The refurbished St Helen's in Swansea has hosted its first rugby match, with Swansea RFC taking on Ebbw Vale in a Super Rygbi Cymru clash. The Ospreys are due to play the Dragons at the ground in two weeks' time, marking its first professional fixture since the redevelopment.
First match at the refurbished ground
Walking down Mumbles Road, past the mural marking Swansea's cultural and sporting heritage, it is difficult to judge the changes to St Helen's from the outside. Ahead of the ground's first fixture, a tangible buzz surrounded the handful of fans queuing to get in for a first look.
As fans stepped through Gate 7 by the new West Stand, they were met by a mix of feelings – just how far work has progressed over the summer, but also how much is left to do. Fans filtered into the new South Stand, which had only gone up in the past couple of weeks, with its canvas covering fitted only days ago.
The first ruck was hit at the refurbished ground as Swansea returned home after a season at Dunvant. The match came five months after work began on the site in May, following confirmation seven months earlier that the project would move ahead.
Compromises and ongoing work
Due to the short timeframe, some compromises have been made. The existing banked terrace was set to be covered, but that will not happen now in the immediate future. Behind the new South Stand, there is still the hint of a building site, with portable cabins in the space that will soon become the new fan zone.
Workers were seen on ladders sorting out electrics at the West Stand, which will welcome fans for the first time against Cardiff RFC next Thursday. With the Dragons match looming, there is not really a second to spare.
Reaction from rugby greats
Among those watching on were Swansea greats Richard Moriarty, Colin Charvis and Keith Colclough. Charvis, who serves on the board of Swansea RFC, was taken aback by the speed of progress.
"You'd almost think they've been working through the night to achieve this!" he said. "Watching the players warming up, it's one of the first times in 15 years I've missed playing. It's a great day. You may be able to see a bit of rough around the edges, but the pitch is perfect."
Colclough, who starred in the Whites' famous victory over Australia in 1992, admitted that seeing the "new development is something special." He added: "It's been a long time in the making. It's looking really good in a short space of time. There's things to sort out, of course."
Match result and outlook
Full-back Mat Protheroe wrote his name in history as the first try-scorer at the refurbished ground. "I didn't expect myself to be in that much space," he admitted afterwards. "I was catching my lungs after that."
Despite some flowing rugby in the first half, Swansea fell to a narrow defeat, with former Ospreys and Wales full-back Cai Evans knocking over a late penalty to seal victory for Ebbw Vale. The Whites had been beaten 40-12 by Ebbw Vale mere weeks ago.
"We spoke as a group, we'd had a tough four games on the road," said Protheroe about returning to St Helen's. "With the history of this place, we were going to hang our hats on how much fight we had. We were just a forward pass away from winning today."
The new St Helen's is not yet finished, but the foundations are there, with the new 4G pitch looking lush. The Ospreys will hope for a better result when they host the Dragons in a matter of weeks.
