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Watch: The midweek JD Cymru Premier Round-Up

19 Oct 2023 6 minute read
Harry Owen wins the game for Cardiff Met in the final minutes against Newtown (Credit: S4C)

Ryan March

It was a midweek set of Cymru Premier fixtures after a weekend that saw the second round of the Welsh Cup take precedence. Eleven of the twelve Cymru Premier sides made it through to the third round, with only Caernarfon Town being knocked out at the hands of Connah’s Quay. The New Saints and Colwyn Bay were not in league action this week, as TNS’ Welsh Cup fixture had to be played midweek after they knocked out East Fife in the SPFL Trust Trophy on penalties this weekend.

Tuesday night kicked off with a local derby and a significant game at the bottom of the table as Barry Town United hosted Pontypridd United. Both sides came into the game having won only one game in their last four, but it was Barry who took an early lead through Newport County loanee, Harrison Bright. The home side made it two on the half-hour mark as Kayne McLaggon put away the rebound after his penalty was saved by George Ratcliffe.

It could have, and perhaps should have, been more than two goals, as Barry continued to pepper Pontypridd’s goal in the second half, but George Ratcliffe’s fine season continued as he helped keep the score at 2-0.

Steve Jenkins will be very encouraged by his side’s performance as they jump out of the relegation zone. On the other hand, Pontypridd will be concerned about their lack of goals and disappointing form.

In North Wales, Caernarfon Town hosted bottom-of-the-league Aberystwyth Town. It was a typical night for Aberystwyth, who just can’t catch a break at the moment. They kept Caernarfon out for the first 45 minutes, but a Zack Clarke penalty on the hour opened the floodgates, with Adam Davies and Louis Lloyd going on to score Caernarfon’s second and third goals of the evening.

Caernarfon will be over the moon with how their season continues to go, especially after results went in their favour this week as they look to cement themselves in the top six heading into the split.

Aberystwyth will be hoping their fortunes turn around sooner rather than later, or they’ll be certain to face their first-ever relegation from the Cymru Premier.

In-form Newtown were the visitors to Cyncoed Campus this week as they took on Cardiff Met. The visitors came into the game in impressive form, having won each of their last seven league games and achieving a confident 6-0 victory over Y Felinheli in the Welsh Cup on the weekend. However, Cardiff Met is never an easy proposition, and they proved that once again tonight.

Nothing could separate the two sides in the first half, despite Met going close on a couple of occasions. They continued their pressure early in the second half and were eventually rewarded when Matthew Chubb popped up at the back post to give Cardiff Met the lead. Their lead would only last for a matter of minutes after a series of missed opportunities to clear the ball away from their box led to Aaron Williams firing home to level the score.

It looked as if the points would be shared until additional time, where Cardiff Met’s Harry Owen found the finishing touch to make it 2-1 and hand Newtown their first defeat since August.

The team from the capital looked to be floundering in mid-table in previous weeks, but with Bala and Penybont both dropping points, this important victory will give them every chance of a top-six finish in January.

It was a battle of the Europa Conference League sides in West Wales as Haverfordwest County welcomed Penybont to Bridge Meadow. Penybont came into the game on the back of two defeats to the top two and a depleted squad due to a number of injuries and suspensions, while Haverfordwest were hoping to take advantage of that.

It didn’t take the home side long to take the lead as Jack Wilson opened the scoring after 12 minutes, before Bont were forced into another change as Mark Little had to be replaced by Jon Brown. Their night would go from bad to worse as Rhys Abbruzzese fired in the goal of the night from over 30 yards, straight past Alex Harris and into the top corner. Haverfordwest couldn’t have asked for a better start, and it got even better as Martell Taylor-Crossdale made it three with a tidy finish before half-time.

Haverfordwest’s near-perfect start was rocked as Jon Brown got his first goal for Penybont in first-half added time, giving his side a much-needed boost heading into the second half.

Penybont took that boost and carried it on as the second half began, with Chris Venables going close, only being stopped by a fine Zac Jones save before Lewis Harling would get their second of the night to give them hope of salvaging a result. However, Haverfordwest would hold firm to secure an important three points, creating a bit of breathing space between themselves and the bottom two.

This result saw Penybont drop into the bottom half for the first time this season. Rhys Griffiths will be hoping to get some of his key players fit sooner rather than later, as they head into an important run of fixtures.

Wednesday night saw high-flyers Connah’s Quay Nomads welcome Bala Town to Flint. The Nomads were looking to get back on track after their shock draw with Aberystwyth in the last round of fixtures, while Bala were hoping to capitalise on their previous victory over Colwyn Bay.

Bala found the opener after 15 minutes, as Osebi Abadaki fired past Andy Firth. It took Connah’s Quay until the hour mark to find a reply, as Jack Kenny slotted home from six yards out.

Despite Josh Williams’ impressive strike from 30 yards rattling the crossbar, neither side could find a breakthrough after the equaliser, and the points were shared. The action didn’t stop there, however, as the referee showed Joe Malkin and Kai Edwards red cards after both sides clashed after the final whistle.

Connah’s Quay will be disappointed to drop points again, as they’ll need to be near perfect to have any chance of keeping up with The New Saints throughout the whole season.

Midweek results
Barry Town United 2-0 Pontypridd United
Caernarfon Town 3-0 Aberystwyth Town
Cardiff Met 2-1 Newtown
Haverfordwest County 3-2 Penybont
Connah’s Quay Nomads 1-1 Bala Town

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