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An impressive second-half try from Player of the Match, Kodie Stone accompanied by Harri Wilde adding the extras sealed a 14-12 win for Cardiff RFC in their last pre-season match against Cambridge Rugby.

An early first-half try from Alun Rees followed by a second-half try by Stone saw The Blue and Blacks record their first win under new head coach Dan Fish at the Cardiff Arms Park

Speaking after the result captain Jason Harries said: “We reviewed a lot from last week’s game against Pontypridd on things we can get better at, things that don’t require any talent, speed into position, both sides of ball in attack and defence, escorting when the ball is in the air.

“Little things like that and I’ve seen a big improvement from last week, it was end-to-end at some stages of the game, but I was glad we came out on the right side of the scoreboard.”

Compared to last week’s opening try it only took The Blue and Blacks five minutes to open up the scoring as hooker Alun Rees stretched over the line after a rolling maul. Wilde kicked the conversion to put the hosts 7-0 up.

After turning the ball over Aled Ward put The Blue and Blacks back on the front foot by popping the ball outside to Joe Goodchild who brought the hosts up to the halfway line, Cambridge were then penalised for coming in at the side, however after retrieving the ball at the line-out just outside the ‘Blood and Sand’ 22 The Blue and Blacks knocked the ball on. 

Around the half an hour mark the visitors had a really good chance to score after flyhalf Arthur Lennon just about kicked into the corner, a catch and drive followed but the ball was eventually held-up by some heroic defending from the hosts.

Moments later, Arthur Lennon was involved in the making of the visitors opening try as after a brilliant run to break through The Blue and Blacks defence the ball was offloaded wide for open-side Jared Cardew to cross in the corner. Winger Eli Caven’s shot went wide which meant at the break The Blue and Blacks went in with a narrow 7-5 lead. 

At half-time The Blue and Blacks made only one change as full-back Joe Goodchild was replaced by Joseff Jones.

Within the opening moments of the second-half Kodie Stone broke through the visitors defence and crossed over after an impressive run from distance to score an excellent solo try. Wilde added the extras to extend the hosts lead to nine (14-5).

After numerous infringements inside The Blue and Blacks 22, referee Keith David awarded Craig Hudd a yellow card after collapsing a driving maul. After kicking to the corner, another rolling maul followed however on that occasion The Blue and Blacks turned the ball over and relieved pressure.

With the one man advantage, Eli Caven crossed over in the corner after the ball was spread through the visitors backline. Caven converted his own score to reduce the hosts lead to just two going into the final quarter.

With the clock deep into the red, the visitors looked to be closing in on a late score. However, after a penalty, the visitors found themselves in the corner but the ball was turned over and resulted in the match coming to a close. 

The Blue and Blacks will now turn their full attention to the opening game of the Super Rygbi Cymru season as they make the long trip to North Wales to face RGC on September 14th.      

FT: Cardiff 14-12 Cambridge

A small market town in the Tywi Valley plays host to one of the best rugby team in Wales, nicknamed The Drovers, who are aiming to create more history for this historic town.

As Welsh Rugby prepares for a big change in domestic rugby with the introduction of Super Rygbi Cymru (SRC) kicking off in the coming weeks, winners of last years Indigo Premiership come into the new league joint fourth with odds of 3-1 too win (according to dragonbet.co.uk).

However, for the first time in their history Llandovery triumphed the league on 105 points and put aside Newport in the playoff final at Church Bank. Prior to that The Drovers overcame Merthyr to win the WRU Premiership Cup at the home of Welsh Rugby, Principality Stadium.

It’s most definitely a good time to reflect on what made them so successful last season, Evans said: “Last season was the most successful in Llandovery RFC’s history. Winning the cup, topping the league, and triumphing in the playoff were remarkable achievements, making it a season to remember.

“But our goal remains to be competitive while recognising our responsibility to grow and develop players. Striking the right balance within the squad is key to achieving both, and we managed this successfully last season,” he said.

Llandovery are also installing a brand new 3G pitch at Church Bank costing in the range of £750,000. Backing the Drovers, Sports Wales will be contributing £418,906 and a Carmarthenshire County Council sustainable development fund would provide an extra £175,000. Which led to the community having to raise £160,000.

On the new pitch instalment, Evans stated: “The new 3G pitch will be a fantastic asset for rugby in the Tywi Valley. Image of the main stand at Church Bank

“As winters become wetter, this facility will provide a reliable field for training and playing in any weather. The Junior Drovers will also benefit from a field that supports skill development, while the first team will be able to play their natural game consistently throughout the season.” 

Speaking on the change of domestic rugby in Wales, Evans insisted: “We (Llandovery) are thrilled to join the new SRC league. 

“This marks an exciting beginning, with the potential to become a key part of player development in Wales, while also providing strong, competitive action that supporters can enjoy and engage. 

“It’s also about striking the right balance between youth and experience is crucial. 

“However, if you rely too heavily on youth, you risk heavy losses, which benefits no one. Integrating young players with seasoned veterans is an excellent way to foster development. For example, Macs Page clearly benefited from playing alongside Adam Warren,” he added.

Prior to the interview Euros announced Llandovery RFC stalwart Lee Rees who has been at the club since 2008 having played 347 times and scoring 422 points as the Captain for the 2024/25 season, on the appointment Evans said: “Lee has matured as a player and evolved into a strong leader. He’s incredibly excited to captain the team.”

Llandovery’s closest rivals last season was Newport RFC who finished in second place on 104 points having lost only 3 games in the league. Evans reiterated that “Newport” will be his sides biggest competitor going into the new era of Welsh Domestic Rugby, where The Drovers will travel to Pontypool Park to face Pontypool RFC Thursday 12th September (KO: 7:30pm) to commence their season.

Words By Harry Tovey

Newport RFC head coach Ty Morris believes his side are determined to go one further after last season’s heartbreaking end away to Llandovery in the playoff final.

The Black and Ambers finished in second-place just one point behind league winners Llandovery on 104 points after winning 21 out of 24 games. Speaking on last season, Morris stated: Overall, we believe it was a successful season.

“The team showed significant improvement as the season progressed, though we narrowly lost in the final game to a strong Llandovery side. Our performance in the cup against Cardiff at the Arms Park was a bit disappointing, but we’re proud of the progress we made.”

Newport are deep into preparation for the new Super Rygbi Cymru league which kicks off on the 14th September, on pre-season he said: “This pre-season has been quite different from the last 4-5 seasons.

“With an entirely new coaching team, it’s taken some time to implement their changes. We’ve brought in valuable experience with Gareth Wyatt, Ceri Jones, and James Dixon who has transitioned to defence coach. This has given the team a fresh focus and renewed energy, unlike in previous seasons. I’m excited to see how this team grows and develops throughout the year.

“We’ve already noticed some progress with our pre-season wins, but the true test will come in the first Super Cymru League game against Bridgend. That’s when the intensity will really ramp up, and I’m eager to see how both new and returning players build on what has already been a demanding pre-season.

“It’s also challenging to predict the true impact of new signings, as we know it takes more than one player to build a successful team. Last year, we had four players leave due to retirement and work commitments, but we’ve added some Premiership experience and young talent to help ensure the team’s continued success and longevity,” he added.

The Black and Ambers have made a strong start to their pre-season campaign with wins over Usk RFC (106-5), Blackheath Rugby (40-24) and Brecon RFC (54-10) and they will conclude preparations by heading to Ding Crusaders RFC tomorrow afternoon, (KO: 3pm).

On the celebration of the clubs 150th year, Morris stated: “Even as we celebrate our 150th year, our on-field goals remain the same.

“We’re committed to playing an exciting brand of rugby that draws people in, whether to watch, follow, or join us. Our aim is still to be one of the top teams in the league, and we’re determined to go one step further than last season.

“Like every rugby team, we aim to be tough to beat both at home and away. While home games are never guaranteed wins, we make sure to bring our A-game at Rodney Parade and now at Spytty (Newport Stadium) as well,” Morris insisted.

The Black and Ambers begin the new era of Welsh domestic rugby by hosting Scott Baldwin’s Bridgend Ravens on September 14th. On the new league Morris emphasised the importance of youth integration by stating: “At Newport RFC, our policy has remained consistent since I began coaching nine seasons ago.

“Our mission is to support the development of future regional stars, helping them progress from academy age groups to senior regional and international levels. We recognise the importance of giving these young players as much game time as possible, alongside seasoned veterans.

“While we know they might make mistakes, we understand that this is an essential part of their learning process.”

Newport begin with home a tie against Bridgend, followed by a trip to St Helens to face Swansea before back-to-back games against Aberavon. On the biggest competitors in the league, Morris added: “It’s tough to overlook Llandovery, given their strength, depth, and back-to-back league titles.

“However, I believe Bridgend has recruited exceptionally well. With their new coaching team and dynamic players in the backline, they could surprise a few teams this season,” he concluded.

Words By Harry Tovey

The Blue and Blacks will be looking to take the positives from last Saturday’s defeat as they entertain the ‘Blood and Sand’ for the very first encounter between the two, before the start of the Super Rygbi Cymru season which starts with an away trip to RGC (14/09/2024).

However, our 43-28 loss to Pontypridd had more to offer as it showcased a lot more of what the future has got to offer as 17-year-old’s Josseff Jones and Lloyd Lucas made their debuts. Also, making their Cardiff RFC debuts were both 18-year-old’s Sion Davies and Osian Darwin-Lewis.

Darwin-Lewis was one of four try scorers who was also 100% from the kicking-tee joining Ethan Phillips, Dewi Cross and Luke Pollock who all also crossed the whitewash.

Team News: To follow,

Pre Match thoughts:

Speaking ahead of the fixture, Head Coach Dan Fish stated: “We were pleased with the game last week, we had a lot of youngsters out there and I know we had a few experienced boys out there as well but what we got out of the game is exactly what we wanted from our point of view of where we are in pre-season.

“The boys have had a tough pre-season, numbers have been up and down but to take stuff from what we’ve trained and put into practice as a team who didn’t know what was coming was good and we had some real positives out of all of that.

“There was good stuff that we can take out of it going into the new season and some things we need to tidy up on but it was a really good exercise for us,” he added.

On the visit of Cambridge Rugby to the Cardiff Arms Park, Fish stated: “We know they are going to be a good team, you know they are a English Championship team so we know it’s going to be another tough test, another challenge that we are looking forward to. 

“We’ve got a more experienced team out this week with the season starting soon, this is going to be the last hit out before the RGC game so we are going to expect a tough 80 minutes.”

“To be honest we are really looking forward to it with the stuff we wanted to put right from last week and a few bits of detail that we added onto the team to put out onto the pitch on Saturday,” he concluded.

Closer look at our opposition:

Cambridge Rugby club was formed in 1923 and competes in the RFU Championship following promotion from the National League 1 in 2022-23 which makes them the leading club in the East of England.

They kicked off their pre-season campaign last weekend at home where they play at Granchester Road ground also known as Ellgia Fields. The club has three senior men’s team, which include The 1923’s and The Exiles along with the 1st XV.

The nickname ‘Blood and Sand’ is derived from their distinctive red and yellow strip and is a nod to the number of players from the Armed Forces who participated in the early years. (Credit Steve Jackson).

On last seasons campaign in the Championship, the ‘Blood and Sand’ finished bottom having only won two games against London Scottish (28-26) and Caldy RFC (33-14). Like The Blue and Blacks, they have also only played one pre-season game where they lost to National League 1 side Bishop Stortford RFC 21-19.

They kick-off their 2024/25 RFU Championship campaign by hosting Oxfordshire side Chinnor RFC.

Words By Harry Tovey

After over 100 days since their last competitive outing, Dan Fish named a starting 15 with lots of exciting young players featuring in the trip to Sardis Road. It proved to be a difficult task as tries from Ethan Phillips, Osian Darwin-Lewis, Dewi Cross, Luke Pollock proved not to be enough as Ponty finished the game the stronger scoring five tries in the second-half. Returning Marc Thomas also made his 20th appearance for The Blue and Blacks, earning his club tie after playing his first game for Cardiff since September 2023.   

After some back and forth rugby early in the game with both sides sharing the possession, the first real chance came from the hosts after 15-minutes as a driving maul was heading towards The Blue and Blacks line but was held up after some heroic defending. Ethan Phillips broke the deadlock after 24 minutes as after a break from debutant Osian Darwin-Lewis which put The Blue and Blacks on the front-foot, after a few further phases Captain Jason Harries popped the ball up to Phillips to cross over. 

The hosts responded accordingly as after a brilliant chip over the top from scrum-half Lucas Welch inside The Blue and Blacks 22, Dale Stuckey recovered the ball and offloaded to blind-side Cai James to score. On the stroke of half-time The Valley Commandos scored their second as after The Blue and Blacks were penalised, Jacob Symes kicked to the corner and a powerful driving maul followed which led to Rob Jones crossing the whitewash. 

HT: Pontypridd 12-7 Cardiff 

Cardiff came out for the second-half having made no changes, and it didn’t take long for them to find their second of the afternoon as Luke Pollock ran a superb line which broke through the hosts defence and eventually offloaded to Sion Davies who finished the phase off with a pass to Osian Darwin-Lewis who scored on his debut for The Blue and Blacks. Dewi Cross was next to score and this came after a brilliant break from the man who scored 16 times last season. The hosts responded accordingly as straight from the restart after exerting a huge amount of pressure on The Blue and Blacks defence, Cally James powered his way over. 

The try scoring mayhem didn’t stop there, as just two minutes later Luke Pollock from 40 metres out managed to cross over after a brilliant break. With possession going back and forth, it only seemed fitting for Ponty to get the next score as Mitch Barnard scored after another driving maul from the hosts.

With that phase of the game being over where there was a try scored every two minutes, it took the hosts ten minutes to score their fifth. Referee Adam Jones penalised The Blue and Blacks inside their 22 again, and this then led to another kick into the corner with replacement Michael Huntley crossing over from the driving maul. 

Cai James scored his second of the afternoon, after powering his way through The Blue and Blacks defence. Aled Ward was also shown a yellow card in the aftermath of the try being scored, which meant the visitors were down to 14. With the momentum in their favour, the hosts concluded proceedings at The House of Pain with a try inside the final moments from Ty Lewis which meant The Valley Commandos made it four from four in their pre-season outings. 

Next up for The Blue and Blacks is English Championship side Cambridge Rugby in the clubs first ever meeting at the Cardiff Arms Park next Saturday as Dan Fish’s men conclude pre-season (KO: 2:00pm).

The Blue and Blacks travel to Sardis Road as they begin their preparations for the upcoming Super Rygbi Cymru season which starts on the 14^th September away to RGC 1404 with a contest against rivals Pontypridd.

In what became a Boxing Day tradition for many supporters before the professional era of Rugby Union, many supporters still to this date associate Christmas celebrations with either a trip to the Cardiff Arms Park or Sardis Road each year.

However, with the launch of the new Super Rygbi Cymru league and with The Valley Commandos not putting an application forward, those Christmas head-to-heads are no longer and Saturday will be the only scheduled meeting for both teams of the 2024/25 season.

Team News

To be continued……

Pre-Match views

Speaking ahead of the fixture, scrum coach Nick Fish said: “I think first and foremost it’s about getting minutes under they’re belts, the last time they would’ve played was against Llandovery, so a lot of the boys haven’t played rugby for a while apart from the boys who have been involved with Wales U20s. 

“The key thing is making sure the players have minutes under their belts, the good thing about the games we have selected, obviously we have got Welsh opposition in Pontypridd and then Championship opposition against Cambridge it just gives us an opportunity to expose ourselves in terms of how we want to play and expose where our weaknesses are. 

“The other side to this is that we also want to get a winning habit, those habits start early, we aren’t too focussed on the results but again you want too emphasis on that winning habit, so it becomes a positive for us.     

“Every time you play against Ponty you know Sardis Road, The House of Pain you always know that it’s going to be a tough game, a tough outing and that kind of shows with past games, they are always going to be tough up front, and they are going to have a sharp backline.

“It is down as a friendly but from our perspective these games are never friendlies when it comes to the whistle being blown”, he concluded.

Opposition Form

The hosts for Saturday began their pre-season at the start of August and come into the game on the back of three pre-season wins.

The first came against Abercwmboi RFC where they won 28-10, Ponty continued with a trip to Tenby United and won convincingly 35-12, before hosting National 2 West side Cinderford RFC a week later where they made it three wins from three after winning 31-26.

Pontypridd finished last year’s Indigo Premiership seventh on 63 points after winning 12 of their 24 matches.

Remember the last meeting?

Blue and Black fans will have fond memories of the last encounter between the two sides. Back in December 2023 in front of S4C cameras at the Cardiff Arms Park, The Blue and Blacks recorded a bonus point 32-13 win that moved themselves into the playoff spots. That day saw tries from Ethan Phillips, Dewi Cross, Luke Pollock and Harrison James.

However, some fans may remember the encounter when referee Ben Breakspear sent former Cardiff RFC player Ryan Wilkins and Curtis Greenslade off for early showers after two dangerous infringements in the space of 14 minutes, which meant the visitors were down to 13-men for a large part of the game.

Head-To-Head Record

Historically, Cardiff have enjoyed the upper hand in this fixture. Out of 144 matches played, The Blue and Blacks have claimed 78 wins compared to Ponty’s 66 wins.

Moreover, the last time Cardiff travelled to Pontypridd’s House of Pain was at the start of last season’s Indigo Premiership where the match finished 19-19, this was the first draw since May 1996 where it finished 27-27.

Going back to The Blue and Blacks last visit to the House of Pain, Morgan Allen and Dewi Cross scored with Harrison James converting three penalties. The Blue and Blacks were also tested defensively as they were down to 14-men after Joey Tomlinson was yellow carded, Will Keeper eventually went over in the corner to bring proceedings level however, Joe Scrivens was unable to add the extras with the clock in red.

How to follow

For those that will be unable to attend the match on Saturday, I will be providing live updates across my social media channels with a live blog, on the whistle match report and post-match reactions.

Words By Harry Tovey

History beckons for either Ashleigh Johnson or Victoria Perkins as Dan Francis and Richie Garner of Vote Boxing and Shadow Promotions present an evening of professional Welsh Boxing at the Selwyn Samuel Centre, Llanelli on Saturday night.

It’s been a great year for Welsh Boxing so far, Lauren Price paved the way after dethroning Jessica McCaskill back in May to claim the IBO Welterweight title, then Angelo Dragone and Jake Tinklin gave fans inside the Vale Sports Arena on June 1st a fight of the year contender, before Llanelli’s own Ethan George made a massive statement as he stopped Ryan Pocock inside one round to claim the Welsh Super-Middleweight title. 

However, this Saturday is a little bit different as it will live long in the memory for years to come where everybody in attendance can say “I was there” as the first ever Female Welsh title is up for grabs. Scheduled for 10 rounds in the Super-Bantamweight division this is without doubt for both women the toughest test to date.

Trained by former WBO Cruiserweight Champion Enzo Maccarinelli, Johnson gave up being a nurse after working all the way through Covid to take up a plumbing job with the council so she can focus on training more. Having fought in Kickboxing, Muay Thai and K-1 where she picked up the British and Celtic title, “Sweet Posion” as she is nicknamed made her pro debut against Kerry Orton at the Brangywn Hall, Swansea where she won convinclgly. 

Her opponent on Saturday Perkins has also got a lot of experience in the Mixed Martial World as at the age of 13 she won WCA (World Combat Arts) in a tournament that was for under 18s and her opponent in the fight was a lot older than the orthodox fighter. For a lot of her career to date, she has been trained by her father Kristian Perkins who runs the Western Dragons Martial Arts Academy in Pontardawe, however in her corner for Saturday night will be the well respected in the World of Boxing, Tony Borg. Perkins whose nickname is “VIP” made her professional debut back in November in Swindon and aims to add to her collection of boxing titles which include a British and a two-time Six Nations Champion.

Perkins has been the more active this year having fought on two occasions against Linzi Buczynskyj and Kerry Orton, whereas Ashleigh has only fought once against Nicaraguan Jamillette Janitza Vallejos in the Main Event at the Brangwyn Hall. It is most definitely a 50/50 clash as they go head-to-head to become the first Female Champion of Wales.

Also on the card, newly crowned Welsh Super-Lightweight Champion Angelo Dragone has his much deserved homecoming after claiming the title back in June as he takes on Bulgarian Ivelin Gitsov over four rounds. After making his professional debut in June, Lewys Parfitt looks to carry on the momentum against Rochdale’s Richard Helm over six rounds.

Super-Middleweight Willy Gilheaney steps up to take on Jackson Osaige, Connor McIntosh is in a very competitive fight as he goes head-to-head with Owen Durnan at lightweight with both fights scheduled for six rounds. Managed by Joe Cordina, JD Cuevo who was born in Bogota, Columbia makes his professional debut as he takes on the durable orthodox fighter Karl Sampson in a four round contest.

Lastly, Port Talbot’s Levi Griffiths fights for the first time in Wales as a professional as he takes on Nathan Darby who has only been stopped once in his 10 fights; this one is contested over four rounds. 

Fight content; Check out The Punchers Chance Podcast YouTube channel where both fighters competing for the first Welsh Female title went head-to-head in “Talk the Talk”. Also available is interviews with the main guys behind the event Dan Francis and Richie Garner and also we caught up with Angelo Dragone.

https://youtube.com/@thepuncherschancepodcast?si=cCWR_hf_YWXg3MLq

The weigh-in for the Welsh title is open to the public and will take place from the Stallion Boxing Gym, Llanelli from 1pm on Friday afternoon.

Words By Harry Tovey 

Newport RFC entertained Blackheath RFC in their first home pre-season match since 2016, the first meeting between the two dates back to November 1879 when the first Anglo-Welsh match for the Black and Ambers was recorded.

In celebration of their sesquicentennial year as a rugby club, Newport adopted the classic long sleeved Black and Amber cotton jersey which was also featured last weekend against Usk RFC who are also celebrating their 150th year this season. 

The visitors who ply their trade in the RFU National League 1 started the better as just after four-minutes Jake Lloyd offloaded back inside for scrum-half Jordan Burns to finish the move off with a quick offload to blind-side Josh Smart to break the deadlock. 

The Black and Ambers responded accordingly as after a brilliant kick in behind, David Richard’s successfully regathered and after few quick offloads Josh Skinner crossed over for the hosts first. 

Not long after, one of the performers of the afternoon for the visitors Jordan Burns took it quickly at the scrum and broke through the hosts defence and scored the English side’s second of the afternoon. 

The Black and Ambers were on the attack again, as after a brilliant kick into the corner by outside-half Matt O’Brien, a successful take at the lineout followed and after a few phases on the visitors line Kyle Tayler powered over just after the 20-minute mark. The hosts were quick to add a third as five-minutes later Iwan Pyrs Jones crossed over after some brilliant handling to get the ball out-wide.

The visitors who are nicknamed “Club” were next to cross the whitewash as Jake Lloyd powered his way through the hosts defence to score. Prior to the whistle for half-time, Josh Skinner crossed over to score his second of the afternoon after beating the last man. 

HT: Newport 26-17 Blackheath 

The second-half started as the first-half finished as after a brilliant flat-pass from replacement scrum-half Daffydd Buckland for Chay Foster-Smith to cross over to extend the hosts lead by 16. 

Heading into the final ten minutes of play, Josh Skinner finished off over in the corner after some phases and some excellent handling to score his third of the afternoon. However, it was the visitors who finished the stronger as after penalty kick into the corner by Matt Armstrong, a driving maul followed which then led to Mike Hoyt to cross the whitewash to finish off proceedings at The Newport Stadium. 

Next Saturday The Black and Ambers continue Super Rygbi Cymru preparations as they travel to Parc De Pugh to face Brecon RFC (KO: 14:30) before concluding pre-season with an away trip to Dings Crusaders the following Saturday (KO: 15:00). 

Words by Harry Tovey 

Cardiff RFC are delighted to confirm that Sean Moore has been named the 2024/25 captain for the forthcoming Super Rygbi Cymru season.

The former Mountain Ash and Pontypridd player signed with The Blue and Blacks back in 2021 and has appeared on 75 occasions.

On his appointment as captain he said: “Well when I had the phone call from Gruff it was a massive privilege to be asked to take on the role.

“First off I have to say how proud I am to be appointed captain of Cardiff RFC which is a huge club.

“I will try my best to live up to the standards that have been set by the captains which have come before me and push myself and our team to be the best we can.

“When you look at the history of Cardiff and the players that have played in the Blue & Black jersey, Welsh and British Lions international players you then realise how much of an honour it is to be part of Cardiff RFC,” he added.

Last season, Moore played 26 out of 27 matches and scored on three occasions, on last season he continued: “Last season was quite a tough one for us. We had quite a mismatched season with the amount of changes of players and injuries which didn’t help us with continuity and building that momentum which we have had in previous years.

“But to get to the play off semi finals was a good achievement for us and we are looking to kick on from that this year and go all the way.

The Blue and Blacks kickstart the new Super Rygbi Cymru campaign with an away trip to RGC before hosting Ebbw Vale a week later at the Cardiff Arms Park, Moore said: “The new league won’t be unfamiliar as these are teams we’ve been playing against for a number of years.

“Hopefully this will be a good place for young players to come in and get to play a good standard of senior rugby before they push onto the professional level, as you can see with the number of boys who have gained international caps and played within our team over the last 2 years. (Cameron Winnett, Evan Lloyd, Mackenzie Martin, Ben Thomas, Max Llewellyn, Mason Grady, Ellis Bevan, Jacob Beetham, Teddy Williams and Alex Mann).

“There have been teams who have done really well with recruitment over this off season like ourselves and there are going to be some big games this year.

“I do like the layout of the double header home and away fixtures with Newport RFC for the Christmas period which will be two interesting games which I’m looking forward to,” he insisted.

Talking more on pre-season, he added: “We have had some brutal pre-season sessions so far thanks to our conditioners Cai & Ed.

“We have a great coaching team and a good core squad of players and there’s been some really sharp academy boys in training this pre-season so we are building something good this year.

“We as a group have got to keep our standards high and push each other as much as we can if we want to achieve what I think we can this year. We have been very competitive over the last few years and that won’t change, we are going to push to win whatever we possibly can.

“Sadly I won’t be here for the pre-season games as I am getting married on the 9th of August and will be away on honeymoon.

“But we have a great senior leadership group there who will drive the standards of the team going into those two games. This will be a good place for some players to showcase what they are about and put their hand up for selection come that first league game against RGC (14/09/2024),” Moore insisted.

Head coach of Cardiff RFC Dan Fish stated: “Really excited to see Sean lead the boys this season, he has a lot of experience around him that will be there to aid him in his leadership role.

“Sean is a fantastic lineout forward and knows how we want to play as a team.  Sean has been a vital part in our playing group over the last couple of seasons since his move from Pontypridd and his growth has been there for all to see.

“He has huge respect off the rest of the playing group and coaching staff and we feel he is the right man to lead the team,” Fish said.

Finally, Moore wanted to express his feelings towards to The Blue and Blacks supporters by concluding: “Again I just want to say what a privilege it will be to lead the boys this year.

“I’d like to say thank you to our great supporters and hopefully for them we can bring a brand of rugby they will enjoy watching and success again this season for them in the new league and cup competitions.“

Words By Harry Tovey

Light heavyweight Aaron Bird (4-0) looks to gain his first title as a professional as he travels to the Normandy Hotel, Glasgow to face Scotland’s light-heavyweight champion Bobby Morrell (5-0, 2KOs) for the vacant Celtic title over ten rounds this Friday.

Bird has an incredible amateur background as he has got five Welsh and one British titles to his name and also represented Wales at the World Championships in 2012.

After turning pro in April 2023, the man from Bideford was scheduled to fight Jake Anthony for the Welsh light-heavyweight title in Llanelli, but Jake’s retirement from the sport has meant that Bird has made that next big step up to challenge for the Celtic title in just 14 months as a professional.

Bird said ahead of the fight: “For this fight, I have pushed myself to the limits in training, and I have had excellent sparring with top pros. This is a massive opportunity fighting for a Celtic title,” he added.

A product of Port Talbot Bulldogs amateur club, Bird debuted against Krzysztof Stawiarski in Plymouth and has only dropped one round as a pro.

On his last performance against Bolton’s Ben Thomas at the Brangwyn Hall, Swansea, the 29-year-old stated: “I feel like I’ve hit another level, which I felt like on my last performance, which was my best to date as a pro.

“I didn’t expect to be doing it (fighting for the Celtic Title) in my fifth professional fight, but you have to take the opportunities when they are there.

“I have come into some form, so I’m feeling confident that I will bring the belt back to Wales.”

His opponent on Friday night, known as “The Tartan Spartan”, got two stoppage wins as a professional over Czech Republic’s Tomas Podlas and Poland’s Michal Ciach, and as an amateur, picked up 9 stoppages out of his 16 amateur fights.

Lastly, Bird wanted to conclude by stating: “I’d like to say a massive thanks to everyone who will be coming up to Glasgow to watch me and to my Mike Jones and my trainers at the Bulldogs and my manager Richard Grigg for pulling this fight off and as always, a big thanks to my sponsors JES Group, StudentDigz, DW Harris and EWS photon project man. Rvd.”

Stay tuned for another interview as on Friday night Rashid Omar travels across the Irish Sea to challenge James McGivern in Belfast for the Boxing Union of Ireland super-lightweight Celtic title on TNT Sports.

Words By Harry Tovey