LLANGOLLEN-BASED Bro Gwernant travelled for a Denbighshire clash in WRU League Division Three North East.

They headed to Cae Ddol in order to tackle Ruthin seconds.

Already a tough proposition for Bro, what made the task even harder was that the away side went into the match with a depleted squad largely down to injuries and work commitments.

Bro were fortunate that they could call on a couple of players on permit to assist in being able to get the game on.

Following rainfall over the week and also high winds, a free-flowing game of rugby was never going to happen, but both teams set off from the first whistle to play as much rugby in hand as they could.

First blood went to Bro, with a penalty kick from Owen Jones after eight minutes.

This seemed to wake the home side up and they put on pressure which paid dividends with an unconverted try.

This was followed by a converted try a few minutes later.

With the scores at 12-3, Bro were awarded a penalty and Ryan Edwards slotted over to cut the deficit to six points at the interval.

The second half started in the same competitive way as the first.

With the pitch now cutting up and the ball covered in mud, action was largely seen in the middle third of the pitch.

Bro tried to use their pack, with big ball carriers Iwan Jones and Billy Davies looking to punch holes into a well-organised Ruthin defence.

There was no addition to the score until the 72nd minute, when Ruthin broke the line and scored under the posts.

Bro continued to battle, with Charlie Turner and James Jackson both putting in good shifts, but the momentum was with the home team and they crossed again in the final minute with a bonus point try.

Bro Gwernant manager Huw Evans said: “We knew it was going to be a tough game, especially with the limited numbers we had.

"But the lads fought hard and were in the game right until at the end, but we were deflated to concede two late tries which put the game out of reach.

"There are definite learnings to take from the game.

"Would also like to thank Ruthin RFC for their understanding and communication through the week, as both clubs wanted this fixture to go ahead and get the game played.”