Sport

Silver medals for Welsh rowers

Published

9 years ago

August 11, 2017

THE WELSH SEA ROWING ASSOCIATION sent 14 rowers to the British Offshore Rowing Championships on July 29-30.

Members of Fishguard Llanion, Mumbles, Newport, Neyland, Towy and Wisemans Bridge were selected for the elite squad. The Welsh squad made its home at Towy Boat Club, Llansteffan in 2015 and has gone from strength to strength, under Alun Stedman’s leadership.

The squad members row coastal sculls; sliding seats and dual oared rowing boats. Eight crews; three lady doubles, three men’s doubles and two men’s singles, all travelled to Poole to compete at the prestigious championships.

Nine rowers were competing at their first international, whilst five others were returning to international duties. All eight crews proved to be highly competitive and were away first with blistering beach starts. The biggest challenge of the day was the typical ‘British Weather’. The driving wind and rain proved to be a minor hindrance as seven of the eight crews reached the finals at the event.

The ‘Welsh Base Camp’ became the international camp as the Irish and Swedish competitors joined them for some much needed shelter from the elements. A team of 30 supporters travelled to Poole to support the Welsh Team, 10 of which were boathandlers for the event, supporting the Welsh, Irish, Swedish and English rowers at the event.

“The support shown to the rowing crews from the Welsh Supporters was phenomenal. The boathandlers were exceptional, demonstrating the best beach starts of the competition. The sense of ‘hwyl’ and Welsh pride was certainly heightened with impressive performances by the rowers,” said Nic Thomas, Assistant Welsh Coach.

The top seeded lady doubles, Charlotte Heath(Towy) and Bryony Jones(Wisemans/Towy) won Silver with the other lady doubles Tyenne Morgan(Towy) and Alison Morris (Towy) finishing 5th and Caroline Williams(Towy) and Manon Dixon (Towy)finishing 6th. The 4th position was hotly contested with both welsh crews being pipped at the post with only split seconds separating the crews.

The men’s double partnership of Steven Clack (Llanion/Towy) and Jac Davies (Towy) battled the entire race with Jersey for the gold. Jersey edged ahead, with Jac and Steven collecting a silver with a very impressive performance. The other mens double Theo Owen (Fishguard) and Ben Curtis (Towy) battled for Bronze.

They managed to hold off the other crews, but following a couple of collisions they lost pace and narrowly missed out on the bronze medal finishing in 4th. In 5th Andrew Nelmes(Newport) and Tom Brain (Mumbles/Towy) gave a solid performance, finishing comfortably ahead of the back of the fleet.

In the single men’s category Elliot Harrison (Towy) had a blistering start, banded the best of the competition, finished 6th in his heat, which sadly saw the end to his championship hopes. Chris Harding (Llanion/ Towy) proceeded to the final and finished 8th in a close run race.

“The Welsh efforts by rowers, has been tremendous. All crews have delivered credible performances and proved to be competitive at international level. We couldn’t be prouder of them and the incredible supports that travelled to Dorset for the event,” added Nic.

The competitor’s next international will be the Welsh Sea Rowing Open, held at Llansteffan on September 2-3. Following that they have the Irish Open on September 9-10 before the World Championships in mid-October.

Sport

Haverfordwest County Under-13 girls shine at final FAW festival

Published

2 days ago

April 5, 2026

Herald Sport

HAVERFORDWEST COUNTY AFC Women and Girls have praised their under-13s after another strong showing at the third and final FAW Festival of the season.

The young Bluebirds travelled to Colliers Park in Wrexham on Saturday (Apr 4), where they once again impressed with their performances.

Club officials said the girls had performed fantastically well throughout the season, adding that everyone at Haverfordwest County was incredibly proud of their efforts.

The squad for the day was Libby O, Ela I, Ines M, Mila E, Scarlett C, Rachel B, Lydia H, Lilly M, Zara E, Leila P and Lillie EJ.

Well done girls.

Sport

South Pembrokeshire Short Mat Bowls: Friendly League week 22 results

Published

2 days ago

April 5, 2026

Herald Sport

RESULTS from week 22 of the South Pembrokeshire Short Mat Bowls Association Friendly League have been confirmed, with Badgers recording a comprehensive 10-0 win over Lamphey and St Twynnells edging past Cosheston 6-4.

An earlier fixture also saw Cosheston claim a 10-0 victory over Reynalton.

Several matches were postponed during the week, including Kilgetty v Carew, Llanteg v St Twynnells and Hundleton v East Williamston.

St Johns had the bye.

Latest results:
Cosheston 4 St Twynnells 6
Badgers 10 Lamphey 0
Cosheston 10 Reynalton 0

League table after week 22:
East Williamston — Played 19, Won 13, Drawn 0, Lost 6, Shot difference 169, Points 126
St Johns — Played 20, Won 12, Drawn 1, Lost 7, Shot difference 132, Points 118
Reynalton — Played 20, Won 8, Drawn 2, Lost 10, Shot difference 24, Points 99
St Twynnells — Played 19, Won 10, Drawn 2, Lost 7, Shot difference 9, Points 99
Carew — Played 19, Won 10, Drawn 0, Lost 9, Shot difference -12, Points 98
Hundleton — Played 19, Won 10, Drawn 1, Lost 8, Shot difference -7, Points 97
Llanteg — Played 18, Won 10, Drawn 0, Lost 8, Shot difference -16, Points 95
Badgers — Played 20, Won 7, Drawn 1, Lost 12, Shot difference -104, Points 89
Cosheston — Played 19, Won 7, Drawn 2, Lost 10, Shot difference -39, Points 88
Lamphey — Played 20, Won 9, Drawn 0, Lost 11, Shot difference -71, Points 80
Kilgetty — Played 19, Won 6, Drawn 1, Lost 12, Shot difference -85, Points 73

League officials have reminded clubs that all outstanding matches must be completed by midnight on Sunday, April 19, 2026.

Sport

Amman United Youth suffer agonising semi-final defeat

Published

2 days ago

April 5, 2026

Herald Sport

Cup final dream slips away as Newcastle Emlyn battle back to seal 20-19 win in windy Carmarthenshire Cup clash

AMMAN UNITED YOUTH saw their Carmarthenshire Cup final hopes ended in heartbreaking fashion on Saturday (Apr 4) as Newcastle Emlyn snatched a 20-19 victory in a dramatic semi-final.

Played in difficult, windy conditions, the contest was fiercely competitive throughout, with Amman left to rue a series of handling errors that allowed the visitors back into the game.

Newcastle Emlyn made the stronger start, taking an early 3-0 lead through a penalty and then missing a chance to add to their tally.

Amman responded well and took control of the first half. Captain Ceian Lewis crossed following a well-worked catch-and-drive to put his side 5-3 in front. Toby Slater then produced an excellent touchline conversion in tough conditions to extend the lead to 7-3.

Amman continued to build momentum when Harvey Duncan made a sharp break down the wing to score their second try. Slater was again on target with an impressive conversion in the wind, giving his side a 14-3 lead at the break.

But the game turned soon after the restart. A costly Amman mistake allowed Newcastle Emlyn back into the contest, with the visitors scoring in the corner before adding the conversion to close the gap to 14-10.

Amman appeared to have steadied themselves when Kelston Fairhurst powered over from another catch-and-drive, stretching the lead to 19-10.

However, Newcastle Emlyn refused to give in. Strong forward play brought them another try, and the conversion cut the deficit to just two points at 19-17 as the pressure mounted in the closing stages.

The decisive moment came in the final five minutes when another Amman handling error handed Emlyn a crucial opportunity. The visitors worked their way into range and slotted a late penalty to edge ahead 20-19.

Amman had one final chance to rescue the game and opted for a catch-and-drive from a late penalty, having already found success with that tactic earlier in the match. This time, though, Newcastle Emlyn held firm to deny them and secure their place in the final.

It was a bitter end for Amman United Youth, who had looked in control at half-time, but Newcastle Emlyn showed resilience and composure when it mattered most.