Four Dragons were involved in the U20 Six Nations finale as Ioan Cunnginham’s men completed their second victory of the competition with a 32-24 victory over Scotland.
Speedsters Morgan Richards and Carrick McDonough started while fly half Will Reed and hooker Connor Chapman made appearances off the bench.
It meant Wales finished their U20 Six Nations campaign in fourth place in a frantic match which saw the lead change hands seven times and a total of eight tries. This defeat left winless Scotland with the Wooden Spoon.
Wales had to play nearly 35 minutes of the second half with just 14 men after flanker Harri Deaves was sent off for making contact to the head of Scotland’s Tom Banatvala.
The first half was a fast paced affair but the second took a different course and was very stop-start with lots of stoppages for injuries and TMO checks.
A lively start for Scotland sees them take the lead through a Cameron Scott penalty in the fourth minute. They earnt the penalty after several attacking phases deep inside the Wales 22.
Just three minutes later, Wales respond well and after some patient play Christ Tshiunza powered over from close range. Costelow successfully converted to give Wales a 7-3 lead.
Shortly after, this end to end match saw Scotland hit back through hooker Patrick Harrison who scored in the left corner. Cameron Scott then converted from out wide to give Scotland a slender three point lead.
This constant flow of points showed no sign of slowing down as Wales soon edged back in front. Scrum-half Ethan Lloyd delivered a crash ball to Joe Hawkins who barged over to score another converted try for Wales. Wales now led 14-10.
This crazy run of relentless points scoring continued through Michael Gray who took advantage of some weak Welsh tackling to give Scotland a 17-14 lead.
Unbelievably, Wales instantly hit back again as prop Cameron Jones bundled himself over after some patient build-up play where
Wales came close to scoring on many occasions. Costelow failed to convert but Wales were now in front by 19 points to 17.
The final 15 minutes of the half saw the points scoring ease, but Wales started to get a bit of a stronghold in the game and could have easily scored again if it was not for a few unforced errors. Ioan Cunningham’s men then took their precarious two-point lead into the half-time break.
The second half began in unfortunate circumstances for Wales with winger Carrick McDonough being stretched off with a serious looking injury after colliding with Scotland winger Ollie Melville.
Shortly after coming on, Harri Deaves was sent off by referee Adam Leal in the 47th minute for making contact to the face of a Scottish player whilst attempting to jackal the ball
Scotland then made almost instant use of their man advantage when number eight Ben Muncaster powered over from close range. Scott once again converted to give Scotland a five point lead.
Just like the first half, this spirited Wales side responded quickly and regained the lead through a penalty try. Morgan Richards stepped inside but was tackled high by Ollie Melville and consequently dropped the ball over the line. Melville was then also sent to the sin bin for 10 minutes. Wales now led 26-24.
Five minutes later, Wales extended their lead through the reliable boot of Costelow who struck over from 45 metres.
During the final 15 minutes, 14-men Wales showed some real grit and determination to defend superbly to keep their opponents at bay.
With three minutes left, Costelow struck over a penalty from near half-way for Wales to win this pulsating match by eight points.
