Corniel van Zyl was relieved as Cardiff edged a battle of attrition against Connacht thanks to a brace from Tom Bowen.
The Blue & Blacks took an early 7-3 lead after Bowen collected yet another clever cross-kick from Callum Sheedy.
But from there a nail-biting stalemate ensued, lasting for more than an hour at a nervous Arms Park. Connacht piled on plenty of pressure as Cardiff’s patched up side clung on, but the victory was confirmed when Bowen snatched a fumbled pass to race home.
It was Bowen’s fifth try in two weeks, his seventh in four BKT United Rugby Championship starts, and it sent the 7,092 in attendance at the Arms Park into rapturous celebrations.
Van Zyl said: “There was obviously a lot of kicking at the end, but I think it was a very traditional game in terms of lot of defence against attack.
“Both teams defended well, so it was difficult to get the breakthrough. But it was good to get over the line, especially, with last season losing three times to them.
“There were definitely missed chances out there for both teams. It was similar to Munster, where we could have put more early scoreboard pressure on them, which we didn’t do. It was a very attritional game.”
Fight and Enjoyment
While 19-year-old Bowen rightly collected the plaudits, picking up the BKT Player of the Match and Pommery Performance awards, it was a hard-nosed team effort.
The Blue & Blacks battled hard despite losing Teddy Williams to a serious ankle injury and entering the final stages with three 19-year-olds on the pitch after Osian Darwin-Lewis joined Bowen and Steff Emanuel, for his competitive debut.
Throughout the encounter they cut down the bigger side, pilfered the breakdown and kicked intelligently in game that always appeared destined to be settled by a mistake.
Dan Thomas made a series of key turnovers, one just a metre from the line after Javan Sebastian and Ben Donnell combined for a dominant tackle, and Sheedy managed to dislodge the ball just as Connacht crashed over the line.
Both pivotal moments before Bowen struck.
Van Zyl continued: “We’ve tried to focus a little bit more on the defensive side of the game (in pre-season), just talking from previous season, to get the ball back quicker. If you look at the first three or five games, if you take the two pre-season games in as well, it’s definitely paying off .
“Credit to the boys they stuck in there and they are prepared to fight. Connacht have just talked about the breakdown but if it’s available, you read the referee, there’s a few factors. If it’s available you go for it, otherwise just get in the line and defend.
“That was definitely a big moment (when Callum Sheedy distrupted a try). They did have us under pressure there but like always, we talk about the fight. Can we fight to make sure we do whatever we can to prevent them from scoring.
“Tom waited for his opportunity. He just loves getting into space and he finished them again. There’s one from the cross-kick and one from a turnover from our defence, which was very pleasing to see.”
Welsh derby looms
Next up is the first Welsh derby of the season as Cardiff travel to Rodney Parade, before returning home to face Edinburgh.
Van Zyl added: “The six-day turnaround is tough, especially for us playing so late on a Saturday night. So we’ll have to be smart in what we’re doing terms of training and recovery. Ultimately it’s a derby game is there’s going to be a lot of fight in there.”