It’s shaping up to be a significant weekend in the JD Cymru Premier as two of the top three go head-to-head live on Sgorio on Saturday afternoon.
Caernarfon Town remain unbeaten this season, and the league leaders will welcome 3rd placed Pen-y-bont to Maesdu Park over the weekend.
After seven games, Cardiff Met are still waiting for their first win, and things aren’t getting any easier for the Archers as they host the champions, The New Saints this Friday.
And at the bottom of the table, Llanelli Town will be determined to claim their first point since their promotion as they welcome the other newcomers, Colwyn Bay.
Friday, 19 September
Cardiff Met (10th) v The New Saints (2nd) | Friday – 19:45
It hasn’t been the ideal start to the campaign for Cardiff Met who still haven’t won a league game this season.
Having said that, only Caernarfon Town (0), TNS (1) and Colwyn Bay (1) have lost fewer games than Cardiff Met (2), as the Archers have had five draws so far.
The New Saints won 6-0 against Llanelli Town last weekend as Craig Harrison celebrated his 400th game in charge in style.
The Saints boast the league’s best defensive record having conceded just four goals in seven games, keeping five clean sheets.
The home team will have to keep a close eye on Jordan Williams who has scored seven goals in his last five league outings for the Saints, climbing level with Caernarfon’s Adam Davies at the top of the goal-scorers chart.
The Oswestry outfit will be full of confidence after winning their last 11 matches against the students, including convincing victories of 8-0, 7-1, 6-2, 6-0, 5-0, 5-1 and 4-0 (all since 2023).
League form:
Cardiff Met: ͏➖➖❌❌➖
The New Saints: ✅➖➖✅✅
Bala Town (4th) v Briton Ferry Llansawel (7th) | Friday – 19:45
After an excellent start to the season, it has been a difficult week for Bala Town who lost on penalties against Newtown in the Nathaniel MG Cup before being hammered 4-0 by Barry Town United on Saturday afternoon.
Bala Town had only conceded four goals in their opening six league games before conceding four in 90 minutes at Jenner Park last weekend.
It’s a similar situation for Briton Ferry Llansawel, who started the season strongly, but are now on a run of three league games without a victory after losing 5-2 at home to Caernarfon Town last weekend.
But the Reds have not lost any of their four away games this season, including a win on penalties against Pen-y-bont in the Nathaniel MG Cup last Wednesday night.
These teams have met three times in the past, and Briton Ferry are yet to beat Bala Town (D1, L2).
League form:
Bala Town: ❌✅✅➖❌
Briton Ferry Llansawel: ͏➖✅❌➖❌
Saturday, 20 September
Haverfordwest County (11th) v Connah’s Quay (8th) | Saturday – 14:30
Haverfordwest County have slipped into the relegation zone after two consecutive defeats in the league with the Bluebirds failing to score in both games (TNS 5-0 Hav, CB 3-0 Hav).
Despite finishing in 3rd place last season, goals were scarce for Tony Pennock’s team (an average of 1.2 goals per game), and it is a similar story this year with the Bluebirds having only netted four goals in six games to date.
To add to their troubles, Haverfordwest County will have to cope without the services of Alaric Jones and Ben Fawcett this weekend after both received red cards against Colwyn Bay last Saturday.
Connah’s Quay have not been at their best recently either with the Nomads on a run of three games without a win in all competitions.
And Connah’s Quay don’t have a great record against Haverfordwest County as the Nomads have won only one of the last five meetings between the teams (D1, L3).
League form:
Haverfordwest County: ➖✅➖❌❌
Connah’s Quay: ❌✅✅❌➖
Llanelli Town (12th) v Colwyn Bay (5th) | Saturday – 14:30
After securing promotion over the summer, Llanelli Town have not had the ideal return to the JD Cymru Premier, losing all seven games so far.
No team have scored less than Llanelli Town to date (3 goals in 7 games), and to add salt to the wound, their top scorer last season, Liam Eason has scored eight league goals for Cambrian United this season and has been named the JD Cymru South Player of the Month for August.
This has been the worst start for any team on the field in the top-flight since 2021/22 when Cefn Druids were in the same situation as Llanelli Town after losing their opening seven matches.
The following year Airbus UK secured one point from their opening seven fixtures but received a three-point penalty for fielding an ineligible player, and so the Broughton boys were on -2 points at this stage in 2022/23.
Those two clubs finished at the bottom of the table, and Llanelli Town will be determined to avoid the same fate by ending their barren run in their first ever contest against Colwyn Bay.
Colwyn Bay have risen to the top half after winning their last two games comfortably against clubs that finished in the Top Six last season (Met 1-4 CB, CB 3-0 Hav).
The Seagulls have only lost one of their seven league games this season and Michael Wilde will expect no less than another three points on Saturday afternoon.
League form:
Llanelli Town: ❌❌❌❌❌
Colwyn Bay: ͏❌➖➖✅✅
Flint Town United (9th) v Barry Town United (6th) | Saturday – 14:30
Flint Town United dropped to 9th place after a heavy 5-0 defeat at Pen-y-bont last Saturday.
At least five goals have been scored in each of Flint Town United’s last five games, and although the Silkmen have a game in hand, only Caernarfon Town and the Saints have scored more this season, while Llanelli Town are the only team to concede more.
It was a beneficial week for Barry Town United who won 1-0 against Llanelli Town in the Nathaniel MG Cup before beating Bala Town 4-0 at Jenner Park on Saturday.
Barry Town United have therefore kept three clean sheets in their last four outings, including a goalless game against The New Saints in August.
The previous meetings between the teams have been close and competitive, and Flint Town won 3-2 in the last match-up in March with Josh Jones winning the game from the spot for the Silkmen in the last minute.
League form:
Flint Town United: ❌❌✅✅❌
Barry Town United: ❌➖➖❌✅
Caernarfon Town (1st) v Pen-y-bont (3rd) | Saturday – 17:15 (Live online)
Caernarfon Town continue to set the standard in the JD Cymru Premier this season, and the Cofis are the only team that are yet to taste defeat.
The Canaries have only dropped points in two games after conceding controversial penalties away from home against Cardiff Met and Haverfordwest County.
One possible concern for Richard Davies is that Caernarfon Town have fallen behind in each of their last four games, but the Cofis have shown character to fight back to win three of those fixtures, along with a 1-1 draw at Haverfordwest County.
After failing to find the net in two successive league games, Pen-y-bont have found their shooting boots again, scoring five goals against Flint Town United last weekend.
Pen-y-bont finished as league runners-up last season, and Rhys Griffiths will be keen to claim a place in the top two again this year in order to secure their spot in Europe for the second season in a row.
Pen-y-bont won three of their four contests against Caernarfon Town last season and the Cofis will need to be wary of James Crole, as he contributed to eight goals in his last three games against the Canaries (5 goals, 3 assists).
League form:
Caernarfon Town: ͏✅✅➖✅✅
Pen-y-bont: ͏✅✅❌➖✅
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.
