ABERTILLERY BLUEBIRDS & NEWPORT CIVIL SERVICE
As the season 2009-2010 draws to its conclusion, it is a time for reflection and there are reasons to be thankful for the appalling winter that has just gone...fixture backlogs! This meant that as we reached the penultimate weekend of May there are still competitive fixtures around and today in South Wales they were in abundance. Combine this with Cardiff City reaching the play-off final and we have lots of early kick-offs and the opportunity of "double headers" Result!
I was not the only 'groundhopper' to spot the double(s) and it was indeed no shock when at least 40 hoppers descended on Gwent with exactly the same idea as me...
12pm Saturday 22nd May 2010
2.30pm, Saturday 22nd May 2010
I was not the only 'groundhopper' to spot the double(s) and it was indeed no shock when at least 40 hoppers descended on Gwent with exactly the same idea as me...
12pm Saturday 22nd May 2010Welsh League Division Three
Abertillery Bluebirds v Garw SBGC
Attendance: 126 (h/c)
The home of Abertillery Bluebirds, Cwmnantygroes Field, is yet another ground in Wales which offers a quite stunning vista. The ground is basic, just a railed off pitch and a small covered terrace, and it is also bloody hard to find (even with a Sat-Nav). This led to the first 'panic' of the day when it seemed that today's opposition weren't going to show.
As the clocked ticked towards the midday kick off there was still no sign of Garw and, with them cut off at the bottom of the table and doomed to relegation, the majority of the assembled 125 crowd assumed they'd said "stuff it" and stayed at home to watch the Cardiff City game. It turned out they had got lost on their first (and, for the foreseeable, last) visit to the Bluebirds.
After a quick turn around by Garw the game kicked off at around 12.10 and a very one sided affair it turned out to be. A youthful Garw team, showing ten changes from when I visited Blandy Park two weeks ago, found themselves two goals down at the interval and were fortunate it was only two. Some heroic goalkeeping from Anthony Hogg and some poor finishing meant that the damage was limited to a Luke Lewis goal after 17 minutes and a Lewis Davies Own Goal after 32 minutes.
The second half was equally one sided but The Bluebirds added just the two more goals (64 & 80) Owen Goodenough proving he was just that by bagging himself a brace. For both sides this was their last game in Division Three as they both leave in opposite directions, Garw to the South Wales Amateur league and Abertillery, by virtue of finishing runners up in their debut season, to Division Two.
As the clocked ticked towards the midday kick off there was still no sign of Garw and, with them cut off at the bottom of the table and doomed to relegation, the majority of the assembled 125 crowd assumed they'd said "stuff it" and stayed at home to watch the Cardiff City game. It turned out they had got lost on their first (and, for the foreseeable, last) visit to the Bluebirds.
After a quick turn around by Garw the game kicked off at around 12.10 and a very one sided affair it turned out to be. A youthful Garw team, showing ten changes from when I visited Blandy Park two weeks ago, found themselves two goals down at the interval and were fortunate it was only two. Some heroic goalkeeping from Anthony Hogg and some poor finishing meant that the damage was limited to a Luke Lewis goal after 17 minutes and a Lewis Davies Own Goal after 32 minutes.
The second half was equally one sided but The Bluebirds added just the two more goals (64 & 80) Owen Goodenough proving he was just that by bagging himself a brace. For both sides this was their last game in Division Three as they both leave in opposite directions, Garw to the South Wales Amateur league and Abertillery, by virtue of finishing runners up in their debut season, to Division Two.
It was then the groundhopping version of wacky races as the convoy of cars headed down the valleys to...
2.30pm, Saturday 22nd May 2010Welsh League Division Three
Newport Civil Service v Pontyclun
Attendance: 96 (h/c)
I arrived in good time to make the kick off after the delayed start at Abertillery (yay!) but not early enough to bag a programme (boo!) despite reserving a copy (double boo!). Newport Civil Service play in the heart of the delightful Bettws estate and the ground is simply a railed of pitch, with the only cover being a converted storage container which has been fashioned into a stand...ingenious! This said stand was today packed full of locals cheering on their team and imbibing various substances and liquids.
It was a big game today as due to re-structuring there is to be mass relegation from Division Three, so despite it being, on paper, a mid table clash there was everything to play for. Having said this even if either side won it could be still out of their hands if other results went against them.
This meant the game was a very tight affair with both sides giving no quarter in the blazing sunshine. There were very few genuine goalscoring chances and the game seemed to have 0-0 written all over it. However, a solitary goal settled the game for the home side after 67 minutes when Matthew Palmer prodded home after the ball had ricocheted around the Pontyclun penalty area. At the end of the game the Ponyclun players looked absolutely devastated as they were most certainly down, whilst the Newport players celebrated like they had won the Champions League. Whether those celebrations are premature remains to be seen as there is still a chance they could go too.
Such is the wacky nature of Welsh Football Re-structuring that it is still not certain how many teams will go down. It was originally the bottom 8, but there are stories that it might only be the bottom 7. South Gower won today, which placed them above Newport in the final table, and put Civil Service into the 8th and final relegation spot...but if only 7 go down then that will be enough for them. An anxious summer awaits!
One thing I can say for certain, it was another great day out in South Wales.
This meant the game was a very tight affair with both sides giving no quarter in the blazing sunshine. There were very few genuine goalscoring chances and the game seemed to have 0-0 written all over it. However, a solitary goal settled the game for the home side after 67 minutes when Matthew Palmer prodded home after the ball had ricocheted around the Pontyclun penalty area. At the end of the game the Ponyclun players looked absolutely devastated as they were most certainly down, whilst the Newport players celebrated like they had won the Champions League. Whether those celebrations are premature remains to be seen as there is still a chance they could go too.
Such is the wacky nature of Welsh Football Re-structuring that it is still not certain how many teams will go down. It was originally the bottom 8, but there are stories that it might only be the bottom 7. South Gower won today, which placed them above Newport in the final table, and put Civil Service into the 8th and final relegation spot...but if only 7 go down then that will be enough for them. An anxious summer awaits!
One thing I can say for certain, it was another great day out in South Wales.
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| An old storage container now being used as... |
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| ...a main stand. That's what I call re-cycling! |
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