Team: Cardiff RFC
Position: 1st
After missing out on the league title to Merthyr last season, Cardiff were looking to go one better and top the table this year. They were well on their way to winning the title before the season was cancelled, sitting seven points clear of Carmarthen Quins with a game in hand.
The blue and blacks started the season with 13 straight wins, including two in the cup. In their opening game of the Premiership they narrowly beat Pontypridd 24-23. They went 14-0 up in the opening ten minutes thanks to tries from Ed Howley and James Ratti. Pontypridd hit back through tries from Dafydd Lockyer and Morgan Sieniawski, before Ben Jones kicked them to a 17-23 lead. A last-minute Ed Howley try followed by a Joseph Scrivens conversion sealed Cardiff the victory.
They followed this up with a win over RGC in the cup where they reached the semi-final, along with league victories against Llanelli, Swansea, Carmarthen Quins, RGC, Ebbw Vale, Bridgend, Aberavon, Newport, Merthyr and Llandovery. In the middle of all this there was also an emphatic 78-12 victory against Ebbw Vale in the cup.
Their unbeaten run in the premiership came to an end in late December at Sardis Road. Pontypridd gained revenge on Cardiff for edging them out at the start of the season, coming out 26-25 winners over the blue and blacks. They completed a league double over Llanelli and Bridgend before losing to 3rd place Aberavon in an eventful game which ended up being their final game of the season.
There have been many standout players for them this season. Up front the likes of Alex Everett who finished with 5 tries in the league and Callum Bradbury have shined. Along with backs Teri Gee who also finished with 5 league tries and Outside-half Gareth Thompson who scored 123 points in the league. The experience of Captain and Vice-captain, Morgan Allen and Tom Habberfield have been so important along with regional players Dan Fish and James Ratti.
On the season as a whole Captain Morgan Allen said, “Overall, I think the season went well, there were a few ups and downs and some disappointing results. But when you set such high standards for yourselves and get off to the start like we did, that was always going to be the case.”
On their expectations this season, “I always expected us to win the league from the start. We put together a much better squad than last season and made some great signings.”
“If we didn’t have the outbreak then we’d have definitely won the league, we had a slight wobble against Aberavon but there’s no shame in losing away against a team as good as them by only a couple of points.”
On how to prepare for next season, “We will always need improvements, the top teams in the league will look to improve every season. It’s not going to be easy but I’m sure the coaches have already put things in place for us to get us to a higher level come next year.”
by Tobias Hunt
Tobias' Sports Journalism Blog 