Colwyn Bay 1st XV continued their positive start to the season with an impressive 38–15 victory away at Bangor, producing a performance built on strong structure, resilience and a real collective effort across the squad.

The Bay made a confident start, applying pressure from the opening exchanges and quickly settling into their shape. An early injury to Dan Parry, making his return to action, was a disappointing moment, but the response from the rest of the side was excellent as they maintained their intensity and began to build a lead.

Bangor ensured it was far from a straightforward afternoon, fighting their way back into the contest and testing Colwyn Bay both physically and tactically. Playing into the wind during the second half also provided an important challenge, with the visitors required to manage the game carefully and adapt as momentum shifted.

The team responded well, showing composure and resilience to secure a deserved 38–15 victory.

Luke Rowlands delivered an outstanding individual performance, crossing for three tries and earning the Man of the Match award. Kieran Thomas added two tries, with Gaz Williams also getting on the scoresheet.

There was another special moment for the club as Iolo James made his senior debut, having earned his opportunity through his hard work and performances.

Head Coach Gav Hodgkinson

Reflecting on the match, Head Coach Gav Hodgkinson said:

“It was great to get back to game day, with the squad travelling away to Bangor.

The selection this week was challenging, with a number of players putting in effort and competing hard for one of the 20 jerseys. As a coaching group, those are the decisions we want to be faced with, and that competition continues to drive standards within the squad.

We started extremely well, applying pressure and executing our structure with confidence. Unfortunately, within the first few minutes we lost Dan Parry to injury. We were all excited to see Dan back playing, and his first involvement was very positive. To see him suffer an injury was obviously disappointing for Dan, the players and coaching staff. We’ll support him through his recovery and hopefully see him back on the pitch soon.

The response from the group was excellent. We kept our pressure, stuck to our structure and got the scoreboard moving early.

However, Bangor provided the test we needed. They fought their way back into the game and forced us to defend for periods, challenging us physically and tactically. Going into the second half with the wind against us also gave us an important opportunity to test our game management and ability to adapt when conditions and momentum aren’t in our favour.

There are certainly areas we can improve, but overall I was very proud of the performance and, more importantly, the attitude shown by the group. There were some incredible individual performances, but the collective effort and resilience pleased me most.

“It was also fantastic to see Iolo James make his senior debut. He has worked hard and earned his opportunity, and hopefully this will be the first of many appearances for him.

Our focus now turns to Dolgellau next Saturday. While we’re pleased with how we’ve started, we know there is plenty of work still to do. Dolgellau will provide another tough test, and we’ll need to prepare and raise our standards again this week.

Finally, a huge thank you to everyone who travelled to Bangor to support us. Your support makes a big difference to the players and coaching staff. We’d love to see the same support behind us at home on Saturday!”

Colwyn Bay now turn their attention to Dolgellau at home next Saturday, with the squad looking to build on the momentum from another encouraging performance.

Final Score: Bangor 15–38 Colwyn Bay 1st XV
Try Scorers: Luke Rowlands x3, Kieran Thomas x2, Gaz Williams x1
Man of the Match: Luke Rowlands

Up the Bay! 🔵⚪