Latest news with #CrossKeysRFC
BBC News
04-04-2025
- Climate
- BBC News
Cross Keys RFC: From flooding heartache to Premiership Cup dream
A rugby team forced to play on primary school pitches because their home ground was flooded will run out at the Principality Stadium at the weekend after a rollercoaster Bert wreaked havoc at Cross Keys RFC in Caerphilly county, with the pitch and clubhouse under 6ft (2m) of the dedication of volunteers, players and coaching staff has seen "devastation" turn to dreams of silverware, as the team prepare to take on Pontypridd in the final of the Premiership Corey Nicholls said a win would "put Cross Keys back on the map". "It was absolutely heartbreaking," said club secretary, Angie Prangell, remembering the scene in November 2024."We put our heart and soul into the club - it's like your home - and when we opened the doors, we were very, very close to tears. It was so emotional."Once the water had gone, there was thick mud everywhere that had to be cleaned, filling three skips. Ms Prangell said the damage meant the clubhouse could not open for three weeks, but "everyone pulled together" to fix it, including people from the local community."The amount of work was unbelievable."We are normally open seven nights a week, so we had no income. But you still have your bills to pay."We had to have humidifiers everywhere, so the electric bill went sky-high." It was the second time the club had faced major flooding, after Storm Dennis caused extensive damage in the clubhouse back up and running was just one of the hurdles this time and, with the pitch unplayable for two months, the team had to find alternatives for training. That meant journeys of up to an hour to Cardiff, as well as sessions at local primary schools on small, 3G pitches, which was "not ideal", according to Morgan Stoddart, former Wales international and director of rugby at Cross Keys."It was up to us to motivate the boys to train away from the club - with longer travelling," he said."And to be fair all the boys got on with it, which served us good for the second part of the season. It's now about using the emotion in a positive way." The game on Saturday will be a rerun of the 2014 Swalec Cup final which saw Pontypridd beat Cross Keys 21-8, and comes after Cross Keys shocked Merthyr with a 36-31 win to reach the for players like back row Harvey Reader, 28, just having the chance to play at the Principality is a dream come true."We are probably going in as underdogs, but I don't see why we can't do it," he said."If we did, it would be incredible. To play in the stadium is a privilege, and if we were to win, that's something that would stay with me for the rest of my life." Captain Corey Nicholls, 29, said there would be a big party if they were to win."It would be great to put Cross Keys back on the map."We've had a tough couple of seasons - it would be nice to get the village behind us again."We always say, there's only one set of traffic lights in Cross Keys, it's a tiny village so it's nice to get everyone's support again." You can watch the Premiership Cup final on S4C at 17:15 BST on Saturday 5 April.
Yahoo
05-03-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Welsh rugby club turn disaster into triumph under former Wales international
A Welsh rugby club has bounced back from a devastating flood to put themselves one step away from cup glory. In November, Cross Keys RFC was left submerged in over six feet of water after the River Ebbw breached its banks during Storm Bert, with the flooding leaving flooring, electrical goods and training equipment at the club damaged. The devastating setback came less than five years after the club was badly affected by floods during Storm Dennis in 2020. With their pitch and facilities left under water, the club had no choice but to shut for weeks before the hard work of volunteers allowed them to reopen. But they have spent much of the season training elsewhere, using other club's pitches and cancelling home fixtures as they battled to overcome the setback. READ MORE: Tonight's rugby news as Wales pile pressure on Scotland and players 'laughing' after Cardiff controversy READ MORE: Wales selectors will have debated three positions ahead of big Scotland announcement Against the odds, less than four months later the club is almost completely back to normal with the team now through to the final of the Premiership Cup. A thrilling semi-final clash with Merthyr RFC saw Keys triumph in dramatic circumstances, as they sealed a 36-31 victory in extra-time. While Merthyr had won convincingly when the two sides met at the start of the season, a courageous performance from Keys saw them come from 14 points down to leave the scores tied at 26-26 after 80 minutes. With an extra 20 minutes then played, a try from Ralph Miller and two successful Adam Tetley kicks helped to secure a famous win. Keys - who are led by head coach Chris James and former Wales international Morgan Stoddart as director of rugby - will now face Pontypridd in the final at the Principality Stadium on April 5, 11 years after they met in the same fixture. The two sides also did battle in the final in 2012, with Keys victorious on that occasion, and club secretary Angie Prangell admits another cup win would be a "fairytale ending" for the team after a challenging season. "We played Merthyr at the start of the season and we were absolutely annihilated," she said as she recounted the weekend's thrilling semi-final win. "They put 80-odd points on us. So they were obviously the favourites going in to the game, they had beaten teams left, right and centre. But the confidence of our players has been building and building and they just didn't give up. "It was the most amazing game I've seen in such a long time and for the neutral, it must have been fantastic. Our boys dug so deep and they got the win. I couldn't be more proud of them, and the coaching staff have been absolutely fantastic too. "If we were to win it, it would be an absolute fairytale ending to the season. We're a little village - we always say we've only got one set of traffic lights in Cross Keys. So winning the cup would be a real fairytale, especially after all of this." Angie admits that the club would not have been able to recover from the "unbelievable" flooding in the way it has without the efforts of volunteers and the generosity of other clubs. Having been "wiped out" by what happened, those at the club are thankful for all the support they've received. "You leave the club on a Saturday night and you come back on the Sunday morning and it's under water," she said as she recalled the scale of the flooding. "It was unbelievable. "We obviously had to close the club down for nearly three weeks but managed to get it up and running again with the help of volunteers. We still have a few little things to do, but if you didn't know about the flooding, you wouldn't know now. We've done a massive job on it, and all thanks to the volunteers. "The field was awful, it was obviously full of mud and silt but you also get things like twigs and bits of plastic on there. In fact, you wouldn't believe what was on there. So obviously we couldn't train or play it and we had to find alternative training grounds and cancel games. But the whole thing just totally wipes you out. "We played Newbridge at the end of December and they gave us the whole of their gate money which was absolutely tremendous," Angie added. "Neath RFC also had a bucket collection for us not long after the flood too. We used Risca's pitch, they helped us out. So the generosity of other clubs, we can't fault it." Meanwhile, eight-cap international Stoddart admits that his side go into next month's final as the underdogs against top-of-the-table Pontypridd. But he knows they will be determined to go all the way, having battled against the odds throughout the season. "The flooding was crazy, and it's happened twice in five years now," he said. "It was a lot of hassle and organising for the coaches, with players training at different venues and moving around. So, from a rugby side, it was difficult but for the volunteers and the committee and Angie and everyone else, it was a lot more difficult because they had to deal with the flooding first hand. "Myself and the coaches have told the boys not to make excuses about an extra half an hour of travel or whatever, and to just concentrate on what we need to do and trying to win," Stoddart added. "We've done great this year, the boys and coaches have been brilliant. "They have been working hard for months to get something out of the season and hopefully we will do now we're through to the final. Ponty will probably be huge favourites to beat us , but the boys just need to believe they can do it like they did in the semis. If we play our best game, then I think we'll have a chance."
