The Welsh Youth side (Under 18's) made the best possible start to their Tri-Nations tournament against Portugal and Spain with a 15-8 win over the older (under 19) Portuguese side at Pembroke on Thursday night.
The Welsh took full advantage of the strong wind in the first half with fly half Gavin Hendon of Pencoed in excellent form with the boot - both at goal and from the hand.
15-0 up at the break thanks to tries from wing Paul Mackey and No.8 Jonathan Thomas, and a conversion and penalty from Hendon they faced a much more difficult task into the wind in the second period.
With a much stronger pact the visitors fought back and were rewarded by a try from scrum half Jose Cunha and a penalty from Manuel Tixeira. However the Welsh hung on, with the pack working particularly hard to gain the win, however they will have to step up a gear if they are to record a second victory, against the more experienced Spanish on Sunday.