Wrexham Rugby Football ClubBryn Estyn Road, Wrexham, LL13 9TY (UK)
01978 261215
Wrexham Rugby Football Club
Bryn Estyn Road, Wrexham, LL13
9TY (UK)
01978 261215
2006 - 2007
from
Chris Kilfoyle
This Year's Match Reports
Denbigh edged away from the drop zone in Division Four North with a comprehensive seven try defeat of already relegated Wrexham, but they had to work for their victory after two tries by Wrexham number eight Keir Harding held them to a slender 20-12 advantage at the break.
A penalty by outside-half Tony Jones put the home side in front only two minutes after the start of the game, only for Wrexham to go in front moments later with a great forward try by Harding. He broke off the back of a dominant scrum and crashed over wide out. Outside-half Kerry Powell failed with his difficult conversion attempt.
In the 12th minute, however, centre Sion Edwards restored Denbigh’s lead when he ran through a couple of poor tackles to score an unconverted try in the corner. Undeterred, Wrexham countered with some impressive work by their forwards and a superb attacking display by winger Mark Gasson, recalled to the side following a long absence.
Unfortunately, their lack of a cutting edge behind the pack cost Wrexham dear and they fell further behind when Jones cut back on the angle in the 33rd minute to score a try under the posts which he converted. Wrexham replied with a second try for Harding, converted by Kerry Powell, but Denbigh finished the half with a smart score by wing Gavin McLoughlin.
Wrexham started off well in the second-half with some good work by Powell, Harding and the front-row of Rob Thatcher, Guy Bingham and John Gill, but they were soon rocked by another try from the playmaking Jones and then lost their way defensively. Denbigh wrapped up the game with two more tries for Jones, one for winger and a conversion by Jones.
Wrexham competed well at times
with visitors Nant Conwy in their Division Four North contest at
A determined start by the home
side was halted in the 4th minute of the game when the Nant threequarters
created an overlap on the right and full-back Grant Jones raced into the line to score an
unconverted try. Only 5 minutes later, the same player finished off another sparkling move
by touching down in the left corner.
Wrexham’s lack of
confidence showed and they were further handicapped by having to play lock Rhodri Ifans in
the centre to cover deficiencies in the threequarter line. However, outside-half Richard
Jasper helped to stem Nant’s pace in attack with intelligent breaks and lock Mike
Jones also contributed with a couple of good thrusts.
Wrexham should have scored in
the second quarter when Nant came under pressure in their 22, but a good passing movement
was ruined when a home winger dropped the ball with the line at his mercy. Still, they
managed to hold the visitors to a slender
Nant, however, made a good
start to the second-half and increased their lead after only 4 minutes when number eight
Medwyn Vaughan scored under the posts from a line-out and outside-half Peredur Ellis
kicked a simple conversion. They continued to press but Wrexham’s defence held on
with substitute winger Sion Lloyd-Jones giving an assured debut performance.
Wrexham’s never-say-die
attitude persisted through the work rate of hooker John Gill, scrum-half John Roberts,
number eight Keir Harding and centre Kerry Powell, but their team as a whole made too many
mistakes and handed back the initiative to the visitors. The final nail in the coffin was
applied in the 73rd minute when Nant winger Steffan Morgan scored under the
posts from an interception move and Ellis added the conversion.
Wrexham will end their season
next Saturday when they visit Denbigh for their final Division Four North game of the
season. They have already been relegated to Division Five next season but their hosts are
still trying to avoid the drop and will be doing everything in their power to ensure their
survival in the top flight (k.o.2.30pm).
Wrexham were relegated back to Division Five North after being outclassed at Bryn Estyn
Lane by visitors Mold who retained their Division Four North title with this record
victory.
We should have scored again through the surging Mike McLeod, but good defence by Mold ensured that he was held over the line. When our hard pressed side finally ran out of steam, the visitors capitalised with further tries by substitute flanker Ian Clewarth and hooker Liam Gill with Dan Edmunds kicking one more conversion
Wrexham
failed to sparkle in their crucial Division Four North relegation battle at Newtown and
were whitewashed by their hosts who were overjoyed to escape their possible drop into the
lower division.
The
visitors held Newtown to an 8-0 lead at half-time and played well in brief spells, but
they found themselves up against a much bigger pack and were unable to make much of an
impression. Number eight Keir Harding was Wrexham’s top performer while John Gill,
back from his exploits with the North Wales side in mid week, coped well on the flank.
Newtown
exerted a lot of pressure through their pack in the first-half and broke the deadlock in
the 17th minute when their big number eight Eddie McGuire crashed over for a
try wide-out. Lock Neil Farrington failed with his conversion attempt but had more luck in
the second quarter when he kicked a penalty to open up an 8 point lead.
Eddie McGuire took advantage by
powering over from a scrum in the 56th minute to score his second try of the
game and Harrington added a conversion. The goal kicking lock then slotted a penalty a few
minutes later to put the game beyond Wrexham’s reach and centre Gavin Williams
wrapped it up with a late try.
Coach Russell Penrhyn Jones was disappointed with his side’s inability to press home their attacks in the absence of their main ball carriers such as the unavailable Mike McLeod and Iwan Roberts. With Championship leaders Mold due at Bryn Estyn Road on Saturday things don’t get any easier and relegation now looks a certainty.
Wrexham looked to be heading for a crucial victory when they led by 17-5 with only 20 minutes of the match remaining, but then they collapsed under pressure for the third game in succession and ended up on the verge of relegation.
It was a pity that they took their foot off the pedal in the closing quarter because Wrexham had dominated the match up to that point with skipper Mike McLeod and centre John Roberts giving magnificent attacking performances. 19-year-old wing Rob Massam made an impressive debut and added the pace that has been missing from the back line for most of the season.
Even so, the home
side struggled to breach the Caernarfon defence and were rocked in the 20th
minute when flanker Glen Bellamy, another Youth Team player making a fine debut, was
yellow carded for allegedly diving over the top of a maul. The Cofis elected to take a 5
metre scrum instead of a penalty kick and drove over the home line to score a pushover try
credited to flanker Dewi Williams.
Wrexham responded
with a try of their own within three minutes, Rob Massam opening up the Cofis defence with
a jinking run before John Roberts carried on the slick movement to score near the posts.
Outside-half Richard Lloyd kicked the conversion to put his side in front.
Roberts was over the
line again in the 30th minute but the referee was unsighted and disallowed the
score. Skipper Mike McLeod showed that he had recovered from a recent shoulder injury by
winning a stream of possession in the line-out and carrying the ball deep into the
visitors defence before setting up further attacks.
However, the next
score didn’t arrive until the third minute of the second-half when Lloyd kicked a
penalty after the Cofis had pulled down a rolling maul. More pressure from a dominant home
pack and more pulling down by the home side resulted in the referee awarding a penalty try
to Wrexham, and Lloyd added the conversion to give his side a 12 point advantage.
Crucially, the home
forwards couldn’t sustain their charge and Wrexham came under pressure when the
visitors piled on replacements and reorganised their attack. Caernarfon’s impressive
driving maul was brought into action again and the home forwards couldn’t cope as
they slid back 15 metres to concede a second pushover try to flanker Dewi Williams.
Outside-half Kelvin
Morris, kicked a simple conversion and then added a penalty to narrow Wrexham’s lead
to only two points in the 69th minute. But just when it seemed as though
Wrexham could do enough to survive, John Roberts’ excellent afternoon was ended when
he was sin binned for allegedly swinging an arm.
Morris accepted the
invitation and kicked the resultant penalty to put his side in the lead with six minutes
of the game remaining. Wrexham did well to respond with a counter attack which produced a
penalty, but Lloyd’s kick for touch fell short and the Cofis regathered and tore up
the field to wrap up their comeback victory with a final Morris penalty.
With the Six Nations Championship resuming on Saturday and concluding with the Wales v England game on 17th March, Wrexham Firsts won't be in action again until 24th March when they visit Newtown for a relegation showdown that they must win.
Wrexham had their chances to gain revenge for last year’s 0-67 home humiliation by Llandudno but, having fought their way back to trail by only four points in the second-half, they ran out of ideas and then steam in the final quarter and were finished off by two late converted tries.
It was a scrappy
opening at
Although Wrexham countered with more pressure from their pack and Iwan Roberts probing the home defence with some effective ball carrying, they couldn’t dominate the game and were hampered by a lack of possession from the line-out. Ben Cheesbrough unsettled Llandudno with several attacks down the left wing but the Seahorses still managed to hold on to their 7-3 lead at half-time.
There was still little to choose between the sides after the break until scrum-half Pat Coy, son of former Wrexham stalwart Jimmy Coy, dived over for a try in the 51st minute and Carlton-Jones added the conversion. Within five minutes, however, the Wrexham forwards won a line-out on the home 22 and they created a try for flanker Mike Ward with a conversion from Lloyd.
They piled on the pressure and tried to attack from line-outs again, but Llandudno’s fierce competition in that area resulted in them not being able to catch and drive for the home line. Coach Russell-Penrhyn Jones piled on replacements in an attempt to gain an advantage in the final quarter, and it nearly paid off with number eight Wayne Roberts and flanker Gareth Owen impressing in the pack.
Having withstood Wrexham’s late charge, however, Llandudno brought their young backs into play and created an opportunity for Carlton-Jones to score a try that he also converted in the 75th minute. Moments later they broke through again and completed the double over their opponents with a second try by Pat Coy and a final conversion by Carlton-Jones.
Wrexham’s
hopes of staying in the top flight of rugby in
It all looked different in the first quarter of the game after Wrexham had recovered from the shock of conceding a first minute penalty to Pwllheli outside-half Dylan Llyr. The home side countered strongly through the tactical kicking of outside-half Richard Lloyd and the combined play of forwards and backs who created a magnificent try for centre Kerry Powell in the 6th minute.
Lloyd added a conversion and minutes later kicked a superb penalty from 40 metres to extend his side’s lead to 10-3. Wrexham swept back again, camped in the visitors 22 and looked as though they would overwhelm Pwllheli as they sought to avenge a 10-75 record breaking defeat inflicted on them by Pwllheli last October.
But Wrexham’s movement from static situations behind the scrum was slow and telegraphed, so Pwllheli found it easy to defend against attacks and also held on by disrupting Wrexham’s line-out possession. Lloyd missed a penalty, number eight Keir Harding just failed to get over for a try and then Pwllheli rallied to take play back into Wrexham’s 22, only a steal at a line-out by Wrexham flanker Mike Ward denying the visitors.
The game then swung the other way with Wrexham scrum-half John Roberts and centre Simon Williams combining to send Keir Harding over to the left of the posts for 33rd minute try. Lloyd failed with a kickable conversion and was made to play for his lapse three minutes later when Pwllheli centre Dylan Williams rounded off a fast threequarter movement with an unconverted try in the corner.
This reduced the home lead to 15-8 at the break and boosted Pwllheli’s hopes as they turned around with a cross-wind in their favour. Five minutes after the restart the visitors were level, referee Mark Wilcox failing to spot a forward pass as Dylan Williams tore in at an angle to collect the ball and score under the posts, Dylan Llyr adding the simple conversion.
Over the next ten minutes, Llyr twice kicked penalties that gave Pwllheli the lead as the Wrexham forwards committed mistakes under intense pressure from the visitors. Then Wrexham rallied and started to win their line-out ball again through replacement number eight Carl Turner, but after John Roberts was stopped short of the Pwllheli line they lost momentum.
The visitors fought their way back into Wrexham territory again and once more made them pay for poor defensive work by adding a final penalty through Dylan Llyr. In the dying minutes Wrexham created a flowing attack through John Roberts and scored in the 89th minute when Kerry Powell joined his forwards and went over for his second try of the game. Lloyd’s conversion attempt failed and there was too little time left for Wrexham to rescue a game that they could have won.
Wrexham’s
recent run of success came to an end at Bala who looked the hungrier side and employed a
better defence to clinch a notable double this season. The score line was identical to
that achieved at
Happily, results at other league games went against clubs involved with Wrexham in a fight to avoid relegation and Mike McLeod’s team remains second from bottom of Division Four North with the potential to claw their way back up the table. Coach Russell Penrhyn Jones will be looking for a top performance against bottom club Pwllheli at home on Saturday.
The visitors had their moments and scored perhaps the best try of the game when centre Kerry Powell finished off a sparkling handling movement involving forwards and backs with a try in the right corner in the 19th minute. Full-back Dan Cheesbrough, who had a fine game, started it all off and top performing forwards John Gill and Phil Williams were also involved.
Outside-half Richard Lloyd missed the difficult conversion but the touchdown still enabled Wrexham to overtake Bala who had surged into the lead with an early penalty by full-back Ynyr Jones.
Although they had
the advantage of a stiff breeze at their backs, Wrexham lacked the fire that they had
shown in recent victories over Ruthin and
Bala used the wind to kick deep into Wrexham’s 22 at the start of the second-half and immediately won a scrum near the home line when a defending player knocked on the ball. Wrexham tried to hold the drive but were powerless to stop number eight Bedwyr Jones from crashing over for a try which Ynyr Jones quickly converted.
Worse was to come minutes later as Wrexham tried to respond and were suddenly rocked by a breakaway from Ynyr Jones. He outstripped the defence to notch an unconverted try that put the issue beyond doubt and later added a penalty for good measure.
Wrexham continued to compete and enjoyed a 10 minute spell of pressure with Richard Lloyd dictating play well and replacement centre Simon Williams also contributing effectively. But they couldn’t capitalise on it against a resolute defence and were forced to accept second best for the first time this year.
Wrexham again defied the odds to clinch a hard earned victory over title hopefuls Colwyn Bay at Bryn Estyn Road. This was Wrexham’s third successive victory following a dismal start to the season and it lifted them off the bottom of the Division Four North table for the first time this term.
Starting the game with a stiff breeze at their backs, Wrexham were nearly derailed within the first minute when Bay’s classy centre Patrick Leach tore through their ranks and was only prevented from scoring by an all embracing tackle by winger James Jess. Having survived that scare and a couple more from the confident visiting backs, Wrexham then used their superior strength in the pack to quell the Seasiders early fire.
The home backs had a good chance to open the scoring in the fifteenth minute when they breached the visitors defence on the right, but scrum-half Mike Powell was just held on the try line. That inspired Wrexham and they pounded away at the Colwyn Bay set scrum until it cracked and number eight Carl Turner finished off a pushover move with a welcome try.
Outside-half Richard Lloyd kicked well to land an angled conversion and then increased Wrexham’s lead to 10-0 in the 33rd minute when he punished an indiscretion at a ruck by slotting a penalty. Although they had to reorganise when Powell was forced to leave the field for treatment to a head injury, the home side soon roared back with more pressure and an opportunist try from hooker John Gill.
Colwyn Bay responded strongly before the break and it looked as though Wrexham’s 15-0 lead would quickly be eroded in the second-half. Wrexham, however, had other ideas and elected to keep the ball in hand whilst driving upfield through their mighty pack. When the Seasiders did get hold of the ball, they attacked at pace and the home side had to defend bravely with centre John Roberts outstanding.
A chink in Wrexham’s armour appeared in the 56th minute and Patrick Leach reduced the arrears with a long distance penalty. Minutes later, the same player created a sparkling move in Wrexham’s 22 and slipped the ball to Bay skipper Dave Brown who touched down wide-out. Leach added a fine conversion but then failed with an easier penalty attempt in the 70th minute.
Wrexham stuck to their defensive task, added replacements and got themselves out of trouble through the astute touch kicking of Richard Lloyd and the impressive line-out winning of skipper Mike McLeod and lock Mike Jones. Having survived a real threat in injury time when Bay winger John Davies dropped the ball in the act of scoring, it was McLeod who sealed victory on his 200th senior appearance for Wrexham when he stole the ball from a Bay line-out and sent it into touch
Wrexham upset the formbook in Division Four North when they came twice from behind to defeat Ruthin on their home midden. It was their first victory over Ruthin at Cae Ddol for ten years and gave Russ Penrhyn Jones’ side a great start to the New Year.
Ruthin applied
early pressure through their fast running backs and took the lead in the 9th
minute when outside-half Huw Roberts landed a neat penalty. Wrexham’s response was to
use their superior forward power to deny the home side possession and they quickly
levelled with a penalty goal by outside-half Richard Lloyd.
When the visiting
forwards drove for the home line from a line-out in the 21st minute, Ruthin
were penalised for trying to pull down the maul and a penalty try was duly awarded by the
match referee. Lloyd added the extra points with a successful conversion and Wrexham eased
into a well worked 10-3 lead.
Ruthin, having been
reduced to 14 men in the second quarter of the game when a forward was red carded for
allegedly twice pulling down a maul, were truly under the cosh in their 22 at the start of
the second-half. However, they used any scrap of possession effectively and were awarded a
penalty in the 51st minute.
Instead of going
for goal, they elected to take a quick tap penalty and sent centre Harry Morgan roaring in
for a try under the uprights, Roberts adding the conversion to level the scores again.
Wrexham couldn’t take enough control of the game and paid for this when Roberts
kicked a 70th minute penalty to restore Ruthin’s lead.
But Wrexham refused
to concede and came back with a series of driving mauls, a couple of them starting in
their own half. When skipper Mike McLeod won the ball at a line-out deep inside the home
22 with only 3 minutes to go, he peeled off the resultant maul and crashed over for a
marvellous try wide-out.
Lloyd failed with a
difficult conversion kick and the drama continued as Ruthin came back again and were
awarded a last gasp penalty on half-way. Roberts made a good attempt but the ball fell
short and lock Mike Jones adeptly kicked it into touch to bring a close to a thrilling
game.
Wrexham may have not delivered in Division Four North all season, but their timely defeat of visitors Denbigh presented new coach Russell Penrhyn Jones with a richly deserved Christmas present and a prospect of better things to come in the New Year.
Jones was delighted with his team’s first league success and said afterwards, “I was particularly pleased with the attitude of the players. They wanted to win and, when events were going badly for us in the second- half, they dug in kept us from being overtaken.”
The key to Wrexham’s victory was a determined performance in the first-half when they built up a 19-0 lead over their misfiring opponents. Concerted pressure earned a line-out from a penalty in the 3rd minute and lock Mike McLeod claimed possession before feeding flanker Mike Ward who crashed over for a superb try. Outside-half Richard Lloyd converted from a sharp angle to give his side a great start.
More good work by forwards and backs, with prop Guy Bingham blasting holes in the Denbigh defence, led to another try only eight minutes later, this time number eight Keir Harding finishing off a sparkling move by planting the ball firmly between the uprights. Lloyd added the extra points with a simple conversion.
Keeping up the pressure, Wrexham then brought their backs fully into play and winger Dan Cheesbrough made a blistering 40 metre run in the 29th minute before being stopped just short of his opponents line. That wasn’t the end of the matter because scrum-half Michael Powell, following in hot pursuit, claimed a neat pass from Cheesbrough and promptly dived over in the corner.
Lloyd failed with his difficult conversion attempt but Wrexham were firmly in control and heading for victory until Denbigh finally rallied just before half-time and skipper Mike McLeod was sent to the sin bin for a deliberate obstruction. The visitors tried hard to make their one-man advantage count after the break but committed too many handling errors in attack against a resolute defence.
However, pressure told mid way through the second-half when home forwards Keir Harding and then hooker John Gill were sent to the sin-bin for committing technical offences. Flanker Noel Spillane raised Denbigh’s hopes when he powered over in the corner for an unconverted try and then number eight Tristan Rowlands added another unconverted try from a pushover move.
But a 13 man home side refused to buckle and, thanks to some heroic tackling by winger James Jess and Mike Powell, supported by the powerhouse Guy Bingham in the front row, they weathered the storm until Harding and Gill returned.
Wrexham then went in search of another score to put the issue beyond doubt and were inches when the ball squirted from Powell’s hands in the 71st minute. Denbigh tried to counter with a run down the left wing but, when they lost the ball in a tackle, Harding scooped it up and ran straight back the other way to score the clincher in the corner. Wrexham were home and dry and, apart from an indisciplined period in the second-half, their performance was something to celebrate.
Wrexham battled hard against title chasers Nant Conwy at Llanrwst, but a competitive first-half was followed by a capitulation after the break and the home side was able to run in 8 tries in total.
Following a spirited performance against local rivals Mold on the previous Saturday, the cracks which have bedevilled Wrexham for most of this season reappeared and new coach Russell Jones was able to witness the magnitude of the task ahead of him. His only consolation was that his side managed to score a try after failing to register any score on their two previous outings.
The visitors fell behind to an early try by flanker Caron Williams, converted by centre Peredur Ellis, but played with plenty of determination against a close knit team which possessed a stronger pack and a fast set of backs. Nant scored again through wing Iwan Howells but Wrexham responded with a great driving try by hooker John Gill with a conversion by outside-half Richard Lloyd.
John Roberts, switched from centre to scrum-half for this testing match, tidied up well at the base of the scrum while flankers Mike Ward and Kerry Powell were in outstanding form in the rucks and mauls. James Jess tackled feverishly on the wing to deny the village side, but the closeness of contact took its toll on the Wrexham pack and they lost momentum by the end of the first-half.
Another unconverted try by Caron Williams and a penalty by Ellis had given Nant a 20-7 half-time lead before they decided to increase the tempo immediately after the break. Dominating possession, they quickly moved the ball to their backs at pace and added five more tries with two more conversions from Ellis to wrap up a deserved victory that took them into third place in the Division Four North table.
Although very disappointed with the outcome afterwards, coach Russell Jones said, “ We’ve got to be very honest with ourselves and start to address the vast amount of work that needs to be done to make us into a winning side again.”
As expected, the battle between the top and bottom clubs in Division Four North ended in the league leaders favour, but the visitors delivered a much improved performance under new Head Coach Russell Penrhyn Jones and gave a hint that the worst is now behind them this season.
There was a lot more passion in Wrexham’s game than witnessed before this term and the forwards duly delivered enough possession to keep their side in contention, with Mike Ward outstanding on the flank. John Roberts and Kerry Powell worked hard in the centre and the visitors came close to scoring on a couple of occasions only to see their hopes evaporate due to a lack of composure in their opponents 22.
Mold defended well and worked the phases before taking the lead when number eight Chris Lewis crossed for a deserved try. Centre Gavin Roberts kicked the conversion but that was as far as the home side got in the first-half, Wrexham turning round only 0-7 in arrears.
Coach Penrhyn Jones made his first team change at half-time, introducing Youth Team player Andrew Clutton in place of Ashley Wrathall at full-back. Clutton made a promising debut in increasingly wet and windy conditions as Wrexham tried to get on level terms, but Mold generally controlled the game and struck a powerful blow when they created an unconverted try for centre Eddie Hughes.
Wrexham came back again with Kerry Powell moving from centre into the back-row where he continued to give a terrific performance. A genuine derby game atmosphere prevailed with both sides searching for the next score, but Mold had the last word as Roberts landed a successful penalty to seal victory in the final quarter.
Wrexham’s poor form continued as they slumped to a seventh successive league defeat at the hands of fellow Division Four North strugglers Newtown, but the appointment this week of former Ruthin coach Russell Penrhyn-Jones should soon produce improved results at Bryn Estyn Lane.
Director of Rugby Kevin Whitehead has announced that Penrhyn-Jones, a former Wrexham First XV player, will be assisted on the forwards coaching side by Gareth Noon, another former Wrexham player who has performed with great success for Chester in recent seasons. Dennis Weston will continue his coaching with the forwards and Richard Lloyd will assist with the coaching of the backs.
On the evidence of Saturday’s game, they will need to create a cutting edge in a side that is capable of winning plenty of possession but is incapable of turning that possession into match winning points. Although Wrexham showed lots of endeavour against an ordinary Newtown side and were far stronger in the set scrum, they lacked pace and organisation in attack and found themselves up against a brick wall with no way through.
They started well with lock Mike Jones forcing the visitors onto the defensive and should have capitalised when a Newtown forward was sin binned for a stamping offence. Unfortunately, Wrexham have lacked a consistent goal kicker this season and centre Kerry Powell was unable to reverse that trend as he saw his penalty attempt blown off target by a stiff breeze in the 8th minute.
The home side
should have capitalised on their player advantage, but it was
Newtown used the strengthening wind to pin Wrexham in their half and increased their score when Farrington added a penalty and then number eight Eddie Maguire crashed over from a pushover move in the 28th minute.
Trailing by 0-15 at the break, Wrexham applied bags of pressure at the start of the second-half and skipper Mike McLeod went desperately close to scoring in the 53rd minute when he gathered the ball from a line-out and charged through a gaggle of defenders. Unfortunately support was slow to arrive and McLeod was held up on the line.
The home side became increasingly desperate as they constantly recycled the ball, only to have it stolen from their grasp in heated exchanges or were penalised for holding onto it for too long. Soon after centre John Roberts was red carded in the 77th minute for throwing a retaliatory punch, Newtown broke out of their half and added insult to injury with a second unconverted try for Eddie Maguire.
Wrexham Firsts won a hastily arranged game at Flint by 23-20 on Saturday to end their dismal run without a win this season. Number eight Dean Griffiths claimed a hat-trick of tries on his return from a rib injury, and winger Scott Davies notched one more touchdown for the visitors. Scrum-half Michael Powell added the other points with a penalty
Wrexham delivered a much improved performance at the Morfa against Division Four North league leaders Caernarfon, but were hit by a five try burst from the Cofis in the second-half of the game and slumped to another heavy defeat.
The visitors dominated the forward exchanges in the first-half and forced their way into a 14th minute lead with a neat penalty by outside-half Richard Lloyd. They kept up the pressure with flanker Iwan Roberts enjoying a successful return to the club following a spell with Ruthin, but the home side replied with a 21st minute try from winger Arwel Davies and a conversion from outside-half Kelfyn Morris.
The Wrexham forwards stormed back into the home 22 and stretched their defence until Caernarfon were penalised for an obstruction offence. Lloyd calmly kicked the ball between the uprights to narrow the gap to only one point before his opposite number Kelfyn Morris responded with a similar effort just before the break.
The first-half effort had taken its toll on Wrexham, however, and they had to reorganise their side when flanker Rhodri Evans was forced off with a torn hamstring and scrum-half Michael Powell had to retire with damaged ribs. Their problems were compounded when Kelfyn Morris kicked accurately into the visitors 22 on the restart and mistakes in collecting the ball under pressure led to two dramatic tries for Caernarfon
Centre Rhys Evans scooped up a loose ball to score near the posts and then scrum-half Gwilym Hendy capitalised on an error to snatch another try, Morris converting both touchdowns. Suddenly finding themselves down by 6-24 after their determined first-half performance, Wrexham heads dropped a little and they conceded further tries to wings Steffan Thomas and Arwel Davies with Morris completing a near faultless display by claiming a try of his own and adding two more conversions.
Wrexham, still recovering from the mid-week sacking of their coach Norman Stalker, produced an improved display for 60 minutes at Mold in the first round of the North Wales Cup Competition, but fell away in the final quarter to suffer their seventh successive defeat of the season.
With skipper Mike McLeod back in the side after missing three games, the Wrexham pack dominated the opening exchanges and squeezed Mold until a gap appeared down the right and winger Scott Davies forced his way over to score in the corner. Scrum-half Mike Powell’s conversion attempt flew wide and the visitors then found themselves on the defensive.
Mold replied almost immediately with a try by lock Patty Hughes, but centre Gavin Roberts failed with his conversion attempt to leave the scores level at 5-5. It wasn’t long, however, before Wrexham were penalised for an infringement and this time Roberts made no mistake with his penalty attempt to give his side the lead.
The visitors, with McLeod making a number of powerful breaks from the scrum and fielding a beefed up defence with John Roberts and Kerry Powell in the centre, stormed back and levelled the scores when outside-half Richard Lloyd kicked a 31st minute penalty. Then the high tempo game produced another score before half-time, Roberts kicking another penalty to push the home side back in front at 11-8.
Stand-in coaches Kevin Whitehead and Dennis Weston encouraged the visitors to apply maximum pressure in the second-half, but Wrexham were running out of steam after a stirring first-half effort and were hampered when their line-out possession started to dry up. Despite a good performance from flanker Phil Williams and the secure tackling of replacement winger James Jess, Mold’s superior pace behind their pack allowed them to take control in the final quarter of the game.
The tries flowed from the home side with outside-half Scott Henshaw, wing Ritchie Jones, replacement Richard Hughes, scrum-half Jamie Griffiths and centre Gavin Roberts grabbing a try apiece. Griffiths added a conversion and Roberts kicked three more conversions and one penalty to complete a good opening round victory for the Division Four North Champions.
Wrexham, hampered by injuries and unavailability, suffered a record home defeat at the hands of Division Four North league leaders Llandudno and remain rooted at the bottom of the table without a win this season.
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