LLANRWST UNITED (Gwydir Park)

It was more Welsh action for me today as the Welsh Trophy reached the 3rd round stage. Shamefully this was the first time I'd dipped my toe in this competition, in this current season, and, to be honest, I couldn't have picked a better day, the sun was beating down, or a better location.

Situated in the Conwy Valley, the small town of Llanrwst is on the main A470 road, on the banks of the River Conwy.

The town's major feature is a narrow three-arch stone bridge, built in 1636, which crosses the river and leads to Gwydir Park, the home of Llanrwst United. It also features prominently on the club badge.

Llanrwst United will celebrate 30 years of existence in 2013 having been formed in 1983 when Llanrwst Town and Llanrwst Athletic merged.

Llanrwst play in the Welsh Alliance, the third tier of Welsh football in the North, which feeds in the Cymru Alliance. Their opponents today were Penyffordd, who compete in the Welsh National League (Wrexham Area) again this league feeds into the Cymru Alliance.

It was the visitors from Flintshire who started the brightest and took the lead after 12 minutes when Andy Pugh tapped home from inside the six yard box. Penyffordd dominated the play in the first half and really should have scored more than the one goal they did, though they did hit the crossbar.

The Rwsters finally got going in the latter stages of the half and indeed they too hit the post before failing to convert the rebound.

If the final few minutes of the first half were a warning to Penyffordd, then they failed to heed it as whatever the Llanrwst manager said at half time certainly did the trick. The Rwsters turned the game on it's head and scored three goals without reply as they took control of the second period.

Moments after hitting the post, Elliott Llewellyn found himself in more or less the same position, breaking clear one on one with the 'keeper but this time he made mistake to level the tie (53).

Just two minutes later Kane Williams, on the edge of the box, fired in a dipping shot to put Llanrwst in front (55).

With 20 minutes remaining Aaron Jones broke clear and blasted the ball into the top corner to clinch the victory (70).

Penyffordd lost their discipline in the final quarter of the game and ended the game with 9 men on the field. Pete Fisher received a straight red card for a two footed tackle and Mark Pemberton was dismissed after picking up his second yellow card.

This in no way though took the shine off an entertaining cup tie.

Llanrwst moved into the fourth round where they now face another WNL side, Brymbo, at Gwydir park.

At this point I will give a little plug to next year's Welsh Groundhop. Llanrwst are scheduled to be part of a bumper weekend, details can be found here . Some great clubs and locations, so why not get on board, you won't be disappointed!

Saturday 20th October 2012
FAW Welsh Trophy 3rd Round
Llanrwst United 3-1 Penyffordd

Attendance: 35 (h/c)

CPD PWLLHELI (Y Rec, Canolfan Hamdden Dwyfor)

With the cold snap continuing to cause problems for 'hoppers' across the UK, I was very lucky today that my first choice of game was ON and, by all accounts, was never in any doubt.

The micro-climate that is North West Wales and Anglesey once again came up trumps, as there had been no snow or frost on the Llŷn Peninsula in the 48 hours leading up to the game.

This meant a trip to Pwllheli for their Welsh Trophy Quarter Final clash with Ton and Gelli BGC. A classic North v South Encounter!

Pwllheli play in the Welsh Alliance League Division One (which is two leagues below the Welsh Premier) and Ton and Gelli play in the South Wales Amateur League Division One (which is four leagues below the Welsh Premier) but in truth both sides are effectively on a par, the anomaly being due to the way Welsh Football is structured due to geography of teams in the North and South.

This was the first time i'd been to Pwllheli since childhood, when my family and I went on holiday to the legendary Butlins holiday camp in 1981. The only thing I can remember is some dodgy cabaret band doing a bad cover of "It's a mystery" the big Toyah hit of the time. Strange how one remembers such crap! The camp is still there, but ceased to be Butlins in 1998 (it's now called Hafyn-y- Môr).

The only thing I knew about 'Y Rec' prior to visiting today was that it was situated at the back of a Leisure Centre (Canolfan Hamdden) so that immediately got me thinking about athletics tracks and rubbish views, but there was none of that and Pwllheli's ground was ok for the level the team are at. There was a small covered terrace, but no seating, and all the crowd congregated on the one side of the pitch that had hard standing, ie up against the leisure centre wall.

There was an admission charge of £2.50 and the bonus of a programme, which sold out very quickly. I can't argue that I didn't get value for money as the game was pretty good.

Both teams were evenly matched and it was a well fought contest, with both teams not holding back. There were no bad fouls, just two teams battling for the right to progress into the semi's. However it was Pwllheli that found themselves 2-0 up at the break. Josh Banks gave them the lead on 21 minutes when he headed home a corner kick. Mark Jones doubled the advantage on 42 minutes when he tapped home from three yards, after a shot was parried.

Unfortunately for the visitors from Ton Pentre, the game was effectively over after 48 minutes when Danny Rylance headed home at the second attempt, after his initial effort was blocked on the line. Although Ton did pull a goal back through a Jarrod Hill free kick on 59 minutes, Ben Chippendale fired home Pwllheli's fourth goal on 62 minutes to book their place in the last four.

The scoreline was harsh on Ton and Gelli as the game was a lot closer than the scoreline suggests but, for them, lady luck was not on their side today.

An enjoyable day at the Rec,  the welcome from the club officials was very warm, and I wish Pwllheli every success in the semi-final and for the future.

Jarrod Hill's free kick beats the keeper
for Ton & Gelli's consolation goal

 

Saturday 11th February 2012
FAW Trophy Quarter Final
Pwllheli 4-1 Ton & Gelli BGC
Attendance: 95 (h/c)


Dedicated to the memory of Neil Faulkner 1943-2012. RIP.