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Neath 20 - 29 Pontypridd

We Lost Again
By The Webmaster
December 30 2002
Two Gareth Wyatt tries helped Pontypridd to a revenge win over the All Blacks, who put the valleys side out of the Celtic League last month at Sardis Road.
Untitled Document

Neath 20-29 Pontypridd

(bbc.co.uk/rugby)
Two Gareth Wyatt tries helped Pontypridd to a revenge win over the All Blacks, who put the valleys side out of the Celtic League last month.

Four first-half tries for the visitors helped set up the winning position, making it 13-26 at the break, but Neath rallied for a second-half fightback.

Pontypridd scrum-half Gareth Baber and flanker Richard Parks were both sin-binned, but the visitors were able to hang on and preserve their 100% Welsh Premiership record.

Neath have now lost back-to-back games against Swansea and Pontypridd, and will need to regroup ahead of Saturday's Celtic League semi-final against Cardiff at the Gnoll.

Match details:
Neath
Tries: K James, A Mocelutu
Cons: S Connor (2)
Pens: Connor (2)

Pontypridd
Tries: G Wyatt (2), G Baber, B Davey
Cons: N Jenkins (3)
DG: Davey

Wyatt got the first try in the seventh minute and added his second soon after.

Baber then crossed, before a Kevin James try got the home side back into the match.

Prolific full-back Brett Davey then blasted through the defence to get Ponty's fourth five-pointer and leave them in command at half-time.


It was an attritional duel in the second half, and it took until the 64th minute for Davey to get the scoreboard moving again with a drop goal.

The All Blacks staged a late recovery with a try from flanker Alfie Mocelutu, but it was too late to affect the outcome.

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Teams - Neath: A Durston, K James, G Morris, A Bateman, S Williams, S Connor, P Horgan, P James, S Jones, A Millward, A Newman, S Martin, A Mocelutu, S Tandy, R Phillips.
Reps: M Jones, A Moore, Leyshon, Davies, G Llewellyn, Hayden, A Jones.

Pontypridd: B Davey, G Wyatt, S Parker, J Bryant, E Lewis, N Jenkins, G Baber, G Jenkins, M Davies, D Bell, B Cockbain, R Sidoli, R Parks, W O'Connor, M Owen.
Reps: P John, C Sweeney, J Lewis, M Rees, N Hennessey, D McIntosh, G Lewis.

Ref: Paul Adams (Welsh RFU)

Att: 4,000

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