Gwernyfed travelled to Newbridge RFC in midweek for a re-arranged fixture, with hosts Crumlin opting to play at Newbridge to make use of the floodlights.

That wasn’t the only unusual aspect of the evening – several unfamiliar faces appeared in the opposition line-up, playing on permit from more senior teams.

But it mattered little to Jack Williams and his green, white and blacks, who extended their unbeaten season with a well-earned victory over the title challengers.

After a tough semi-final at the weekend, the coaching team opted to rotate the squad. Cup-tied Ryan Davies returned at full-back, Scott Rees came in at lock – a welcome sight for the Gwernyfed faithful as he continues his recovery from a serious injury – and Luke Eckley got the nod at scrum-half. All three acquitted themselves admirably in a tightly contested match where both defences were on top.

Up front, honours were even at the set piece, though Gwernyfed’s pack had the edge in mobility, with Lloyd Powell ever prominent and props Prys Eckley and Cellan Skyrme consistently making hard yards. However, it was behind the scrum where Gwernyfed really took control – Eckley’s sharp service from the ruck gave Joe Winfield the platform to direct traffic with superb authority throughout.

All of the three-quarters – wings Will Lloyd and skipper Jack Williams, along with centres Gethin Davies and Dylan Skyrme – came close to breaking through, only to be held up by a determined and sizeable defensive line.

Crumlin made little headway in attack, but with the scoreboard still blank as half-time approached, Gwernyfed finally broke the deadlock. When the ‘home’ defence overstepped the mark, Joe Winfield calmly slotted the resulting penalty to give his side a narrow lead at the break.

Just two minutes after the restart, Crumlin took the lead with a try built on brute force – a series of rucks five metres out eventually culminating in a score under the posts. The hosts dominated the next ten minutes, and it took some resolute defending from Gwernyfed to keep the deficit to just four points.

Then came the turning point. From a scrum under their own posts, Gwernyfed launched a counter-attack, with Gethin Davies and Craig Parry carrying the ball out to the 22 before Joe Winfield sent a long clearance downfield. Crumlin made a costly error – as they had throughout the game – by kicking it straight back to full-back Ryan Davies. The flyer had been a constant threat, regularly breaking tackles and gaining big yards, and this time was no different. After a dazzling 50-metre run, Davies was finally hauled down, but released Jack Williams on the left wing. Williams was also brought to ground, but Gethin Davies was on hand to collect and finish the move, darting in from 20 metres. Winfield, ever reliable, slotted the conversion.

For 20 minutes, Gwernyfed piled pressure on the Crumlin defence. As fatigue set in, the experienced home side increasingly resorted to infringements to slow the game down. But the referee was wise to the tactic, repeatedly penalising the offenders – and Winfield made no mistake, slotting three penalties to stretch the lead to 19–7.

Crumlin had largely relied on their forward power throughout the game, but, stung by the threat of a defeat that could derail their promotion hopes, they hit back with a rare moment of expansive rugby. In a sweeping move that saw the ball pass through a dozen pairs of hands, their backs finished the job with a well-worked and impressive try.

The conversion appeared to secure at least a losing bonus point for Crumlin – but the green, white and blacks had other ideas. They stormed back into the opposition 22, where powerful carries from Prys Eckley and Rhys Price set the platform. From the resulting ruck, Jordan Curran burst through, driving over from five metres to seal a memorable victory.

The final whistle was welcomed by Jack Williams’s tired side, who had played superbly to overcome a physically bigger team bolstered by players from higher-level clubs. In doing so, they kept their league title hopes very much alive. Next up, the Talgarth side host Whiteheads at The Brian Jones Memorial Field on Saturday, before embarking on a crucial run of three away fixtures in quick succession that could prove decisive in their title challenge.