Newtown, Cardiff Met, Haverfordwest County and Pen-y-bont enjoyed the perfect start to the season by winning their opening games last weekend, and two of those clubs will meet this Friday.
Friday, 16 August
Cardiff Met v Barry Town United | Friday – 19:45
Cardiff Met will be relieved to have won a tough game away from home against Flint Town United on the opening weekend, especially after falling behind in the first 10 minutes at Cae-y-Castell.
Dixon Kabongo and Sam Jones scored to secure a 2-1 win for Ryan Jenkins’ team on the opening weekend, and the Archers will aim for another three points in their first home fixture of the season.
Barry Town United had plenty of chances to beat Bala Town last weekend, but the Dragons had to share the spoils after conceding a controversial penalty with the match ending 1-1 at Jenner Park.
Six out of Barry Town United’s last 10 competitive games have finished 1-1, including their opening two games this season, against Bala Town and Llanelli (Nathaniel MG Cup).
But Cardiff Met will not be satisfied with just a point, as they have only lost one of their previous eight meetings with Barry Town United (won five, drawn two).
Pen-y-bont v Newtown | Friday – 19:45
Newtown are top of the table after defeating Aberystwyth Town by 4-1 in the mid-Wales derby on the opening night of the season.
The Robins were losing 1-0 at the break, but there was a special performance from Scott Ruscoe’s crew in the second half with Zeli Ismail creating three of the four goals, and two of those dropping to forward Jason Oswell.
Pen-y-bont are second following their comfortable 2-0 away win against Briton Ferry Llansawel where James Crole grabbed a brace in his debut for the club.
Pen-y-bont had also beaten Briton Ferry Llansawel 3-0 the previous weekend in the Nathaniel MG Cup, which means that Rhys Griffiths’ team have kept a clean sheet in nine of their last 10 matches, and during that run have only conceded against Caernarfon Town in the European play-off final.
Before that loss against the Cofis, Pen-y-bont won 5-0 at Newtown in the semi-final of the play-ofs, extending their run to seven games without defeat against the Robins (won six, drawn one)
Bala Town v Briton Ferry Llansawel | Friday – 19:45
Bala Town had to settle for just a point from their opening fixture against Barry Town United on Saturday afternoon, but Colin Caton will be expecting a home victory against Briton Ferry Llansawel this weekend.
Bala Town have only won one of their last 11 competitive games, and that came against tier two side, Ruthin Town in the Nathaniel MG Cup a fortnight ago (Ruth 0-1 Bala).
After losing against Pen-y-bont for two weekends in a row, Briton Ferry Llansawel will be glad to face a different challenge, but it will be another tough test for the league’s newcomers.
These clubs met in the quarter-final of the Welsh Cup back in February 2023 where the Lakesiders won 2-0 with Chris Venables and Adam Roscrow on the scoresheet at Maes Tegid that day.
Flint Town United v The New Saints | Friday – 19:45
They may not have started their league campaign, but The New Saints have already played seven competitive matches this season, namely six European games and one cup tie against Flint Town United.
After a goalless draw against Petrocub on Tuesday night, the Saints have dropped from the Europa League and the club will have a final chance to reach the European ‘league stage’ when they take part in the play-off round of the UEFA Conference League next week.
Flint Town United fell to a 2-1 defeat against Cardiff Met last Saturday in their first game since returning to the JD Cymru Premier.
Flint Town United finished 2nd in the JD Cymru North last season and were promoted to the top-flight as champions Holywell Town failed to secure the domestic licence, but manager Lee Fowler will make sure that the Silkmen aren’t just here to make up the numbers.
These clubs have already met in the Nathaniel MG Cup this season with the Saints winning 5-1, meaning Flint Town United have conceded five, six, seven and eight in their last four games against the champions.
The New Saints won the double last season (league and MG Cup), taking the title for the third consecutive season and for the 16th time in their history.
TNS became the first team to go through the whole season without losing a league game since Barry Town United in 1997/98, and the gap of 33 points between the Saints and Connah’s Quay (2nd) was the largest ever in the history of the Welsh Premier League.
Aberystwyth Town v Connah’s Quay | Friday – 20:00
After two years at the helm, Connah’s Quay announced that manager Neil Gibson had left the club this week.
During his time as manager, Connah’s Quay finished as runners-up for two consecutive seasons under the leadership of Neil Gibson and won the JD Welsh Cup in 2023/24.
Aberystwyth Town and Connah’s Quay will be looking to get off the mark in Friday’s late kick-off.
After taking the lead at Latham Park last Friday, Anthony Williams will be disappointed that his side conceded four goals in the second half and fell to the bottom of the table.
Connah’s Quay lost at home to Haverfordwest County on Sunday afternoon, and assistant-manager Lee Jones admitted it was going to be a difficult season for the Nomads with a large number of the squad leaving over the summer, including their top scorer last season, Jordan Davies (19 goals, 5 assists), as well as Harry Franklin (9 goals, 7 assists).
Aberystwyth Town have a strong record at home against Connah’s Quay recently, and the Black & Greens are unbeaten in three meetings with the Nomads at Park Avenue (won one, drawn two).
However, Connah’s Quay have only lost one of their last 15 matches against Aberystwyth Town in all competitions (11 wins, three draws).
Saturday, 17 August
Caernarfon Town v Haverfordwest County | Saturday – 17:15 (Arlein)
Caernarfon Town’s league campaign will begin with a home fixture at the Oval against Haverfordwest County, who will be full of confidence after surprising Connah’s Quay last weekend with a 1-0 win at Cae-y-Castell.
Ben Ahmun scored from the spot in his league debut for the Bluebirds to secure the three points and Haverfordwest County will definitely be aiming for the Top Six this year.
Caernarfon Town have enjoyed a memorable summer after competing in Europe for the first time in their history and beating Crusaders from Northern Ireland before losing against the Polish giants, Legia Warsaw.
In the past, a number of clubs have started the domestic season slowly after competing in Europe, and the Cofis will be keen not to fall into that hangover habit.
Haverfordwest County had the best of things in the games between these teams last season, winning 1-0 at the Oval in December following a 1-1 draw at Bridge Meadow in August.
The highlights of the games will be available on Sgorio’s social websites and the best of the weekend’s action on S4C on Monday night.
