Cardiff beat brave Caerphilly

Cardiff were given the fright of their lives by minnows Caerphilly in a pulsating game at Virginia Park.

It would have been a tremendous injustice had Jonathan Davies' last-minute conversion of a Simon Hill try gone over because it would have denied the spirited Rhymney Valley side the bonus point they richly deserved.

For long periods of the first half the home side were in command with their tenacious play.

Caerphilly led 12-10 at the interval courtesy of a Darren Starr corner try following a brilliant blindside break by former Welsh international Roger Bidgood and a penalty try.

Their forwards won a fair share of the ball and it was at halfback where they gained the early advantage.

The lively pairing of Wayne Bray and Dave Phillips looked sharp, incisive and imaginative, whereas the visitors' half-backs, Jason Hewlett and Jonathan Davies, looked static and off-colour.

It was all so different in the second period as the star-studded Cardiff side took control up front.

This gave Davies and Hewlett the platform they needed to spin the ball wide, resulting in four second half tries for Leigh Davies, Gareth Jones, Simon Hill and Jonathan Davies, who finished with a tally of 14 points.

But the carrot of a bonus point spurred Caerphilly on to tremendous heights and an Ian Phillips' try secured their precious bonus point after Jonathan Davies was caught in possession on his own line.

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