One day it is all going to come good for Monmouth, but with the injuries picked up last week whilst losing 20-29 to Cardiff HSOB, next Saturday away at Oakdale may still be a step too far for this improving team. On a lovely day for rugby of fine drizzle, a yielding turf and not too cold Monmouth started off the slower and but for some luck, their own strong scrummage and two missed penalties against them, they survived the first 15 minutes before the Cardiff side pounced when full back Adams lost the ball near his own line. But this was the spur Monmouth needed and from a long kick ahead right wing Cheney was the beneficiary of a kind bounce to complete his speedy follow up to reduce the lead to 5-7 after only a further two minutes. Scrum half Morgan looking as sharp as ever was next to score when the ball was popped up to him from a tackle, as a gap appeared which he darted through to provide for an easy conversion by fly-half Frost and a 12-7 lead. Whilst the Monmouth pack were dominant in the set pieces one could not help thinking that it was Cardiff who were the more organised in attack and so they proved when they went round Cheney untouched for their second try on the half hour to even the scores. Centre Davies nearly made the gap and the difference but pulled up in extreme pain from a self inflicted leg injury and it was only a matter of minutes when Cardiff’s left wing scored again for a 12-19 half time lead with Monmouth having missed an important penalty just before half-time. All was not lost, because with a few timely substitutions and the front five still dominating, the coach urged his team to make their tackles and up the vigour whilst playing to their favourite end to be sure of the first league points of their season. But their luck was not in as first captain Stockley had to leave the field because of a knee injury and then Cardiff were allowed to play 0on after a fairly obvious knock on to not only score in the right corner but for their kicker to convert it to widen the gap to 12-24. Frost then clawed back three points from a well taken penalty only to see the visitors kick a penalty to the corner and from the ensuing line-out pass the length of the line to score in the opposing corner despite the heroic attempts of those forwards who were having to stand in in the backs. Tempers were by now fraying a little, and substitute veteran prop Powell who had not given an inch in the scrums, gave a full forty yards away by dissent just when his side were building a position. Monmouth rallied and gave of their best as injury time approached when Stacey Edwards virtually crawled over the line in that very determined way of his, to narrow the score to 20-29, but try as they might they could score no more in the 6 minutes of injury time that were to follow. Another near thing but Monmouth are now the only team in the league not to have won a game. The talent is there, and provided some key injuries clear up and quickly, Oakdale may be the team to beat this coming Saturday even though it is away and provide the confidence booster these young players need. They certainly deserve it.
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