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James leads Saints to local derby success
 
St Davids 31 - Llangwm 18
 
Rhys Meredith-Barrett - superb rendition of the Last Post on Remembrance WeekendWill James - two-try man of the match for The SaintsFull back Will James was the toast of his St Davids colleagues as he used his pace and elusive running to score tries in their bonus-point home win over Llangwm in a match where both teams deserve credit for trying to play running rugby in quite difficult damp and very cold conditions, writes Bill Carne.
 
Indeed, this was the sort of Pembrokeshire derby advocated by many rugby lovers in the county, including this pundit, rather than trips up the line which can cost up to £800 for buses, and with both sets of supporters turning up in droves, former players meeting up with old rivals for a few post-match pints – and current players eager to score a win over their rivals that they have encountered over recent years.
 
The home side suffered an early set-back when The Wasps made a cracking start with a close range try by flanker Morgan Rees after The Saints had messed up the first kick-off and conceded a penalty from which Breig Matthews kicked them into the corner and his pack kept plugging away and until they found a gap.
 
But then James made his first mark on events when The Saints were reduced to 14 men but still had pace aplenty in their back division via Zak Morgan and Owen Swain before Will Savage supplied the scoring pass and James outflanked the opposing defence and raced around to the posts to add the simple conversion.
 
Further forward pressure, led by George Raymond, Ethan Griffiths, Ben Evans and James Goldsmith saw outstanding skipper Nathan Foster power his way to the posts and again James added the extra points – before George James slotted a Llangwm penalty and St davies responded with a well-worked try by winger iwan davies, again goaled by James.
 
Even then there was time for another Llangwm score as centre James showed his pace and power on a run to the line that left the home side 21-13 to the good at half time.
 
The second half was equally absorbing, despite the worsening weather, and The Wasps managed a try by durable prop Callum Jenkins as reward for his tireless work – but  Will James pounded for his second try and scrum half Zac Morgan grabbed try No 5 to warm up the frozen Saints’ supporters, leaving The Wasps out in the cold but having given total commitment throughout an action-packed contest.
 
**Praise should also go to Saints’ injured player Rhys Meredith Barrett, who is also a talented musician and played ‘The Last Post’ to commemorate  Remembrance Day  in perfect silence as a mark of respect for our fallen heroes from our armed forces.
 
St Davids: Will James: Iwan Davies; Harvey Latin; Will Savage; Bob Froy: Owain Swain; Zac Morgan Ethan Griffiths; Adam Williams; Ben Evans: Iestyn Griffiths; James Goldsmith: Aaron Foster; Nathan Foster (Capt); George Raymond. Replacements: Chris Cooper; Joe Nash;  Noah Dark; Rhys Price; Dan Murphy; Michael Gurney.
 
Llangwm: Jed Evans: Jack Roberts; Josh Richards; George James;  Aden Rees:  Breig Matthews; Ian Jenkins:  Callum Jenkins; Owain Jones; James Morgan: Arwyn O’Loughlin;  Ashley James (Capt); Morgan Rees; Will Ridge; Jordan Cornick. Replacements: Matthew Rees; Joe Newton; Andrew Evans; Jordan Evans; Rhys Power.

Report and Photo by Pembrokeshiresport.com