Aberavon Fighting Irish experienced defeat and victory in the space of four days, as the JES Rugby League Conference season continues.
Last Wednesday, South Wales Jets eventually eased past them with a 54-26 win to go top of the league.
The Jets didn’t have it their own way all the time, as Aberavon, champions for the last two years in a row, took the lead inside two minutes thanks to a Jack Davies try.
But when a Zak Williams try levelled things six minutes later, with Aaron Harrison kicking the first of his seven goals, there was no turning back for the 2023 champions.
Madoc Lane, Dai Hooper, Iestyn Jones and Ellis Muller all added tries before the break to put the half-time score on 28-4.
Muller’s second try increased the score to 32-4, before Aberavon threatened a come-back. They were next on the board, thanks to a Cody Rees try converted by Iestyn Scott.
A Jack Hodder try, converted by Harrison, addressed the balance, but Aberavon gave Jets a scare after pulling the score back to 38-26 on the hour after consecutive tries were scored by Kian Parlour, Rees and Rhys Evans, with two goals from Scott.
But Jets dominated the last 20 minutes. A second try for Hooper came for Jets as soon as they regained the ball, with Hodder scoring twice more to complete his hat-trick.
Then on Saturday, Aberavon recovered by beating Bridgend Blue Bulls 28-10.
It was nervy for the home side in the first half. They went ahead in the 19th minute through a Jack Davies try that Rhys Evans converted, but two tries just before half-time, the first from Connor Morgan, converted by Scott Walker and the second from Juris Kesans, gave Bridgend a 10-6 lead at the break.
But Aberavon weren’t going to lose at home for the second time in four days. Jay Baker scored two tries, Cody Rees added one, with Evans contributing a try and three more goals to secure the win.
