Cardigan Town 2 Llandysul 5
When Llandysul eventually accumulate enough points to seal the division one championship, and they don’t need many more, they will look back at this game against the reigning champions as the defining moment in their campaign. Writes Andrew Clarke.
This was their best performance of the season so far and they had to be good as the Magpies were on song until they ran out of steam in the final quarter with the contest sewn up.
This entertaining encounter which was well refereed by Alun Jenkins was end to end stuff in the opening half hour with Town impressive and putting the leaders under pressure and rattling them with some big hits. The battle between the two Ben’s in midfield, Thomas for the visitors and Davies for the Magpies was worth turning up for. Both are from a rare breed of midfielder these days who expect to win every fifty-fifty challenge and who take it very personally if they don’t. They got stuck into each other for most of the afternoon until Davies ran out of steam and understandably so with his team under so much pressure in the latter stages.
It was the hosts who opened the scoring when Tomos Toft netted after some excellent play from skipper Iestyn Evans and Cardigan started to get on top with Davies thundering into one collision and incurring the wrath of the official who produced a yellow card but Llandysul hit back with a real fluke of a goal when a shot from Lewis Jones which looked set to land in the car park, hit a defender and looped over the keeper and into the empty net.
Adrian Hazelby fired the Swallows into the lead on the half hour when after some very poor defending at a corner he was left unmarked and he reacted quickly to thread the ball through a clutch of bodies in the box.
The same player almost made it 3-1 just a few minutes later but a super save from Carl Woodhouse kept him out. Llandysul were much the better team for the last fifteen minutes of the half and were unlucky not to add at least another goal when a thunderous drive from Scott Thomas bounced back off the crossbar.
Cardigan though regrouped at the break and they equalised a few minutes after the interval when defender Evans fired home from a free kick on the edge of the box to make it 2-2 and it was game on.
Both teams went at it with some tasty tackles and Llandysul looked rattled and no more so than their supporters and replacements on the bench who all seemed keen to get on and into the thick of the action.
The next score was always going to be the crucial one and it was Jones who provided it when poor communication from the Magpies defence left the Llandysul midfielder unmarked and onside and his deft header floated into the empty net.
Dean Jones made it 4-2 soon afterwards when referee Jenkins played a superb advantage with the Swallows bench screaming for a free kick thirty metres out and when Scott Thomas was upended Jones coolly slotted home from the penalty spot.
Ben Thomas rounded off a fine individual performance when he finished Cardigan off with a late goal from an acute angle at the far post.
Llandysul were well worth their win but they were forced to work hard against a town team who gave their all but there was one player who stood out and who was hugely influential and that was midfielder Terry Maynard. The talented playmaker was always at hand to pick up the loose ball or take the short pass and he was always the first back at his post when a move had broken down.
The Swallows are going to need a few more of these games from Maynard over the next six weeks with much bigger fish to fry just around the corner but the spirit and defiance and all round team work suggests that it is only a matter of time before some major silverware makes its way back to Parc Tir Y Dref.
Aberaeron strengthened by the addition of four first teamers were too good for long time promotion chasers Lampeter Town who are now out of the hunt at the top. Two goals apiece from Gareth Severs and Ollie Edwards and a single from Dan James at Cae Sgar saw the black and ambers through for a win that will ease their relegation worries.
In division two Pencader were forced to switch their game to Lampeter but they still managed to win comfortably against SDUC and fired 18 past the students! There were seven goals each for Craig Gordon and Daniel DJ Jones, and a brace apiece for Ashley Summers and Owen Broom.
There were only three games that survived the heavy rains in the Costcutter League.
