ANOTHER weekend at Pandy Park, another thriller, as third placed Cross Keys and second placed Aberavon shared the spoils in an engrossing encounter.

Both sides emerged with three points after a draw which saw them each score four tries.

After Keys toppled reigning league champions Pontypridd last week in a great victory, they went within an ace of leapfrogging the Wizards.

A stalemate was probably the fair result, although Keys probably should have held on to their lead after fighting back from a 30-16 deficit to be in the driving seat in the last ten minutes. The hosts got off to a great start when scrum half James Leadbeater crossed for a converted try within the first five minutes from a scrum five after Keys dominated the early stages.

The Wizards nearly hit back immediately but they just failed to exploit an overlap thanks to some impressive last-ditch defending by the home side.

The visitors continued to put Keys under severe pressure but that was alleviated after quarter of an hour when Aberavon lock Ben Davies was yellow carded for foul play.

It was only a brief respite, for the 14-men from the Talbot Athletic Ground continued to keep up the heat on the hosts even with their man in the sin bin.

The Wizards came close to scoring but they were held up on the Keys try-line in the 22nd minute.

They got their reward soon after though when blindside flanker Rob Dudley-Jones was driven over for a try by his pack after picking up from a scrum five, the score converted by James Garland.

Keys turned down a kickable penalty to try and roll over the Aberavon line from a driving lineout but their execution let them down and they lost the ball.

The Wizards scored a sparkling try from deep in the 33rd minute when they turned Keys over, full back Jonathan Phillips, who was on the books with Cardiff City, beating the despairing defenders, Garland converting for a 16-8 lead.

Keys were given a big break just before half-time after a calamitous period saw them miss touch with a penalty and lose a lineout on their own ball.

Nathan Trowbridge intercepted as Aberavon look to hit Keys from deep again, the wing racing home to score in the corner.

Full back Ethan Davies nailed the tricky conversion to tie the scores.

Another slice of luck gave the hosts another opportunity to score from a charged down kick after they earned a scrum five.

But it was the tenacious visitors who turned the tables and grabbed their third try from a driving lineout, loosehead prop Rowan Jenkins grabbing the try on the stroke of half-time, Garland missing the conversion.

An entertaining first 40 minutes, which started in rain and ended in bright sunshine, saw Aberavon troop off with a 22-16 lead.

The visitors started the second half as they ended the first when centre Joe Thomas finished well for his side’s bonus point try after his pack had softened up the opposition again, Garland adding the extras for a 30-16 advantage.

Wing Jay Baker looked to have got a fifth try for his side within the blink of an eye but a forward pass was ruled by referee Craig Evans.

Keys tried to get a foothold back in the game but were often frustrated by a well-organised Wizards defence.

They looked to have hit back in the 60th minute but replacement hooker Darren Hughes was just held up under the posts.

Lock Dan Hodge couldn’t be stopped when he ploughed over soon after when the Keys pressure proved too much, Davies converted to bring the score back to 30-24.

The hosts had the bit between their teeth and should have at least equalized when they again hammered the Aberavon try-line but the visitors’ excellent defence kept them at bay.

But they couldn’t stop the home side who scored a peach of a try from a lineout near the halfway line.

Outside half Josh Prosser’s deft pass put replacement Adam Powell through a huge gap, the No 8 then offloaded to centre and captain Leon Andrews who crossed under the posts for his side’s bonus point try, Davies’ conversion giving Keys a 32-30 lead with ten minutes to go.

It was Aberavon’s turn to go on the offensive and they were just held up from a driving lineout.

The Wizards were penalised as they hunted for a winning score and Davies cleared their lines but they were again turned over at their faltering lineout before the visitors coughed the ball over.

Aberavon were allowed to build up momentum and Garland’s penalty with two minutes to go tied the score.

Keys still had time to steal the game when Garland was yellow carded for a late tackle on Davies but the visitors held on after the Pandy Park side frantically tried to get a decisive score.

Cross Keys: Ethan Davies, Elliott Jones (Polu Uhi 42), Leon Andrews (capt), Phil Williams, Nathan Trowbridge (Owen Howe 79), Josh Prosser, James Leadbeater, Richard Cornock (Gary Carpenter 72), Ellis Shipp (Darren Hughes 42), Anthony Lott, Danny Hodge, Simon Williams, Tom Lampard, Scott Matthews, Ieuan Jones (Adam Powell 42).

Replacements: Craig Gould, Jack Perkins, Owain Leonard.

Scorers: Tries: James Leadbeater, Nathan Trowbridge, Dan Hodge, Leon Andrews, Conversions: Ethan Davies (4).

Aberavon: Jonathan Phillips (Joe Gage 79), Jay Baker, Joe Thomas, Matthew Jenkins, Steffan Andrews; James Garland, David Pritchard; Rowan Jenkins, Gareth Harvey (Ieuan Davies 66), Jon Thomas, Ben Davies (Sam Williams 73), Ben Jones, Rob Dudley-Jones (Lee Purnell 66), Chris Davies (capt), Joe Tomalin-Reeves.

Replacements: Dan Davies, Steffan Williams, Rhys Forse, Mike Burgess.

Scorers: Tries: Rob Dudley-Jones, Jonathan Phillips, Rowan Jenkins, Joe Thomas, Conversions: James Garland (3), Penalty: Garland.

Referee: Craig Evans (WRU)