WITH three promotions already secured in the GoCrea8 League, Penarth Hockey Club continued to extend its season with a crushing victory in the semi-finals of the Welsh Trophy.

Penarth 8 - Bridgend 0

Having eased through the early season qualifying competition in Swansea, the 1st XI found Bridgend standing between themselves and a second successive appearance in the Welsh Trophy Final.

Before Penarth secured back-to-back promotions, the two teams occupied the same division and their encounters always proved to be hard-fought and fiery affairs and the question remained whether Penarth’s quality would shine through or Bridgend could drag them into a dog-fight to defy the odds.

The obstacle, however, proved to be little more than a mirage as the Penarth 'Bears' put on a masterclass at the National Hockey Centre.

Determined that the April 1, date would not make fools of them in an encounter they were always favoured to win, the Vale side quickly found top gear, with Bridgend unable to handle either the speed and intensity of their game.

Penarth should have gone ahead with minutes of the opening whistle, a Ben Croxall aerial being wasted by the unmarked forward, but the opening proved a portent of what was to come as the newly-crowned Conference North champions continued to display the sort of expansive hockey that had led them to back-to-back divisional titles.

Atoning for his early error on the bouncy Sophia Gardens pitch, Phil Lane not only opened the scoring after a driving run down the left from Laith El-Khatib, but also unlocked the floodgates that would see Bridgend quickly swamped by a glut of goals.

Chris Baker quickly smashed in Penarth’s second, before Khatib was rewarded for his fine start by firing home a penalty corner to make it 3 - 0 with only five minutes played.

Bridgend, however, dug deep to turn the tide of pressure and, cheered on by their vocal supporters, began to frustrate the Bears.

Turning the game into a scrappy affair suited the underdog as Penarth began to lose control of the game but, with the cup format dictating that games are played in quarters, the first two-minute was used to regroup before retaking the initiative.

Baker went on a typically mazy run before Ben Croxall slotted home to give Penarth a healthy 4 - 0 lead heading into the half-time break and, from the restart, the Vale side were straight back in control as their attacking tempo and pace had clearly taken the sting out of Bridgend.

As a result, the Bears were soon back on the scoresheet as, after an early spell of pressure, Richard Baker opened his wrists and to finish smartly, sweeping home over the sprawling ‘keeper to effectively kill any hopes of an already unlikely comeback.

Despite holding a commanding lead, Penarth were in no mood to take their foot off the gas and rattled in another three goals before the final whistle.

First, Joe Thomas reacted quickest to a saved penalty corner to grab a rare goal, before Andrew Willemite made up for missing an open goal in the last round of fixtures, taking his time to set himself and finish neatly from a tight angle.

With seven different names on the scoresheet, Croxall added a second of his own from the spot to complete an 8 - 0 rout, a scoreline which could have been greater had it not been for a fine display of shot-stopping by the Bridgend goalkeeper.

By contrast, shielded by a defensive cordon marshalled by captain Tom Haran, neither Penarth ‘keeper had a serious save to make, with the Bears able to give both Adam Putt and Simon Comfort a run-out.

Penarth will now take on Cardiff University in the Welsh Trophy final on Sunday, April 30, as they look to complete back-to-back league and cup doubles.

While Penarth’s senior side continues to excel, the youngest members of the club showed that the future is also in safe hands by travelling to Swansea to take part in qualifying for the South Wales Under-11 Cup.

In the main competition, arguably the two strongest teams on display met in the opening encounter as Penarth faced off against old rivals Whitchurch.

Typically, the game proved to be a very tight affair, with quality hockey being played throughout.

However, despite the Cubs’ best efforts, Whitchurch held on to snatch a 1 - 0 win that would give them the edge for the rest of the afternoon.

Undeterred, Penarth moved on to what was, effectively, a ‘must-win’ game against a talented Bridgend team.

Rising to the challenge, the boys produced their best performance of the season, running out 3 - 0 winners to put one hand on a play-off place before taking on a hapless Fishguard side in their final group game.

The West Wales side came to the competition with a distinct lack of competitive games under their belt, and that showed as Penarth won 7 - 0 in an extremely one-sided game.

The victory ensured that Penarth progressed to the play-off to determine the last qualifier for the South Wales finals later in the month.

Finding themselves ranged against a Llanishen and Caerphilly side coming from the other side of the draw, the Cubs showed that their level of intensity had not been dimmed by the easy pickings against Fishguard and effectively sealed the game by scoring twice with less than two minutes on the clock.

Two more strikes followed before the final whistle to complete a comfortable 4 - 0 win and guarantee that they moved through to the next round.

Penarth also fielded a team in the reserve competition, and gave a good account of themselves despite having to play two back-to-back games with a bare seven players and a couple of eight-year-olds making their competitive debuts.

Indeed, the side were unfortunate to only draw 0 - 0 with Gwent in their opening game, having created the better chances and defended strongly throughout, but their efforts ultimately counted against them as they moved onto a tougher game with Whitchurch.

Again, the young squad acquitted themselves brilliantly in the first half, remaining on level terms with their more experienced opposition, but a fourth consecutive half of hockey proved a bridge too far, as Whitchurch's freshness - and substitutes – ensured that they eventually ran out 2 - 0 winners.

The South Wales Youth Finals take place in Swansea on Saturday, April 22, with Penarth joining the hosts, Whitchurch and Gwent in the semi-final line-up.

While both the under-11 and 1st XI squads now have a handful of weeks to prepare for their respective finals, hockey continues for the Penarth club as the Veterans side kicks-off its summer season by travelling to Cwmbran for the first game in a ‘home-and-home’ with Gwent.

Penarth Hockey Club always welcomes new, old and returning players, umpires, supporters, friends and helpers regardless of age and ability. Training takes place on Wednesdays at Stanwell School, with the juniors on the pitch between 6.15pm and 7.15pm and the seniors between 7pm and 8.15pm.

Anyone interested in joining the club at senior or youth level can contact club secretary Dave Stevens (d_stevens81@hotmail.co.uk) for further information.