Old man Mike made 265 appearances in the Sardis Road club’s back row, many of them alongside Tom David and Chris Seldon in one of the most feared and respected combinations in British rugby, while this weekend his son Rhys will notch his 200th game for the club.
Rhys started his rugby at Aberdare before winning international honours at Under 16, 17, 19 and 21 levels. He went into the Celtic Warriors academy, captained Wales Under 21 at the 2006 Junior World Cup and also captained Wales Sevens.
His Ponty debut came as an 18-year-old against Carmarthen Quins on 31 January, 2004, and he then moved on to play 88 games for Cardiff RFC and 11 for the Blues in the PRO12 and Europe. But he was back at Sardis Road in 2012 and has since become as big an influence in the side as his father was in the seventies and eighties.
Shellard’s landmark 200th game for Pontypridd will come at The Wern, where Merthyr host the Tier 1 leaders in a vital Principality Premiership clash. The Ironmen have already beaten Ponty three times this season – twice in the Challenge Cup and once in the Premiership – and will be seeking a fourth a week after crashing out of the WRU National Cup at Sardis Road against RGC 1404.
With three wins out of three since the Premiership split in two, Ponty lead Merthyr, who are third, by three points. But all that could change if Ponty old boys Lee Jarvis and Dale McIntosh can inspire their players to pull off another major triumph over their near neighbours.
Ponty, who reached their 13th WRU National Cup final by beating Cross Keys last weekend, will be missing outside half Ceri Sweeney, but have Wales Under 20 star Ben Jones stepping into the No 10 role. He will play outside his Wales Under 20 half-back partner Dane Blacker in a side that also welcomes back wing Lewis Williams after lengthy absence.
Merthyr will be missing centres Martyn Thomas and Gavin Dacey, both of who are suffering from friction burns picked up at Sardis Road during last weekend’s cup defeat. Terri Gee and Aaron Pinches line-up in the midfield with top-scorer Matt Jarvis playing at No 10.
In Tier 2, Llanelli host Swansea in the only other Premiership fixture. Both clubs are in need of a win having lost three of their four games to date, locking them on six points in mid table at present.
Teams
Pontypridd: Gary Williams; Lewis I Williams, Garyn Smith, Dafydd Lockyer (captain), Dale Stuckey; Ben Jones, Dane Blacker; Joe Popple, Liam Belcher, Mitch Auger, Sean Moore, Chris Dicomidis, Dafi Davies, Rhys Shellard, Hemi Barnes
Reps: Wayne Evans, Lewis K Williams, Cameron Lewis, Huw Dowden, Lewis Young, Peter Sidoli, Liam Bodman, Sam May
Merthyr: Owen Howe; Kyle Evans, Teri Gee, Aaron Pinches, Richard Carter; Matthew Jarvis, Justin James; Nathan Trevett, Rhys Willimas, Gary Powell, Lou Reed, Craig Locke (captain), Tom Daley, Ed Siggery, Phil Rees
Reps: Louis Jones, James Howe, Matt Dwyer, Ben Murphy, Nick White, Rhys Downes, Dean Gunter, David Bishop
Llanelli: Ashley Evans; Kalum Evans, Ryan Davies, Gareth Owen, Thomas Rogers; Ioan Hughes, Declan Smith; Rhys Fawcett, Taylor Davies, Simon Gardiner, Chris Long, Ben Davies, Tom Phillips (captain), Josh Macleod, Trystan Lloyd
Reps: Tom Kaijaks, Craig Thomas, Nicky Thomas, Adam Powell, Dan Davies, Matthew Flanagan, Nathan Edwards, Dion Jones
Swansea: Richard Williams; Jon Bayliss, Ryan Evans, Josh Martin, Will Lewis; Phil Jones, Matthew Aubrey; Richard Murphy, Paul John, Mitchell Walsh, Matt Dodd, Tudor Hughes, Jon Vaughan (captain), Jack Perkins, Rory Gallagher
Reps: Ricky Guest, Dan Kenny, Sam Martin, Gavin Ronan, Jon Fox, Rhodri Wells, Rory Garrett, Jed Evans
