The first scrum really didn’t go to plan as the Llandovery front row piled on the power and the Newport pack spun clockwise like a Catherine Wheel.

It was Newport’s job, then, to try and spoil the party.ĭrovers’ outside half Ioan Hughes got the game underway, Josh Reid catching the ball, Craig Hudd trucking it forward before Che Hope kicked the ball clear. The Drovers had gone large in their selection, too, even securing the services of Scarlet, and current Welsh international, Samson Lee to add to their scrummage. Seeing how Charles is a Royal patron of Llandovery RFC, he would probably be quite happy to see the Drovers overturn the Townies of Newport just to make his day complete. Would conditions be tricky for the game under floodlights? In the event, the weather cleared nicely. May 6 th, 2023, will go down in history as the day of the coronation of King Charles III in Westminster Abbey, but Newport supporters attention was diverted by the amount of rain that fell during the day. Still, it was an opportunity for both teams to take a look at each other and size them up in the event of meeting in the Play-Off final! With Cardiff demolishing fellow play-off aspirants Merthyr earlier in the afternoon, the game was effectively a dead-rubber, as neither team could move from their respective positions. As Newport Stadium was unavailable for such a kick-off, it was moved to our ancestral home of Rodney Parade. The match was moved from the allotted 2.30pm Saturday afternoon slot, at the behest of S4C who were broadcasting the game on their Clic YouTube channel, to an unusual 7pm kick-off, for probably the first time since Newport were a semi-professional club. Newport RFC v Llandovery RFC 6 th May 2023 by John Evans

Newport 21 card game