Newcastle Emlyn lose out to Crosskeys in Welsh Premiership

The opening minutes were very back and fore between the two sides with some missed passes and handling errors. A missed penalty kick for each team early on.

The game was extremely mixed, with quite a few sloppy errors and phases but there were also some really good plays across both sides.

Some good play started by Emlyn fullback Bleddyn Morgan and quick hands led to a good break from Aled S Davies and Osian Knott who was tackled by Keys’ Ralph Miller but after some more play close to the 5m line, Keys was arm the penalty. 

A well-taken kick to touch from a penalty after 16 minutes saw some good play to send Davies over for a try, converted by Ellis Payne. 

Some really good play for Crosskeys with a number of phases saw them reach the 22 but a bad pass from Ben Murphy out wide was intercepted by Newcastle Emlyn although Keys  win possession back with a penalty. The ensuing lineout and driving maul saw Keys’ hooker Nathan Huish go over, but the conversion was missed by Adam Tetley, bringing the score to 5-7 in favour of Emlyn after 25 minutes.

A good play from Ben Hesford could have seen Emlyn score close to the end of the first half but his pass ended up in touch. A penalty from Payne puts Emlyn 5-10 up. 

However, in injury time, Emlyn’s defence faltered to see Keys’ Laurence Donnelly go over after a number of phases on the Emlyn line, with Tetley converting to end the half at Crosskeys 12 - 10 Newcastle Emlyn.

Emlyn started the second half strong, with a number of half chances but the Keys defence held well, restricting Emlyn to the 22. An Emlyn scrum overpowered Keys and pushed through, earning a penalty.

The resulting scrum from the penalty led to some solid play through the phases across the width of the field before breaking through and captain Emrys Davies stretched his legs to touch down under the posts. The try was converted by Payne, putting Emlyn back into a 12-17 lead.

Newcastle Emlyn try to break through (Image: Newsquest)

Emlyn’s defence held out strong against Crosskeys’ attacks, keeping them restricted but Keys broke through with Ralph Miller going across and Tetley converting to restore Keys’ lead to 19-17.

That try put a pep into Key’s performance but it also spurred Emlyn on, with both teams vying for possession and putting in some good hits. 

Keys increased their lead with a well-worked try after some scrappy play when Dan Babos kicked ahead and caught his own kick to go over, bringing the score to 24-17 as Tetley’s conversion attempt hit the upright.

A Keys turnover led to a late tackle on Murphy, which saw Emlyn’s replacement hooker Dominic Hey yellow carded around the 65 minute mark. A yellow for Callum Hague evened the playing field.

Emlyn struggled to make a mark during the yellow card period, unable to capitalise on two penalties as the game starts to resemble the early part of the first half with sloppy play on both sides. Emlyn go for a scrum on their third penalty and Keys hold strong again, regaining possession. Keys take the ball up the field and James Smith uses his dancing feet to confuse one of the Emlyn defenders before passing to Tom Sullivan who weaves past a defender before passing back to James. Some close play phases end in a Keys penalty, converted by Tetley which extends their lead to 27-17 with around five minutes left.

Keys extend the lead further with a try by Smith and conversion from Tetley. Bringing the score to 34-17. 

The game ends with a tap and go penalty for Emlyn just metres out but Keys’ defence holds out, pushing Emlyn further back. A huge tackle from Sullivan on one of the Emlyn players didn’t go down well which led to a bit of an altercation, but Emlyn failed to make it past the defence, with the full time score being Crosskeys 34-17 Newcastle Emlyn.