Blonde-haired Bulls put on eye-catching show in final blitz

Vanquished opponents Bridgend Athletic had no answer to the young Bulls who rampaged to a 44-17 victory at the home of Welsh rugby on Saturday, April 23.

The Bulls – the vast majority sporting blonde highlights in their hair – certainly lived up to their eye-catching haircuts with a dazzling performance; crossing for seven tries in total, with livewire winger Ciaran Price scoring four of those.

Price tormented Bridgend all day and had bagged himself a hat-trick by half-time – leading to the match commentator suggesting that the right-hand corner where he dotted down each time should be renamed ‘Ciaran’s Corner’.

Powerful and silky centre Alecs Williams and instrumental No8 Iwan Coyle also crossed for tries, with replacement winger Morgan Price putting the final nail in Bridgend’s coffin; full-back Dylan Jones also playing a starring role in his side’s glorious victory.

Both sides swapped early scores as the game got off to a free-flowing, end-to-end start. The Bulls scored a breathtaking try from the shadow of their own posts following an exciting Athletic counterattack. Skipper Ryan Hughes chased down a Bridgend kick ahead to thwart what would have been a certain try for the south Walians.

From the ensuing ruck, when most teams would have kicked to relieve the pressure, Builth No8 Coyle instead released Williams, whose deft shimmy put him suddenly in acres of space; Price was on his shoulder when the final tackle of the full-back arrived and the speedster was too quick for opposite number Lochie Barron. Rhys Davies cemented the perfect start when he brilliantly converted from the touchline.

Bridgend reduced the deficit almost immediately with a fine effort from distance of their own. Great work up the touchline from Sam Matthews saw him break numerous tackles before left wing James Puaca squeezed in at the corner.

At 7-5 it was all to play for, but that was as close as Bridgend got to Builth – or as close as Builth would allow them to get.

A Davies penalty was followed by a mesmeric run from Wiliams, who carved through the green and yellow back line like a steak knife and darted over for Builth’s second try; Davies converted from right in front and Builth were 17-5 ahead.

They were a speck in the distance by the time the interval arrived, thanks to two more Price tries; one seeing him twist and pirouette out of a seemingly inescapable challenge to plunge over and compete his treble. 27-5 at the break.

The Bulls were cheered on by an army of supporters from Builth Wells

The marauding Coyle got in on the act soon after the restart with another fine solo effort, escaping from several would be tacklers before dummying Evan Beach and swan-diving over the line.

Luke Griffiths’ try kept Bridgend on Builth’s coattails but Price the pest wasn’t done and found the line for the fourth time soon after following quick hands from Williams, with his replacement and namesake Morgan putting the Bulls in seventh heaven when he ploughed his way over from close range.

There was time for one final try at the death, with Athletic earning a deserved consolation, a fine score from scrum-half Evan Dadamo, whose conversion made it 44-17.

On what will go down as a famous day in the history of Builth Wells Rugby Club and the town, it was an 18th win of a season becoming more and more like a fairytale with each victory for the unbeaten Bulls, who celebrated wildly at the final whistle in front of close to 1,000 supporters who’d made the 58-mile journey down from beyond the Brecon Beacons to Cardiff.

Ciaran Price was Bridgend's tormentor in chief, scoring four of Builth's seven tries. Pics Lia Price

“To everyone that travelled to Cardiff or who streamed the game live we were truly overwhelmed by your support and we’re glad we bought the cup home for you with a great performance on the field,” said head coach Chris Offa, who is stepping down from his role at the end of the season.

“It has been a privilege to work with my fellow coaches and management team in Builth Rugby Club with this group of players and they are credit to our town and the game of rugby.

“Let’s now hope that we have finally managed to attract enough attention from our region to actually take notice of our players and offer to give some of them a pathway to higher level rugby which they are obviously more than capable of.

“We can do no more than win the Welsh Youth Cup competition but we are now aiming to win the Cardiff Rugby Premiership League as well, with three games left to play in the next three weeks.

“Yesterday was an inspiration for anyone involved in rugby from juniors to the retired and it is a day that will forever be remembered for the rest of our lives. Thank you everyone.”