"Allan Lewis"
"I have a great regard and affinity for Aberavon Rugby Football Club. In fact, as a fresh-faced 18-year-old, I made my Llanelli debut at Stradey Park against Aberavon in 1968 and I was given a warm and welcoming "late tackle" to senior rugby by the incomparable Omri Jones."
"Aberavon in those days (late 60s and early 70s) were uncompromising and physical. Their formidable pack contained players such as Billy Mainwaring, Max Wiltshire and Allan Martin as locks, John Richardson and Morton Howells in the front row, Bobby Wanbon, Mike Nicholas and Richie Davies in the back row."
"And at the rugby helm of the team were the international halfbacks Clive Shell and John Bevan. They were a great side and in the vanguard of Welsh rugby. Indeed, their absence from the Welsh/Scottish League has been a sad loss. Aberavon has always been, and will continue to be, a very friendly and homely club. Croeso Aberavon."
"During this time of year, preparations for clubs are always interrupted by the Six Nations internationals, but nevertheless, the remaining members of the Newport squad have been put through their paces by Ian Mclntosh, the former Natal and Springbok coach and mentor to Gary Teichmann. Mac was in the UK on business and was invited to share his visionary coaching ideas with us at Newport."
"A change of voice and coaching emphasis has had a constructive and positive effect on the squad. I think it is fair to say that the Newport team is a formidable unit but we lost our direction a little over Christmas and the New Year period. However, there is a new buzz and vibrancy amongst the players and I am confident and excited about the future."
"Finally, at the after-match dinner following the England game, I had the good fortune to speak at length to members of the England management team - Brian Ashton, Phil Larder and Andy Robinson - and I was encouraged and heartened by their belief in playing a 15-man game based on the concept of providing width and depth to their attacks. That is the approach we must embrace at Rodney Parade and be confident in our handling and running ability."
"For today's game we were able to select from almost a fully fit squad which is testimony to Mike Delahay's 'recuperative hands' and the diagnostic input of the medical team, another group of people who work diligently behind the scenes and do not always receive the accolades they deserve."
"Croeso - unwaith eto - i Aberafan"
"Allan Lewis"
"FOCUS ON .... ABERAVON"
"by Tony Poole (Aberavon correspondent for the South Wales Evening Post)"
"Down the years fellow sports journalists have queried my sanity in becoming only the fourth Aberavon correspondent in 80 years for the South Wales Evening Post. But for me, it has become a way of life and Saturday is my Wizard day of the week."
"The highs have been few since I first reported on them in 1989, and the corresponding lows hard to endure for a club with such a rich past. Strangely enough, there is a Newport link in Aberavon being dubbed the Wizards."
"In 1924, the first Aberavon writer, Bill Taylor alias 'The Rover', got so excited about the club gaining two significant away wins against all-conquering Cross Keys (16-5) and Newport (10-9) that he dubbed them "Wizards of the west". After the war, the nickname of the "Wizards" was officially adopted and Bill continued writing until 1950."
"John Dolan took over the job until 1984 and he was succeeded, until 1993, by Norman Denby. When I stepped into the breach I immediately had some success to write about. Yet despite the Division One championship seasons of 1994/95 and 1996/97, the team spirit in the current camp takes some beating. Baggage man Dai Beaton backs up this claim and points to the alliance between coach Chris O'Callaghan and team manager Eddie Jones as one of the main reasons for the current resurgence. Chris, who packed down alongside Eddie Butler in the Cambridge back row in the 1978 Varsity Match, played 96 times for Aberavon and a further 134 for Bridgend."
"He took over the coaching reins at the Talbot Athletic Ground in mid-season when it looked as though the Wizards might sink into the second division. He just managed to save the club's bacon and, while last season was all about staying up, this winter's slogan has been "going up". Promotion back to the top flight is still uncertain for the Division One champions because of the WRU's plans for a Celtic League."
"As a regular on the First Division circuit, I can tell you that the main topics of conversation all season have been about funding and promotion. While in all probability the funding of almost £88,000 per club will be maintained next season, promotion is an even more emotive subject. How can you have a national league structure which blocks promotion from Division One to the top flight? If promotion is wiped out, what's the point of any club attempting to emulate the likes of Caerphilly, Dunvant or Treorchy in shooting for the stars."
"It smacks of a reincarnation of the Merit Table system, which was dismantled in 1990 to make way for the supposedly more equitable National League. Should Aberavon win the First Division title this year, how could the Union or other interested parties sleep at night in preventing one of Welsh rugby's great clubs from taking what is their rightful place in next season's top tier?"
"For the record, Aberavon have produced 48 Welsh internationals whose caps total 226. There have been four British Lions from Aberavon in Tony O'Connor, John Bevan, Allan Martin and Clive Williams. Another 15 players have been capped for Wales at B or A level and George Vickery was capped by England."
"Who was the last Aberavon player to play for Wales? It was the back row man Tim Fauvel as a replacement for Wales against New Zealand in 1988. Sadly, the ex-Kenfig Hill man could have a special place in the history of Aberavon as being the last player to represent Wales from the club unless promotion to the top tier is guaranteed."
"Today's cup tie gives the Aberavon players a chance to show what they are capable of on a bigger stage. Hopefully, they will rise to the occasion. Just a thought to close on. Less than two years ago Newport lost a league game at Aberavon, 40-38, in front of a mere 500 supporters. In a short space of time Tony Brown has helped to turn things around and Rodney Parade is now a vibrant place. Would the life-long Aberavon fan listed among the UK's 100 richest people please step forward."
"In the immortal words of Lord Kitchener - "Your Club Needs You"."
As for the game itself: Outside-half Shane Howarth's 19 points was the spear head for Newport's win scoring one of Newport's 8 tries with wing Matt Mostyn getting a brace.