Match Details
Date: Saturday 04 March 2017
Result: 5-3 (won)
Starting XI – Harry Thomas, Sean Jones, Paul Griffiths (c), Nathan Williams, Jamie Foulkes, Dion Gibbins, Andrew Jones, Nic Jones, Alex Williams, Oliver Davies, Craig Roberts
Substitutes – Darnell Prescott, Dan Cox, Wez Parry, Callum Mannion
Goalscorer(s):
Alex Williams (2)
Nic Jones
Sean Jones
Dan Cox
MOM: Alex Williams
A large crowd turned out at the Muga to witness a local derby that just about had everything, eight goals, three penalties and a sending off!
Following some heavy rainfall the muga was deemed playable and the fixture was given the green light despite the heavy ground. After a cagey opening it was Cefn who drew first blood when Alex Williams bundled in from a set piece. Shortly after the opener the visitors drew level from the penalty spot but it was a dubious decision that was largely contested by the players, but the referee overruled the linesman to point to the spot. With the teams locked at 1-1 and evenly matched it all changed when the penycae center back was shown a straight red card following a strong but high tackle on Dion Gibbins. In truth the player who was dismissed was lucky not to have been carded for an earlier late tackle on nic Jones. Despite their numerical disadvantage the visitors took the lead with a well taken goal. 1-2 HT.
The lads certainly weren't at their best during the first 45 minutes so the second half had to be better, plus there was the extra man. The Albion made the perfect start and levelled the tie thanks to Nic Jones who sent a bullet header into the net from a set piece. At this point Albion were using their numerical advantage well and spreading the ball wide. However, credit to the young penycae team they were working hard and posed a threat going forward. The pressure finally paid off but we were helped from a mistake by former Albion goal keeper Josh Roberts who cleared the ball out of position and straight to Alex Williams who scored the goal of the game from 35 yards. With Cefn in the descendancy it was the impressive debutant Dan Cox' turn to shine when his effort found the back of the net to put the Albion 4-2 up and in full control. To be fair Penycae never gave up and were awarded a late penalty with several minutes to play. For the second time thier skipper made no mistake from 12 yards. The game was put to bed when Cefn were awarded a penalty and despite Sean Jones striking the post, the rebound fell nicely and he fired home from close range to make it 5-3.
The Albion were nowhere near at there best today but ground out the win. It's always nice to win a local derby so we will take the three points and move on to next week.
Thank you for the excellent support, terrible conditions and the muga bank was packed.
