Everyone associated with Ebbw Vale RFC is devastated to learn of the death of long time supporter Howard Thomas, in the early hours of Sunday morning. We send our heartfelt condolences to all those who hold him dear.
Author Archives: Robert Smith
This is the Steelmen squad to take on Cross Keys at Eugene Cross Park tomorrow (Saturday January 7th):
Dan Haymond, Nathan Preece, Gareth Maule, Dai Langdon, Craig Duncan; Josh Lewis, Dai Jones; Ross Jones, Joe Franchi, Gethin Robinson; Jaonathan Davies, Damien Hudd (capt); Rhys Clarke, Ronny Kynes, Harrison Keddie.
Subs: Jonny Bowen, Ian George, Rob Sevenoaks, Max Williams, Dawid Rubasniak, Chris Thomas, Ryan Gardner, Srdan Majkic.
With the Premiership about to be cloven in twain, a win for Ebbw will mean a ‘top eight’ place. Any other result will mean that the final split will depend on the outcome of Cardiff’s match at home to Bedwas. If Cardiff lose, Ebbw will be in the top half regardless.
To add to the excitement, S4C will be covering the game live on TV and streamed via their facebook page. Look out for a link from our twitter account tomorrow afternoon.
Ebbw Vale RFC have secured the services of former Scarlets and Bristol centre Gareth Maule in a player coach role.
Maule, 29, returns to where he started his career having gone on to represent Newport Gwent Dragons, and Scarlets for whom he made 115 appearances before joining Aviva Premiership giants Bristol.
“We are absolutely delighted to be able to secure someone of Gareth’s calibre. He’s got a wealth of Heineken Cup and Pro12 experience and is a consummate professional. We are confident he will bring a wealth of knowledge, experience and professionalism to the club which will no doubt improve and enthuse the current squad” said Ebbw Vale Chairman Jon Jones.
Head Coach Nigel Davies said, “As a player Gareth brings physicality and both an attacking and defensive edge which he has displayed time and time again at the top level. He’s a talented individual with a mass of experience, he’s shown during his time with me at the Scarlets and at Bristol. We are excited to have him here.”
On signing Gareth said “It’s great to be involved again with Ebbw Vale, where I gained my first taste of senior rugby. They are a friendly but ambitious club and the opportunity to work alongside Nigel Davies in my home region is one which I look forward to.”
The club are also delighted to secure the services of back 5 forward Jonathan Davies from Ynsyddu RFC. The 23 year old has impressed in training, Fosters Cup matches and in a 20 minute cameo from the bench at Bedwas on Boxing Day with abrasive and skilled performances. Jonathan’s development has been held back by injuries in the last few years but, now coming back to full fitness, he is delighted to get the opportunity to develop his career further with the Steelmen.
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Ebbw Vale have named a large squad for this evening’s friendly match at Hafodyrynys. The game, which helps Hafodyrynys celebrate their centenary.
Will Holley
Craig Duncan
Srdan Majkic
Dai Langdon
Chris Levesley
Liam Jones
Chris Thomas
Jack Goodey
Ronny Kynes
Rhys Clarke
Rhodri Dicks
Damien Hudd
Rob Sevenoaks
Joe Franchi
Ross Jones
Ryan Gardner
Dale Tucker
Jordan Howells
Dai Jones
Mike Preece
John Dawe
Dawid Rubnasiak
Max Williams
Joe Bartlett
Gethin Robinson
Jonny Bowen
Ian George
This is a reminder that the club shop will be open on Thursday evening between 6.30pm and 8.00pm.
There are a still a few Childs Replica shirt orders to be collected as well aa several pre-ordered Christmas mugs.
There are a few extra mugs available as well as Replica kits and a variety of leisure wear items.
This is the Last chance to buy some Steelmen merchandise for Christmas!
Club Statement
The club has this week parted company with back 5 forward Josh Jacas following availability issues over the last five weeks. It is not a step that the club has taken lightly as Josh is a likeable and talented rugby player. To sustain the growth of the club over the last six years and develop further requires an ever-increasing commitment from the playing squad. The coaches have a limited amount of contact time with the playing group and maximising this is crucial to improving individual and team performance. Where this required commitment is not being met, the officers and coaching staff will continue to take action for the benefit of all associated with Ebbw Vale RFC.
The great strength of the club in recent years has been its unity as a complete entity, from officials to coaches, players, supporters and sponsors. This key component in our success will be safeguarded with a zero tolerance approach to anything that challenges this important element of our ethos.
The officials and coaching staff would also like to take the opportunity to outline our approach to the Fosters Challenge Cup. As a group, we decided that this would be the vehicle to give valuable game time and experience to the young talented players at surrounding clubs. As a group we are sure that this will assist in discovering players who will come into our squad quickly, but also ensure there is a development pipeline of talent that will secure our future as a leading Premiership club in the coming seasons. In some cases this will result in games being lost but the longer-term gain, we feel, is of significant importance to us as an organisation. I would like to thank Darren Venn, who has recently joined the club as Team Analyst with responsibilities for recruitment, along with Team Manager Martyn Cooke for driving this policy forward.
Jon Jones
Chairman
There is some good news for us all on the injury front: outside half Josh Lewis, voted October’s Principality Player of the Month, has been confirmed as targeting a Boxing Day return at Bedwas.
There’s bad news about Rory Pitman though as the burly number 8, who limped off during the game against Bargoed, has injured a posterior cruciate ligament and is ruled out for the rest of the season.
A further squad departure sees Ben Ellis, scrum half, leave the squad – but look out for a large number of new faces in the upcoming Fosters Cup games.
Ebbw Vale will host Merthyr in the next round of Fosters Challenge CUp matches this Wednesday evening, kicking off at 7:30.
Ebbw include new signing Jack Goodey in the starting line up to play RGC 1404 at Parc Eirias on Saturday afternoon. Jack joins from Newport to fill the gap left in the squad by Ethan Doyle’s departure. The 22 year old is the son of former Welsh international Richard and, in the mould of his father, is a powerful ball carrier. He comes straight in for a debut with Rory Pitman awaiting scan results from the knee injury sustained in the first quarter of Bargoed game.
The team is:
15 Dan Haymond
14 Craig Duncan
13 Srdan Majkic
12 Nathan Preece
11 Chris Levesley
10 Dai Langdon
9 Dai Jones
8 Jack Goodey
7 Ronny Kynes
6 Rhys Clarke
5 Max Williams
4 Damien Hudd (capt)
3 Gethin Robinson
2 Joe Franchi
1 Ross Jones
Substitutes
16 Jonny Bowen
17 Ian George
18 Josh James
19 Joe Bartlett
20 Rhodri Dicks
21 Chris Thomas
22 Jordan Howells
23 Ryan Gardner
Ebbw’s away game at Bedwas on December 26th will have a later kick off than originally advertised. The match will start at 16:45 and will be shown live by S4C.
The home game with Cardiff on New Year’s Eve will kick off early, at 13:30.
Finally, Ebbw will pay a friendly fixture at Hafodyrynys RFC on December 21st, kicking off at 7:15pm. Hafodyrynys mark their centenary this season and have invited the Steelmen, as Premiership Champions, to help with the celebrations. Congratulations to them, and we look forward to seeing them in a few weeks.
Monumental mason, Ebbw Vale outside half Josh Lewis has been awarded the second Principality Premiership Player of the Month accolade of the season.
Lewis, having played at Ebbw Vale early in his career, spent the last three years at Llanelli and the Scarlets before returning to Eugene Cross Park in the summer.
Having spent his younger days playing football for Cynon Valley, Josh was a latecomer to the oval ball, first playing rugby for Merthyr Youth before a first senior season at Mountain Ash.
Ebbw Vale head coach Nigel Davies said, “Josh is a natural athlete. He’s a high quality player who is eager to learn and could certainly step up to regional rugby. Due to injuries while at the Scarlets, he didn’t have a huge opportunity to show what he can do and the big thing this season was for him to enjoy his rugby again.
“We haven’t played to our potential yet, we’ve had to adapt due to injuries to key players, but that has helped to increase our strength in depth and give players exposure and game time. We’ve got some important wins under our belt recently, especially with some away wins over top eight contenders, but we’ve still got to improve our level of consistency.”
Josh Lewis said, “There’s a good environment here at Ebbw Vale and I’m certainly enjoying my rugby this season. We had a blip at the start of the season but we’ve gelled well now. They are all key games from now on but we are determined to make the top eight and go onto retain the title.”
Principality Building Society’s Ebbw Vale branch manager Natalie Stevens said: “Josh has already won a Principality Premiership Try of the Week award so to pick up the player of the month award shows what a wonderful season he’s having. Everyone here at the Ebbw Vale branch is proud of his and the team’s achievements and wish them the best of luck for the rest of the season.”
Squad Updates
As all are aware, the squad has experienced a very difficult period with various injuries and availability issues since the beginning of the season. The following changes have now been made.
Arrivals
Former Steelman Jonny Bowen has returned to the club from Brecon RFC to fill the gap created by an injury to Mathew Williams. The 27-year-old Bowen’s previous spell was blighted by a serious ankle injury, but he is a powerful performer with an accurate arm at lineout time and he returns injury-free and off the back of a season where he was Newbridge’s Player of the Year. The club would like to acknowledge the assistance of Brecon RFC in making the process an efficient one.
Josh James, a 20-year-old prop who can play both sides of the scrum, has joined after impressing coaches in the first round of Fosters Cup games. He is well known to forwards coach Lee Davies being a product of the highly rated Coleg Y Cwmoedd Rugby Academy system
Another former Steelman returning to the fold after an absence of 9 seasons is back 5 forward Rhodri Dicks. A native of Ebbw Vale, Rhodri has spent a large part of his working career travelling the world in his role as a Security Specialist (he can be spotted with the players on the last Lions tour footage). A product of the RTB club, he is an uncompromising forward who will add experience and size.
The Back division is reinforced by the arrival of three players: David Jones, Liam Jones and Srdan Majkic.
27 year old scrum half Dai is well known and hugely popular within the squad and with the supporters as he played a key role in Ebbw Vale’s 4 title wins and 2nd place finish in the return to the premiership. David will add his unique character and competitive edge in a battle for the 9 shirt with the other scrum halves in the squad.
Liam Jones is a 21-year-old centre and is a product of Merthyr RFC and the Blues Academy. He has had previous experience in the Premiership as an Outside Half with Bridgend and joins the club from Bedlinog after impressing in the pre-season game and at training over the last few months. Liam adds versatility, as he is also able to play at 15, the position from which he scored a cup-winning drop goal in injury time to win the Swalec Plate for Bedlinog in a superb contest with Penallta at the Principality Stadium.
The final arrival is another centre in Srdan Majkic, the 23 year old joins from Newbridge having impressed coaches in his Fosters Cup performances last season whilst on permit from Rogerstone RFC. Srdan arrives fresh from playing for Croatia.
Departures
The following players have moved on from the Steelmen and we would like to thank them for their services
Number 8 Ethan Doyle a native of Newport, has decided to step down due to work commitments and the travel difficulties in commuting from Bristol where he is based with his work. Ethan has been a great clubman and his uncompromising style, pace and power made him a firm favourite with the Vale faithful. We wish him well in his future business and rugby career
Utility back Tom Watkins leaves for Nantyglo after a second stint at the club . The popular Tom will always be welcome at the club following his commitment and playing skills in our promotion season.
Scrum Half Tom Edwards is also stepping down to local club, Blaina, due to family commitments. Tom played a vital part in last year’s League winning campaign and will doubtless help to develop his local club
The final departure is prop Lloyd Bridges who returns to parent club Penallta RFC to gain more game time
Injury Update
In what is resembling a particularly busy episode of Casualty, our medical team is being overworked as never before. The current list is as follows:
Dom Franchi – after a serious ACL injury sustained in last year’s October victory at Sardis Road, and a few set backs during the rehabilitation stage, Dom is now running and expected to return to action in January.
Adam Jones is recovering from a groin problem that troubled him throughout last season. This type of injury is very difficult to treat and recover from, but Adam is now making progress and is hoping to return in December or January at the latest.
Mathew Williams is facing a long period of inactivity and an operation to his shoulder that will sideline him until April or, as is more likely, the start of next season. Do not rule out an earlier than predicted return, though, as all who know him will not underestimate his desire to pull on the Ebbw shirt again in the shortest possible time!
New signing Number 8 Rory Pitman suffered a thumb injury in late September that required an operation. The burly Pitman is expected to make his return possibly this coming weekend, but will almost definitely be available for the RGC away match.
Outside Half Josh Lewis is due a scan on the knee injury that forced his early departure in our last home fixture with Carmarthen Quins. The scan will allow the medical team to ascertain the seriousness of the injury and decide on a course of action that will enable Josh to return to the field as soon as possible
One of the latest to be sidelined is second row Joe Bartlett who has a hamstring injury that is likely to result in him being out for around 4 weeks. This is hugely frustrating for Joe who has worked hard in gaining regular starting role in the boiler house.
We have also suffered injuries to our Dragons players,
Ashley Sweet who injured a chest muscle at Merthyr in early October has had an operation and is looking at a return in January. The hugely popular Sweet is determined to return better than ever for the Steelmen and earn a Dragons starting spot.
Last Friday’s game at Aberavon also claimed young full back / winger Will Talbot Davies as an injury victim. Will sustained a thumb injury that will be assessed by the Dragons medical team this week.
Congratulations
Dragons Academy wing prospect Jarred Rosser, having been in impressive early season form for the Steelmen, was called in to train with the Welsh 7’s squad and is likely to representing Wales in tournaments during December. He will then be likely to be in action for Wales Under 20’s in the 6 Nations tournament.
Ebbw Fawr and Coleg Gwent product Joel Harries was called up for Under 20’s training during early November. The loose head prop, who turns 19 in mid December, made a favourable impression and will hopefully make the squad for the 6 Nations. Joel has been in impressive form for Bedlinog in the Championship and certainly impressed in his debut appearance against Newport and in the Fosters Cup games
Read REL’s moving tribute to David Nash, which appeared in last Saturday’s match programme. You can find it on REL’s page, here.
Bedwas and Ebbw Vale have agreed to move their Christmas fixture from the 24th to the 26th of December, with a 2:30 kick off at Bridge Field. This has been approved by the WRU.
Rhys Clarke, Jared Rosser and Will Talbot-Davies featured in the Dragons Premiership Select XV against Ealing Trailfinders in the British and Irish Cup match at Pandy Park, Cross Keys on Saturday afternoon.
Unfortunately, the Gwent side registered a second successive defeat in the competition, having led for much of the game. Outside half Arwel Robson, a Penallta product now plying his trade with Newport, had a chance to win it with the last kick of the match but it was not to be, giving the visitors – whose Head Coach is Alex Codling, well known to followers of the Steelmen – a 27-25 win.
We have made some changes to dates/times of our home games with Carmarthen and Bargoed, better to fit in with Wales’s Autumn International programme.
The match with Carmarthen will now kick off at 1:30pm on Saturday,November 12th.
Bargoed will visit us on Friday, November 25th, for a 7:30 start. We are very grateful to them for agreeing this change.
Ebbw Vale’s outside half, Josh Lewis, has won this week’s Principality Try of the Week award for his brilliant individual score in last Saturday’s match with Merthyr. In a popular vote via Facebook, Lewis beat other worthy contenders including an excellent team try by Ebbw’s opponents in that match, finished by Rhys Downes.
One veteran Ebbw supporter described Lewis’s score as the best individual try he’d ever seen by an Ebbw Vale player and expressed the view- shared by many others – that it has every chance of being Try of the Season, an award won last year by team mate Ryan Gardner.
If you haven’t seen it yet, here‘s your chance. Be assured, once won’t be enough!
There’s been a shortage of reported witty banter for some time but it was in abundance at Merthyr on Saturday afternoon. We’ve collected a couple of cracking new witticisms and added them to the list that goes back to the 1980s. You can read them here.
Ebbw Vale host Pontypridd tomorrow night (October 12th, 7:15pm kick off) in the first of the season’s Foster’s Challenge Cup matches. Following the pattern they established last season, of using the competition for development, Ebbw include eleven players on permit and give opp0rtunities to some squad members who have not tasted league rugby this season. The team is led, for the first time, by Joe Bartlett.
The team is: Chris Levesley, Tom Watkins, Jordan Howells, Liam Jones, Kier Hughes; Dan Haymond, Ben Ellis; Joel Harries, Nicky Thomas, Joshua James; Joe Bartlett (capt), Max Williams; Blain Meek, Dawid Rubasniak, Josh Jacas.
Bench: Jonny Bowen, Steffan Blackmore, Ross Jones, Christian Francis, Ethan Doyle, Dai Jones, Dai Langdon, Joshua Congreve.
We are extremely grateful to Bedlinog RFC, Beddau RFC, Brecon RFC, Brynmawr RFC, Newbridge RFC and Newport Gwent Dragons for agreeing permits for their players to appear in this game.
Ebbw Vale will play Bargoed, Merthyr and Pontypridd on a home and away basis in this season’s Foster’s Challenge Cup. The admission prices for home matches will be:
Season ticket holders – free
Adults – £7
Concessions – £5
Nigel Davies makes several changes to the Ebbw Vale side that will meet in-form Merthyr on Saturday afternoon. Dan Haymond, Nathan Preece, Chris Thomas, Ian George, Ronny Kynes and Josh Jacas come in to the starting line up with Rhys Clarke moving to number 8.
The team is: Dan Haymond; Chris Levesley, Nathan Preece, Dai Langdon, Jared Rosser; Josh Lewis, Chris Thomas; Ian George, Mathew Williams, Gethin Robinson; Damien Hudd (Capt), Ashley Sweet; Josh Jacas, Ronny Kynes, Rhys Clarke.
Bench:Joe Franchi, Ross Jones, Rob Sevenoaks, Joe Bartlett, Ethan Doyle, Ben Ellis, Jordan Howells, Ryan Gardner.
Head Coach Nigel Davies rings the changes for Ebbw’s visit to Neath on Saturday afternoon.
The team is: Will Talbot-Davies, Chris Levesley, Jordan Howells, Dai Langdon, Jared Rosser; Josh Lewis, Ben Ellis; Ross Jones, Mathew Williams, Gethin Robinson; Damien Hudd (capt), Ashley Sweet; Rhys Clarke, Dawid Rubasniak, Rory Pitman.
Bench: Joe Franchi, Robert Sevenoaks, Ian George, Joe Bartlett, Ethan Doyle, Chris Thomas, Ronny Kynes, Dan Haymond.
We have received the new Samurai merchandise (including replica shirts) and will open the club shop this Thursday evening (30th September) between 6.30pm and 8.00pm.
Price list is as follows:
Home Replica Shirt £49 S to 4XL
Away Replica Shirt £49 S to 4XL
Phoenix T-Shirt(Green with red) £18 S to 4XL
Phoenix Polo Shirt(Blue with red) £22 S to 4XL
Oceania Hoodie(Two tone blue) £40 S to 4XL
Extreme Gilet(Black with red) £40 S to 4XL
Georgia Full Zip Jacket(Blue) £45 M to 3XL
PLEASE NOTE THAT THERE ARE NO CARD FACILITIES.
ITEMS WILL NEED TO BE PAID WITH CASH ONLY.
We were extremely sorry to hear of the death of former player Barrie Tovey following a battle with leukaemia. Barrie played as a full back for Ebbw Vale in the 1960s and 70s and went on to serve on the committee, including a stint as match secretary. He remained an avid follower of the team throughout his life. Roy Lewis, who knew Barrie well, said, “Barrie was a very loyal committee member, and one of the nicest people I ever met.”
The funeral is on Friday 14 October 1030 at Christ Church and then the crematorium, followed by a reception at our clubhouse.
We send our most sincere commiserations to Barrie’s family.
Over the last few weeks, we’ve been experiencing intermittent problems in updating and accessing this website. We understand the frustration experienced by supporters, but rest assured: it is nothing compared to that experienced by those of us who work to maintain, populate and finance it. Please bear in mind that, like everyone who volunteers at the club, we do all this for the sheer love of it, on top of all the other stuff like full time jobs, families and social lives. If we occasionally fall short of your expectations, please forgive us: there’s always a reason, and it’s not because we can’t be bothered or are useless at what we do. Some things really are beyond our control, like the server on which our website lived being infected by spambots that sent out emails constantly, making it unavailable to view or to update – you’ve probably been annoyed by that ‘data base error’ message, but not as annoyed as our webmaster whose match reports for the Newport game completely disappeared without being uploaded.
Anyway, our website is now on a new server and we’ve been assured that all will be well. Let’s hope so, as I find crossing my fingers for luck makes typing almost impossible.