It has been a good couple of weeks for Cardiff and Vale of Glamorgan District B under 13s and under 14s as both recorded victories over their Swansea counterparts when they met on a wet and windy Sunday morning at Llandaff RFC.
The Under 13s match was the first to be played and Swansea started strongly with efficient forward play and some quick and elusive running from their back, however for all their dominance the Cardiff and Vale District B defense was more than up to the challenge.
After weathering the initial Swansea storm the District B representatives got a foothold in the game and scored three tries before in the first half to establish a 17-5 lead at the interval.
Cardiff and Vale started off the second half where they had left off in the first with another try to extend their lead to 19 points, one which would prove too much for Swansea to overhaul. For all their endeavour they could only close the deficit to 7 points as the under 13 match finished Cardiff and Vale District B 24, Swansea 17.
The under 14s put in a similar display to the under 13s, running in four tries to defeat Swansea by 27 Points to 14.
Development Officer Julian McTavish, who coaches Cardiff and the Vale District B teams was full of praise for the victorious youngsters, commenting, The lads are playing remarkably well at the moment and both teams secured good victories against strong Swansea outfits. If they keep developing and playing well we could be looking at a very successful season.
In miserable conditions at Old Penarthians the Under-12s were unfortuantely defeated by Swansea. Both sides came out and played some enterprising rugby in the first twenty minutes, indeed Cardiff put some good width on the play.
During the closing stages the team tried in vain to turn the result around but the Swansea defense held firm and finished as 10-5 victors.
Cardiff U12 coach Paul Marley was quick to praise the efforts of the players In the driving rain the intent of both sides to play rugby was most impressive and although the result went against us it was a good spectacle with the backline looking threatening throughout.
"Also, it was a great opportunity to see all 25 players in action, and with further squad members and large numbers in the Centre of Development, the identification of players is quickly taking shape and, with ongoing development taking place across the board, the season could be most rewarding for everyone involved.