Sport

Joyce thrilled with first Six Nations try

Published

6 years ago

March 19, 2019

JASMINE Joyce relished her first Six Nations try as Wales Women ended the campaign on a high by playing some fine rugby in a 24-5 win over Ireland at Cardiff Arms Park.

Electrifying wing Joyce produced an individual performance as part of a fine team display from Rowland Phillips’ team in the Welsh capital.

Joyce scored the fourth of Wales’ tries by sprinting down the right touchline in sensational fashion as her team followed their win over Scotland with a second straight victory.

“It was literally a great team performance. We are going to be buzzing for a long time after that,” said Joyce.

“It’s the best we’ve played in a very long time both as a squad and in terms of individual performances. I think we can enjoy ourselves after that one – it all clicked.

“We have been getting better and better. Against Italy we managed to get a draw, but I think in this campaign they have shown they are something most teams don’t think they are. Italy are on the up, which we saw with their win over France on Sunday, and for us to get wins over Scotland and now Ireland is massive for us. It’s great to give us some momentum going into next year’s Six Nations and then the World Cup in 2020.”

Ireland dominated the opening quarter and finally made their pressure count as teenage wing Beibhinn Parsons opened the scoring. After that, they failed to score a point and Wales showed a clinical edge with their best performance of the campaign as they sealed their first Six Nations over Ireland since 2011.

Home tries came from Jess Kavanagh, captain Carys Phillips, Bethan Lewis, and Joyce.

Kavanagh’s was a fine effort too as she scored in the corner, while Phillips and Lewis provided tries from the forwards. It was left to Team GB Sevens Olympic star Joyce to round off the scoring and she did exactly that in an effort which was eerily similar to the one she had ruled out against Italy.

“We’ve got to make sure we enjoy the experience of this win and do it together,” added Joyce, who scored a try, made 208 metres, five line breaks, and four tackle breaks against Ireland.

“We had a different kind of mentality coming into this game in terms of trying to get the ball wide and I think we did that. I must have had about 10 carries and to finally get a try right at the end was amazing.”

Wales were beaten by France and England, drew with Italy, and then downed Scotland and Ireland to round off an encouraging Six Nations campaign. Phillips’ side ended the tournament in fourth place.

“To get our second win of the campaign is massive for us and we’ve ended up finishing fourth which is a massive step up from last year,” said Joyce.

“We couldn’t ask for much more than that. England and France are a step above the other nations, but we want to keep building on this moving forwards.”

Up Next

Wizards sink Swifts to set up Carew final

Don't Miss

Wales thump Ireland to seal Grand Slam

Sport

Annual veterans tennis tournament was the most popular yet

Published

3 days ago

October 2, 2024

Herald Sport

HAVERFORDWEST Tennis Club’s ninth annual veterans tournament proved to be the most popular yet with a record 42 entries.

Running from 9 September to finals day on 14 September, players over the age of 45 competed in singles, doubles and mixed doubles competitions.

David Roch James beat Marc Thompson to claim the men’s singles title, while Liz Green edged Jenny Guard in the ladies’ final.

Marc was consoled in the men’s doubles, where he and partner Gwyn Scale defeated Louis Warren and Peter Brooker.

Meanwhile Liz enjoyed double delight, with she and Angela Scourfield beating Helen Groves and Jane Groves in the ladies’ final.

Jane Allen and John Parker triumphed in the mixed doubles, beating Ruth Moss and Richard Davies in a hugely entertaining finale.

The traditional finals day dinner took place in the clubhouse afterwards, with the trophies presented by club president Brian Hearne.

Tournament organiser Richard Davies was thanked for his hard work, along with Sarah Keogh and her team of volunteers who provided the meal.

Sport

Don’t miss Sport Pembrokeshire Awards nominations deadline

Published

4 days ago

October 1, 2024

Herald Sport

THE deadline for nominations for the Sport Pembrokeshire Awards is fast approaching.

Anyone thinking of putting a sportsman or woman, coach, club, team or organisation forward for any of the categories is urged to do so before the closing date of Sunday October 13^th.

The Awards will be held at Folly Farm on Friday November 29^th.

The award categories are:

Coach of the Year
Female Sporting Achievement
Male Sporting Achievement
Boys (U16) Sporting Achievement
Girls (U16) Sporting Achievement
Disability Sport Award
Junior (U16) Disability Sport Award
Unsung Hero
Club Organiser of the Year
Team Achievement of the Year
Junior (U16) Team Achievement of the Year
Young Volunteer of the Year
Club of the Year
Lifetime Achievement

An additional award announced on the night is the Schools Award, which recognises a local school which works extra hard to make sport and physical activity fun, inclusive, and innovative – and forges strong bonds with the local community.

Thanks go once again to the Awards sponsors, Valero, Pure West Radio and Folly Farm for ensuring that the celebration of Pembrokeshire sport can continue.

To make a nomination, go to: https://www.pembrokeshire.gov.uk/forge/index.asp?x=F53021F86D

Sport

Division 4 West sees high-scoring affairs and tightly contested fixtures

Published

5 days ago

September 30, 2024

Herald Sport

THE latest round of matches in the division 4 west saw some high-scoring affairs and tightly contested fixtures, as the table starts to take shape early in the season. Neyland and Narberth Athletic continue to set the pace, while Llangwm’s struggles continued, and Teirw Crymych recorded a dominant win. Here’s a breakdown of all the action.

Llangwm 17-19 Dreigiau Emlyn

In a closely fought contest, Dreigiau Emlyn narrowly edged Llangwm 19-17. Llangwm put up a brave fight, with tries from Calum Jenkins and George James, both converted by Harry Makepeace, who also added a penalty. However, Dreigiau Emlyn’s scorers were not available, though their performance was enough to secure the victory. Llangwm, despite showing flashes of quality, remain winless after three games.

Pembroke Dock Harlequins 22-40 Neyland

Neyland continued their unbeaten run with a commanding 40-22 victory over Pembroke Dock Harlequins. Damien Miller was in fine form for the Quins, scoring two tries, while Ben Gibby also crossed the line. Ben Hathaway added a conversion and a penalty. However, Neyland proved too strong, with Ben Williams, Josh Watts, and Owen Hamer each contributing tries, while Oli Rothero starred with two tries of his own. Rothero also slotted over three conversions and three penalties, guiding his team to a comprehensive win and cementing their position at the top of the table.

St Davids 0-40 Narberth Athletic

Narberth Athletic dominated St Davids in a one-sided affair, winning 40-0. The scoring started early, with Harry Phillips and Shane Rossiter each scoring two tries. Harry Williams and Kyle Williams also crossed the line, while Rossiter’s reliable kicking saw him add five conversions. St Davids, who struggled to make an impact, were simply outclassed by a Narberth side that looks like serious title contenders after their second consecutive victory.

Teirw Crymych 42-21 Llanybydder

Teirw Crymych produced one of the performances of the weekend with a resounding 42-21 win over Llanybydder. Tomos Lewis led the charge with two tries, while Hedd Jones, Griff Lloyd, Luke Freebury, and Osian Thomas each scored a try apiece. Elgan Wilson was flawless with the boot, converting all six tries. Llanybydder did respond, with Osian Roberts crossing the line twice and Will Evans also adding a try. Roberts converted all three scores, but Teirw Crymych were too strong on the day, earning their first win of the season.