Nearly 12 months ago Dunvant lost their grip after having Swansea in a midweek headlock. Last night at Broadacre it would have been easy to make the same mistakes but instead they have become streetwise.

With virtually no possession, they clung on and through sheer desperation completed an entirely miserable night for the pre-match favourites.
There was barley a phase of the match Pontypridd did not dominate. They brought a new meaning to cleaning out line-outs, they pushed Dunvant so far backwards in the scrum full back Den Evans could have played No. 8 and their rolling mauls were more like runaway juggernauts. But ultimately, they lacked the imagination to do anything about that superiority.
“The boys defended absolutely superbly” said skipper Evans. “That one came from the heart.” And trailing 12 -0 after 30 minutes, they needed a whole lot of heart.
Dale McIntosh’s 11th minute try gave Dunvant a taste of things to come after a lengthy period of concerted forward pressure was finally turned into five points for the steam rolling No. 8. More rolling drives from the Pontypridd forwards set up outside half Lyndon Lewis to score the second which he calmly converted from the touchline.
Coach Brian Thomas cried out for an increase in tempo from the touchline and when scrum half Nicky Lloyd chipped the defence to score virtually straight from the kick off, that was precisely what he got. “It was an opportunist’s try “Lloyd says. “ A kick into the in-goal on a wet night can always slip out” It did, and he beat Ponty full-back Crispin Cormack to the loose ball. Fro then on the respective kickers decided the issue. Mark Thomas edged Dunvant to an 11-12 deficit at the break and then knocked over three of five second half penalties.
For Pontypridd, it was a different matter. Full back Mc Cormack inexplicably missed a penalty in front of the posts just after the resumption and then in injury time he pushed a difficult angled attempt across the face of the posts. All that with Neil Jenkins in the front row of the stand.

Score Summary:
Dunvant: 17
Try Nicky Lloyd. Penalties: 4 Mark Thomas
Pontypridd15
Tries: Dale. McIntosh, Lyndon. Lewis, Penalty: Crispin Cormack
Half-Time: Dunvant 11 Pontypridd 12

Dunvant Team:
D. Evans ( C), P .Hopkins, W. Lloyd, G. Davies, I. Rowlands, M. Thomas, N .Lloyd
M. Waygood, J .Hudson, C. Morgan, D. Niblo, S. Mellallieu, R. Greenwood, P. Morris, I. Callaghan

Pontypridd team:
C. Cormack, C. Thomas, C. Jones, J. Lewis, D. Manley, I. Lewis, D. Gibbon
M. Smith, L. Phillips, A. Metcalfe, L. Harvey, M. Rowley, N. Jones, D. McIntosh, K. Jones;