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Pontypridd are on a mission to rise above the turmoil which has beset the game in Wales this season, and defeating Wasps to reach their second consecutive PARKER PEN final would be a major step towards accomplishment.
Pontypridd narrowly lost to Sale in the Shield final at the Kassam Stadium in Oxford last May, a reverse which has made them all the more determined to go one better this campaign and become the first team to lift the PARKER PEN CHALLENGE CUP.
"The tournament does not have the profile it deserves," says Pontypridd's Welsh international No 8 Michael Owen. "There is a perception that European club rugby is about the Heineken Cup and nothing else, but the PARKER PEN CHALLENGE CUP is just as difficult a tournament to win.
"We lost to Sale in last year's final and they finished second in the Zurich Premiership, just ahead of London Irish, the side we defeated in the semi-final. We knocked out Beziers on the way and they went on to qualify for this season's Heineken Cup.
"It's a great shame that the competition doesn't generate more interest in the media. We've had some cracking games this season and the decision to play matches over two legs has been an inspired one."
Ponty play the first leg of their semi-final against Wasps, home of the former Wales scrum-half Rob Howley who will be up against his international and Cardiff half-back partner of old, Neil Jenkins, at Adams Park on Saturday, April 12.
Soccer sides in European knock-out tournaments prefer to play away from home in the first leg, but Owen is not so sure whether it is much of an advantage in rugby union.
"We played at Connacht in the first leg in the last round and won by a few points," he said. "When they came to Pontypridd for the first leg we ended up trying to protect our lead and did not play our normal game.
"The approach for me has to be to go out and treat each match as if they were one-offs, playing to win from the first whistle. I prefer the idea of playing over two-legs than a semi-final at a neutral ground because it gives you more than one bite at it and provides for a more interesting battle tactically."
Wasps' coach Warren Gatland angered Pontypridd when he was quoted before the quarter-finals as saying that a semi-final against the Welsh club would be a virtual passport into the final. The Kiwi later issued a statement saying he had meant no such thing, but the words will be used by Ponty as motivation when they go to Adams Park.
"We have nothing but respect for Wasps," said Owen. "They have a number of top-quality international players and they are very hard to beat on their own patch. They have been in the top half of the Premiership all season and they are one of the best clubs in the country.
"We believe we are also in that category. Eighteen months ago we were near the bottom of the Welsh-Scottish league and seemingly going nowhere. Lynn Howells then came in as coach and before we knew it we had won the Principality Cup and made the Shield final.
"It is important to ensure that Pontypridd get to the final and make up for the disappointment of last year. It could be the last chance for a Welsh club to play in a European final, it means everything to us."
This is an excerpt from Paul Rees of The Guardian, that appears in ERC's official magazine, Rugby Europe. To read more, click here.
