Pontypridd v Ystrad Rhondda – Matchday Preview

This Saturday 21st December Pontypridd RFC welcome Ystrad Rhondda RFC to Sardis Road for a festive derby clash in the Admiral Premiership, kick-off is at the usual time of 2:30pm.

The origin of matches between Ponty and Ystrad goes way back, the first record we have of a game between two clubs taking place was on 24th September 1885, at Ystrad Rhondda, and it Ponty that came away with a win by a goal, a try, and two touches down to nil – thank you to Club Historian Alun Granfield for that information.

Alun also goes on to say that: “Our two clubs played each other regularly until the 1940s, but games between the two sides ended in 1949, and we didn’t play each other again until 1985. The last proper match came on 11 December 1987, when we played a cup game against them at Gelligaled Park, coming away with a narrow win by 18 points to seven. However, we did play a pre-season friendly against them a few years ago.”

Many of you may remember the friendly that Alun mentions, it took place on Saturday 20th August 2016 away at Gelligaled Park, and it was Ponty that came away with a 38-0 win – that was the last meeting between the sides. There have been lots of players that have represented both clubs over the years, perhaps the most notable in recent times being former Sardis favourite Alex Webber who scored 68 tries in 114 appearances for the Valley Commandos between 2012-2020 – Alex will likely be named in the Ystrad side for this Saturday’s match as well.

But to the present and Pontypridd secured a fine bonus-point win away at Newcastle Emlyn on Saturday just gone. In very tricky playing conditions the Valley Commandos had to front-up, particularly in the first half. But in the second forty Ponty showed their class to come away from West Wales with a 38-0 win to maintain their place at the top of the league standings. Ystrad Rhondda themselves are having a good season and are on a good run of form. They currently sit 5th in the Premiership table and are unbeaten in their last four outings having had two draws sandwiched between two wins – their last win came on Saturday when they beat Llangennech at home by 26 points to 10.

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With both Neath and Merthyr hot on their tails Pontypridd know that they need to keep up their winning streak against an Ystrad Rhondda side who will be hoping to play Scrooge on Saturday at Sardis Road. We have got an action-packed day in store on and off the pitch for supporters, all the information is below.

SUPPORTER INFORMATION:

Tickets – Admission on Saturday will be £12 full, £10 concession access-all-areas and under 16’s free if accompanied by a paying adult. You can purchase tickets on the day or to save time (which is recommended to miss the queues) you can use our online e-Ticket system, here’s the link which includes all our different packages – Pontypridd v Ystrad Rhondda – 21/12/2024

Supporter access is via the Clubhouse end of the ground only.

Christmas Jumper Day –  Saturday is the club’s annual Christmas Jumper Day, so make sure you get right into the festive spirit and wear yours!

Playing Shirts Auction and a Live Band – Post match there will be an auction in the Sardis Road Clubhouse to give fans the opportunity to purchase the players’ festive playing shirts that they will have worn in this Saturday’s match. The auction will get underway at 5:30pm and when that finishes, Indie-Rock band After Hours will be entertaining the crowd in the Clubhouse from around 6:30-7:00pm onwards.

Dewar Shield Parade – During the half time interval the victorious Pontypridd Schools U16s team will be parading the huge Dewar Shield around the ground following their thrilling 34-28 win at the Principality Stadium last Tuesday evening.

Live Sport In The Clubhouse – Our Clubhouse will be open from midday onwards and we will be showing live coverage of Aston Villa v Manchester City in the Premier League, 12:30pm kick-off, before back-to-back rugby matches from the Gallagher Premiership. Firstly Leicester play Bristol, kick-off 3:05pm and this is followed by Sale versus Exeter which kicks off at 5:30pm.

We look forward to welcoming the supporters of both clubs to Sardis Road this Saturday afternoon, Ole!