Sport

We take life too lightly and sport too seriously

Published

7 years ago

June 19, 2018

By Jonathan Twigg

DEBATE rages in Wales at present, where rugby has infiltrated the summer domain of cricket, which has held unparalleled dominance of the summer sunshine.

There has been a culture change, whereby summer tours and early season fixtures of the traditional winter sports means earlier starts.

Look no further than next seasons football league championship season for Swansea City, starting on Saturday (Aug 5) until Sunday (May 26) 2019.

The outcry from the boundary ropes comes more about how mini ruby has become a summer sport, bulldozered through, as opposed to negotiated.

WRU figurehead in this Ryan Jones, former Wales captain and British Lion parading the paraphernalia, Cricket Wales Development Officer Keri Chahal, having face to face meetings to form common ground.

The winner, undoubtedly now rugby as their mini game is happening in front of our eyes, but has cricket lost?

Jason Roy: In action for England against Australia

Not looking at the participation statistics in the new ‘All Stars’ programme, where children bestowed in blue attire are bouncing around cricket fields in the sunshine, the magic there to entice the next generation.

What sells it to parents, who undoubtedly influence their siblings? The paradox of ‘I played the game, so you must do also’ may live in both sports, but it’s more than that.

Attendances at international matches, in cricket’s case by supporting England, well the England and Wales Cricket Board side, the pathway? Saturday (Jun 16) saw them rock up in Cardiff, rugby capital of Wales, the Swalec Stadium to be precise, skirting the River Taff through Bute Park, the hosts leading a five match series against Australia 1-0.

Sell out you would think? Far from it; the Principality Stadium, bestowed with a retractable roof, unequivocally is, if Australia are the visitors, the Swalec attracted around 13,000, a fifth of their rugby rivals capacity.

Does cricket lack that panache to attract the floating spectator, often then with the family in tow? The game has stand out stars, opening batsman Jason Roy pulverising the Aussie attack, the Richardson’s, Jhye and Kane, of no blood synchronisation, a rarity in this sport for two with the same name to be sharing the new ball. Root 66, the featured face of the cricketing market, Joe, England Captain present, alongside former Glamorgan opening bowler Alex Wharf, making his ODI debut, as an umpire.

Coloured clothing, blue against yellow for the 11am start, the Aussie public back home having a choice of watching cricket, World Cup football against France, or rugby as the Wallabies welcomed Ireland to Melbourne.

Cricket is sensational down under, the viewing figures from Saturday would make an interesting comparative, lifting some of the ‘doom and gloom’ emanating from our ‘middle England’ type dulcet tones of the cricketing ‘I know best brigade’.

Food for thought, or is it time for the Blazers and prawn sandwiches to be confined to the attic, relics of periods passed? 100 ball ‘City’ cricket is another gurus dream, not welcomed by the current ‘Blazers’, where Saturday’s game produced 102 runs for one wicket, from just a third of the games total deliveries.

Believe me, there was a following of supporters, some perhaps beer monsters, in fancy dress but the majority of paying punters here, at £65 were from a generation brought up on John Arlott, a commentator remembered with fondness, his soupy‑thick Hampshire vowels drawling “we take life too lightly and sport too seriously.”

‘Wise up or weep’ is the cry for cricket, as this game on paper had everything, including the proverbial rain, which has so impacted the winter sports programme to influence the thinking of the WRU game management board.

England’s batsman rattled up for the first time in history five consecutive 50 plus run partnerships with stand in skipper Josh Butler ‘ramping’ sixes over the wicket keepers head; text book they are not but part of the modern game as he brought up his own 50 in the forty first over, with 17 runs in five balls!

What are the indicators for success? Tactical understanding from a blooded skipper Tim Paine, Jason Roy 120, Josh Butler 91 not out and Johnny Bairstow 42, in England’s highest ever ODI total of 342-8, where the expectation nowadays is 300 plus. Certainly, making sunshine on a rainy day sings Zoe, although those in the know were drumming Mambo number 5 with a cucumber sandwich during the interval.

Australia, looking to save some grace on a day when their rugby and football comrades were dispensed made a fist of it, Maxwell striking 31 alongside Glamorgan star Shaun Marsh.

Marsh handled the pressure but the crowd sensed the game slipping into the memory bank, in the lowering sunlight, buoyed by the beach ball antics of amongst others, Baywatch, tennis players and the Smurfs who embraced the evening’s ambiance, before the jobsworth lumbered in.

Marsh passed 2000 white ball runs on his way to 131, the end coming through Roy’s match winning catch to secure the star player award as over 600 runs were chalked in the scorebook. Something was missing, no pyrotechnics from which to salivate. Down to the pitch maybe, a slow burner typifying middle England in the centre of Wales, or is the product label just too predictable. Maybe a famous son of Yorkshire can answer that, after all he was called upon to ring the five minute ‘bell’ to signal the start of play.

That Yorkshireman; Neil Warnock; the irony, Manager of the newest Premier League football team, Cardiff City, promoted last season from the Championship, brought in for ‘iconic value’. Can the traditional sports share the space before time is called one wonders, with no frills, no fuss, depicted serenely by Arlott.

That memory is worth a toast, of his favourite Beaujolais tipple, for this is cricket as we know it, but for how much longer?

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News

Awards celebrate all that is good about Pembrokeshire sport

Published

3 days ago

December 2, 2025

Herald Sport

PEMBROKESHIRE’S sporting community came together on Friday evening as Folly Farm hosted the annual Sport Pembrokeshire Awards – a night dedicated to honouring achievements across every level, age group and discipline.

The awards recognise exceptional performances, inspiring journeys and the volunteers who keep local sport thriving behind the scenes. The ceremony was once again presented by Ceri Coleman-Phillips of BBC Wales Sport, supported by Cris Tomos.

Lifetime honour for Premier League star

This year’s Lifetime Achievement Award went to Pembrokeshire’s own Simon Davies.
The former Wales winger enjoyed a distinguished Premier League career with Fulham, Tottenham Hotspur and Everton.

Davies scored in the 2010 Europa League final for Fulham, won fifty-eight caps for Wales – scoring six – and captained his country during the 2010 World Cup qualifiers. He was named Welsh Footballer of the Year in 2002 and Fulham’s player of the season in 2007–08. After leaving the club in 2013, he returned to his boyhood side Solva AFC, famously paying £3 subs to play against St Ishmaels.

Special recognition for Wales Women’s Street Football Team

Welsh rugby legend Gareth Thomas introduced the evening’s Special Award, honouring the players of the Wales Women’s Street Football Team for their remarkable run to the quarter-finals of the Homeless World Cup in Oslo.

The squad trains in Haverfordwest and included five outstanding Pembrokeshire players – co-captains Tor Planner and Marie Tilley, alongside Claire Mantripp, Sam Lewtas and Bryony Davies. All have overcome personal challenges, including homelessness, mental health difficulties and social exclusion, yet wore the Welsh jersey with pride on the world stage.

The team was led by manager Jo Price, former Wales and Arsenal goalkeeper.
Support staff included Anji Tinley, Manager of the Garth Youth & Community Project and a Pembrokeshire County Councillor.

Cruising Free honoured after rowing the Atlantic

The Chairman’s Award for 2025 was presented by Pembrokeshire County Council Chairman Cllr Maureen Bowen to ‘Cruising Free’ of Neyland Rowing Club, who achieved one of the world’s toughest endurance feats – rowing 3,200 miles across the Atlantic Ocean.

Sophie Pierce, Janine Williams, Miyah Periam and Polly Zipperlan completed the gruelling crossing from Lanzarote to Antigua, raising money for cystic fibrosis and the Paul Sartori Foundation.

At 32, Sophie became the first person with cystic fibrosis to row an ocean, while 70-year-old Janine became the oldest woman ever to complete the challenge. The team’s achievement was hailed as a powerful example of determination, unity and courage.

Parkrun pioneers win School Award

The School Award went to the Federation of Tavernspite and Templeton Schools – the first Parkrun School in the UK.

The federation has built a Parkrun curriculum with Parkrun UK, using the weekly event to boost physical activity, support wellbeing, and develop leadership through the Parkrun Ambassador scheme. The schools were praised for exceptional inclusion, providing adapted PE equipment, wheelchair races and strong support for disadvantaged pupils. Estyn has highlighted their work as best practice.

A strong year for Pembrokeshire sport

Summing up the event, Cllr Rhys Sinnett, Cabinet Member for Residents’ Services, said:
“My congratulations go to everyone who won awards and all those nominated. We are so lucky to have such a strong sporting scene here in Pembrokeshire, and my thanks go to all those who work so hard to ensure people of all ages and abilities can take part in the sports they love. Thanks also to our sponsors Valero, Folly Farm and Pure West Radio for supporting this celebration each year.”

Full list of winners

Girls U16: Ava Tyrie (Brazilian Ju Jitsu – Pembroke MMA)
Boys U16: Ned Rees-Wigmore (Hockey)

Club of the Year: Milford Haven Hockey Club (MAIN PHOTO)
Junior Disability: Jake Evans (Llangwm RFC)
Young Volunteer: Alannah Heasman (Haverfordwest High School)
Junior Team: Merlin’s Bridge FC Under-14s 2024/25
Unsung Hero: Jenny Lewis (Clarbeston Road AFC)
Senior Team: Fishguard & Goodwick Ladies Hockey Club
Male Achievement: Liam Bradley (Triathlon)
Female Achievement: Sanna Duthie (Running)
Disability Sport: Rachel Bailey (Boccia)
Club Organiser: Silfan Rhys-Jones (Fishguard Table Tennis Club)
Coach of the Year: James North (Kilgetty AFC)
School Award: Tavernspite & Templeton Federation of Schools
Chairman’s Award: Cruising Free (Neyland Rowing Club)
Special Award: Street Football Wales
Lifetime Achievement: Simon Davies (Wales, Spurs, Fulham, Everton & Solva AFC)

Sport

South Pembrokeshire Short Mat Bowls: Week ten results

Published

4 days ago

November 30, 2025

Herald Sport

The Friendly League continues as Reynalton close the gap on leaders East Williamston

THE LATEST round of fixtures in the South Pembrokeshire Short Mat Bowls Association’s Friendly League produced another mix of tight contests and emphatic victories.

Kilgetty were beaten 8–2 at home by Hundleton, while Reynalton delivered the standout performance of the week with a 10–0 win over East Williamston. Llanteg also impressed, defeating Carew 8–2.

Elsewhere, St Twynnells claimed a 7–3 win away at the Badgers, and Lamphey ran out 7–3 winners against St Johns. Cosheston had the bye.

League table – Week ten

Team	Played	Won	Drawn	Lost	S/D	Points
East Williamston	8	7	0	1	+130	62
Reynalton	8	5	1	2	+64	50
Hundleton	8	4	1	3	+3	42
Llanteg	8	4	0	4	–5	41
Badgers	9	3	1	5	–21	41
St Johns	8	3	1	4	–6	38
St Twynnells	8	4	0	4	–34	37
Lamphey	9	4	0	5	–15	36
Kilgetty	9	4	0	5	–49	36
Cosheston	8	3	0	5	–13	35
Carew	7	3	0	4	–54	32

Reynalton’s dominant win means they move within touching distance of leaders East Williamston, setting up an intriguing second half to the season.

Sport

South Africa run riot as Wales suffer record defeat in Cardiff

Published

5 days ago

November 30, 2025

Herald Sport

Wales 0–73 South Africa
WALES endured one of the heaviest defeats in their history on Saturday as world champions South Africa ran in 11 tries at the Principality Stadium, producing a brutal 73-0 demolition that exposed the gulf between the sides and underlined the scale of the rebuilding task facing Welsh rugby.

The fixture, arranged outside the international window, left Wales without several first-choice players and short on experience. South Africa, by contrast, arrived in Cardiff at full strength and in ruthless form. What followed was a one-sided contest from the opening minutes to the final whistle.

First-half dominance

The Springboks established their authority early, their scrum immediately overpowering the Welsh pack and setting the tone for the afternoon. Tries from Gerhard Steenekamp, Ethan Hooker and Jasper Wiese put the visitors 21-0 ahead, with Wales struggling to exit their own half and repeatedly conceding penalties under pressure.

Wales’ lineout functioned reasonably well and there were brief flashes of ambition from Joe Hawkins, Joe Roberts and Rio Dyer, but every half-chance dissolved through handling errors or South Africa’s suffocating defensive line. A late surge from the Boks saw Morne van den Berg cross just before the break for a 28-0 half-time lead.

Second-half collapse

Any hopes of containment disappeared after the interval. South Africa emptied their bench—bringing on yet more power—and immediately cut through Wales again. Wilco Louw, Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu (twice), Canan Moodie, Ruan Nortje and Eben Etzebeth all scored in a relentless second half.

Wales’ discipline faltered under the pressure. Taine Plumtree and Aaron Wainwright were both shown yellow cards, with Wainwright’s high tackle sent to the bunker for review. South Africa’s own discipline cracked late on when Etzebeth received a straight red card for making contact with the eye area of Alex Mann—an incident captain Siya Kolisi later claimed was accidental.

Reaction

Player of the match Andre Esterhuizen, who produced a series of thunderous carries and turnovers, said the Springboks “worked really hard” to complete their Autumn clean sweep, praising Wales for “never giving up”.

Kolisi was gracious in victory but said he did not want the Etzebeth incident to overshadow the performance, adding: “The only way a team gets better is by playing the best. Wales will be stronger for facing this.”

Former Wales captain Dan Biggar, working as a pundit, was blunt in his assessment. “There are players there that aren’t at this level now, and may not play this level again,” he said. “I don’t think anyone learned anything from that.”

A difficult day for Welsh rugby

For Wales, the defeat will strengthen scrutiny of the WRU’s scheduling and long-term planning. A young and inexperienced squad battled gamely in patches—Mann, Hawkins and Dyer among those showing fight—but the mismatch was stark.

A crowd of around 50,000, well below capacity, reflected the mood of supporters as another bruising year for Welsh rugby nears its end.

Head coach Warren Gatland will now attempt to piece together the positives from a chastening afternoon, but the bigger questions facing the structure of the game in Wales remain unanswered.