Match Preview – Pontypridd v Cardiff
Pontypridd get their Indigo Group Premiership campaign underway this Saturday 3rd September, welcoming local rivals Cardiff RFC to Sardis Road. The match kicks off at 5:30pm and will be screened live on S4C.
Matches between the two clubs are always fiercely contested, but add into the mix it’s the opening game of the season, the Blue & Blacks are the reigning league champions and the cameras are in town it has all the ingredients to be a cracker!
We have lots of information for supporters further down in the article, but first the team news…
The Ponty pack has a familiar look to that of last season, whilst including a debut for Aled Ward on the flank. In the back-line there are debuts for Matt Bancroft at fly-half, Tommy Morgan in the centre and Fiji international Niko Matawalu on the wing. There’s a mix of old and new faces on the bench, with another three potential club debutants in hooker Ryan Spriggs, scrum-half Rory Harries and centre Jordan Howells.
The Pontypridd team selected to play Cardiff is as follows:
15. Lloyd Rowlands. 14. Niko Matawalu. 13. Tommy Morgan. 12. Ceri Morris. 11. Dale Stuckey. 10. Matt Bancroft. 9. Joel Raikes
1. Ben Stephens. 2. Rob Jones. 3. Tom Harper. 4. Kris Parker ©. 5. James Little. 6. Aled Ward. 7. Sion Parry. 8. Joe Miles
Subs: 16. Ryan Spriggs. 17. Tom Devine. 18. Morgan Bosanko. 19. Chris Dicomidis. 20. Cai James. 21. Rory Harries. 22. Jordan Howells. 23. Garyn Payne
Supporter information –
The ground will be open from 3:30pm onwards, the bars inside and outside the club stocked up, there’ll be seating areas outside and food available.
Supporters that have purchased season tickets will be able to collect them from the Clubhouse from 3:30pm onwards. For supporters paying on the day, admission is £12 full, £10 concession access-all-areas and under 16’s free if accompanied by a paying adult. If you wish buy your ticket online prior to the match, you can do so by accessing our new e-Ticketing Service by clicking on the link on our homepage.
Please note that access to Sardis Road is via the clubhouse end of the ground only as the Pwllgwaun end remains closed.
Just prior to the match kicking off there will be a minute’s silence as a mark of respect for those associated with the club who have sadly passed away since the end of last season. Gary Samuel, Brian Layton, Billy Griffiths, Tegwen Norton and Mervyn White will be in our thoughts along with everyone else connected to Pontypridd RFC who are no longer with us.
Finally, it’s a new season but the message remains the same that conduct towards match officials must be impeccable. The following extract is from the Welsh Rugby Union’s Code of Conduct that all clubs must abide by and we at Pontypridd RFC both endorse it and would like to remind everyone connected to our club of the following –
Verbal Abuse of Match Officials
As in previous seasons, protecting match officials within our game remains as imperative as ever. You will appreciate that we need to protect the values of our game and any abuse towards match officials flies in the face of the core values of our Game.
Clubs must take responsibility for its spectators, parents, players, officials and ensure measures are in place to provide a safe environment for match officials to attend and officiate at your game.
We all have a collective responsibility to eradicate any abusive behaviour towards match officials from our Game, to ensure that we are able to recruit and attract new match officials into our Game, as well as retain and protect our current match officials operating within our Game.
Those officials must be protected, and the Rugby community must understand that any abuse of officials will be met with severe sanctions, both to the Clubs and players.
We hope you enjoy the match on Saturday and lets pack Sardis out! Ole!
