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Holliday outshines Kiff in Town win

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LLANGWM’S Joseph Kiff’s century was outshone by Haverfordwest’s Simon Holliday’s ton on Saturday (May 11) as Town earned victory in a high scoring game.

Llangwm batted first and made an excellent total of 235-6 from their innings and would have been quietly confident at the halfway stage.

Kiff and Jonathan Venables shared 34 runs for the first wicket as they made a steady start before Venables was bowled by Adam James on a score of ten.

Matthew Kiff did not last long at the crease as he was caught by Jack Scriven off the bowling of James for a second ball duck, leaving Llangwm on 34-2.

Noah Davies joined Joseph in the middle and the pair shared a good stand of 53. Davies made a score of ten but was then bowled by Simon Holliday.

Luke Brock departed for a score of 5 when he was caught by Jake Merry off the bowling of Clive Tucker.

Llangwm were 110-4 at that stage but Kiff and Phil Llewellyn began hitting the ball to all parts of the ground in a stand of 63.

Kiff deservedly reached his century, hitting 14 fours and three sixes on the way, but was then caught by Ashley James off the bowling of namesake Adam.

Richard Brock was bowled soon after by Lee Summons but Llewellyn and Ewan Griffiths batted on to the end.

Griffiths was not out on 14 while Llewellyn smashed five fours and three sixes as he finished unbeaten on 67.

That set Town 236 to win and they made a good start to their reply as Holliday and Mike Jones shared 90 runs for the first wicket.

Joseph Phillips made the breakthrough for Llangwm as he had Jones caught by Ewan Griffiths on a score of 40. Phillips then bowled Danny Potter as Llangwm looked to hit back.

However, Ben Field and Holliday shared 73 runs for the third wicket to take Town closer to their target.

Field scored 21 before he was trapped leg before by Luke Brock who then also bowled Adam James.

Llewellyn bowled Jake Merry to reduce Town to 210-5 in the 42nd over but Llangwm were unable to remove Holliday.

Holliday finished unbeaten on 124 from 120 balls with twelve fours and four sixes to see his side over the line.

Sport

Local Angharad James-Turner leads Cymru in historic Euro ’25 play-off final

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TONIGHT (Nov 29), Pembrokeshire’s own Angharad James-Turner will captain the Cymru Women’s national football team in the first leg of their crucial Euro 2025 play-off final against the Republic of Ireland in Cardiff. As the youngest player ever to accumulate 100 caps for Cymru, Angharad’s leadership and experience will be invaluable as Cymru battles for a spot in next summer’s European Championship.

A star in the making

Angharad James’ footballing career began in the heart of Pembrokeshire, where she first showcased her talent with local club Manorbier Ladies, not far from her hometown of Haverfordwest. Her ability on the pitch quickly caught the attention of larger clubs, and at 16, she joined the Arsenal Academy. By 2011, she had made her debut for Arsenal in the UEFA Women’s Champions League, marking the start of an illustrious career.

From there, James has played for an impressive array of clubs across the globe, including Notts County, Yeovil Town, Everton, Reading, North Carolina Courage, Orlando Pride, and Tottenham Hotspur. Her versatility as a midfielder, as well as her time playing as a fullback at Spurs, has earned her a reputation as an exceptional player who can control the game and set up her teammates with key assists​

Now 30, James has become the heartbeat of the Welsh national team. She was named Cymru captain in October 2024, taking over the leadership role from Sophie Ingle. Despite the big shoes to fill, Angharad has proven herself to be more than capable, leading her team through tough qualifiers, including the pivotal play-offs for Euro 2025​

A champion on and off the pitch

Angharad’s international career is nothing short of remarkable. She made her senior debut for Wales at just 17 and reached 100 caps in 2022, the same day Wales qualified for the World Cup play-offs for the first time. Her contribution to Welsh football has been pivotal, and she was named to represent Team GB at the London 2012 Olympics​

Off the pitch, Angharad is equally impressive. She’s a proud Welsh speaker and regularly conducts interviews in Welsh, despite the challenges of living abroad for much of her career. In a recent social media post, she spoke about her ongoing commitment to the language, sharing her belief that it’s important to keep Welsh alive and accessible​

In addition to her football career, Angharad is also a proud co-owner of a coffee van, “Two Sides Grind,” which she runs with her partner Amy James-Turner and their dog, Betsy. The duo is working towards one day owning a coffee shop, demonstrating Angharad’s entrepreneurial spirit​

A historic moment for Pembrokeshire

For those in Pembrokeshire, Angharad’s journey is a point of immense pride. From her early days in Manorbier to becoming the captain of Wales, she is an inspiration to young athletes across the county. Her determination, humility, and skill make her a true role model, not only in Wales but around the world.

As Cymru takes on the Republic of Ireland in tonight’s crucial first leg, Angharad James-Turner’s leadership will be central to their hopes of qualifying for Euro 2025. Whatever the outcome, Pembrokeshire can be proud of one of their own leading the charge for Welsh football at the highest level.

Wales v Ireland – how to follow all the action

Wales v Republic of Ireland (first leg)

29th of November, Cardiff City Stadium. K.O. 19:15pm

Republic of Ireland v Wales (second leg)

3rd of December, Aviva Stadium. K.O. 19:30pm

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Sport

Pembrokeshire Knock-Out Cup quarter-final report

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HAVERFORDWEST edged out St Davids in a thrilling encounter under the new floodlights at St Davids, advancing to the semi-finals of the Pembrokeshire Knock-Out Cup. The decisive moment came in the second half, with Dylan Williamson crossing for a crucial try in a fiercely contested match that featured five tries, four yellow cards, and relentless effort from both sides.

Match Overview

First Half

Early Advantage for St Davids
St Davids struck early, igniting the scoreboard just three minutes in. Centre Morgan Griffiths broke the line before full-back Iwan Davies dived over in the corner. Bob Froy’s conversion gave the Saints a 7-0 lead, and a subsequent penalty from Froy extended the advantage to 10-0.

The Saints’ early dominance was underpinned by hooker Rhys Price’s control in the scrums and No.8 George Raymond’s powerful carries.

Haverfordwest Respond
Haverfordwest fought back as winger Scott Candler’s elusive run created an opportunity for full-back Matty Phillips to score from close range. Jack Codd added the conversion, cutting the deficit.

Although Codd missed a penalty shortly after, St Davids capitalized with another three points from Froy.

The momentum shifted again when Haverfordwest centre Iestyn Arnold charged down a kick, setting up Candler for his first try. Codd’s conversion handed the visitors a narrow lead at 14-13.

St Davids quickly retaliated. A dominant scrum near the try line allowed Iwan Davies to claim his second try, with Froy converting to restore a 20-14 lead.

As the half neared its conclusion, Haverfordwest’s Jamie Phillips was shown a yellow card for repeated infringements. Despite being a man down, Haverfordwest’s Ioan Hawkridge-Jones broke through to earn a penalty, which Codd converted from 35 metres, leaving St Davids ahead 20-17 at halftime.

Second Half

Physicality Takes Centre Stage
The second half saw a tighter contest, with tempers flaring and scoring opportunities scarce. Froy missed an early penalty for St Davids, and the game descended into a series of physical confrontations. Haverfordwest centre Gabe Thicker and St Davids replacement hooker Chris Cooper were both sin-binned after a heated exchange.

Williamson’s Match-Winning Try
The decisive moment arrived at the hour mark. Arnold broke through St Davids’ defensive line from 40 metres out and expertly offloaded to Dylan Williamson, who finished the move with a vital try. Codd’s conversion pushed Haverfordwest ahead 24-20.

Late Drama
Haverfordwest’s substitutes Terry Lovell and Dan Berry shored up the scrum, allowing the visitors to dominate possession and territory in the closing stages.

In a final twist, St Davids captain Nathan Foster received a yellow card, leaving the Saints with 14 men for the final moments. Despite their spirited efforts to launch a late attack, St Davids couldn’t break through Haverfordwest’s resolute defense.

Haverfordwest now look ahead to the semi-finals, while St Davids exit the competition with their heads held high after pushing their higher-league opponents to the limit.

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Politics

‘Long way to go’, admit bosses of crisis-hit WRU

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WELSH Rugby Union chiefs admitted the governing body still has a long way to go after an independent review unveiled a “toxic” culture of bullying and misogyny.

The Senedd’s culture committee scrutinised representatives of the WRU, which has been rocked by allegations of sexism, racism and homophobia over the past year.

Labour’s Hannah Blythyn pressed the witnesses about the women’s team being given a three-hour ultimatum in contract talks, asking if this is how the WRU treats employees.

Richard Collier-Keywood, chair of the WRU since July 2023, told the committee he and Abi Tierney, the chief executive, have since apologised to the players for serious failings.

He said: “That was not something that should have happened … we absolutely should not have given the players a three-hour ultimatum to sign the contracts … it’s certainly not the practice which I want to see in the WRU.”

Plaid Cymru leader Rhun ap Iorwerth said: “You’ve made it clear that you believe you have taken significant steps in terms of changing attitudes towards cultural issues.

“Given that everybody’s eyes were on you … and in particular your attitude towards women within the organisation, do you feel you need to reassess how far forward you believe you have come as a union in light of the failings?”

Mr Collier-Keywood replied: “Yeah, I think we’ve definitely reflected on that and I don’t think we were fooling ourselves up to that point either … we recognise we have a long way to go.”

He explained that two board members led an in-depth review of the contract negotiation process, with their report expected to be published in full in the coming weeks.

Criticising “misreporting” of the review’s conclusions by the Daily Telegraph, he said: “There were many failures … but they were not to do with sex discrimination.”

Ms Tierney told the committee: “Everybody went in with the best intentions but … tensions and frustrations arose during the process.”

Mr Collier-Keywood explained the findings emerging from the review: “I don’t think that we as the WRU set out a clear process such that everybody brought in ….

“We were not clear of the roles of individuals in that process, both from a WRU perspective nor, in particular, the people who the players thought would be representing them.”

He added: “We had not fully appreciated the fact that we were dealing with a situation where we had players who were in a high-performance environment but they were also contracted to the WRU as employees.”

Mr Collier-Keywood pointed out that men are contracted to the regions, saying: “We weren’t treating the women as employees to the full extent of that term. That was confusing and difficult and we were not fulfilling our obligations towards the women.”

Delyth Jewell, who chairs the Senedd’s culture committee, questioned progress against recommendations made by Anne Rafferty’s 2023 independent review.

Ms Tierney accepted the WRU had not lived up to the standards expected as she stressed: “Transformational change is hard. I would say colleagues are really feeling that at the moment and it will take time for things to feel better, I think.”

Mr Collier-Keywood added: “Years of previous culture does take time to change and yes we’re impatient to do that but we’re also realistic in terms of not claiming false dawns.”

Asked about a £7.5m loss in latest accounts, Mr Collier-Keywood told Senedd members the WRU is on track to take £5m out of its cost base in the current year.

“We both now believe our finances are more sustainable,” he said, explaining that the WRU made a £24m profit but drew on reserves to allocate £31m to rugby.

Pressed about the impact on participation, Ms Tierney told the committee meeting on November 27 she is saddened that concerns around culture may deter women and girls

But she stressed: “I think it would be unfair for me to sit here and say we won’t ever have any more headlines again because I think culture is a journey.

“It’s how we respond to those headlines that is so important.”

Ms Blythyn, a former minister who was previously responsible for fair work in Wales, did not envy the chief executive’s task of having to turn the WRU around.

She said: “We’ve heard of the glass ceiling but there’s a glass cliff – a tendency for women to come in at a point where an organisation or institution is at the precipice.”

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