Bedwas 17 Ebbw Vale 38

Fly-half Rhys Jones was in irresistible form as his personal haul of 16 points steered the Steelmen to victory.

Ebbw Vale asked all of the questions in the opening 10 minutes and held a deserved 6-0 lead courtesy of two swings of Jones’ boot.

But out of nowhere, Bedwas hit back. The move started from deep and ended with Joseph Scrivens beating Toby Fricker to a kick forward to set up Tom Hoppe for his third try in as many games.

Ebbw’s response was emphatic as Jones was given too much space to set up centre Carl Meyer, who held off Dale Rogers and Tom Rowlands to touch down. Jones converted.

Jones continued to impress as his pass to Lewis Young helped create their second try. The pass split the Bedwas defence open and allowed Lloyd Evans a free run to the try line. Jones followed that up by guiding the resulting conversion between the posts.

The Ebbw Vale kicker then signed off the half with his third penalty of the afternoon.

The second half started as the first half ended, with Jones adding three points to the Steelmen’s tally.

Greg Woods’ men went in search of the two tries that would earn them a bonus point but a loose pass handed Bedwas a rare opportunity and Gasson showed his pace to put the Wass back in the game. Scrivens converted.

That gave the hosts plenty of momentum and they soon added a quick-fire second thanks to replacement Dan Crimmins.

But any hopes of a Bedwas comeback were thwarted when Meyer finished off a mesmerising team move, although referee Ben Breakspear had to consult the TMO before awarding the try.

Bedwas’ day went from bad to worse when Chris Budgen and Ramaz Rukhadze were both shown yellow cards in the final 10 minutes and the visitors used their numerical advantage to seal the bonus point with a late penalty try.

Bedwas: Tries: T Hoppe, G Gasson, D Crimmins; Con: J Scrivens.

Ebbw Vale: Tries: C Meyer (2), L Evans, Pen Try; Cons: R Jones (2); Pens: R Jones (4).