August 30, 2026 - 228 views
RGC were beaten 47-35 by English Championship side Coventry in an entertaining pre-season encounter at Stadiwm Eirias on Saturday.
The visitors struck first with an early converted try, but RGC quickly responded as Daf Thirsk powered over, with Billy McBryde adding the conversion.
RGC then took control of the contest, with Tudur Jones helping to create quick attacking ball. Jac Williams produced a superb individual effort to put the Gogs ahead, stepping through the Coventry defence before somehow staying in play to score in the corner. McBryde converted.
Coventry levelled through fly-half Bruce Houston, who scored and converted his own try, but Williams soon restored RGC's advantage with his second try of the afternoon.
The hosts continued to threaten, with both sides playing ambitious rugby and looking to exploit space.
RGC extended their lead before half-time when Dion Jones created an opening and raced through to score, with McBryde again converting to leave the hosts 28-14 ahead at the break.
The second half proved more difficult for RGC after a series of substitutions disrupted the flow of the game.
Coventry took advantage, scoring twice and converting both to level the contest after an hour before moving ahead with another try from a lineout.
RGC fought back, with Tal Taylor crossing after a sustained spell of pressure. McBryde's conversion brought the scores level once again.
However, Coventry regained the advantage after creating space through a series of offloads, before a try on the final whistle completed the scoring at 47-35.
Despite the defeat, RGC head coach Jon Callard was encouraged by the performance.
“For 50 minutes, I thought we played really well,” he said. “With the number of changes we made, it’s understandable that some of the rhythm was lost as the game went on.
“Today was about seeing what we have as a group, because this is the squad we have going into the season ahead. We know the challenge that awaits us in the Super Rygbi Cymru, and we’re really looking forward to it.”
Delwyn Jones also felt the final score did not reflect RGC's performance, particularly during the opening stages.
“We competed, and the score wasn't a reflection of the game, especially that opening 50 minutes,” he said.
“I thought we played some good rugby, created some good chances – and took them as well. For us at this stage in pre-season, it is about building for that first league game, and we can build on today.”
The match represented another step up in RGC's preparations ahead of the new Super Rygbi Cymru season, with the squad now having a couple of weeks of training to work on the areas identified during the Coventry game.
