The Blacks took on an Adam Jones Select XV in the Wales and Lions’ star’s testimonial and won 14-12 thanks to tries from Gareth McCarthy and Tom Morgan.
Horgan took advantage of the tie to give many of his players an opportunity to shine.
“We benefited from having a hit-out,” Horgan said. “The players got some air into their lungs and got some contact rugby under their belts. It was a great occasion for Adam but from a rugby point of view I was a little disappointed with some elements of the game.
“The first 20 minutes went well, but with it being a testimonial it turned into a strange sort of game. There were some indiscretions on both sides and the ref was letting a lot of it go. I can understand that it was a tricky situation really as he wanted to let the game flow and not give a lot of penalties, but it meant the contact area was a huge mess and neither team could play any sort of exciting rugby as it was quite a slow game.
“That together with players going on and off from either side, made it difficult to see a complete performance. It was the first time a lot of the boys had played on the same side especially with those on the pitch in the second half.
“But we got a match and that was the main thing. It showed elements of our game that we need to work on for Swansea this Saturday at The Gnoll so in that case it was a worthwhile exercise and we know what we need to do in training this week to prepare.
“It’s a shame we didn’t have the chance for another friendly, one against an actual club side and that would be refereed as a normal game.”
The Neath club have already announced a number of new signings for 2012-13 but allowed four players to leave the club.
“Nathan Brew has retired,” Horgan said. “He will obviously be missed.
“Andrew Littlehales has gone back to play for Mumbles, his home club. He was the last survivor from Neath’s first season when the regions were formed so he’s a sad loss.
“James Thomas has signed for Cardiff and we wish him well.
“Finally David Evans has taken up a job opportunity in Australia and he’s out there probably for a year. He’s not gone down there for rugby but he could play down there in Sydney if he wants. Obviously we’ll have an option on him for 2013-14.
“But life and the club goes on. A few players in and a few out and with this new batch of boys we will prepare and train well this week and we can’t wait for the big kick-off on Saturday.”
Adult tickets for Neath v Swansea on Saturday 1st September cost £12 for the main stand or £10 for anywhere else in the ground. Children aged 16 and under are free of charge. Check out www.neathrugby.co.uk for more details and follow the club on http://www.facebook.com/NeathRugbyFootballClub or https://twitter.com/NeathRugby.
