The New Saints’ outstanding run of 30 consecutive league victories has finally come to an end following a 2-1 defeat away at Pen-y-bont on Friday night.
Over a year had passed since the champions failed to win a league game (0-0 vs Bala in September 2023), and Craig Harrison’s crew had not lost in the JD Cymru Premier since February 2023 (Met 3-2 TNS).
The win for Pen-y-bont means they are now the only unbeaten team in the league this season, and Rhys Griffiths’ remain three points clear of Cardiff Met at the summit.
Pen-y-bont will be hoping to continue their unbeaten run on Tuesday when they host Briton Ferry Llansawel, who earned their first point of the season over the weekend.
Tuesday, 24 September
Connah’s Quay (9th) v Newtown (4th) | Tuesday – 19:45
Connah’s Quay have slipped to 9th place following a frustrating run of three consecutive defeats in the league against the southern trio (Barry Town United, Pen-y-bont, Cardiff Met).
Billy Paynter will be determined to turn the corner on Tuesday to avoid losing four league games in a row, something the Nomads have not done since November 2013.
Newtown have started the season solidly, and after playing a quarter of their league fixtures the Robins are in 4th place and in a promising position to reach the Top Six again this year.
Zeli Ismail has been the standout for Newtown, and after creating seven goals this season, the winger is topping the assists chart as well as goal contribution chart.
Connah’s Quay are on a run of nine games without defeat against Newtown and have only lost one of their last 20 contests against the Robins since 2016 (CQ 0-2 New, October 2021).
League form:
Connah’s Quay: ͏✅✅❌❌❌
Newtown: ͏✅❌✅✅➖
Haverfordwest County (3rd) v Barry Town United (7th) | Tuesday – 19:45
Haverfordwest County are flying and aiming to secure a place in the Top Six for the first time since the league was reduced to 12 teams.
The Bluebirds have not finished higher than 7th place since the 2004/05 season when they managed to reach 4th place with only The New Saints, Rhyl and Bangor City finishing above them that year.
The strong defence might be the main reason behind Haverfordwest County’s success this year, as no one has conceded less than the Bluebirds (3 goals in 8 games) who have kept five clean sheets.
Barry Town United’s results have improved significantly over the last month with the Dragons losing only once in five matches across all competitions, and that loss was against TNS.
But in the last three years, Barry have not won any of their eight meetings with Haverfordwest County (L5, D3).
League form:
Haverfordwest County: ➖͏✅❌❌✅
Barry Town United: ❌✅✅❌➖
Pen-y-bont (1st) v Briton Ferry Llansawel (12th) | Tuesday – 19:45
The club at the top will meet the team at the bottom of the heap at the SDM Glass Stadium on Tuesday.
After their first ever win against The New Saints, Pen-y-bont have now made it five league victories in a row and have only lost once in their last 18 competitive matches.
There was relief for Llansawel on Saturday afternoon as Andy Dyer’s side secured a 1-1 draw at home against Flint Town United to claim their first point since their promotion over the summer.
These teams have already met twice this season with Pen-y-bont beating Briton Ferry Llansawel 3-0 in the Nathaniel MG Cup in the first game of the season, before Rhys Griffiths’ team won again by 2-0 a week later on the league’s opening weekend.
League form:
Pen-y-bont: ͏✅✅✅✅✅
Briton Ferry Llansawel: ❌❌❌❌➖
The New Saints (5th) v Bala Town (6th) | Tuesday – 19:45
After an astonishing 587 days without losing a league game, that incredible streak came to an end for the Saints on Friday night.
Craig Harrison will not be too discouraged as his team still have three games in hand, and winning those would lift the Saints to the top of the table.
Bala Town have only lost two of their last 13 league games away from home, and those two losses came against The New Saints at Park Hall.
The Lakesiders have never won away from home at Park Hall, and the Oswestry outfit have not lost at home in the league since March 2022 (0-1 vs Newtown).
Since then, the Saints have played 36 league games at home, winning 34 of those, with only draws against Pen-y-bont and Barry Town United.
League form:
The New Saints: ✅✅✅✅❌
Bala Town: ➖❌❌✅➖
Aberystwyth Town (11th) v Cardiff Met (2nd) | Tuesday – 20:00
Aberystwyth Town are on a five-game losing streak since in the league and have failed to score in their last four league outings.
No team has scored less (4) or conceded more (20) than Aberystwyth Town after eight games this season, and Anthony Williams’ side are now three points below the safety of 10th place.
At the other end of the table, Cardiff Met are enjoying an impressive season and have only lost once in 10 games across all competitions in 2024/25.
Cardiff Met are on a seven-game unbeaten run against Aberystwyth Town, and the Black & Greens have not won at home against the Archers since February 2019.
League form:
Aberystwyth Town: ͏❌❌❌❌❌
Cardiff Met: ͏➖✅✅❌✅
Wednesday, 25 September
Flint Town United (10th) v Caernarfon Town (8th) | Wednesday – 19:45
It will be a crucial encounter game towards the bottom of the table on Wednesday night with only one point separating Flint Town United and Caernarfon Town in the lower half.
Flint Town United had climbed from the relegation zone after two consecutive victories, but Lee Fowler will be disappointed that the Silkmen became the first team to fail and beat Briton Ferry Llansawel after the draw over the weekend.
Caernarfon Town have had a rather slow start to the season, and the Canaries have only won one of their last 10 away games in the league.
The match between Flint Town United and Caernarfon Town had to be postponed in April 2023 due to fighting among the crowd, and when the match was replayed the Cofis won 3-2 with Joe Faux scoring late on to ensure that Caernarfon avoided relegation.
League form:
Flint Town United: ͏❌❌✅✅➖
Caernarfon Town: ➖❌❌✅➖
Highlights of the matches will be available on Sgorio’s social websites.
