Wrexham Youth had to come from behind at Rhyl to defeat the Seasiders by 31-24 and claim third place in this season’s North Wales Division One Championship.

The game exploded into life midway through the first-half when Rhyl broke through to open the scoring with a converted try. Three minutes later, Wrexham outside-half James Price kicked a penalty to narrow the gap, but the home side quickly replied with another converted try to stretch their lead to 14-3.

Undeterred, Wrexham stormed back with their first try when lock Jamie Weston took a quick tap penalty and crashed over, Price adding the extra points with a neat conversion. Back came Rhyl with a penalty before the visitors replied with a try out wide by centre Owain Turner and another Price conversion. A minute later, the ball landed in the hands of Price from Rhyl’s kick-off and he ran it straight back to score under the posts before adding the conversion.

That gave Wrexham a 24-17 lead, which they held until half-time. Rhyl put in a big effort after the break but were rocked by a second try from Owain Turner after only five minutes of play. Price converted again from wide-out and, although Rhyl came back with a converted try in the 60^th minute, Wrexham held onto their 7 point lead to claim victory in an excellent match.

Flanker Matt Evans did everything that was expected of a good back-row player while the big lock Ryan Jones carried the ball superbly to set up a number of attacks by the victors.  

Prop Szymon Galarowicz, operating in an unaccustomed role on the wing, proved to be a revelation when he continued to frustrate some of Ruthin’s attacking moves with some all-embracing tackles. The visitors are the class act in Youth Division One this season, however, and they eventually wore Wrexham down and scored the tries that earned them a place in the cup final.

Wrexham Youth claimed a place in the quarter-finals of the North Wales Youth Cup with a 50-0 demolition of an under powered Welshpool side at Maesydre Recreation Ground.

The game was totally dominated by the visitors who raced to their winning total in only 50 minutes before the game was stopped under the competition rules. Number eight Dafydd Kember claimed a hat-trick of tries as a reward for a fine performance and there were single touchdowns from centre Josh Francis, lock Christian Burgoyne, wing Shaun Ferrari, full-back Nathan Jones and hooker Rob Evans who also put in an excellent effort.  

Outside-half James Price converted 5 of the 8 tries for his team who will have home advantage when they meet Denbigh Youth in the quarter-finals, the date to be arranged.

Wrexham Youth enjoyed their biggest victory of the season when they defeated visitors Bala by 50-14 at Bryn Estyn Road.

The first-half was an evenly balanced contest with the home side just edging it by 19-14 at the break, but Wrexham improved dramatically while Bala seemed to run out of steam in the second-half. Lock Jamie Weston and flanker Dafydd Kember grabbed a brace of tries apiece while centre Scott Jones, full-back Nathan Jones, scrum-half Tom Robinson and prop Szymon Galarowicz notched a try apiece.

Outside-half James Price converted 5 of the 8 tries and there were impressive performances from newcomer Haydn Kidd, who demonstrated his strength in the threequarters, and Galarowicz who provided extra thrust in the pack on his introduction as a replacement.

Wrexham Youth defied their current form and won the local derby at Mold by 15-6, avenging a previous heavy defeat on their home ground.

Missing several key players, the visitors had to switch scrum-half Owain Turner to centre to form a new partnership with Nathan Jones. Mold pressed hard from the beginning and went into a 6-0 lead with a brace of penalties. Wrexham had chances to level the scores with penalty kicks of their own, but outside-half James Price failed to find the target.

Price’s sound work in defence was invaluable, however, and the visitors started to dominate the game. Their reward came towards the end of the half when number eight Dafydd Kember powered over for a fine try that Price converted to give his side the lead.

A second try from Kember extended Wrexham’s advantage in the second-half but they had to use all of their experience to keep the home side at bay and eventually close down the game. A late penalty from Price sealed it for the visitors in what was an excellent team effort coupled with a fine individual performance from Turner in his first appearance in the centre.   

Wrexham Youth suffered an unexpected defeat when they conceded a late try in their floodlit Division One game in mid Wales and were beaten 19-15 by lowly Cobra.

The visitors looked set for victory after centre Josh Francis claimed a hat-trick of tries in a fast flowing game during which flanker Matthew Evans put in a very impressive performance. However, outside-half James Price failed to find the distance in his first game under floodlights and missed all 3 conversions.   

Cobra plugged away and kept in touch with 4 well struck penalties before they finally breached a determined Wrexham defence and scored a converted match winning try with only minutes remaining before the final whistle. Next up for Wrexham is a visit to Mold Youth on Saturday where they will face another severe test.

Wrexham Youth bounced back into contention for the North Wales Youth Division One Championship with a well-worked 21-7 home victory over a competent Llangefni side.

There was, however, a shock in the third minute of the game when a Wrexham attack broke down in the Llangefni 22 and a visiting back intercepted before running over 80 metres to score under the posts. The simple conversion left the home side trailing by 0-7, but it wasn’t long before they managed to reduce that lead with a brace of penalties from outside-half James Price.

Wrexham then dominated play but could not find a way of crossing the Llangefni line until lock Christian Burgoyne used his considerable presence to crash over for a try just before the break. Price converted to put his side 13-7 in the lead but it took until the 50^th minute before he was called on again, this time to attempt to convert a try by prop Aaron Hughes who had sprinted 30 metres to score.  

Price’s difficult kick fell wide of the target but he made no mistake in the 65^th minute when he added a third penalty to his impressive tally and put the game beyond Llangefni’s reach. Aaron Hughes made a significant contribution on his return from injury and Nathan Jones won praise for his sound play, having made a switch from centre to full-back.

Wrexham Youth, out of action for a month due to adverse weather conditions, found it difficult to rediscover their usual momentum against visitors Mold and crashed to a 7-32 defeat at Bryn Estyn Road.

 Mold settled well from the start and held a deserved 17-0 lead at half-time as Wrexham struggled to shrug off their match rustiness. However, they performed much better after the break with wing Haydn Kidd making a promising debut and hooker Mike Moore returning to the side after injury. 

The forwards produced a powerful drive towards the Mold line mid-way through the half and  number eight Gruffudd Jones made no mistake when he picked up the ball and powered over for Wrexham’s consolation try. Outside-half James Price added an angled conversion. 

Wrexham Youth Team maintained their title challenge for the North Wales Youth Division One Championship with a hard-earned 12-7 home victory over recent leaders Caernarfon. The game was evenly matched throughout with Caernarfon establishing a first-half lead with a converted try.

Within five minutes of the start of the second-half, Wrexham drew level when prop Szymon Galarowicz used his strength, pace and determination to power over for a try that was converted by outside-half James Price. With hooker Jonathan Huxley and lock Christian Burgoyne making a big impression against a very good visiting side, Wrexham searched for the winning points.

They came from an exciting passage of play that started when number eight Gruffudd Jones picked up the ball from a ruck inside his own half and then sprinted 60 metres upfield. He was hauled down by a defender just before the Caernarfon line, but his momentum carried him over for a memorable try. After that, the visitors mounted a terrific onslaught in the Wrexham 22, but the home side did just enough to hold on until the final whistle.

Wrexham Youth demonstrated that they are becoming a force to be reckoned with this season by defeating reigning champions Rhyl by 33-21 in a North Wales Youth Division One contest at Bryn Estyn Road.

 Lock Jamie Weston stretched over the Rhyl line to claim the opening try in the 6^th minute and outside-half James Price made a successful debut as a goal kicker by landing an angled conversion. Although Rhyl countered with a breakaway try and a conversion to level the scores, the home side soon stretched away with touchdowns from wing Peter Atkin and centre Tom Robinson, Price adding both conversions for a 21-7 half-time lead.

Wrexham Youth claimed their first victory of the season when they overcame visitors Denbigh by 15-10 in a closely contested North Wales Youth Division One encounter.

Tom Evans set up the first try for his centre partner Nathan Jones in the opening half and then Evans got on the scoresheet himself with a neat touchdown to earn his side a 10-0 half-time lead.

Denbigh countered after the break with a converted try and then levelled the scores in the final quarter with a penalty. Four minutes from the end, however, Wrexham kicked a penalty into the corner and a catch and drive move from the ensuing line-out enabled flanker Owain Jarvis to squeeze through for the winning try.

Other players who stood out were lock Anthony Westgarth in the line-out, prop Aaron Hughes in the front-row and hooker John Morton in his last game before heading for university.   

Wrexham Seconds made it five victories in a row when they overcame visitors Llandudno Seconds by 37-24 in a Division Four contest.

Scrum-half John Gormley kicked the home side into a 9-0 lead with 3 well struck penalties before Llandudno shook them by replying with a converted try. With former Youth Team player Jake Edwards making a big impression at prop, and lock Tom Williams making Llandudno turn with his long runs, Wrexham soon dominated the game again.

Wrexham Seconds picked up a last minute league fixture with Caer Borderers and celebrated with a return to form and a decisive 69-7 victory.

Team Manager Pete Blakemore opened the scoring with a typical hooker’s try from close-in and the points soon piled up with hat-tricks for wing Gareth Bostock and centre Andy Clutton who was returning from injury. Other touchdowns came from wing Kevin Trousellier, lock Jason Parry, prop Danny Wolfenden and outside-half Roger Chadwick who also kicked seven conversions.

There was disappointment for flanker Keir Harding who was heavily engaged in the action but had two ‘tries’ disallowed. It was a good team effort that won the day for Wrexham and lock Tom Williams stood out for his excellent performance in an outstanding pack.  

Wrexham Vets agreed to help out their cross-border rivals Chester Vets who were left without a game when their scheduled opponents cried-off last week. A strong Wrexham Vets side took the field at Vicars Cross and finished with a comprehensive 32-0 victory.