Maesglas Football Club

Central Wales Cup
New Quay 4 Maesglas 2
This long awaited fixture was finally put to bed....after 3 weeks of dismal weather the game was done and dusted. The game however was again switched back to New Quay after the Maes Radley ground was not quite dry enough. The game was not a classic with the Quay pitch cutting up from the first minute, but to be fair to both side they both tried to play football. 
Maesglas had the better openings too but a penalty after just 10 minutes for the home side was awarded,  keeper Keen was in the referees opinion deemed to have  upended Mathew Mousley, rather harsh in some peoples eyes. The penalty was tucked away putting the home side a goal up. Maesglas rallied and got back level through good work from Aled Rees Dai Cole and Luke Jamieson the 3 linking up well to get the goal although it was  a Quay player who got the last touch to put through his own net. But just when the Blues were getting a good spell of possession a free kick was awarded on the edge of the box after a  Dai Cole tackle on Jamie Thompson, again rather harsh as Cole seemed to have won the ball fairly. Thompson himself took the free kick and his shot had  keeper Keen at full stretch to his left, Keen managed to grab the ball but due to the slippery conditions squirmed loose and trickled over the goal line, so 2 goals to one down at the break and some players feeling sorry for themselves, a word in some players ears seem to help as the Maesglas tried to get a grip on the game, but trying to gamble to get back into the game too early in the game contributed to the Quay 3rd goal when losing possession high up the pitch Jamie Thompson had acres to run into and with no player closing him down he fired a shot which he miss hit and it grass cut its way into the bottom corner of the goal, a sucker punch of a goal!
After this Quay were on top of their game and playing keep ball and the Blues were being frustrated and some players heads were down, then the fourth from Quay came from a cross come shot and  again with keeper Keen being unlucky his save ricochet at a Quay players feet and he buried it from 4 yards.  Blues manager Paul Hope switched things around  and it seemed to have the desired effect but it was a too little too late, Maesglas earned a penalty after a  handball from a Quay player,  it was a rather soft penalty decision, Matthew Smith took the ball and hammered it home.The scoreline suggests that the Blues were outplayed but in reality the game was a lot tighter, the goals the Blues conceded were unfortunate a ricochet, a  penalty, a miss hit and a slippery ball, but apart from those efforts and one other shot that tipped the top edge of the crossbar that Quay really troubled the Blues with.
 Anyway after weeks of no games it was good for both sides to get a game under their belts, thankfully for Maesglas no points were lost but what was very disappointing was  some players had thrown the towel in when thinking the game was lost especially so early on in the game. 
Next week Maesglas are due to play away at  Hay StMary near Hereford in the Emrys Morgan Cup, again a very tough encounter, but like the Blues, Hay like to play football on the deck. Lets hope the weather changes and the game goes ahead. 

Blues Into Hat For Next Round Of the Emrys Morgan Cup
Maesglas 4 Trawscoed 1
Maesglas earned their rights into the next round of this prestigious cup after a comfortable win over  2nd division outfit Trawscoed of the Aberystwyth  Cambrian Tyres League.With the obvious departure of striker Johnny James back to Saints and with  Dai Cole being unavailable it was down to the youngsters to show what they are capable of. And it was the youngsters who stole the show, with 17 year old Mark James grabbing a couple and 16 year old Rhys Davies and 19 year old Aled Rees getting a goal apiece. 
The game was no classic but it may have been down to the new team formation which took time for some players to adjust too if at all !, but it suited the attacking style of the wing backs and this is how James grabbed his first with him overlapping the Traws left back and a good ball through from Wyn Morgan, and with just the keeper to beat James slotted home.His first ever senior goal and one that he will be delighted with. 

Aled Rees then nipped in at the near post from a corner and side footed from close range to gain further advantage for the Blues. James then went on to bag his second, a cross from Rhys Davies found James steaming through the middle and he just planted the ball into the net with the keeper in no mans land, a good team goal. The Blues extended their lead just before the break, when Rhys Davies notched his first senior goal too, he  broke through the centre of the defence and rounded the keeper to make it 4 nil at the break. The second half became very scrappy and the weather turned for the worst too, but Maesglas had done the hard work in the opening period, although Trawscoed managed to get a goal back it was never enough to panic the homeside. A good win reminiscent of the Ffostrasol game, with the grafting being done in the first 45 minutes, what the Blues need to do is to keep playing for the full 90. Next up the Central Wales Cup an away game for a change, and away at New Quay.

BLUES HAVE LIFT OFF 
New Quay Reserves 0 Maesglas Reserves 3
The Blues first team may have had a couple of youngsters grabbing the headlines, but it was the same  at New Quay, where all the scorers were under 17, early on in the season the Blues were trounced 9 -1 at home to the hosts, but in recent weeks the performances have been improving and it was all about being patient and rolling sleeves up time and its starting to pay off, but with some good quality football and the Blues cruising to a very good away win and gaining their first 3 points of the season to lift them off the bottom of the League.The goals being tucked away by 17 year olds Jack Davies (son of Barrie Davies who played for the Blues back in the 80s), Llyr Jones and 16 year old Shane Lumberg. A good win and confidence will be growing and hopefully the young guns and a couple of old heads can carry this into next weeks game at home to Felinfach.

Maesglas 1 StDogmaels 4
A disappointing result for the Blues to say the least. The game which both sides needed to win to keep on the trail of the teams above them in the league, but to be perfectly honest neither side will be capable of winning the main event without reinforcements into their squads, the Blues have a apart from a couple of older lads have a very young side and this showed in the way the Saints dominated by using their more experienced players. With Ioan Owen and Sam Orme pulling the strings and keeper Casey Walters instructions was to knock it long, and by doing so causing problems for the young centre midfileders of Rhys Davies and Luke Jamieson who could not handle the physicality and the height advantage of Orme and Owen.This will be a learning curve for the pairing and in heinsight maybe manager Jones should have changed the pairing, but at the end of the day its not just down to two players, the rest of the team needed to pull together and in some respects some individuals didn't !.
Lets not get too worked up, Saints have always been the more physical side in years gone by, and Maesglas are  the footballing side, and with just two of the regular starters from the championship winning side of just two seasons ago,  its all about re-building all over again. So when people say the Blues are not the team they were, then those people are right, but the Blues however on their day, can play good football against footballing sides, a physical encounter may be their downfall as was the game against Saints. 
Saints game plan was too use their height advantage throughout the game and obviously this was their way of  winning the 3 points in a game which was a poor one, there were glimpses of what Maesglas can do when the ball is played on the deck but in reality there was no quality football played. The Blues inability to win the aerial  battles against the Saints cost them dearly, and even going down by 2 goals in the 1st 30 minutes, the Blues tried in vain to play good football, but this stop start affair and the constant moaning of the green brigade did not help the Blues cause, and for both sides referee Geoff Hearn did not help matters either, his dishing out of the yellow cards for trivial offences was frustrating too and not consistent with other offences which were worse, but saying that there was not one bad tackle throughout the game, which for a derby makes you think what was Mr Hearn looking for. Maesglas pulled one back before the break a well taken strike by Dai Cole, the Blues'  front runner  gave everything in which was a frustrating day for him.
 Dai Cole adding another to his goal tally
In the second half the match never got going, Maesglas were on top for the first quarter and  pushed for the equaliser and in doing so left gaps at the back and with one attack they were caught with a sucker punch and got punished. 3 -1 soon became 4-1 and the game petered out with both teams wanting the final whistle to come. On the day Saints deserved this local derby, and Maesglas will be licking their wounds, but Maesglas will learn from this defeat once again and start afresh next Saturday when they entertain second division outfit from Aberystwyth league Trawscoed in the Emrys Morgan Cup.

Bargod 1 Maesglas Reserves 0
The young guns are starting to show that they are not the pushovers they were, going down by just the one goal against promotion contenders Bargod. Bargod did dominate a majority of the 90 minutes but the Blues stuck at their task and almost grabbed a leveller when an effort hit the post with just 10 minutes remaining, the previous week Bargod gave 1st division outfit Aberporth 6 of the best so this result might be a loss but it shows that the youngsters are getting wiser. Up next for the Blues reserves New Quay. 

BLUES INTO HAT .....JUST
Cwpan Ceredigion
Maesglas 5 Aberdyfi 4 
after extra time

Maesglas battled through to the next round of the Cwpan Ceredigion after a see-saw battle with first division Aberystwyth league side Aberdyfi, the game played in  windy conditions which contributed to some good and poor play throughout the afternoon.
Maesglas went ahead after 5 minutes when Aled Rees toe poked from 6 yards, Maesglas had a number of breaks to increase the lead, but were then caught napping when the away side midfielder turned and looped a shot over Blues keeper Graham Keen. Keen had a busy afternoon and was probably the Blues best player as a number of the boys were not on top of their game, too many passes going astray and concentration levels not as they should be, fortunately other players carried these boys and two of those were Dai Cole and Llifon Howell who were instrumental throughout  the 90 minutes and even more so when the game entered extra time. It was all square at the break.
 Keeper Keen On Form


The Blues went back ahead with free kick from Johnny James, who is getting sharper by the game and his Bechamesque free kicks are becoming a habit, a good habit for the Blues. Aberdyfi are a good foot-balling side and play the ball on the deck, but their equaliser was route one and with the wind causing havoc with the high ball the Blues defence got into a tangle and handed the leveller on the plate for the away side.
The Aberystwyth side then edged themselves into the lead when the communication between captain Dafydd George and keeper Keen were non existent and the Dyfi striker pounced and put his side ahead for the first time in the game and time running out for the Blues.
The instumental Llifon Howell with 4 assists.

The next goal was a classic, with the Blues chasing the game they raised the tempo and Cole and Howell created a superb goal by playing one- twos down the left and almost the full length of the pitch and Howell crossed superbly to find Aled Rees running in and his header flew into the top corner, one of the best goals seen at Maes Radley. The goal made sure of extra time and after an uneventful first 15 minutes with both sets of players looking dead on their feet.

Blues manager Paul Hope changed a couple of positional changes and this seemed to pay off, with Dazz Davies winning a ball in midfield he flicked on to Johnny James who laid the ball off some 25 - 30 yards out to Dai Cole and his drive screamed passed the Dyfi keepr,  who was flapping at fresh air, another quality finish and this seemed to give the Blues an extra step in their stride. Blues substitute Emlyn George grabbed goal number five after a through ball from Llifon Howell, this  looked to have made the game safe,  but Maesglas always make it hard for themselves and  when a cross connected with the crossbar from  Dyfi  it totally unbalanced keeper Keen and the ball dropped into the goal, fortunately the game had seconds to go and referee Mike Thomas blew to end the game.

 The game was not a cracker but some good play from both sides made it what it was and the result maybe was a little harsh on Aberdyfi with Keeper Keen


in good form and keeping out the more difficult efforts but the Blues will find it a totally different game next week when they play StDogmaels in the league, a game which both sides need to win, defeat for either will really make the  championship a stretch.



Division 2
Cardigan Reserves 1 Maesglas Reserves 1  

The Blues young guns gave a battling performance and were unlucky to have a share of the spoils.
Even with Cardigan having a good side on paper and with ex Maesglas player Phil Furney a new signing who apparently his valuation to join Town was around the £400 mark.This will have raised a few eye brows as some of the regulars for Town must be feeling a little aggrieved too by bringing in players once again for the local derby match.
 Maesglas if they had taken their chances would have bagged the 3 points but this game against a good side will have given the youngsters of the Blues some confidence, many a team they have played already cannot believe that they sit at the bottom of the tree but this will hopefully change as the games come. 
Steffan Evans was the Blues scorer and the Town £400 new boy squared the game up with 5 minutes left on the clock.


BLUES CRUISE
Ffostrasol  1  Maesglas 4
Maesglas produced their best performance of the season to date with a thumping of the hosts in the first half of this league encounter. The slick football played was at a tempo that Ffostrasol could not manage with, and considering the Blues were under strength it shows  that the players who needed to come in did a fantastic job. 

The Blues were without regulars Wyn Morgan, Matthew Smith, David Kirk and Emlyn bound Steffan Davies.
 But the players who came in, Mark James, Robert James, Llyr Jones and first team debutant Luke Jamieson certainly showed their qualities and will give manager Paul Hope a headache on team selection for next weeks Cwpan Ceredigion cup tie with Aberdyfi. There was a new centre half  and centre midfield partnerships with Richard Charles Evans lined up along side Dafydd George at the back with 21 year old Luke Jamieson and 16 year old Rhys Davies teaming up together for the 1st time in the middle of the park and looked as if they had played together for years, the pair excelling over their more experienced hosts.

 Rhys Davies 

The Blues were ahead after 10 minutes with the opener from Llifon Howell, and the goals followed at regualr spells with Dai Cole grabbing a brace and his strike partner Johnny James bagging another header to wrap up the first half with the Blues 4 goals up and cruising, and as expected the second half was not like the opening 45, with the Maesglas relaxing and letting Ffostrasol back into the game at times, but the homesters grabbed a hard worked goal that gave them a little hope, but the Blues were resilient and defended well and could have managed to add to their total. Always a tough place to play at but this time their was only one winner in this contest and if Maesglas can carry that 1st half performance over the 90 then the results can only get better. 
Next up Aberdyfi in the second round of the Cwpan Ceredigion at Maes Radley.

Maesglas 3  Aberporth 1
Aberporth always give their all and this was further evidence of a team raising their spirits against a better footballing side, and for a spell of the game the Airmen were tough nuts to crack, and sometimes played some good football. The away side took the game by the scruff and after 10 minutes took the lead, a corner from the left found Jed Townsend totally unmarked at the far post. The frustration about the goal was that in the team brief before the kick off was to make sure that Townsend was marked tightly because of his qualities in the air, but this obviously was not adhered too.

The Blues however raised their game and even though dominated possession the final ball or shot was not god enough to take on the Aberporth keeper Ryan Banks.

The leveller came just before the break when Dai Cole snatched at his shot and squirmed its way underneath Banks' dive. It was a deserved goal for the Blues, but Aberporth will have felt it was soft goal to give away at a crucial time in the match.

Maesglas were still lookin uncomfortable at every set piece  and if not for a full length save from Blues keeper  Graham Keen the Airmen may have stretched their lead.

The second half however was one way traffic, yes the Airman had one or two chances but the home side dominated and got the second, a header  from Matthew Smith who met a Llifon Howell corner at the far post. The Blues had made some team changes before the game and one sub who was gnawing at the bit to come on was Johnny James who made an instant impact by rifling a left footed drive  into the bottom corner and making the game safe. The blues could have extended their lead, but will be happy to claim the deserved 3 points. Winning the  game and playing badly is good, but give Aberporth credit too, they showed battling qualities throughout, and if they can do that week in week out then they will upset a few teams, raising their game just against us is not going to help them to stay afloat in the top flight. As for Maesglas they need to raise the bar, too many players having off days and some needing to raise their fitness levels too !! Fostarsol away is the next league fixture and this will be another tough game......

Maesglas 6 Pencader 2

Maesglas followed on from last week with another comfortable but frustrating win against 2nd division Pencader. The game for whatever reason kicked off 40 minutes late as Pencader seemed to think it was a 3 o clock kick off but even then still turned up late.
The Maesglas players had been warming up since quarter to two.

The game as a whole was not as one sided as the result might show, Pencader had  chances themselves throughout the game but Maesglas punished the 2nd division outfit when opportunities fell their way, and to be honest it should have been double figures to the homeside but for some very poor final balls or some rather selfish play as the game became to easy. 

It was 4 nil at the break, Johnny James and Dai Cole with 2 each. Pencader got a look in with a breakaway goal caused by some sloppy play to begin with by the homeside. Johnny James got his hatrick, and another similar goal for Pencader to make it 5-2. 

Wyn Morgan added the sixth to wrap up the game. It was a game that was to say the least a tad frustrating due to the lateness of the kick off and the fact that Pencader rolled over to easily at times, but saying that they have a couple  of good individuals who would walk into some 1st division teams. 
Next up for the Blues another home game against Aberporth.

Maesglas Reserves 2 Aberaeron Reserves 3

The young Blues reserves side almost grabbed their first points of the season with a very spirited display against Aberaeron. Aber had already beaten New Quay and Cardigan Reserves in recent weeks so this was another toughy for the homeside playing at Cilgerran. Although the Blues took the lead through a well placed header by Ricky Holmes,  it was short lived as Aber equalised. The away side then went 2-1 up and then 3-1. The young Blues battled their way back into the game and grabbed their second courtesy of Steffan Evans, but it was too little to late. It was harsh result  for the reserves side after playing well but next weekend will see a bigger test when they travel to Pencader.

SWALLOWS NOSE DIVE
Maesglas 5   Llandysul 2

Maesglas really made hard work of this Cwpan Ceredigion clash with Llandysul, where even with the few changes that  had been made in the starting line up it should have been a lot more comfortable than it was. The Blues not really getting out of 1st gear throughout the afternoon and at  times were sloppy.... 
When Maesglas needed to step up though they did and even with Llandysul missing one or two of their own squad they battled on and never let the Blues settle into the game.
Maesglas never looked in trouble in the 90 minutes but will need to play a lot better to win anything from this seasons campaign. Next round Aberdovey will be the challenge for the Blues, at home though !!
The goals coming from Wyn Morgan, Johnny James, Emlyn George, Aled Rees and Llifon Howell. Next week the Blues are home once again to ace Pencader in the 1st round of the Emrys Morgan Cup.

CJ HATRICK  
StDogmaels Reserves 5   Maesglas Reserves 1
Ex Blues striker Chris Hope bagged a hatrick for the strong looking Saints team where the impressive spine of the Saints team  consisted of 1st teamer Rich Connolly, Steve Blackford and Chris Hope. The young Blues though put on a brave showing and at times outplayed the Saints in the football department but without really pressuring the Saints goal, one or two unbiased decisions by home referee John Rees upsetting the older lads of the Maesglas back four,  one decision resulting in a penalty for what was an obvious dive.....Saints deserved the points and no arguments there, the Blues on the other hand need to keep their heads up and battle on, with a few more players to come into the team things will be on the turn, especially if they keep trying to play decent football. No easy games  ahead either with Aberaeron Reserves the next game, at Cilgerran.

http://www.clubwebsite.co.uk/stdogmaels/81128/match_report.pl?id=1526930   click here and  read the Saints view on the game ....

TOWN EXPLOIT  BLUES WEAKSPOTS
Maesglas 2 Cardigan 4
The Blues second successive defeat in a matter of weeks against Cardigan was deserved. The Cardigan Town side had the edge throughout the game, against at times a disjointed Blues side, although Maesglas have gained a few new players the team hasn't settled into the style of football the Blues are known for, and without key players in key positions, these weaknesses were found out.
Maesglas took the lead against the run of play through  Dai Cole when  Alun Williams header fell short of keeper Steve Smith and Dai Cole slipped in to lob the oncoming Smith.
Town though equalised minutes later, a pass straight through the heart of Maesglas' defence found Simon Wilson and he placed the ball into the bottom corner.
Cardigan gained the advantage with Osian Williams to put the Town 2 -1 up at the break. Cardigan had some good chances and so did Maesglas, but the second half was about the next goal, Maesglas rallied and for the opening quarter and were the dominant force and created some chances, but Cardigan always looked a threat on the break with some Blues players  not working hard enough to quash the Towns breaks.
Town punished Maesglas once again, a quick free kick by the Blues was not dealt with and with just two passes Osian Williams found himself 1 v 1 with Maesglas shot stopper Graham Keen and Williams broke the hearts of the home side by finishing clinically, a sloppy goal to concede at a crucial time in the game.
Maesglas again pushed on and claimed the second  goal from a corner, an own goal.
RICHARD EVANS SAM HALL 
But Simon Wilson was on the score-sheet once again when Sam Hall was dumped unceremoniously in the penalty box by stand in centre half Matthew Smith.
Wilson had another penalty to grab his hatrick but Keen saved well. Keeper Keen was the biggest highlight of the game, the big shot stopper having an excellent game and was one of  the Blues better players on the day.
Another 3 points dropped by Maesglas against a good Cardigan side, but the Blues will have their own excuses about the way they lost this game, and one excuse is without Daf George they didn't have a recognised centre half and this was taken advantage of  by Cardigan. Some players went through the motions and just did not raise their game when needed, and this needs to be addressed quickly.

HEADS HELD HIGH
Llanybydder 5 Maesglas Reserves 0
Maesglas reserves came back from Llanybydder with heads very much high, the scoreline suggests an easy game for the homesters but Maesglas gave everything without getting on the score-sheet.
The reserves side consisted of 10 players under 18 years of age and it was only Dai Hope Jones that changed that, and gaining the nickname of Captain Grandad ! 
There will be a lot of competition for places now with the withdrawal of the 3rd team and with the crop of youngsters the Blues have it shows good promise for the reminder of the season. Training night will see some very committed players vying for a place in the side.

 BLUES ERRORS COSTLY

New Quay 2 Maesglas 1

The Blues hard work from the two previous games went out of the window with two second half lapses that gave the game to the home side. The game for an hour was a tight one with both sides going close, Maesglas had two excellent chances just before the break when Huw Meredith made a decent run into the box and cut back a pass to the hardworking Aled Rees who unfortunately caught the ball underneath his feet as two defenders slid in from just a few yards out with the keeper beaten, then minutes later Llifon Howell had an effort come off the crossbar and bounced onto the goal line and out. New Quay had some good efforts, Charlie Dent turning on the edge of the box and his drive just blazed wide of the upright.

The second half was very similar for the first quarter and although Quay were the side pushing the Blues were coping and defending well, then came the first Quay goal from a corner, the Blues switched off and the cross from the corner found JJ Evans in acres of space without a defender near him and he caught the cross sweetly on the volley and gave keeper Graham Keen no chance, a good quality finish, but poor marking making it an easy effort for Evans to score.

The Blues were punished again 5 minutes later when right back Richard “Charles” Evans misjudged his back pass to Keen and the Quay striker intercepted and placed his shot past the Blues keeper.

Maesglas were hurting and with time running out gambled and clawed their way back with a goal with minutes remaining, a corner from Llifon Howell was scrambled home by Matthew Smith.

New Quay may feel they deserved the points but a draw may have been the outcome and both sides could not deny the spoils of the points.

CRANNOG ROCKED BY THE  BLUES

Maesglas 2 Crannog 0
Maesglas went into the game without front runner Dai Cole, but a plus point was Matthew Smith making his first outing after an ankle injury saw him miss the opening league game win away to Llanboidy. 
Crannog were without the  influential Huw Reed, and without his presence the Crannog side may look a weaker outfit, but Crannog have strengthened pre - season with new signings and will rattle a few cages in the season ahead, even without Reed they caused the Blues some problems especially the  first half, where a couple of times they managed to un-free themselves from some tight marking and a fitter Lee Davies may have made more of his opportunities, Davies and his new strike partner Tony Parry worked well together and will become a good pairing.
On the other hand the Blues have hardened themselves into a team difficult to break down and it may be just two game gone but two clean sheets is a vast improvement already. With the squad the strongest its been for a couple of years manager Paul Hope has good players at his disposal.
The Blues started quickly and should have been a goal up after just 30 seconds when a good move down the right saw Steffan Davies drill a sweet cross to the far post with Matthew Smith just inches away from connecting to put the home team ahead, soon after Darren Davies who unfortunately was voted worst player of the day by his team mates and made to pay a club fine had a couple of chances, one he may feel should have done better from. 
In between this  Crannog had a couple of long range efforts which hardly threatened the homeside keeper Graham Keen, who was not pressured into much for most of the afternoon. The only scare was Richard 'Charlie' Evans pulling off an excellent last ditch tackle to stop Lee Davies firing at goal.
The Blues deservedly took the lead on the half hour mark when after a number of corners, 
Steffan Davies whipped in a decent cross to find ex Crannog favorite Wyn Morgan with a thumping volley from 8 yards.
 
A Wyn Morgan volley to open the scoring
Maesglas ended the half on top and from the restart to the second half quietly began to take control of the game, some tackles on both sides were hard but ref Peter Wilson was having an excellent match and he kept control of the game along with keeping the game flowing, 
The Blues were creating chances but not being clinical enough with the final ball.
Second half saw Crannog have acouple of shots that came close but  wide of the target. 
Blues' Aled Rees and Ioan Price were introduced during the second half and both had an impact on the game, and  twenty five minutes into the half saw  Rees breaking down the left flank and he turned and crossed to give Llifon Howell a perfect pass and his side footed strike nestled in the bottom corner to put the game to bed.
 Llifon Howell finished clinically to give the Blues the 3 points
 Crannog pushed an extra player to try and get back into the game but the Blues defended well and may have added to their tally. 
Overall at the end of the 90 minutes the better side claimed the 3 points and will be happy that ref Peter Wilson turned up and  the game ended without the fiasco of last season which ended with a Central Wales hearing that was,.....lets just say was laughable to say the least.

OPENING WIN FOR BLUES

Llanboidy 0  Maesglas 3

Always a tricky game this one away to Llanboidy where the homeside had an unbeaten pre season, the Blues though were almost at full strength, and with new signings Dazza Davies, Dai Cole and young Rhys Davies on show, only Matthew Smith was unavailable due to an ankle injury and with the departure of keeper Rhods Jones to Newcastle Emlyn, last seasons 2nd team keeper Graham Keen promoted to number one shot stopper.

The Blues settled into a good tempo on a wet surface and were dominant from the first minute, the crossbar coming to help the homeside in the early exchanges, a blast from striker Dai Cole almost putting the away side a goal up. Some desperate defending enabled the Blues to take the lead when sweeper / striker on the night Johnny James floated a 20 yard strike from a direct free kick into the top corner, a few minutes later James got his second, again some poor defending led to a clumsy tackle on Dai Cole, the ref Wyn Roberts awarding a penalty, and from the resulting spot kick James slotted his effort into the bottom corner. On half time Huw Meredith finished off a good move to put Maesglas 3 up at the break and cruising to a comfortable 3 points. The second half was about looking after the lead rather than increasing the scoreline which led to some sloppy football from the Blues, and this led to a a penalty for the homeside, but it was a tame effort from the spot and Blues keeper dived low to collect the shot, Keen had a quiet night and dealt with everything that was thrown at him. Manager Paul Hope made some changes to lift the tempo of the game and after the penalty miss the Blues picked up the game and kept the ball for long periods of the game to the homesides frustration which led to some rash tackles, but overall it was one of the easier Llanboidy games that the Blues have had on their trips to Cae Dandre.

Johnny James



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