Sport
Swimmers take on open water

Rhys Davies: Men’s Open Water 1500m Gold medal
PEMBROKESHIRE COUNTY SWIMMING (PCS) took a dip into the open water on Saturday (Jul 1), when swimmers took part in the Welsh Open Water Championships at in Parc Bryn Bach, Tredegar and much closer to home at the Parrog, Goodwick.
PCS has encouraged their swimmers to participate in open water events with many progressing into National events and those linked to Triathlon & Ironman, with former swimmers out in the sea for the Tenby Long Course event last weekend.
Sam Jones, Assistant Development coach to the Performance squad, said: “Open Water swimming now a very competitive environment and popular route for swimmers to develop their skills further.
“Craig [Nelson] and I actively encourage a number of our performance squad swimmers to participate in the Open Water cycle of competitive swimming as it often rejuvenates and refocuses the young swimmer in training as they have a new challenge to aim for.”
Jones was quick also to highlight that ‘in the events at Parc Bryn Bach and off the Parrog in Goodwick, all our swimmers who entered did so with optimism and a realistic chance to obtain a medal’.
Rhys Davies won the Men’s 1500m Open Water Sea Swim in Goodwick, completing the course in 20 minutes and 53 seconds, whilst in the Women’s Elite event, held at Parc Bryn Bach, Tredegar over 3000m, two sixteen year olds represented the County.
Lucy Harding and Louisa Twigg swam fantastic races in ideal conditions, which allowed Lucy to finish sixth [44:54] whilst Louisa Twigg finished in a time of 42:54 to take third place. In the Elite Women’s 1500m race, thirteen year old Megan Thomson finished in a time of 28:11, in fourth place and with it “a smile to great any summers day” said Jones.
Jones explained further on his return from the event that it was “an excellent weekend for all associated with Pembrokeshire County Swimming. Lousia Twigg not only finished with a medal but also qualified for British Open Water to be held at Rother Park near Sheffield on Monday (Jul 31), which is a fantastic result for Louisa and the whole team.”
With the increase in popularity in open water swimming, Pembrokeshire County Swimming is at the ‘cutting edge’ in offering local swimmers the best coaching and training for them to achieve their potential and compete at a British level.
Sport
South Pembrokeshire Short Mat Bowls results – Week Seven
THE LATEST round of fixtures in the South Pembrokeshire Short Mat Bowls Association – known affectionately as The Friendly League – produced another week of close contests and impressive performances across the county.
Last week’s results were as follows:
Badgers 6–4 Llanteg, Lamphey 8–2 Reynalton, St Johns 8–2 Kilgetty, St Twynnells 2–8 East Williamston, and Cosheston 10–0 Carew.
Hundleton had a bye.
After seven weeks of play, East Williamston continue to lead the standings with five wins from five matches, boasting a shot difference of +62 and 44 points. They are followed by Reynalton in second place on 35 points, while Cosheston sit close behind on 29.
The full table after Week Seven is:
| Team | Played | Won | Drawn | Lost | Shot Difference | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| East Williamston | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | +62 | 44 |
| Reynalton | 6 | 4 | 0 | 2 | +34 | 35 |
| Cosheston | 5 | 3 | 0 | 2 | +40 | 29 |
| Carew | 5 | 3 | 0 | 2 | -18 | 28 |
| St Twynnells | 6 | 3 | 0 | 3 | -44 | 27 |
| Llanteg | 5 | 2 | 0 | 3 | -6 | 25 |
| Badgers | 6 | 2 | 0 | 4 | -31 | 23 |
| St Johns | 4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | +8 | 21 |
| Hundleton | 5 | 2 | 0 | 3 | -20 | 20 |
| Kilgetty | 5 | 2 | 0 | 3 | -34 | 19 |
| Lamphey | 6 | 2 | 0 | 4 | -35 | 19 |
This week marks Catch-Up Week One, giving clubs the opportunity to complete outstanding fixtures.
Looking ahead, two tournaments are scheduled for the end of the month:
the Handicap Fours, to be held at St Johns, and the South Pembrokeshire Fours, which will take place at Heatherton on successive weekends. Entry forms for the South Pembrokeshire Fours will be distributed on Monday.
Report by Steve Cox, League Fixtures Secretary.
News
Teen rally star Henri Cynwyl celebrates another podium finish
APPRENTICE electrician and rising rally star, 17-year-old Henri Cynwyl from Ponthirwaun, has secured yet another podium finish — this time at the Kevin Ephraim Memorial Toyota Harlech Stages, alongside co-driver Catrin Price, where the pair finished in second place.
Henri has led the Junior F1000 UK Championship throughout the season, and the final round at Anglesey this weekend will determine the overall winner.
“I have to use a drop score on one of the days, so what will be will be,” said Henri, who recently co-drove at Rali Ceredigion with local man Andrew Davies, and also finished third in class co-driving on the Tour of Epynt with Kyle Green.
Reflecting on his progress, Henri added: “It’s been a year of learning and having invaluable advice from my mentor, James Williams. I’ll be sad to move on to the seniors, but I’m relishing the challenge and can’t wait for the 2026 season to start.”
Over the weekend, Henri added another strong result to his record, taking a podium finish with co-driver Dilwyn John at the Llandeilo Motor Club Towy Legends Targa event at Pembrey, where they finished 21st overall and third in class — an impressive result in Henri’s first ever senior event.
“It’s been a terrific year and I’ve made so many memories, friends and contacts,” he said. “Every rally is different, and the weather has been challenging on many of them, but I’ve learnt a lot. I’m very grateful to everyone who has supported me on my journey – from my co-drivers to my service crews, especially Josh Clarke from Castle Motors, Newcastle Emlyn, who has driven hundreds of miles, and to all of my sponsors for backing my rallying career.”
Community
Second cricket pitch will make Pembrokeshire cricket club ‘future proof’
PLANS for a second cricket pitch at a successful Pembrokeshire club to let it “future-proof” its growth have been given the go-ahead.
In an application recommended for approval at the November 3 meeting of Pembrokeshire County Council’s planning committee, Chris Richards, on behalf of Cresselly Cricket Club, sought permission to convert a field to a second pitch at the club.
A supporting statement said: “The Committee at Cresselly Cricket Club over the past five years has been extensively promoting the game of cricket particularly aiming at grass roots level in the local community.
“Our approach has been extremely successful and as a result we currently have four senior teams, ladies team, 10 junior teams, together with the All Stars/Dynamos Programme.
“As a result of our success we have to ground share, but we are finding this increasingly difficult, so our aspiration of the club is to have its own designated second cricket pitch alongside our existing facility.
“This will provide more playing opportunities and enable us to be in control of the second pitch, but more importantly future proof and support our continued growth without reliance on other clubs who are also expanding and may want their facility for their own use in the future.”
It says the land will only be used as a cricket pitch with no permanent buildings being constructed.
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Local community council Jeffreyston unanimously supported the proposal.
An officer report said the proposal would result in the loss of some best and most versatile agricultural land but that is balanced against “the importance of recreational spaces and outdoor facilities in terms of health, well-being and amenity”.
It concluded: “Whilst the proposal would result in the loss of agricultural land, the scheme would provide significant social benefits for the well-being and health of the community. The scheme would have a low impact on the landscape and upon the amenities of nearby residents.”
The recommendation of approval was moved by Cllr Alan Dennison and backed by the committee.
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