Fixture

After their opening round win against Amman United the Magpies made the short journey to Penygroes RFC in Admiral National League Division 3 West B on Saturday afternoon. Tumble played with the wind of Storm Arwen behind their backs in the first half. Dominating possession and territory the Magpies weren't direct enough with their running and surrendered scoring opportunities with players often penalised for laying offside or diving over the ruck. In the twelfth minute Tumble took the lead when experienced outside half Steven Hewitt struck a well taken penalty from 48 metres, 0-3. Playing in difficult conditions and against an aggressive Penygroes defence the Magpies were unable to make any real breakthroughs in the first half and the game boiled over on a couple of occasions. Penygroes had the opportunity to draw level when they were awarded a penalty on the Tumble 22m line, kicking into the strong head wind the ball dropped short of the posts. Flanker Steffan 'Mawr' Davies was keeping the Penygroes defence busy with some charging runs whilst second rows Ashley McAvoy and Ryan Lewis provided plentiful ball at the line out. The first half ended 0-3 to Tumble but facing the daunting task of playing into the strong wind in the second half.
 

The second half opened with the wind howling behind Penygroes and the home side no doubt fancying their chances with the Magpies only having a slender 0-3 lead. Tumble defended well with Nathan Willard and Steffan Owen strong in the tackle. Both teams were putting in fierce tackles and the game boiled over in the fiftieth minute as a Penygroes player was red carded for a late tackle. With Penygroes down to 14, Tumble started to exploit the numerical advantage despite playing into the headwind. Having made a strong tackle prop Osian Flint was subjected to some handy work on the floor which broke out into a free for all. It looked like there might be further cards branded but the referee decided upon a warning to both teams. Breaks by captain Steffan Price and Alex Jones in midfield saw Jones score a fine try which Hewitt converted with 20 minutes left. This opened the score to 0-10 and finally gave the Magpies some breathing space. Tumble again pressed and three minutes later a sniping run by scrum half Iwan Morgan saw him over for a try from 12 metres. The conversion was missed, 0-15. Penygroes still had fight in them and took play into the Tumble 22 but as the wind was causing problems with kicking the Magpies kept the ball in hand and drove upfield. Further attacks by Penygroes saw the Magpies turn opposition ball over in their own 22 and feed full back, Elis Lewis. A turn of pace from Lewis within his own 22 saw him beat three men to outstrip the cover defence and go the length of the field for a sensational try. Unfortunately, Lewis then had to leave the field injured having been tackled after the act of scoring. Somewhat surprisingly no action was taken against the perpetrator. Tumble were now rampant and looking for the bonus point score. However they managed to butcher two further try scoring opportunities when the overlap was not utilised. The last ten minutes saw Tumble control things and run out worthy winners. The win puts the Magpies back on top of the table having played round two of the league campaign. Next week they welcome third placed Llangadog RFC to Parc y Mynydd Mawr who are fresh from a emphatic 60-5 win over Bynea.
 

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