually stretched them enough for Matt Morgan to take advantage of a gap to cross over twenty yards wide of the posts on the left as the Caldicot team tried desperately to cover across. The kick by fly-half Forrest was simply converted as a result.

The game then descended into one of intense frustration on two counts. The forwards who were building some dominance gradually found themselves penalised again and again, so much so that when they eventually were awarded one in their favour at long last, the, by this time, very vocal crowd cheered the referee ironically.

But it did not help the composure of the home side and although the backs many times looked like scoring, especially when they moved the ball quickly towards the wings, their own frustration led to them trying too hard to redress the balance with inevitable handling and tactical errors. As a result the score remained 7-3 for the remainder of the half but with distinct signs that something was about to give after the break.

And sure enough, the speedy Brace, this time playing on the wing to make room for the footballing talents of Berry at full back, cut through to score an unconverted try after only five minutes. But Caldicot at this stage were not to be outdone and clawed their way back to 12-6 with another penalty.

But the vigour of the Monmouth pack was beginning to tell and after a converted try by the ever thrusting Taylor at scrum half, it was a forward in the shape of Matt Edwards who, supporting well, used his height to crash over near the posts for yet another converted try.

At 26-6 Caldicot began to look dispirited despite the cajoling and attempts to lead by example of the Caldicot captain and Number 8, Brett. There was a temporary lull as some Monmouth forwards were getting back their breath, but more because individual visiting three-quarters were allowed to show what might have been by using their pace to run the ball back at Monmouth, due to some extent to the practice at this stage of the game of the home team kicking for territorial position when more positive progress might have been achieved by greater use of the growing superiority of Monmouth’s running game.

It was a full fifteen minutes before Monmouth clicked again as the light faded and hooker Edwards appeared from out of the murk to score another individualistic try over a good thirty yards which although not quite as good as that against Blaina the week before, was just reward for one who works so tirelessly for the team cause.
This set the ball rolling and never to be out done Johnny Powell capped a good personal game in which he used both his pace and size to pop up far out to score in the right hand corner. A try good enough to forgive him the odd dropped ball earlier in the game and recognition for a pack that worked extremely hard throughout.

As injury time continued, as the game had seen many stoppages and the day became even darker, Brace and Morgan again showed their pace to cross the line for further tries as Caldicot were by now falling apart defensively. Forrest rounded off his day in the 46th minute having already kicked 6 conversions by failing from the touch line but no-one minded at the end of such a comprehensive win and an important three league points firmly placing Monmouth in the upper half of the table.