The Cymru Premier run-in the most exciting in years

Dan Roberts

Whether it’s the fight to represent Wales in Europe, the battle for a play-off place or the race to avoid relegation, the end of this year’s Cymru Premier season looks like it might be the most exciting we have seen in years.

It has already been a good year for the profile of the Cymru Prem.

Caernarfon’s exceptional win against Crusaders and the scenes it created out in Belfast put the league in the news at the start of the season, followed up by their glamour tie against Polish giants Legia Warsaw.

TNS’s European run went further than anyone was expecting – they got to the group stage of the European Conference League, earning famous nights against Fiorentina, Panathinaikos and Shamrock Rovers. While they lost those games, getting a win against Astana was huge.

TNS represented us well in Europe, but the fact they’ve lost five times in the league –against Penybont, Bala (twice), Caernarfon and Briton Ferry – shows there is lots of quality elsewhere in our league too.

Penybont’s unexpected challenge

Maybe the most exciting part of the season so far has been Penybont’s incredible run in the first stage of the season that meant they were competing with TNS at the top.

Penybont’s performances in the first half of the season were inspiring and showed that getting a real title-race might not be as far away as we sometimes think.

Their team – with exciting attacking talents like Chris Venables, James Crole and Nathan Wood – beat TNS on a brilliant night in September in front of more than 1,000 people in one of the most memorable Cymru Prem games I’ve seen.

As expected, TNS have pulled away during the second stage of the season, when the league splits into two.

As an aside – I would love a real title-race in the Cymru Prem, and imagining the scenes when a team in a Welsh town in front of a massive crowd finally lifts the trophy is what keeps me going when the more frustrating elements of following the Cymru Prem, like watching TNS’s lead grow and grow – set in.

But don’t let yourself think that a lack of a title race means the league isn’t worth following. There are plenty more hugely exciting parts of the league that promise to come to a very exciting climax over the next few months.

Europe, Play-Offs and Relegation

It’s fair to say that TNS are big favourites to win the Welsh Cup, too. If they do, 2nd place in the Cymru Prem will get an automatic spot in Europe in the summer.

The rest of the teams still in the Cup will have something to say about that – especially the Nomads, who shocked TNS in the final last year.

But while I do expect TNS to win the Cup and make that 2nd place spot even more lucrative, being the best of the rest is probably more than enough motivation for the teams competing for that position.

Penybont still lead the way, but another team with a lot of excitement around them are putting up a strong fight.

High-flying Haverfordwest

Haverfordwest County will be desperate to return to Europe after their stunning performances in 2023, when they shocked North Macedonians KF Shkëndija to get a famous victory at the Cardiff City Stadium.

They’re three points behind Penybont, but have a lot of momentum, especially since returning to play at their home ground at the Ogi Bridge Meadow Stadium after a few months of playing in Carmarthen while work was completed to improve the facilities.

Since returning home, they’ve drawn in crowds of 1,486 against Aberystwyth and 1,127 against Cardiff Met. That’s huge and shows what is possible for clubs at the heart of their community. Their success on the pitch will certainly be helping too – they’re currently on an 8-game unbeaten run and are getting closer and closer to catching Penybont.

Don’t rule out Caernarfon yet either, another team who can bring in huge crowds. Who can forget their win in the Play-Off final last year to get a place in Europe, which was attended by nearly 2,000 people.

Hopefully these numbers are showing what is possible for this league. Having exciting, community-based clubs in big Welsh towns like Bridgend, Haverfordwest and Caernarfon competing for a European spot brings people in and will give us exciting, home-grown, Welsh stories to tell.

Pushing for the Play-Offs

Getting into that European play-off final will be the motivation for plenty more clubs too. Bala and Cardiff Met have their spots in the end-of-season knock-outs secured, and they’ll be joined by either Barry Town or Connah’s Quay, who are fighting for that coveted 7th place spot at the top of the lower half.

Barry started to pull away in that 7th place play-off spot, but a huge away win for the Nomads at Jenner Park means it’s far from over yet.

Barry and the Nomads both have more than enough talent to compete in the play-offs if they get there, so the conclusion of that battle will be hugely exciting to watch too.

Race to avoid relegation

There are 4 teams who will be prioritising staying in the Cymru Prem for next season.

The two promoted-sides last year – Flint Town and Briton Ferry – have done brilliantly so far and are currently in survival spots.

The teams currently in the relegation spots, Newtown and Aberystwyth, have been in the Cymru Prem ever since its first season in 1992. Relegation would be a huge disappointment for both and a big blow to mid-Wales football.

Newtown have had huge success over recent years, qualifying for Europe on several occasions, but have struggled this year.

Aberystwyth on the other hand have been the league’s great survivors for years – looking like relegation was inevitable, before pulling survival out of the bag. If they manage another escape this year, it will be their greatest trick yet.

Get involved

Hopefully this has shown you that there are some brilliant stories waiting to be written and waiting to be read in the Cymru Prem over the next few years.

The benefit of the structure of the league means that teams will be playing against their direct rivals competing for the same thing as them. Drama is guaranteed.

This is the perfect stage of the season to get involved if you haven’t before. Get down to your nearest club, follow the clubs on social media, watch the games on Sgorio. Downloading the Cymru Football app will give you all the info you need to follow what’s happening.

Any money and attention you give to these clubs will help these community institutions, players, managers and fanbases to create more brilliant memories.

Let’s help them to give us a league to be proud of. Cymru Prem am Byth!

Follow Dan Roberts aka Cymru Premier Enjoyer on X/BlueSky