Category Archives: Ebbw Vale Rugby

Ian James, Club Secretary, writes:

We were deeply sorry to learn that one of our greatest players, Graham Evans, known as Gomer, passed away on Friday morning. In the 1970s, he was a backrow forward of exceptional ability, who played many times for us and also for Gwent v the All Blacks in 1972.

Club Historian Roy Lewis said, “Gomer was the nicest of men. Everyone who knew him, played with him or saw him play will be very sad to hear of his death.”

Our deepest condolence go to his nearest and dearest.

Funeral arrangements

Monday 10 September at 1130, Wesleyan Methodist Church, Nantyglo followed by interment ar Brynmawr Cemetery.

Unveiling the new season’s Steelmen kits, Chairman Jon Jones said, “Ebbw Vale RFC are delighted to continue their partnership with UK based kit manufacturer Akuma and I’m sure the supporters will enjoy wearing the new design kit in what will be an exciting season. The change kit for 2018/19 is an exact replica of the Ebbw Fawr Learning Community 1st team kit, and continues the club’s support of its local school.”

Any supporters interested in watching the Bedford v Saracens match that kicks off at 3pm on the same day and ground where we will play Ampthill at 5pm, should contact Andrew Phillips ASAP on 07766490358 or ebbwaddicts@yahoo.com.

Season tickets are now available for sale, with a special offer for existing members who introduce a new member.

They will receive a discount equal to half the cost of the lower priced ticket. Season tickets are now available for purchase.

In order to take advantage of this offer both tickets must be bought at the same time and in person i.e. from the clubhouse on one of the dates shown below.

A new member is defined as anybody who didn’t hold a season ticket last season i.e. 2017-18.

Tickets can be bought, or collected if you have a rolling standing order, from the clubhouse between 6pm and 7pm every Thursday from 2nd August until 30th August

On a typical winter type day,Ebbw Vale fielded a squad of young and new players for the Talywain 7’s tournament. Ebbw got off to a slow start, losing 28-5 to a seasoned Ponty Butchers side. James Gahan set his strong running intentions off from the start, coupled with a great debut from Matt Cross. In the second game, Ebbw faced hosts Talywain and showed a lot more structure and attacking prowess with a 47-0win. In the 3rd game the Steelmen played pre-tournament favourites Samurai and found them too strong in both attack and defence, as they raced to a 38-7 victory.

In the fourth game, Ebbw played local Gwent rivals and last year’s winners Pontypool, and the game didn’t disappoint, with stoppages on a few occasion amidst scenes from the local derbies of the 70’s. Although the Pontypool half back was red carded late on for a fracas, his side clung on for a 12-7 win.

In the final game, Ebbw Vale met the Egg Chasers from Blaenavon, and left the best till last with some fantastic tries scored, including one by coach and ex-Wales 7’s player James Lewis from his first touch. 

All in all it was a useful outing for the players to blow the cobwebs off and for the coaches to take a look at a few potential additions. All players gave it their all and left nothing out there. A big mention must go to Levi Jones, a product of Coleg Gwent, Ebbw Vale, making his debut today; he surely has a bright future ahead of him

Samurai beat Pontypool twice – once in the final to win it.  The Samurai 7 was coached by former Ebbw player and coach Nick Wakely. Congratulations to Nick and his players, many thanks to Talywain for hosting and best of luck to all the players for the coming season.

The Ebbw squad was: Sam Ireland, Matthew Flanagan, James Gahan, Levi Jones, Matt Cross, Callum Hall, Ryan Gardner, Dan Davies, Stef Thomas, Toby Twigg, Luke Shore, Kris Parker, James Lewis.

At long last, what we’ve all been waiting for! The WRU today released confirmed fixtures for the season ahead. You can view them by clicking the link below but as an appetiser, we start with Llanelli (away), Aberavon (home), RFC (away)…

Premier

The Open Day on Saturday was a great success! Our photographer, Neil Roberts, captured the occasion and has put the images up for display here:

With 4 clubs definitely facing relegation and a further team facing play off with the winners of the Championship, the Premiership will be no place for the faint hearted in the coming months

To lead us into what is sure to be an exciting and testing season, coach Greg Woods has appointed Ronny Kynes as Captain for a second season. Ronny had a baptism of fire last year with the club having a poor start to the season, but led by example, holding the squad together on and off the field. His leadership skills were a key part of the turnaround in the season, along with experience and leading role in the culture of the club; he proved to be more than an able successor to Damien Hudd. We should see Ronny reach 200 games in his 8^thseason for the club and with over 80 tries to his credit he could well come close to another major landmark of 100 tries.

The club is delighted to announce a total of 9 new signings to the squad, as follows.

Forwards
Ashley Sweet, having suffered an injury ravaged 2 years with the Dragons, returns to the club and will combine his Forwards Coach role with a return to the field of play, following a successful back operation. Ashley will provide experience and proven line out expertise to the Steelmen. Joining Ashley will be tight head prop Curtis Hicks who appeared a number of times on permit from Newbridge in the last campaign, impressing coaching and playing staff alike. A product of the Rumney Cardiff club, he will look to force his way into the starting 15 in the coming months. To complete recruitment in each row of the scrum, flanker Owen Young has joined from Aberdare after impressing in the final game of last season at Cross Keys

Backs
This sees 6 new recruits, encompassing all parts of the backs division. The highly experienced former Wales 7s international Geraint Rhys Jones has signed from the Scarlets and will look to make the 10 shirt his own. The elder brother of Addicts favourite Dorian will add quality to the back division and all are looking forward to seeing him repeat his performance against RGC in April 2017 on a weekly basis. He will be joined by scrum half Matthew Flanagan who has played over 50 games for the Llanelli club side under the coaching of his elder brother Dai, who was a firm favourite at Pontypridd for many years. Matthew is yet another product of the Penallta club and he will add slick passing and power to the team. Centre Paul King has signed from the Newbridge after impressing at the end of the season with his sound defensive qualities and ability to make a break. The back 3 sees 3 new faces added, wings James Gahan and Dan Davies and fullback/wing Luke Shore looking to make a mark under the coaching of James Lewis and Lewis Roberts. James, a resident of Hilltop, joins from Blaenavon and impressed with strong defence and fast powerful running in a couple of appearances from the bench at the end of the season. Dan joins the club from Nelson RFC and is a fast and elusive runner who has also spent time in Scotland where he played for the Scottish Bravehearts RL team for 2 seasons. The final recruit in the back 3 is Luke who is a product of Ebbw Fawr Learning Community and also impressed on his debut late season for the Steelmen. Luke came under the influence of coach Jason Strange and this can be seen in his approach to the running side of the game; the club has high hopes for this former Dragons Academy and Newbridge Youth product.

Departures

We would like to wish all the following players the best wishes for the future:

Srdan Madjc who makes the short trop down the Western Valley to Cross Keys.

Lewis Denett who is transferring with work to London and will play his rugby at the Richmond club in the Championship.

Josh Jacas who leaves in pursuit of regular rugby as he overcomes his injury difficulties and will be joining Newbridge.

 The squad has retained a strong core of experienced Premiership players, key to the culture and environment that has been fostered over the last 8 seasons. There are players entering their 6th, 7th, 8th and 9th seasons with the club, across all areas of the squad.

Prop
Ross Jones, Joel Harries, Jordan Rogers, Curtis Hicks, Rob Sevenoaks

Hooker
Rhys Francis, Joe Franchi

2nd Row
Ashley Sweet, Lance Randall, Kristian Parker, Rhys Clark

Back Row
Ronny Kynes, Cameron Regan, Owen Young, Lewis Young, Jonathan Davies,

Scrum Half
Dai Jones, Sam Ireland, Matthew Flanagan

Outside Half
Geraint Rhys Jones, Callum Hall

Centre
Paul King, James Lewis, Dom Franchi, Dai Langdon

Back 3

Steffan Thomas, Toby Fricker, Dan Davies , James Gahan, Luke Shore, Dan Haymond

There will also be a number of local players on trial at the club during pre season.

Congratulations are again in order for our winger, Toby Fricker, who has been selected to represent Wales Sevens at this weekend’s Rugby Europe Tournament in Paris, France.

The Open Day is organised to give the supporters’ and players’ families the opportunity to mix and spend time together, and with the players.

There will also be players, officials and families from the Blaenau Gwent and Ebbw Vale Hub teams present. They will have a training sessions with the EVRFC squad organised  by the EVRFC coaches and players, and by their own coaches.

Discussions are ongoing with the Dragons to provide players and  officials/ coaches to attend to participate in the training session and be available to mix with supporters and families afterwards.

Everyone is welcome to attend the sessions on French’s field starting at 11.00am, then we return to the clubhouse for activities to include:

Outdoor Bar
Hog Roast (by Ross Jones’s brother, Mark)
Bouncy Castle
Sumo Wrestling (in suits)
Brian Moore’s Big Mouth
Karaoke
Big screen videos

Past players and coaches will attend again to mix with supporters and families.

On a serious note our hard working club officials will be available to discuss season ticket sales and sponsorship opportunities. If you’d like to discuss sponsorship, and can’t wait until the Open Day, please get in touch with Darren Venn on 07736 774773 or by email: commercial@evrfc.co.uk.

The club’s annual presentation dinner took place on Friday evening, with the awards announced as follows:

Top points scorer: Lewis Dennett

Top try scorer: Dan Haymond

Captain’s Award: Ronny Kynes

Ivor Evans Clubman of the Year: Ross Jones

Ebbw Addicts Most Promising Player: Toby Fricker

100 Club (100 appearances reached): Dai Jones and Dai Langdon

Special Award: EVRFC medical team (Dr Rhys Thomas, Rhys Shorney, Saran Wyburn, Alan Hancock)

Special Award: Josh James

Try of the Season: Joe Franchi v Swansea

Clive Burgess Man of Steel Award: Rob Sevenoaks

Ebbw Addicts Player of the Year: Cameron Reagan and Toby Fricker (joint winners)

Players’ Player of the Year: Rhys Francis and Dom Franchi (joint winners)

200 Club (200 appearances reached): Ross Jones

Special Award: Mathew Williams

Ebbw Vale will play the following friendly matches in preparation for the start of the new season.

Friday 10th August v Newton Abbot (away)
Saturday 11th August v Brixham (away)
Saturday 18th of August v Ampthill (away)

There may be a further match on August 25th, depending on when the Premiership fixtures begin.

The Steelmen will also take part in the Talywain 7s on July 28th.

The Addicts will be running buses to Brixham RFC and Ampthill RFC. Details to follow.

After 15 years service and 290 games as hooker in both successful and struggling squads, Chunky, as he is affectionately known to all, has decided to hang up his boots. This total would have sailed past 300 had he not suffered bad luck with injuries over the last 18 months

The following comes from the man himself:
“I would like to take the opportunity to thank everyone who was part of my time at the club, from the back room staff, committee, coaches, players and of course the best supporters in Welsh rugby. The club has been a major part of my life since I first joined in my last year of youth rugby in 1999 and will always be close to my heart. Rugby is about making memories, and some of my best memories are playing for this club, alongside close friends who will remain as lifelong friends. Thank you all once again.”

Mathew initially joined the Ebbw Vale U21’s squad, known as Ebbw Vale Steelers, where he was player of the year, from his home village team of Oakdale RFC. His time with the Steelers was combined with 2 years service with Abertillery. He progressed into the senior game making his debut at Rodney Parade on a Boxing Day as a substitute at the end of the club’s professional era with Mike Ruddock being the first coach to make use of his undoubted talents. Following a season with Brynmawr, he returned to the club where he has been a popular squad member and a long time favourite of the Ebbw Addicts

There are many memories of Mathew Williams, someone who will forever be referred to as the Clubman of the Decade, an award he won twice along with “The Man of Steel”. Not only was he a very fine player who possessed sublime skills, but he was also a loyal and dedicated clubman and one of a few who stayed with the team when it was being relegated. The teams for the last Premiership game of 2009/10 and the first Division One East game the next season bore little resemblance to each other. Only two players stayed with the club and they were Chunky and Andrew Bevan, men with great experience who went on to play a leading role in our revival, these 2 close friends were essential to the rebuilding of a club, a team and an ethos that would deliver success in the following seasons. Indeed it was a great relief when Chunky said he would remain with the club!

His commitment was immense in those early days and although reluctant to be a captain, he led the side for almost half a season when Damian Hudd sustained a serious knee injury. Like everything else, he did it brilliantly and without fuss!

A new team took shape from the start of the 2009/10 season and a front row of Ross Jones, Chunky and Robert Sevenoaks with locks Ashley Sweet and Damien Hudd behind them formed a legendary front five.
Officials and Addicts alike hoped Chunky would play forever, we will miss his darting runs and the feeling of confidence we had when he took the field. His contribution to Ebbw Vale was unsurpassed.

His part in our winning of the Premiership cannot be underestimated, the accuracy of his lineout work being a key component of the now famed Catch’n’Kynes move that led to many wins in that year.

It is important to get the views of some of the coaches who have worked with Chunky over the years.

Jason Strange has had this to say

It was a privilege and an honour to coach Chunky for 5 seasons. He has given every ounce of blood, sweat and tears to the club for his entire career and it will be a massive challenge to replace such a fantastic clubman and player. Over the last 15 years I cannot imagine anybody who has been such a consistent performer in the team as he has. Whether the team has been successful or not, Chunky’s performances have always been very strong. What has made him stand out is courage, commitment and remarkable durability. He has been hugely successful as an individual, and part of some very good teams, and has been someone who has always stepped up when it mattered in the big games and delivered.

From Alex Codling
What can I say about Chunky? Diminutive in stature with the heart of a lion and everything good that you would want in a rugby player. When I first met him, I thought he was a back! I soon realised how pivotal he would be to the team. He was a real high quality exponent of the set piece skills but also a dynamo around the field. One of those trademark runs led to a try in our Boxing Day Derby win away to Llandovery in front of the tremendous away support all dressed in Hawaiian shirts. All the very best to you Chunk in whatever you do next, a great guy and part of a great bunch of lads.

From Nigel Davies: Mathew Williams (Chunky) – The Player, The Man

Every coach knows that a squad of players has its own dynamic and culture which is a product of many factors and includes the balance of the personalities within it – much like any business or organisation.

On first arriving at Ebbw Vale it was important for me to understand and establish the personalities within the group and within a few hours of arriving one of my first unannounced visitors was Chunky which in itself told me much about the man. As we’d never met before, he was keen to chat through some things with me regarding the season gone, general rugby philosophy and equally I think to assess the new guy at Eugene Cross Park!

His passion for Ebbw Vale and love for the game was clear from that first meeting and he has a way of being very straight yet professional, some might say grumpy, but I would say more focused and demanding of those around him. The best players I have coached have naturally had this demanding quality which for them is all about getting the most out of themselves and others to be the very best they can be and having these types of player is essential in driving the progress from within a team.

Chunky is that rare player. A coach’s delight as someone that you can rely on to do the right thing, to be part of the team, drive standards, positively challenge himself and others, display good values and in his case produce rugby moments of pure genius and magic.

Above all else though he’s a good bloke with great values – and to paraphrase a famous Rudyard Kipling poem “if you can walk with the crowd and keep your virtue, or walk with kings nor lose the common touch – you’ll be a man my son” and Chunky stands out as a man in rugby.

The sentiments from these 3 coaches sums up his contribution on and off the field and for me personally I could rely on him to do the right thing for the club at all times. It’s been a pleasure to watch him play and to share a few drinks with him. I along with many others will miss him greatly but look forward to seeing him at our presentation and at future games.

Jon Jones
Chairman

Ebbw Vale RFC are pleased that several current Steelmen will be involved in this game to celebrate the life of Phil Swan. Sam Ireland, Callum Hall and Rob Sevenoaks will all hopefully feature. This will be Oaksy’s 10th appearance for Monmouthshire.
Phil made a huge contribution to rugby in Ebbw Vale for many years, always having players, RTBs and the town close to his heart. He’s still very much missed by us all and we hope supporters will join together at RTB’s ground on Thursday evening, kicking off at 7pm.