Ponty pay the penalty after fightback
Pontypridd…………..22 Ebbw Vale……………23
A late Keiran Meek penalty gave Ebbw Vale a fourth consecutive league win, despite a spirited Pontypridd comeback.
Meek’s penalty meant the visitors claimed a one-point victory having led 17-3 after halfan-hour’s play, while Ponty emerged with only a losing bonus point.
Three first-half tries for the visitors from Ethan Phillips, Carrick McDonough and Morgan Richards gave them a comfortable lead, with Ben Burnell’s penalty the only response for the home side.
Then came the Ponty fightback as two tries from Rob Jones, each side of the interval, hauled them back into the contest. The latter came after Ebbw full-back Richards had been sent to the sin-bin for not rolling away at a breakdown. Burnell improved the first Jones try to cut the gap to two points, but then Ponty saw Ceri Morris binned for a high tackle.
Even so, the home side still managed to pick up a try bonus point following a dominant set piece that allowed Aled Ward to pick up and dot down after an Ebbw Vale scrum went against the head.
A touchline conversion from Burnell gave the hosts a narrow advantage but Meek came up with the winner.
Star man
Carrick McDonough -Ebbw Vale
