Pontin's, Kwik Save... and Bastion Gardens

jdoyle9293 · August 10, 2015

Hoping to see what the baby brings to the story as well as the trip to Estonia -- the Champions League would be a great aside to the Welsh Premier League. Great work as ever.

EvilDave · August 11, 2015

Thank you once more, although I fear your European optimism may be misplaced...

--

Before our first leg against Levadia, I received some welcome news from our neighbours down the road at Rhyl. Our debut in Europe’s premier competition had enticed enough fans to our makeshift home for the ticket office to predict a sell-out, meaning our coffers would be lined nicely as a result. I was pleasantly surprised – Levadia Tallinn are hardly European box office – but at the same time appreciated the growing excitement around the club. We were champions, after all.

After a couple of training matches against both the reserves and youth squad – both matches resulting in comfortable wins for the senior side, thankfully – we were just about ready for the Estonian champions to land in Wales. While few were expecting us to go through, we were nevertheless ready to test ourselves against opposition of calibre we were unlikely to come across in the domestic game.

For the first 30 minutes against Levadia, we looked like we belonged in the Champions League. Our passing game matched theirs, we weren’t overawed, and Wilson didn’t have a great deal to do. Playing in front of a capacity crowd of just over 1,500 seemed to be feeding the players’ confidence, and it was a pleasure to watch.

But then we scored, and everything seemed to fall apart. It was a simple enough goal, Zola firing home from close to the penalty spot after Parkinson’s ball in, and as the veteran raced over to his team-mate to celebrate, we believed we could get more.

Whether the goal woke Levadia up, or whether they simply figured out how to play through us I do not know, but that they did was evident from the change in play. They sped things up, we were left chasing shadows, and Kirill Vinogradov – the top scorer in all of Estonia the previous season - netted a brace before the interval with little resistance offered in return. With two away goals conceded as well as momentum, we seemed in for a long night.

In the second half, we were able to at least keep the visitors at bay for prolonged spells – although we still offered little ourselves – and gave Wilson a much-needed break from the hail of shots that had rained on in in the last 15 minutes of the first period. Vinogradov was clearly hungry for a hat-trick, but twice he was denied by our impressive goalkeeper.

At then, when all seemed lost, we were awarded a penalty. Fittingly it was Wilson how provided the unlikely assist, the keeper’s long punt bouncing over the head of Artur Pikk with Knight racing past him into the area. With his goalkeeper poorly positioned and unlikely to reach the ball first, Pikk chose to sacrifice himself for the team, bringing down our captain with 92 minutes on the clock. Knight stepped up and took responsibility for the spot kick, giving Pareiko no chance. Seconds later the final whistle blew, and at 2-2 we still had a chance.

Back at home, however, Levadia were a different animal. Free-flowing, aggressive, clinical – we were completely outplayed on the Baltic Sea. Where they had been lacking in the first leg they were exceptional in the second, and this time Vinogradov got his hat-trick. Pareiko got revenge by shutting us out completely, and the 3-0 scoreline was a fair reflection of an utterly one-sided encounter. The 5-2 aggregate score was perhaps a little harsh, but there was no use denying the better team had progressed.

Still, we were learning at this level, and I hoped it would not be too long before we were back.

tenthreeleader · August 11, 2015

Good learning experience in Europe. Hopefully it helps makes the champions better for the coming season!

neilhoskins77 · August 11, 2015

You're not getting much luck in the teams you're drawn against in Europe up to now Dave. The money from the Title and a full house for the First Leg should hopefully see the coffers swelled enough for a good crack at retaining the League though. I've no doubt that TNS will be gunning for you this season.

jdoyle9293 · August 11, 2015

That result was such a shame but to get a 2-2 with Levadia was a good result, it was always going to be tough in Estonia, though. As the lads have said, a good learning curve for future Champions League / Europa League matches.

EvilDave · August 12, 2015

Europe is certainly a learning process, but we're getting there - a kinder draw would certainly help!

--

With our European adventures over for another year, my professional attention turned to domestic matters and preparing the squad for our season opener against Airbus. More personally, I was finding it difficult to keep my mind fixed firmly on Prestatyn Town – Rachel was due to give birth to our first child in just over two weeks.

It was partly with that in mind that I made sure we had no match for three days either side of the all-important 26th, just in case there were any complication or the latest addition to the Williams family decided to emerge late or early. To be fair, Chris Tipping had already given me permission to take some time out to be with Rachel after the day, but I didn’t want to leave too much responsibility in Gary Powell’s hands, trusted as they were.

The friendly calendar this year would be busy once more, with nine games scheduled before the curtain-raiser. At home, we had two English Championship sides making short trips across the border in Bristol City – returning for a second time – and Blackpool, followed by seven short trips around a whole host of Welsh non-league clubs. Games with Llangollen, Bangor Rangers and Point of Ayr were never going to make international headlines, but they would provide us with a good test of our fitness and help the new players into the group.

In the end we came through the schedule with just a single defeat to our name – Blackpool running out 2-0 winners after we had held Bristol City to a very respectable and entertaining 3-3 draw. A couple of the smaller teams held us to draws, with a goalless run-out at Meliden the most disappointing, but in the two games Powell took charge of he guided the side to comfortable victories, which on both occasions resulted in joking phone calls asking me if he could have the job full-time.

Both times I laughed along with my assistant, left him with a few instructions relating to the tactical side of things, and hung up in a good mood. While the fortunes of Prestatyn were never too far from my mind, I was far more occupied with matters closer to home. Mr Tipping and I had agreed a three-week absence up to three days before the Airbus game, and although I had taken Rachel away over the summer, I was relishing the time off.

Not that there would be much sleeping or resting going on in the Williams household. At 9.47pm on Saturday, 25th July 2015 – just a few hours ahead of a schedule – Rachel gave birth to a beautiful, healthy baby girl. Holding perfect little Bethan in my arms as she slept, it was easy to wonder whether it was about time I gave up football for good.

EvilDave · August 13, 2015

By the time I decided that things would be for the best if at least one of Rachel and I had a job to help bring up Bethan, I had taken an additional two weeks off from Prestatyn. The chairman was more than happy to accommodate my request on the condition I promised to return, and in truth I’m not sure I was ever that close to packing it all in. Still, I was working late a lot less after Bethan’s arrival.

So it was that my first league game of the season would be Prestatyn’s fourth, the first three seeing a goalless draw with Airbus and comfortable wins over Rhyl and Connah’s Quay. I rejoined the squad before a second away game on the bounce, this time at Carmarthen, and although a late goal for the hosts made things look tighter than they were, our three goals were more than enough to wrap up the points.

Yet the newspapers weren’t all that impressed with my glorious return, and when we went to Bangor and lost despite a brace from Josh Knight, one particularly cheeky columnist in the Rhyl Journal began to speculate that all the success I had brought to Bastion Gardens had in fact been masterminded by my assistant, Gary Powell. Whilst I praised my right-hand man in public, I asked him in private whether he had any ambitions of taking the top job. I received an unerring answer in the negative, and that seemed to quieten things down.

What would also help get the press off our backs were more victories, and that is exactly what we decided to serve them. With plenty of pressure following the Bangor loss, we hosted a Bala side in good form for the first of two games in as many weeks against the Lakesiders – two goals from Gareth Partridge in extra time would see us through in our League Cup opener – and a quick-fire double from Knight had us leading 2-1 as we came off at the interval.

But Bala are not a side known for rolling over, and they came back at us hard. Pressure turned into a goal just after the hour, and they had a third ruled out for offside as the game entered its final stages. Thankfully we took advantage, Knight completing his hat-trick late on to secure all three points and give us a bit of room to breathe. Still at home to welcome in October, Aberystwyth arrived and we sent packing 4-0 - McCreesh getting his first goals of the campaign along with two from the skipper – before our cup success over Bala put us back in top form.

Next up was a trip to a TNS that were doing an excellent job of increasing the pressure on us. Not only had they smashed six goals past hapless Porthmadog in the cup, they had also won all seven of their league games so far with the loss of just four goals. Neil Ardley’s men were looked dangerous, wounded by our title win, and determined to take revenge. So when Josh Knight kept up his good form with a 12th minute opener, it was something of a surprise.

Less of a shock was the inevitable response – attack after attack from the hosts. With Park Hall firmly behind their hooped heroes, Wilson and our defence came under fire from all angles as the English traitors looked to punish us for our insolence. Just when it looked like we might make it through to half time with the lead intact, Nicholas Rushton found space to level the scores, and we had to make do with a level game.

The same man put TNS in front five minutes after the restart, and when the hosts added a third midway through the second half, there was no coming back for brave little Prestatyn. Against a team in imperious form we were clearly second best, and while a late double from Draper rubbed unnecessary salt in the deepening wounds, the 5-1 scoreline was not unfair. After just eight matches, we were eight points off the pace, and while Mr Tipping had not informed me of any pressure from the boardroom, my own desire for perfection was taking its toll.

EvilDave · August 14, 2015

Away from the game, the distraction of family could not have been more welcome. Rachel was proving to be a fine mother, and at three months old Bethan was thriving. I’m not sure there’s anything you can do to prepare yourself for the chaos that comes with having your first child, but between us we’d managed to come up with a routine that seemed to work. I was determined not to be the absent parent all the time, and as much as work allowed I intended to play my fatherly role. Even if it did mean sleep was more conceptual than reality.

There was even chance for some of the lads to dote on my daughter when, in order to give Rachel a bit of time to nap, I brought Bethan to training one Wednesday night. With most of the lads only in their early 20s – the exception being Andy Parkinson, whose own children are teenagers – the idea of kids seemed a little alien to the majority, but their cooing seemed to tickle Bethan enough for her to refrain from tears – a small mercy I was most thankful for.

Back to the games, and despite being dumped out of the League Cup by Aberystwyth for the second season running – something which greatly irritated me given our obvious superiority – we bounced back from the TNS result to establish ourselves as the only possible challengers for the so-called ‘professionals.’ Haverfordwest were seen off 4-1 at home, and after our cup disappointment we travelled to Port Talbot and scored more in the first half, with teenage centre back Huw Lewis the unlikely scorer of a double as we won countless set-pieces.

Our travels continued as we headed to newly-promoted Monmouth, and side which looked destined to go back down into the mire of Welsh non-league football. They had already taken a few beatings, but looked solid until Scotcher got a free kick to squirm under the keeper on the stroke of half time, and 10 minutes after the interval Parkinson cut in off the right flank to double the lead and earn us the win. In midweek, Caernarfon were the opponents as we got our Welsh Cup campaign underway, and although the second team struggled, Josh Knight came off the bench to claim the only goal of the game, and we kept on winning.

That brought Connah’s Quay to Denbighshire for our penultimate game of November, and it was little surprise to send them on their way with nothing for their efforts. All three goals were of the highest quality – the crowning glory a delightful 20-yard chip from Frater – and it was in high spirits that we travelled to Airbus looking to keep our good run going.

Unfortunately, the hosts had other ideas, and at half time we were on the wrong end of a 2-0 scoreline. On came McCreesh for the second period, but although our boy wonder did get one back, we were unable to find the leveller and slipped to our third league defeat of the campaign.

In any other season, nine wins, a draw and just three defeats from the opening 13 games would probably be enough to put Prestatyn Town firmly on top of the Welsh Premier League. Indeed, we averaged more than two points per game, and on that basis would be champions in either of the last two seasons. This year, however, our 28 points put us a full 11 behind TNS, our hated rivals having cruised through their fixtures without dropping a single point so far. We may have only reached the start of December, but with Ardley’s side boasting 13 straight wins, 41 goals scored and just eight conceded, it was hard to see how we could possibly overhaul them and defend our title this year.

tenthreeleader · August 14, 2015

TNS is in form, unfortunately. But there's a lot of season left!

EvilDave · August 15, 2015

Indeed there is 10-3, indeed there is...

--

Still, we could only try, and the short trip to Rhyl yielded three more points as Scotcher and Partridge struck in the last 20 minutes. With only three more games left of 2015, we needed maximum points if we were to even think about capitalising on a possible slip-up from TNS, and so it was important that we kept winning. We did just that against Carmarthen, a blistering 20-minute spell at the beginning of the second half seeing all the goals in a 3-1 home win.

December did not just mean the Premier League season would begin to approach the business end of things. As the league table took shape, so Christmas became a major consideration at home, and although Bethan would be far too young to ever remember her first Christmas, Rachel and I were determined to make it special. While Rachel’s father had walked out of the family home when she was just nine years old, her mother had stuck by her through thick and thin, and was delighted when her first grandchild was born - despite our protestations, we knew Bethan would be spoiled as much as any five-month-old baby can be.

But before then, I had to balance Prestatyn’s title defence which, whilst not exactly faltering, had not been as impressive as I had hoped thanks to the unprecedented form being shown by TNS. Still, as we travelled to Bala and grabbed a vital 1-0 win courtesy of forgotten fifth-choice striker Mark Jones – who only made the bench thanks to Knight’s knock in pre-match training – the traitors from Oswestry dropped their first points of the season in their 15th game, being held to a goalless draw at home by Bangor.

While it wasn’t much, it did bring the gap down to single figures, and with three games still to go against Ardley’s side the title suddenly seemed a lot more possible. In a cruel twist of the fixture list, the same Bangor outfit that had put an end to TNS’ record-breaking run would now travel to Bastion Gardens high in confidence for a game we could not afford to lose if our newfound hope were not to fade instantly.

But before we took on another of our local rivals, there was the small matter of the Williams Christmas celebrations. I’ve never been one for a huge fuss, but with both families wanting to share Bethan’s first Christmas I relented, and I was glad. Being surrounded by loving families, being able to leave all thoughts of football behind for a brief moment, and enjoying the day with my beautiful wife and daughter – Boxing Day’s clash with Bangor only re-entered my mind as I laid down to sleep.

The following afternoon, when Matthew Jones’ cute finish left Wilson with no chance in just the third minute, we were devastated. Mercifully, the assistant referee’s flag denied the Bangor striker his goal, and by the time we went in at the break the teenage goal machine had been forced off the field, a fierce challenge from Kye Edwards leaving him unable to continue.

The loss of their young talisman seemed to have an adverse effect on the visitors, and within 15 minutes of the restart we were ahead. Partridge it was who latched onto Hart’s diagonal ball, and after shrugging off a desperate Bangor challenge he drove home the goal that would ultimately win us the day. As we celebrated a crucial win, news came through of another draw for TNS – this time away at Carmarthen – and all of a sudden the gap was down to seven. It was a Christmas present I had not expected, and at that moment we believed we were right back in the title picture.

EvilDave · August 17, 2015

While Christmas was a true family affair, with Rachel’s blessing I celebrated the dawn of 2016 with the rest of the Prestatyn squad. It was my idea – partly to get the lads socialising with one another, and partly because I knew they wouldn’t misbehave on my watch – and while none of them were massively keen on spending New Year’s Eve with their boss, I think they enjoyed it in the end. Any advantage we can create could make all the difference in the long run.

Whether it was the high spirits in the camp or simply the fact that we were a better football team than Aberystwyth I am not sure, but the fact is that our game on 2nd January could not have been more one-sided. The first half was all Prestatyn, and it was a shame in many ways that we only managed to score the two goals. They were enough to see off our hosts, but a late consolation put an irritating blot on our copybook and made the final score seem much closer than the game itself.

While we had been cruising past Aberystwyth, league leaders TNS had returned to form with a 5-1 hammering of Haverfordwest. That kept the gap at seven points going into our second meeting of the season, and we knew that a win would really put the pressure on Ardley and his highly-strung bunch of traitors. So when Josh Knight scored with our first shot of the game 18 minutes in, things were looking good.

When Sam Hart repeated the trick four minutes later with a low, arrowed shot in at the near post, we were in dreamland and TNS didn’t seem to know how to respond. The only change they seemed capable of was in their level of aggression, as first Parkinson and then Frater were injured by what appeared to be malicious tackles from the visitors. While I worried about the impact on my squad for the rest of the season, the eleven men on the field showed no signs of concern, and it was one of the substitutes, Ian Sullivan, who got our third 10 minutes before the break. We were cruising.

But we would have been foolish not to expect a response from TNS, and after hearing some of the vitriol spew forth from the mouth of my opposite number through the changing room walls, it was no shock to see Ardley’s gang come out with renewed vigour. We repelled them for a whole 11 minutes before a corner was turned past Wilson, and all of a sudden we were on the ropes.

As TNS continued to attack, so we dropped deeper and deeper, my own back line defending the line of the penalty area despite my instructions to push up. Zola and Scotcher seemed unable to get any time on the ball, and despite a number of excellent tackles from the back four, another goal seemed inevitable.

So it proved on 74 minutes, that man Draper finding the space to turn and fire past Wilson from the edge of the area. At this point there was no point pretending this was still a football match – this was a siege, and we would do anything possible to protect our lead. We resorted to primal football, launching the ball as far from our goal as possible in a bid to earn a little respite. Jack Lewis was sent off five minutes from time after picking up his second booking, Hart was forced to drop into midfield as we finished with no-one left up front, but against the odds we clung on. Our flying start had given us a 3-2 win, and we had a title to defend.

The two sides’ response to the game would prove pivotal, and we struck first blood. On the back of their first domestic defeat of the season, TNS hosted lowly Monmouth and ended up on the back pages for all the wrong reasons, conceding a last minute winner to the minnows who claimed a sensational first win of the campaign. Meanwhile, we were crushing Haverfordwest 5-0 to close the gap to a single point.

Not that it would stay that way for long. A week later, as TNS scraped past Connah’s Quay, we welcomed Monmouth to Bastion Gardens and failed to break them down. Not only that, but we succumbed to the same fate as our title rivals in the dying moments, and the worst team in the league had beaten the top two in successive games, having failed to win at all in 19 previous matches. And I wanted to scream.

EvilDave · August 18, 2015

Our frustrations were taken out on a sorry Port Talbot the following weekend, as we smashed in five goals without reply to signal a return to form. Craig Frater stole the headlines with a fine hat-trick, but it was Sam Hart who earned my own personal plaudits – two goals and as many assists marking a fine day for our left winger. Annoyingly, TNS were able to beat Connah’s Quay, and our chances to catch them up were running out.

There was still the matter of the Welsh Cup to be dealt with, and after our unconvincing win over Caernarfon in the Third Round, the FA officials had rather unkindly drawn us away to TNS in the next round. Not only that, but the game would take place less than a week before our first post-split league match – also at Park Hall Stadium. Much like last year, where we sacrificed cup success for title glory, it was the second string who battled hard against Ardley’s men, but they weren’t quite good enough as we lost out by a single goal in the least important of the two matches.

A few days later, the same scoreline looked like being repeated when Luke Williams sent a free kick looping beyond the reach of Wilson with 25 minutes on the clock, and it was a lead that would hold for the hosts until the break. Unlike our previous encounter in the league, this was a cagey, tactical affair, and there would be no scoring spree to please the neutral.

There would, however, be one more goal, and in scoring it we kept our title hopes alive heading into the home straight. With nine minutes to go, Craig Frater followed up his Haverfordwest hat-trick with a well taken finish, and Ardley was forced to settle for a single point rather than the three which would have surely sealed the title. With nine games to go, the gap stayed at four points, and once again Wales would look on as its undisputed top two went head to head for glory.

Of course TNS were heavily favoured, but all we could do was keep winning and hope for another Monmouth-style catastrophe to befall our rivals. We picked up our league campaign with a home game against Airbus, and while we were comfortably on top throughout, our finishing was somewhat lacking and we took just a one-goal lead in at the break. Airbus hit back almost straight from the restart, and our title hopes were starting to fade once more.

But over a 32-game season, all teams will experience luck both good and bad. We had already come across both on several occasions in the current campaign, but mercifully the fates conspired in favour of Prestatyn on this occasion. With three minutes remaining of the 90, a poor cross from goalscorer Hart was inexplicably punched into the air by the visiting goalkeeper, and as his defenders scrambled to head it clear, they collided and watched in horror as the ball dropped onto the leg of the prone Aaron Simpson and over the line. It was not the prettiest goal in the world, but it was enough to win us the game.

tenthreeleader · August 18, 2015

I'd rather be lucky than good myself. Sometimes. Good result for you!

EvilDave · August 19, 2015

Wise words indeed 10-3 - thanks for your support!

--

Whereas luck had favoured us against Airbus, it deserted us against local rivals Rhyl in our very next game. A goal inside the first 10 minutes from Knight was somewhat harshly ruled out by the overzealous linesman, and to add insult to injury our captain for booked for his protestations. Hart and Edwards followed him into the book inside the opening half hour, and it became increasingly obvious that the match would not finish with all 22 players on the field.

While the midfield battle descended into a full-blown war, Rhyl were still failing to create any clear-cut chances. We hadn’t had our most creative game of the season, but on the stroke of half time, Hart’s ball in was flicked home by Frater and we had the edge in the tightest of matches.

However, this time it was the referee’s whistle rather than the linesman’s flag that denied us the goal, the man in black identifying an infringement that not even the Rhyl management had spotted, and bailing the visitors out with a free kick. I was faced with two seething strikers at the interval, and somehow we were still locked at 0-0 despite scoring what appeared to be two legitimate goals.

If things had been bad in the first half, they were about to get worse – Zola was booked in the opening moments of the second period, and 10 minutes later found himself trudging off the pitch after an ill-advised lunge in the centre circle. Knight was sacrificed to allow us to retain four across the middle, but our chances were ebbing away rapidly.

The goal that sealed the match was laughably fitting – Wilson caught out by a cross from the left that caught the wind and dipped just underneath the crossbar with no attackers anywhere near it. As the Rhyl bench celebrated wildly our title hopes all but disappeared, and despite the visitors not registering an official shot on target, they made the short journey home with all three points. With TNS winning, the gap was up to seven, and beginning to look too big.

Indeed, we would hold up our own end of the bargain – bouncing back to beat Bangor on our own patch by three goals and then edging a five-goal game away at Bala – but TNS were back in the groove, hitting seven unanswered goals of the their own in their corresponding fixtures to leave us a distant second.

That brought us round to our final clash of the season with Neil Ardley’s side, and even if we won we would still them to drop points at least twice more. The odds were slim, the Rhyl Journal had already written off our title bid, and indeed even the national press was struggling to see past the TNS juggernaut. We needed to win, win well, and destroy the visitors’ morale. If TNS did manage to win, it would just be a matter of time before they wrapped up the league.

jdoyle9293 · August 19, 2015

Let's hope that juggernaut grinds to a halt so leapfrogging them is possible. Keep up the good work, Dave, great work again.

EvilDave · August 20, 2015

Thank you, but it wasn't to be this year. Sometimes the other team is just too consistent.

--

In the end, whether we had beaten TNS or not, they would have been crowned champions in mid-May. After their shock defeat to Monmouth in the middle of January, Ardley’s men dropped just four points for the rest of the season – two to us in the first game after the split, and two away at Airbus on the final day of the season when resting players for the Welsh Cup final. As much as I hated the fact, they had been unstoppable.

Their 4-2 triumph over us in March was one that particularly rankled, but for once it was not Ardley’s fault. We had recovered from an early goal to level through Parkinson, only for Lewis to see red with 20 minutes to go. Yet despite constant pressure from the visitors, we briefly kickstarted our title challenge when Frater scored against the run of play with just nine minutes to play.

A goal up, just minutes left on the clock, and with home support cheering us on, we should have held on irrespective of our numerical disadvantage. Yet it was not to be – first Chris Arthur danced past Davies down our right before firing in at the near post, and then Draper grabbed not one but two goals in the final five minutes to rub salt in our wounds and all but seal the title for the Oswestry traitors.

We finished the campaign reasonably well – comprehensive 5-0 revenge over Rhyl and wins over Bangor and Airbus marred only slightly by a late loss to Bala – but for the first time in my tenure we would end the season without a trophy. We watched jealously as TNS followed up their title success with a comfortable 2-0 win over non-league Porth in the Welsh Cup final to claim a double, our only consolation being that they had somehow managed to blow their chances of a treble with a defeat to Afan Lido in the League Cup showpiece.

No side had achieved the elusive domestic treble since Rhyl in 2004, and only Barry Town in 1997 had ever managed it before them. I was desperate to make sure Prestatyn’s name was the next to be added to the list, but the humbling truth was that if TNS continued to play as they had for the majority of the current campaign, we would struggle to claim even one trophy without a large dose of luck or favours from other sides.

We would need to up our own game and hope Ardley’s men dropped theirs, and even before I sent the players away on their holidays I knew I would be in for a busy summer. Still, Rachel and Bethan certainly wouldn’t allow me to work at the expense of my young family, and I had earmarked three weeks in which I would not venture through the gates of Bastion Gardens. Of course, my mobile phone would have to be with me, but I was determined not to overdo things.

Indeed, before we headed west to the Pembrokeshire coast, I had already managed to land the one man who I thought would make the biggest difference to our side in the coming year. With Parkinson’s age finally beginning to catch up with him and influence his performances, I had been searching for much of the season for a new man to occupy the right wing berth on a regular basis. Negotiations had not been easy, but in the end I got my man.

EvilDave · August 23, 2015

For three blissful weeks in Pembrokeshire, the man in question was far from my mind. Three weeks in which to give my wife the time she deserved, three weeks to delight in my daughter, three weeks in which to relax and relieve myself of the pressures of managing one of the top two in Wales. There were quick calls – mainly to the managers at Afan Lido and Connah’s Quay as I sought to snatch their brightest prospects – but for the overwhelming majority of the time, it was just the three of us.

By now, Bethan was beginning to move from rolling around to crawling, and her obvious pride in each little movement was a joy to behold. I meant Rachel and I needed to be far more alert – particularly when stairs were involved – but as she explored every inch of our secluded little chalet, her curiosity and the way she interacted with her little world were the sort of thing every father should drink in and savour. In truth, I wondered why we hadn’t thought about children earlier.

But those were the kind of conversations you could have on holiday, and while Rachel was keen for Bethan to grow up a little before trying for baby number two, she too was keen to keep our family growing. It was an exciting thought to process, and although both of our sleep patterns were suffering, the idea of another Williams child coming into the world was one that brought smiles to both of our faces. Only God knew the timing, but to say we were looking forward to it would be an understatement of significant proportions.

The other decision we made over on the Pembrokeshire coast was that Rachel would only return to work on a part-time basis. One of the phone calls I did make over the course of our break was to Chris Tipping over the issue of my contract, which was due to expire at the end of July. The Prestatyn boss was keen to see my stay, and with the blessing of his board had offered me an increase to £450 per week, with bonuses for trophies and a healthy 10 per cent annual rise included.

It meant that, combined with the savings we had managed to raise from Rachel’s directorship, we could live within our means with the one income – even if a few concessions would have to be made. However, my wife was keen to do something with her skills, and so when I returned to the club after the summer, she would take up her former position for 20 hours a week. We knew a good childcare provider in Prestatyn, and Rachel could still spend the afternoons with Bethan after working in the mornings. It was a system that worked for us all.

And so, when I returned to Bastion Gardens after the break it was with something of a spring in my step. Our family was happy and hoping to expand, my summer transfers dealings had been a success, and for once UEFA had not drawn us against the biggest team in the qualifying rounds of the Europa League. Rather than face the might of Red Star, we had been paired with Shkendija Tetovo from Macedonia, and for once I had a feeling we might just be able to scrape through.

Of course, the media didn’t agree with me, but they rarely did. We wanted progress at Prestatyn, and finally getting through one of the qualifying rounds would be a sure sign of that.

EvilDave · August 25, 2015

Once again, the Prestatyn board made it clear to me, via Mr Tipping, that they would be content with another challenge for the title – top three, in other words – although of course they would be delighted if we were to somehow wrest the title from the cold grip of Ardley and TNS. I was more than happy to agree to their expectations, and was even tempted to promise the title in exchange for an increased wage budget. As it was, we were already comfortably under our spending limit, so I neglected to pile pressure on myself.

When the players eventually returned for training, it was pleasing to see them without any injuries or problems that would keep them out of the first leg against Shkendija. For the fortnight leading up to the game, fitness would be our focus – fitness, and integrating the handful of new recruits into the first team group.

The first of the newcomers to arrive was the teenager I had prised from Connah’s Quay while away at the coast. Even at the tender age of 17, Josh Williams looked like he had all the skills needed to go far in the Welsh game and possibly even further afield, and would slot right into our side as backup to Kye Edwards and Huw Lewis in the centre of defence. A strong header of the ball with pace to keep up with the quickest strikers in the league, he was likely to displaceKyle Graves as first-choice substitute, and even put a question mark over the latter’s Prestatyn future.

Another youngster looking to make an impression on the first team would be Sam Cooze, a central midfielder acquired from Afan Lido after he had failed to break into their side. He would have to be patient with us as well – thanks mainly due to the strong performances of Scotcher, Zola and Kinsella – but he had the stamina to play the box-to-box role well and was not afraid to do the dirty work at the wrong end of the pitch. One to watch for the future.

It was our third signing that I was most excited by, however. Last season, our signing of Kye Edwards from TNS had made a real statement, and I had decided to head to Oswestry once more to secure Parkinson’s replacement. Our veteran would play on for one more season, but in the meantime Jamie Mullan – who had come through the youth system at none other than Manchester United – would take his starting berth. Capable of playing on either side and possessing both excellent vision and a dangerous cross, he would be key to any success we found ourselves celebrating.

Leaving the club, we waved goodbye to Joel Richardson after our centre back decided he would rather look for a club across the border than remain in the Welsh system. We parted on good terms, but I had my doubts whether he would ever make his way in the Football League. Also leaving were young defender Tom Kemp and backup left back Josh Evans, who had found his path to the first eleven blocked by the form of Jack Lewis and the emergence of the highly talented Richard Nicholls from the youth squad. Neither were bad players, but we had better.

tenthreeleader · August 25, 2015

Looks like you've found a few nice pieces for the puzzle, Dave. Deal harshly with TNS!

EvilDave · August 26, 2015

That's the plan 10-3, although there's the small matter of Europe to deal with first...

--

In my debut season with Prestatyn, we came out of the Europa League hat against Dinamo Minsk. We knew very little about our Belarusian opponents, but just about managed to put together enough information to come up with a plan to tackle the former Soviet giants. Although the side from ‘Europe’s last dictatorship’ were not regular subjects of amateur blog posts and European football experts, they were at least heard of in the wider footballing world.

This year’s opponents, Shkendija Tetovo, were not so fortunate. The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia is not a hotbed of footballing talent, nor is it a country fortunate enough to have acquired a niche following among the amateur writers so keen to develop an interest untapped by those before them. Unsurprisingly, the Prestatyn board have yet to provide the funding for a scout in the country, and so we were effectively going in blind to our European qualifier. I only hoped our opponents were doing the same.

We at least had the luxury of playing at home first, giving us the chance to build a lead before having to fly out to Eastern Europe and face a team we had never heard of. Shkendija had finished 3rd in their domestic league, and boasted absolutely no star names, so our prayer was that we were at least on a par with our unknown opponents.

By the time 35 minutes of the first leg had elapsed, it had become evident to the capacity crowd at Rhyl’s Belle Vue stadium that there was no parity between the two sides, and a significant mismatch had been made. It took just six minutes for Craig Frater to open the scoring after weaving through a shambolic Shkendija defence, and 10 minutes later his strike partner doubled our advantage with a firm header into the bottom corner. Ten minutes before the break, a Jack Lewis special from a free kick made it 3-0, and we were cruising into the next round.

The second half saw two more goals – a fourth for the ‘home’ fans to celebrate from the boot of Scotcher, and a late consolation for the visitors which in any other tie may have proved a valuable away goal. Such was the gulf in class between the two sides, the shot that denied Wilson a clean sheet was of little concern to me and my staff. We were as good as through.

Whether it was complacency, carelessness, or simply the effect of playing in a large yet mostly empty stadium back in Tetovo, the second leg was not as comfortable as it might have been. An early goal for the hosts had us briefly worried, but Frater’s reply on the stroke of half time was enough to cancel out their away goal and put us firmly in the driving seat. Knight put us ahead before Shkendija parted company with an equaliser, and we had done more than enough. A 6-3 aggregate win, and a clash with the Cypriot cup winners awaited.

EvilDave · August 27, 2015

If Shkendija had been an unknown quantity, Anorthosis were much easier to find out about. They had been crowned champions of their native Cyprus no fewer than 13 times – including as recently as 2008 – and had a host of Cypriot Cup titles to boot, the most recent of which had landed them in the Europa League qualifiers with us. They were a side with European pedigree too, having reached the lucrative group stage of the Champions League in 2008/09. They were expected to be too good for little Prestatyn.

From the moment we touched down in Cyprus and boarded the bus for Larnaca – their native Famagusta remaining under Turkish occupation – we were out of our comfortable zone. With the temperature peaking in the mid-40s, it was easy to see why so many Brits decide to spend their summer holidays sunning themselves on the Mediterranean island. Even as day gave way to evening, the heat was stifling.

They were conditions which our hosts’ multi-national squad was far more accustomed to, and it showed on the field. We did well enough to hold them to a goalless first half, but in the second my men began to tire, and it was through a defensive slip-up that we handed them the initiative. Huw Lewis played a routine square pass too far in front of Edwards at the back, and the former TNS man could only lunge desperately as Toni Calvo slotted the ball past Wilson for the opener.

Five minutes later the same man was in again to double the advantage, and unless we changed something fast we were in trouble. As I prepared a double substitution we were fortuitously handed a lifeline – Mullan’s ball in from the right inexplicably handled by one of the Anorthosis defenders, and up stepped Knight to convert the penalty and give us the away goal we barely deserved. From nothing, we were back in the tie.

Unfortunately, our Cypriot opponents grabbed a third before the final whistle, and so arrived for the return leg in Wales with a two-goal lead to protect. We knew we had a chance with the away goal, but had to somehow keep up their potent attack whilst at the same time grabbing two ourselves. It would not be an easy task, and as we reached half time with the score still 0-0, we had little choice but to throw caution to the North Wales wind.

When a Scotcher free kick clattered off the woodwork at the beginning of the second period, it looked like it would be one of those days. When Hart was denied what appeared to be a stonewall penalty, our suspicions were almost confirmed. Even when Josh Knight led from the front and gave us the lead on the night with 20 minutes to go, we needed to do more if we were to go through. We had to go for it, cross our fingers and hope.

Hope we did, but in vain. Both of our front two tested the Anorthosis goalkeeper without finding a way past, and at the other end Wilson had to be on high alert as our defence pushed further and further up to squeeze the game. With five minutes to go, Calvo grabbed his third goal of the tie only to be denied by a generous offside call, but we had nothing left in the tank. The 1-0 win was a valiant one and signalled great progress for little Prestatyn, but ultimately it was little consolation for the 3-2 aggregate defeat. One more goal would have done it, but we were still a long way from making an impression in Europe.

That just left a handful of friendlies to negotiate before our season began with a trip to Connah’s Quay, and after our extended European adventure the results were a little concerning this time round. It took us five games to get a win – against Flint Town – after losing at home to Cardiff and then three successive draws against Chester, Prestatyn Rovers and Rhyl Athletic, but we rounded off our preparations with another couple of victories over smaller teams and eventually looked in good shape. If we were to take the title back from TNS, we needed to hit the ground running.

neilhoskins77 · August 27, 2015

Don't be too hard on yourself EvilDave. Getting a kinder draw in the opening Qualification Round and getting through easily, and then giving the Cypriot Cup winners, and one of the perennial challengers in that country, is no mean feat. Take the crown back off TNS this season, and then a kinder draw in the Champions League Qualifiers instead of the Europe League would give your club a huge shot in the arm financially, and then the push forward can really gather pace. Great work as always.

jdoyle9293 · August 27, 2015

Wow, that Europa qualifier was tough on you, Dave, especially in the second leg--but it shows how much they have improved and hopefully will be back to regain the title from TNS and Ardley in the upcoming season.

tenthreeleader · August 27, 2015

I blame Ardley. It's the right thing to do.

Sorry to read this, was pulling for you to make a splash in Europe. Now go and take it out of his hide!

EvilDave · August 28, 2015

Thank you for the encouragements folks, the result in Cyprus was hard to take but it's all a good lesson. Unfortunately our league campaign has somewhat stuttered out of the blocks...

--

We did manage to get our season off to the right start with a 2-1 win over Connah’s Quay, but even then the warning signs were there. A goal apiece in the first half from Knight and Hart had put us on easy street, but we took our foot off the pedal in the second period and came dangerously close to dropping points after the hosts pulled one back. The points were on the board, but the performance left something to be desired.

Which was unfortunate, because our very next match was the first of the season against Neil Ardley and TNS. The champions had strengthened over the summer with acquisition of two Northern Irish youngsters – one of whom had already picked up his first caps for the national team – and they too had claimed three points on opening day, earning a 3-0 home win over Rhyl. We would need to be at our best to stop them carrying last season’s form into the new campaign.

Ultimately, although Josh Knight kept up his excellent early season form with a fine strike on the hour mark, we weren’t good enough. The two new signings brought more pace to a potent TNS attack, and when they took the lead midway through the first half things began to look ominous. Our midfield wasn’t quite at the races, and so when Nicholas Rushton fired past Wilson five minutes before the break, the writing was on the wall.

Of course, Ardley took great delight in beating us on our own patch, and gleefully announced to the assembled media in the post-match press conference that he was confident his side could retain the title. The Rhyl Journal led the following day with a declaration that the race was already won and Prestatyn were fighting for second place, while the nationals that featured their local league were happy to go along with the party line from Oswestry. We had been outplayed at home, and needed to pick ourselves up quickly.

But there was something not quite right about the side, and the away trip to Afan Lido, back in the league after winning promotion from the regional feeder divisions, seemed to prove it. We were sluggish with the ball and a yard off the pace without it, and for a while it seemed like the hosts’ first half goal would consign us to defeat. Only the introduction of Ian Sullivan from the bench turned the tide in our favour as the teenager set up Knight for the equaliser and then scored himself three minutes later, but a general malaise seemed to have affected the entire team.

The following week, we made the short trip to Rhyl and contrived to throw away victory in the most frustrating of circumstances. Two goals in the opening 15 minutes had the travelling fans thinking they were in for a treat, but some slack passing and poor defending meant the hosts had clawed back the deficit by the time the half time whistle was blown. Wilson was beaten for a third time five minutes into the second half, and we needed a thunderbolt from Zola to earn a single point. With TNS winning comfortably in Aberystwyth, we were already five points off the pace after just four games.

I didn’t know what was wrong, but I knew I needed to sort it out. Whether our Europa League run had taken more out of the players than I had expected, whether TNS’ form had convinced them there was no title to be won, whether other sides had simply figured out how to play against us – something wasn’t right, and something needed to change. We had seven games before we faced Ardley’s side again in the league, and we needed to win them all to stay in touch. The champions would not let us back in the race easily.

EvilDave · September 1, 2015

Before our next game against Airbus, I decided to make my points demand known to the squad. I needed to make sure that they were on the same page as me in terms of challenging for the title, and anybody happy to play second fiddle to TNS for the remainder of their career would soon find themselves out of the team.

Happily, the players were happy to hear of my ambition, and it was renewed vigour that we headed to Broughton to take on the Wingmakers. This time there was to be no complacency, no easing up after the job was done, and the 2-0 win we recorded was one of the most convincing of my time with Prestatyn. The first goal was the first deposit in Jamie Mullan’s account, and Frater fired in the second before we saw out time with very few problems. It was only one game, but we were back.

We rounded out August with the visit of Carmarthen, and again we were relatively convincing without showing anything spectacular. An early penalty gifted the away side the lead – Huw Lewis’ inexperience showing with a poorly timed challenge – but within 10 minutes we were level, and again it was left to Frater to net the winner in the second half after Knight’s leveller. We were winning, and although TNS were doing us no favours, we were back in the groove.

At home, Rachel was beginning to settle back into the pattern of part-time work. The first two weeks had been difficult – torn between the desire to spend as much time as possible with Bethan while also doing more than her fair share of work in the office, but eventually she had begun to the new routine. Bethan showed few signs of being affected by the time spent apart from her mummy, and while sleep continued to be an issue for all three of us, the Williams household was a happy one.

I was determined to keep it that way, and while they may not have known it, my players were a contributing factor. As long as we kept winning, my mood was good, as when we stuck four goals past a lacklustre Aberystwyth on the first day of October, I returned home positively beaming. That left a week and a half to fine-tune things in training over the international break, after which a shadow squad eventually managed to see off Newtown in our League Cup opener – Mullan netting the winning spot-kick after 120 minutes produced a 1-1 deadlock. It wasn’t convincing, but it wasn’t all that important either.

What was important was the way we recovered to face Port Talbot just three days later, and with both sides having played extra time in the cup, it was not a game for the purists. For the neutrals however, it was a thriller, and we went in at the break locked at 2-2 after a rapid exchange of goals in the opening 25 minutes. Our hosts had taken the lead, Knight and Frater had turned it around, and then right on the whistle we’d been pegged back. With defending apparently optional, it was anyone’s game.

Fortunately, we took hold of proceedings and Frater wasted little time putting us 3-2 to the good with a glancing header from Hart’s ball in. The same man was denied a hat-trick by the offside flag before Scotcher curled in a free kick to give us breathing space, and although the hosts got a third goal in injury time, we had been by far the better side in the second half. It was a good recovery, a great game of football, and a result that Rachel was grateful for as I returned home smiling. Things were looking up once again.

EvilDave · September 2, 2015

Things looked even better the following day when, fresh from being broomed from the League Cup by Bangor on penalties, TNS travelled to Maes Tegid and lost 1-0 to a fired-up Bala Town. That put us within touching distance once again, and handed us a modicum of momentum in the title race. Our rivals would bounce back with a 5-1 crushing of poor Connah’s Quay, but a penalty kick was all we needed to sneak past Newtown and keep the pressure on Neil Ardley’s men at the top of the table.

Yet much like last season, TNS refused to stop winning. In their next three matches – the third a Welsh Cup clash with non-league Ton Pentre – they recorded scores of 4-1, 4-1 and 3-0, with not one of their opponents got even close to giving them a game beyond the first few minutes. Once more the media was full of proclamations of a new era of domination for the Oswestry traitors, and with scorelines as convincing as theirs, it was easy to understand why. We were the next visitors to Park Hall, and although we clung on for 78 of the 90 minutes, two late goals consigned us to a 3-1 defeat and open the gap up once more.

Yet despite our setback, we were in good form ourselves. After beating Newtown, a 3-1 win over Rhyl put us into the last four of the League Cup before a crazy game at Bangor saw us wind up 4-3 winners. We were much more composed I seeing off Bala 2-0 at home, and our own Welsh Cup journey began as we put six past the unfortunate Port Talbot – although the three we conceded were of some concern. We booked a spot in the League Cup final with another win over Bangor, and only then did we come up against the TNS machine.

In short, we had matched my unlikely aim of winning every game before the TNS clash, and as such the gap after our defeat was still just five points. This time there would be a minimum of 10 league games before we met Ardley’s side again, and my challenge to the team was the same – if we were to keep on winning, we would have every chance of going into that game either top of table, hot on their heels, or as hot favourites.

There would be many twists and turns before then, of course – not least that the news that the Williams family planning conversation had been in good time. On the day we beat Newtown in the league, I returned home to a beaming Rachel, who told me the fourth member of the household would be here much sooner than we had expected. She was already almost three months pregnant – and had evidently hidden it so well as to barely notice herself - and around the same time as the Premier League reached the critical stage in April, Bethan would become a big sister if all went to plan. For that reason and others, the defeat to TNS did not rankle nearly as much as others had.

EvilDave · September 3, 2015

On the next matchday, we picked up our good goalscoring with a 4-1 success over Connah’s Quay, which was matched by our title rivals as they smashed four unanswered goals past Rhyl. The apparent gulf in quality between our two sides and the rest of the league had some of the more adventurous newspapers talking of a ‘duopoly’ between Prestatyn and TNS, stating that no other side looked likely to break into the top two as long as Ardley and I remained at the helms of our respective clubs. It was nice enough to read, but I wouldn’t be completely satisfied until the hooped plague was removed from the picture.

At any rate, their predictions were made to look a little foolish the following week as TNS were held to a goalless draw by Airbus in Broughton. We pulled to within three points with a comprehensive victory over Afan Lido at home, and again the momentum seemed to be with us. Ardley’s side returned to winning ways after their blip, but Josh Knight’s brace saw us comfortably past our local rivals Rhyl to keep up the pressure, and the end of the season was already looking like a thriller.

The end of the season, of course, posed problems after Rachel’s recent revelation. With a due date of early April for the second Williams child, it was looking like I would need to take paternity leave at the most important time of the league season. If both ourselves and TNS kept winning, there was every chance the title could come down to the final few games, and I could not afford to be absent. On the contrary, I could not consider being away from my wife and young children at such a crucial time for them.

In the end, Mr Tipping and the board agreed that I would be able to take some time to be with my family, but there would be no extension this time unless the title was either out of reach or already secured. I reluctantly agreed – I had little choice – on the condition that if Rachel, Bethan or our newborn child fell ill, I would be out of Bastion Gardens without seeking permission. Such were the conditions we settled on, and I was pleased to put such thoughts out of my mind for the time being.

I was also glad of a home game on Boxing Day this year, as once again family would be descending on Prestatyn to be with me, Rachel and Bethan. After the lads had seen off a spirited Carmarthen side on 17th, I had the best part of a week to make the event as magical as possible for my first-born. Much like last year, she was too young to truly understand what was going on, but this would be the first time she would at least be able to interact with the occasion. It would also be her last Christmas as an only child, a fact which succeeded in shocking both me and Rachel.

In the end, the festive period was a joyous one for all. A surprise visit from Rachel’s cousins, who had travelled all the way from Canada to be with us, was wonderful, and Bethan – while apparently more interested in tearing open wrapping paper than the gifts therein – was at least able to bring a smile to family members by playing with their carefully-chosen gifts. Again, it was over far too quickly, and although my dad and brother came along to Bastion Gardens on Boxing Day, it was back to business before I knew it.

My watching family were greeted to a blistering first half display against visiting Airbus, as first Hart and then Mullan and Knight found the back of the net in the opening half hour. We cruised through to the break, had a fourth goal chalked off for a foul midway through the second half, and then struggled to care too much as the Broughton side grabbed a late consolation to paper over their many cracks.

As an eventful 2016 drew to a close, there would be one final twist in the tale. On 30th December, two goals from Ian Sullivan made the difference for us away at a stubborn Aberystwyth, taking us level on points with TNS before the champions played their game. Yet 24 hours later we remained tied at the top, the English club going down by a single goal to Bangor. Exactly halfway through the Premier League season, only goal difference separated us from our hated rivals. And for once, we believed we could do it.

EvilDave · September 5, 2015

To describe January as a mixed month seems appropriate, although perhaps misleading. On the face of things, it would be a simple month to summarise – five matches, through which Prestatyn remained unbeaten, and comfortable progress into the quarter-finals of the Welsh Cup. However, beneath the simple figures, January turned into a month which could yet prove decisive in the ongoing battle for the title.

Our first performance of 2017 was sublime. Port Talbot were the visitors, and after we had beaten them 6-3 in the cup earlier the season, they were probably just hoping to keep things a little tighter at the back than last time. So when Gareth Partridge got the first goal of the game after just 10 minutes, they were probably very frustrated. When Elliot Scotcher bagged our second before the interval, they would have been resigned to defeat.

Yet we weren’t done, and while Josh Knight added his name to the scoresheet in the second half, the game really belonged to Partridge. Increasingly a bit-part player in the squad, he took his chance well, netting twice more in the space of six second half minutes to claim a hat-trick with his first three shots of the match. He would take two more – both on target, but both pushed away by the desolate Port Talbot keeper – and make a convincing case for more time on the field.

A week later, he was robbed of a goal by Bangor’s defender Craig Garside, who deflected his shot beyond his own keeper and into the net. Unfortunately, that was to prove the high point for us – the visitors equalised in the second half and we couldn’t find a way through, allowing TNS to open up a two-point gap with their 4-1 thrashing of Carmarthen. It was just a single game, but it was a single game that tipped the balance ever so slightly in favour of the defending champions.

Yet the following week it was us who found ourselves top of the table after TNS crashed 2-1 away in Connah’s Quay. We left it late to claim all three points in Newtown but did so courtesy of a thumping header from Kye Edwards and another Partridge goal, and a defeat for Ardley’s rabble put us a point ahead in the race for glory. In the final league round of the month, it was Afan Lido who made the headlines, comfortably beating the boys from Oswestry 2-0 and giving us a chance to further extend our lead at the top.

Yet we were unable to make the most of their slip-up, Elliot Scotcher’s brace not enough to claim all three points at Maes Tegid. On both occasions his goals were equalisers after Bala had taken the lead, and in the end the 2-2 result was a fair reflection of a highly competitive encounter. It meant that we would take a two-point advantage into the final post-split fixtures, and with 10 matches still to play – not to mention two against TNS – the final destination of the Premier League trophy remained anyone’s guess. Whether it rested at Bastion Gardens or Park Hall, the owners would certainly have earned it.

We saw off January with a comfortable 3-1 win over minnows Flint Town to move into the last eight of the Welsh Cup, for which the draw gave us another home game, this time with Aberystwyth. They were one of the sides we would play no more in the league after being confined to the bottom half of the table, and when the final batch of fixtures were released, it was already obvious where the title might be won and lost. We faced Airbus first, then would welcome the English to Prestatyn. Then, on 18th March – just a couple of weeks before Rachel was due to give birth – we would travel to Oswestry. The business end of the season had arrived.

EvilDave · September 7, 2015

In the 92nd minute of the game in Broughton, we were taking a single point from our trip. An early goal for the hosts had us firmly on the back foot throughout the first half, and it was only a dubious decision that handed us a lifeline – Mullan adjudged to have been fouled, and Kinsella thundering home the dead ball to level the score.

Yet in the 93rd minute, the same man threaded one final ball between two Airbus defenders, and Josh Knight had timed his run to perfection. His first touch brought the ball under control, his second allowed him to steady himself, and the third lashed the ball beyond Nikki Lee-Bulmer in the home goal and claim three thoroughly undeserved points. With TNS winning their game, it was a truly crucial goal.

Not least because it meant we would welcome Ardley’s side as league leaders rather than trailing on goal difference, and Knight’s strike emphasised the fine lines between success and failure in the sport. Four minutes into the match the same fine line was shown up once more – Luke Williams was onside by the finest of margins as he latched onto a chipped pass over our defence, and in the blink of an eye TNS had the lead.

It lasted just seven minutes. Gareth Partridge was enjoying something of a purple patch in the second half of the season, and it was his instinctive movement that pulled us level. Hart evaded one challenge before reaching the byline, and as his cutback flew beyond the reach of the TNS defence, our in-form striker was in the perfect position to finish after peeling off his man. All square, game on.

The frantic opening would prove the only real action of the first half, and even the second half did little to live up to the expectation raised so high by the opening salvos. Kinsella went closest with a drive that skidded past Ross Wormley’s left-hand post, while at the other end Wilson had to be alert to smother at the feet of Gerard Kirk. Eventually, both sides ran out of time, and although neither I nor Ardley were particularly thrilled with the 1-1 draw, it helped our cause far more than theirs. For that reason alone, I was pleased.

Yet while I managed to arrange a babysitter for Bethan to allow me to treat Rachel on Valentine’s Day – not something I usually give much credence to, but parenthood has changed us both – my bright mood would not last beyond the next weekend. We travelled to Bala and came up against a side on a mission to take all three points, and were simply blown apart by a second half showing which saw them score three unanswered goals to take the game 4-2.

Mercifully, Airbus again came to our rescue by holding TNS to a 1-1 draw, meaning we held the slenderest of advantages despite the defeat. However, a week later, as Lido came to Bastion Gardens and set their stall out for a point which they duly received, Ardley’s men saw off Bala by two goals to one and leapfrogged us into pole position. We had work to do.

EvilDave · September 9, 2015

We began that work by making serene progress in the Welsh Cup, defeating Aberystwyth 4-2 thanks in no small part to the head of Huw Lewis – our young centre back heading in two corners in the first half to set us on our way. That win set up a semi-final with Monmouth and, if the form book was anything to go by, a likely final against none other than TNS. As if our battle for the league title was not enough.

Our rivals faced two away games in quick succession as they looked to make the most of the two-point lead, and frustratingly they were able to do just enough to squeeze past Lido and Bangor on the road. We too would travel to the latter – making the short journey a week earlier – and perhaps did TNS an inadvertent favour by thrashing our local rivals 5-1, a brace each from Knight and Frater sandwiching a comical own goal that summed up the day for our hapless hosts.

Another double, this time from the unlikely source of Jandir Zola, was enough to ease us past Airbus back at Bastion Gardens, a game that remarkably earned Rhys Wilson his first clean sheet since the 5-0 demolition of Port Talbot in early January. Our goalkeeper was understandably delighted with the shut-out, but I made it clear to him that I did not hold him personally responsible for any of our dropped points in the meantime. If we win as a team, we have to lose and draw as a team also.

With the two wins for TNS meaning it was business as usual at the top end of the table, the Premier League suffered its first casualty of the season as Carmarthen became the first club to be relegated. Port Talbot would eventually join them – perhaps unsurprisingly given how porous their defence had been in our three encounters – and it quickly put into perspective what might have been had I not overhauled the Prestatyn squad when I did.

It was a squad that was hotly tipped for relegation and a life stuck in the regional leagues that are scattered across Wales, and while I drew criticism at the time – not least from the Rhyl Journal – the results since the dramatic makeover have justified the purge. In its current state, the squad would be able to challenge, if not beat, TNS for years to come, and silverware was a genuine possibility.

But for now, the years to come were far from our minds at Bastion Gardens. With just four matches left in the league, one cup final and another semi-final, we were on the verge of Welsh football history. Yet at the same time, we risked finishing the year empty-handed once again. TNS held the narrowest of advantages in the title race, remained a likely opponent in the Welsh Cup final if we made it through our respective semi-finals, and Aberystwyth would not lie down in the League Cup finale.

First of all, we had to deal with business in the league. With four games to go, our next match would be against the very side that stood in our way. We had to go to Park Hall, and we had to win.

tenthreeleader · September 9, 2015

Always wonderful to have a shot at a treble. Good read as always, Dave!

jdoyle9293 · September 10, 2015

It's been a while since I've commented but I've been following the chase of Prestatyn's silverware, looks like this season could go one of two ways. Brilliant writing as per, EvilDave.

withnail316 · September 11, 2015

I wasn't aware this forum existed, but I was always a fan of your FMCU threads, Dave. Will be following this one. :thup:

EvilDave · September 15, 2015

Thank you all for your encouragement, and welcome to the forum withnail - glad to have you on board and I hope you take time to read some of the other efforts on the forum, they're well worth your time!

--

In life, there are many moments that kick you in the pit of the stomach, leaving you on the ground gasping for air and wanting desperately to throw in the towel. It might be the death of a loved one, an unexpected rejection, or watching your hero fail at the critical moment. Time and time again we are faced with hardship and despair, and are asked to climb off the canvas for another round.

In sport, and particularly football management, there are many more opportunities to be knocked off your feet. It might be the last-minute winner in a cup final – as we suffered at the hands of TNS in my first season – or an undeserved red card in a crucial league match. It might be, as the unfortunate Carmarthen boss Geraint Williams so recently experienced, a relegation that costs you your job.

Yet at the same time, throughout life there are moments of pure bliss that make everything else worthwhile. Days when everything goes just perfectly, when nothing can bring you down. Acing an exam, marrying the woman of your dreams, holding your firstborn child in your arms. Nothing I ever achieve with Prestatyn will match the last two.

If it were possible to bottle a week, I would choose a week in the middle of March 2017. It began at Park Hall in Oswestry, against an opponent we knew all too well and had been beaten by all too many times. TNS had taken the lead this time too, but we had battled back to equalise through Craig Frater. Even so, a point would play into the hands of our hosts, and we needed more.

Then, with the clock ticking in the 92nd minute, Frater became the hero. So many times we had been cruelly denied late on by Neil Ardley’s men, and this time it was their turn to fall to their knees in disbelief. All game they had attacked us, all game it had been all we could do to clear our lines. But all it took was three passes – Scotcher to Partridge, Partridge to Mullan, Mullan to Frater. The final ball was so precise that our striker only needed a single touch. Wormley had no chance, and we had stolen all three points. With three matches to go, we were top of the table once again.

Two days later, I took a phone call in the office. Almost two weeks earlier than expected, Rachel had gone into labour. I made a quick call to Chris Tipping to let him know what was happening, and within five minutes I was on the road.

By the time I arrived at the hospital, Rachel had already been taken through to the maternity ward and was being seen to by the team of nurses who would see her through the birth. Our next-door neighbour had very kindly offered to look after Bethan when Rachel told her what was going on, and I asked the nurses whether I should go and get her – to bring the family together. No, I was told in no uncertain terms – this one was in a rush to see the world.

In the end I would have had time – but only just. A little over two hours after I arrived, Rachel gave one final push, and out came Bethan’s younger sister. As the nurse handed our tiny newborn over to an exhausted Rachel, the smile that came over my wife’s face was, quite simply perfect. Not in a Hollywood sense of the word, with airbrushed features and perfect symmetry – in a real, warm, just-had-a-baby kind of way.

I eventually left Rachel with baby Rebecca as they stayed the night, and returned home to collect Bethan from our neighbour. I tried to explain to her that mummy was bringing her sister home, that she would have a new friend to play with and that there would be four of us from now one, but she didn’t seem to understand a huge amount. She would find out soon enough though, and I only hoped she would learn to live without demanding 100 per cent of our collective attention.

neilhoskins77 · September 15, 2015

Go on, admit it. You enjoyed beating TNS with a last minute winner much more didn't you.......

jdoyle9293 · September 18, 2015

Possibly the most successful update of the story thus far. A child being born and a last minute winner over the league leaders to usurp them at the top. Excellent!

EvilDave · September 19, 2015

Thank you chaps, things are certainly looking good in the Williams household. Let's see if we can keep that going, shall we?..

--

As Bethan got used to life as a sibling rather than an only child, I was for once thankful to UEFA for their scheduling. An international break for European Championship qualifiers gave my men the best part of a fortnight off before their next game – a spell that coincided perfectly with my agreed paternity leave. Chris Tipping hadn’t minded when Bethan was born, but with Rebecca born at such a crucial time of the year he was less keen to see me away from Bastion Gardens.

So I returned to the ground in time for us to welcome Bala, a game which would take place at the same time as TNS’ clash with Airbus. Now we were in front, all the pressure was on our title rivals, and it showed – a solitary goal in the second half enough for the Broughton club to take all three points, and present us with the opportunity to all but seal the title in front of our own fans. Of course, we weren’t aware of developments in Oswestry at the time – did we do enough?

We did – just. As TNS fell by a single goal, we were able to overcome Colin Caton’s side by the same 1-0 scoreline, Frater grabbing probably the biggest goal of his career in the 72nd minute to put us on the brink of championship glory. With two games to go, one more win would be enough for us to wrest the crown from our English enemies and once again establish ourselves as the best team in Wales. We were nearly there.

Before then, I was able to count on the support of my whole family for our Welsh Cup semi-final against Monmouth. We were heavy favourites for the game against the non-league side, but you may recall that in our last meeting with the minnows, they had handed us a defeat which went some way to gifting TNS the title. We could not underestimate them, particularly as we sought to lift a trophy that had thus far eluded us.

In the end, the game was a walk in the park. It took just seven minutes for Ian Sullivan to put my rotated side in front, and when Huw Lewis headed in from a free kick 20 minutes later it was all over. Still, we weren’t about to lift our foot off the gas, and by half time it was 3-0, Sullivan grabbing his second of the game to stake a claim for more regular football.

He bolstered that claim by rounding off his hat-trick in the second half, and a fine long-range effort from Kinsella finished off a 5-1 win that could, and perhaps should, have been even more convincing. While Rebecca would not remember her first football match, it was a good game for her to attend. I could unashamedly blow my kisses to the executive box with a resounding win under my belt, and we were another step closer to the domestic treble.

Of course, our path to glory would not be simple. Aberystwyth lie in wait in the League Cup, while the other Welsh Cup semi-final had seen our biggest rivals win an end-to-end battle with Carmarthen 3-2 after extra time. One week after the conclusion of a thrilling league season, we would take on TNS for what we hoped would be the final piece in the jigsaw.

Before then, we would host Bangor in a game that could see us crowned champions. Our local rivals would be in no mood to roll over and watch us claim victory, but the fact of the matter was that if TNS failed to overcome Bala the previous day, we would be crowned without kicking a ball. As we gathered in the clubhouse to listen to the game on the radio, our hopes were dashed as Gerard Kirk fired Ardley’s men into an early lead. It looked like we would have to play for the title after all…

jdoyle9293 · September 20, 2015

I'm sensing a Bala Town comeback here! What a great end to the season which looks as though you're going to become champions again. Love it, good work.

mark wilson27 · September 20, 2015

Fingers crossed for your men Evil,

EvilDave · September 23, 2015

Well called Mr Doyle, well called. Thank you both for your encouragements - it's been a good season!

--

Our biggest crowd of the season came to watch us take on Bangor, and if they were hoping for a rampaging win to wrap up the title, they were disappointed. However, those simply coming for an entertaining game of football were most certainly not, as we shared six goals with our local rivals in one of the most free-flowing games of the season.

Craig Frater took the plaudits on the day for his hat-trick, but the atmosphere was such that it didn’t matter who was scoring. Bala had come back from a goal down to win 2-1 in Oswestry the night before, so our title party had already got underway. Even a late Bangor equaliser could do nothing to dampen our spirits, and when Knight stepped up onto the podium to lift the Premier League trophy, the celebrations began in earnest.

The first title I had won with Prestatyn brought both euphoria and a whetted appetite for further success. It had been borne out of injustice the previous year and a hatred for TNS as much as a desire to win. This time, however, was different. A father of two, an established manager, and in charge of one of Wales’ pre-eminent football clubs, this was to be our bread and butter. The euphoria was replaced by a deep satisfaction, the hate by simple happiness, and the desire by an expectation that further success would be forthcoming. In short, we had arrived.

Unfortunately for the players, the pictures that made most of the back pages the next day – me saluting Bastion Gardens with the trophy in one hand and Rebecca in the other – would not be the end of their endeavours for the year. They did have yet another two-week break to enjoy – this one simply the result of poor scheduling from the FA – but we had more silverware to chase, beginning with the League Cup.

Aberystwyth would be our opponents, and they had done well to make it to the showpiece event after running into both Bala and Lido on their way. In the league, they become a permanent fixture of the bottom six, but we could not afford to underestimate them. After all, in Welsh cup games, upsets seemed to have become the norm.

In the end we needn’t have worried, Frater striking after just five minutes to calm any nerves that may have been hampering the men on the field. We were controlling the play, and it seemed only a matter of time before the second goal arrived. Fittingly, it was captain Knight would did the honours just before the break, and we had one hand on the trophy.

Despite a late consolation for Aberystwyth, at the end of the 90 minutes it was Knight who once again was able to lift a trophy into the air at the end of a successful campaign. While the League Cup will forever be the lesser of the three domestic trophies available, I have always been a firm believer in the fact that success breeds success. Every trophy we could win was one more taste of victory, one more night to remember, one more medal to savour. One more that TNS couldn’t claim as their own.

jdoyle9293 · September 24, 2015

Excellente! On your way to a domestic treble and the following season will be beginning in a month or so at the CHAMPIOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOONS League, can't wait, hope you beat TNS in the other cup final as well.

EvilDave · September 29, 2015

Alas, the season ended as Meatloaf would have it rather than in perfection. Still, a good year...

--

Yet, despite our rivals going down to yet another defeat in their final league game – this time to Bangor – we could not stop them finishing the season with one trophy to their name. We had overcome Lido with two goals straight from our youth academy in our final game, Sullivan and McCreesh both on the scoresheet, but even our rotation did us little good in the Welsh Cup clash.

Ardley’s men may have lost their last four games in the league, but after losing to Bala and handing us the title, they had simply rested their entire first team squad in preparation for the cup final. Their freshness showed as we struggled to get going, and in the end two second half goals from Thornton and Kirk were enough to take the cup back to England and deny us a piece of Welsh footballing history.

Still, while TNS had won the battle, we had indisputably won the war this season. Unlike previous seasons, when we had endured a post-split collapse and watched Ardley’s charges ride off into the distance, we had put on enough pressure to see them do exactly the same. After the league’s division, the Oswestry traitors had won just four of their 10 games, losing four and drawing the other two. By contrast, we fell to just a single defeat – away at Bala - winning six and tying the other three. Quite simply, we had outlasted our rivals.

It was a fact that seemed to bode well for next season when, with a settled squad in the business of winning silverware, we would hope to go one better and add the Welsh Cup to our trophy cabinet. I did not foresee any major changes to the starting line-up – there would no doubt be one or two youngsters joining from around Wales – and with Champions League action returning to Prestatyn, we had much to look forward to despite our cup final defeat.

Before that, of course, was the chance to disappear from the world of football for a few weeks with my ever-growing family. Rachel was coping admirably with the challenge of juggling a toddling Bethan and the demands of little baby Rebecca, so I had vowed to spend a prolonged period of time at home – both to give her some much-needed rest and to give my family the time they deserved. It was the least I could do after their steadfast support.

Indeed, with the help of willing grandparents and a little persuasion, I was even able to treat Rachel to a few days away on Anglesey. While the location was not the most exotic, the opportunity to recharge and reconnect with one another after a draining year was most welcome, and while it may only have been a couple of days, we returned to Prestatyn refreshed and ready for whatever life could throw at us.

One thing we did know was coming was Bethan’s second birthday, and trying to figure out how to best entertain a two-year-old who knew it was an important day, but not quite why, proved to be a difficult task. Not least because in the meantime, despite my best attempts to follow through with my promises of a football-free summer, there was excitement caused by the draw for the Champions League. After our Europa League exploits against Shkendija, our seeding had been sufficiently boosted to earn us a much more winnable tie in the first round of qualifying. Rather than Belarus or Serbia, we would be off to San Marino.

tenthreeleader · September 30, 2015

Beautiful work, Dave. Really pleased to see such good stuff on the forum these days.

EvilDave · October 6, 2015

Thank you 10-3, that's one of the most encouraging comments I've had on the forums. Glad to know you're still enjoying Owain's adventures!

--

Before then however, there would be the usual raft of transfers both in and out of the club. As stated before, there would be very little movement in the first team, but in terms of promising youngsters and depth signings, I had been as busy as ever – trying to get business done early so as not to upset Rachel and the girls.

There would be one or two players out the door however, and not all of them would be decisions that pleased the fans. In particular, the departures of Tom Bradley – which left us relying on youth graduate Sean Powell in the case of injury to Wilson – and Michael Pearson – who simply demanded more time on the pitch than I could offer – seemed to cause a few stirs.

The most significant departure by far, however, was that of a certain Gareth Partridge. Gareth had been instrumental in the success achieved by Prestatyn since my arrival, often appearing as a substitute to net vital goals or leading the line in the absence of Knight or Frater. Despite all this, he was still unable to dislodge either of our front two from their starting spots, and with the development of Ian Sullivan found himself battling two youth graduates for a spot on the bench. When Bala signalled their interest, I couldn’t bring myself to stand in the way.

To offset the departure of Pearson, I acted quickly to bring in Liam Shepherd to play support to Chris Davies on the right side of defence. Liam was another ex-TNS squad member, and had made a fair few appearances against my side. I had liked what I’d seen, and when Ardley refused him a new deal, I was happy to snap him up for my own side. We also beat the English side to the signature of 35-year-old defender Darren Jones, but the former Wrexham man would only see time on the pitch in exceptional circumstances – instead spending the majority of his time coaching the reserve squad.

Three other men did arrive that I hoped would make a more visible impact at the club, if not for several years. The first to arrive was Guy Clarke, a creative teenage forward who had previously been learning his trade at lowly Llanelli Town. It would be a big step up for him to compete on three domestic fronts and Europe, but my scouts were convinced he had the skills to succeed in the long term. After their previous finds, I trusted their judgement.

Similar promise was attributed to Steve Bishop, the young centre back we managed to poach from Afan Lido. Tall, imposing and with a well-timed tackle to his name, Bishop already had first-team experience in the Premier League. He would begin the season on the fringes of our squad, with the opportunity to prove himself in the League Cup and in times of crisis at the back.

The only man likely to make an immediate impact came as part of an unofficial swap deal with Bala. In Partridge’s absence, they had turned to Jack Christopher to find their goals, and he had rewarded them handsomely, netting 24 in his 28 games last season. When I asked my scouts to find me a more experienced striker to rotate with my established front two, he ticked all their boxes, and would probably see plenty of action over the coming year.

The changes made were small – the bulk of the double-winning squad remained in place, with a slight upgrade in Shepherd over Pearson and more young talent added to our youth ranks. Chris Tipping was eager to give me the formal backing of the board in our usual pre-season chat, and once again they seemed happy as long as we were finishing in the top three and reaching the Europa League. As defending champions I would not have begrudged them a little more ambition, but I declined to make a rod for my own back. Not with the added pressure of being in the spotlight.

jdoyle9293 · October 6, 2015

Damn shame about not picking up the three trophies at the end of the last season but with the shake-up in pre-season this time round and promise of Champions League football again - things could go a bit differently. Good writing as per usual - hoping you can make a dent in Europe this time out!

EvilDave · October 12, 2015

Thank you - it was certainly one of Owain's better years, and things look bright for the coming one...

--

Before we could fall under the eyes of the domestic spotlight, our season began in the Champions League. We had been here – the first qualifying round – once before, and had been comprehensively beaten by Levadia Tallinn. This time, our opponents were simply not of the same quality. Cailungo had won the complicated play-off system used to determine the champion of San Marino, but were far from regulars at Europe’s top table. Part-time like ourselves, the club from the tiny nation in Italy were the bookies’ favourites to make an early exit.

Despite the apparent gulf in class between us and our opposition, Belle Vue was at its 1,720 capacity for another one of our European ties. Perhaps it was curiosity that brought the good folk of Prestatyn and Rhyl out to watch us take on the Sammarinese champions, perhaps it was the lack of entertainment on a Welsh summer’s evening, or perhaps there was genuine fervour for a game between two part-time football teams from two of Europe’s lesser sporting nations. Whatever the reason, we were happy for the gate receipts.

We were even happier after just 34 seconds, which is as long as it took Cullen Kinsella to grab the goal that put us ahead in the tie. Considering Cailungo had kicked off, the goal – a low finish from the edge of the area – was more testament to our opponents’ ineptitude than our own skill, but we were not about to look the gift horse in the mouth. We were favourites, but we had seen that tag dismissed in the past.

But if this game was supposed to be one for the underdogs, nobody had told Jack Christopher. Making his debut for the club in place of Frater, who was not quite at full fitness, the former Bala man put on a goalscoring clinic to announce his arrival at the champions. In the 12th minute he headed in our second goal, in the 15th he rounded the keeper for the third, and in the 17th he completed Prestatyn’s quickest ever hat-trick with a ferocious shot which flicked off a visiting defender into the corner of the net. We were 4-0 up, and we still had three quarters of the first leg to play.

There would be no more scoring in the first half, but it didn’t take us long to get up and running in the second – Kinsella doubling his personal tally inside five minutes. Jamie Mullan got on the scoreboard shortly afterwards, and when Christopher walked off the field to a standing ovation in the 82nd minute, it was after converting a penalty for his fourth of the match. The referee did show some mercy to the opposition by neglecting to play any injury time, but at 7-0 it was unlikely to make any difference to the final outcome of the tie.

A week later in San Marino, I was quite surprised that any home fans had turned up at all – they must have either been incredibly interested in Welsh football or very hopeful of a sporting miracle – but a total of 138 hardy souls paid their admission price to watch us book our ticket in the next round in style. As before it was Christopher and Kinsella who stole the show – both netting hat-tricks with a penalty each – after Ian Sullivan had opened his account for the season early on, and at the end of the 90 minutes we had outclassed Cailungo in every conceivable department. With an aggregate score of 14-0, we had proved it too.

Yet our victory still left us some way short of the elusive group stages, or even the play-off round that would see us guaranteed a place in the Europa League as a minimum. There would be bigger tests than Cailungo to come, and when we were pulled out of the hat to play Videoton we knew we faced a different challenge entirely. Based in the Hungarian city of Szekesfehervar, they had reached the final of the old UEFA Cup in the mid-80s, and had overcome Debrecen to lift only their second national title last season. If we were to get through this, we would have our work cut out for us.

jdoyle9293 · October 13, 2015

Videoton will be hard but an sneaking a one-goal or away goals aggregate victory isn't beyond the realm of possibility. Good stuff - just getting Prestatyn into the play-off rounds and a good showing in the Europa League's group stages would raise Wales' co-efficient enough.

EvilDave · October 14, 2015

If only it were that simple eh?

--

Again we hosted the first leg at Belle Vue, and again we packed out the ground of our nearest rivals for a clash with one of Europe’s champions. Anybody hoping to find a similarity between Videoton and Cailungo would have been hard-pressed, and everything from their entrance at the ground to the pace of their warm-ups suggested we were facing a different animal entirely. Whereas before we had been heavy favourites, this time we were expected to suffer a beating. Anything less would be a success.

Yet the team which had put 14 goals past our Sammarinese opponents were determined not to let the Hungarians run riot, and after the opening exchanges it became apparent that the Videoton squad were not quite of the same standard of Ferenc Puskas and his fellow Magnificent Magyars. That said, while they were not from a different footballing planet, they were still the more technically-gifted side, and it was little surprise to see them dominate possession.

Yet possession does not win football matches – goals do – and that is exactly what Christopher provided us with in first half stoppage time. A deep cross from left back Richard Nicholls found our in-form summer signing unmarked at the back post, and his stooping header beat the visiting goalkeeper just seconds before the half time whistle. We had the lead, and the script was hastily being rewritten.

The editing would have to stop however, as just two minutes into the second half Videoton got themselves back on level terms and grabbed an away goal in the process. Not only did they restore parity, but as is so often the case, with it they seized the momentum, and it as all Wilson and the defence could do to avoid being completely overrun at the back. Still, they could not hold out forever, and five minutes before the end our goal was breached once again, and the Swiss referee blew for full time with us 2-1 down and facing an almighty task over in Hungary.

It was a task which, quite simply, we were not up to. We needed to score at least two goals to have any chance of progressing, and Videoton refused to give us the ball to even attempt to claw our way back into the tie. At times we were chasing shadows, at times it seemed as if we were playing against 12 men, and five times Wilson picked the ball out of our net. The aggregate score of 7-1 seemed a little harsh on the players after their first-leg heroics, but it showed both Wales and the watching world how far we still have to come.

The defeat in Szekefehervar signalled the end of the Champions League once more, and so we returned home to two ‘glamour’ friendlies – the first a defeat to French side Lorient and the second an entertaining 2-2 draw with Cardiff City – and four confidence-boosting games on the road against non-league opposition which saw us rack up 14 goals and concede just two. We had put in a respectable showing on the continent, our fitness was as good as it was going to be, all we had to do now was go out into the league season and reclaim our title.

When put like that, it almost seems too easy.

EvilDave · October 17, 2015

Our opening fixture of my fifth season as Prestatyn boss would take place at home to Airbus, who over the years had given us both cause for concern and several favours with strong results against TNS. On day one all other results would be irrelevant – all we could do was hit the ground running and hope our primary challengers failed to do the same at some point down the line.

For all our transfer dealings over the summer, it was a fairly familiar line-up which took to the field at Bastion Gardens for our curtain-raiser. Richard Nicholls had clearly overtaken Jack Lewis for the left back spot, and I could hardly ignore the incredible pre-season form of Jack Christopher, but aside from that the Prestatyn faithful would have seen players who had been with the club for three, four or even all five years of my tenure. Such are the joys of playing in a league nobody bothers to scout.

It was one of the old boys, Craig Frater, who got us up and running just shy of the hour with a textbook header, but our lead was short-lived as Airbus scored almost straight from the restart. For one reason or another we weren’t firing on all cylinders, but as we have shown countless times in the past five years, we have the quality that only TNS can compare to. This time it manifested itself in Christopher’s 88th-minute winner, and we took three points we barely deserved.

Despite the Welsh FA’s insistence that the league fixtures are generated at random, I have always had my doubts. In the first season we took on Rhyl in a Boxing Day-New Year double header, and almost every campaign we have taken on TNS either right at the start of a round of fixtures, or right at the end. Either would generate maximum exposure for the domestic game – as did the numerous cup draws which had paired us together – and both had a larger than usual impact on the title race.

This time, they travelled to Bastion Gardens for their first away trip of the season, and our rust was evident. Christopher scored after just three minutes, and a rare goal for right back Chris Davies doubled our tally for the day, but what happened between the two goals was simply unacceptable. Whether buoyed by their new signings, their own progress in Europe – a win over Faroese club HB before a respectable defeat to Rosenborg – or simply by desire for revenge, their football this time seemed to be from another planet.

In truth, we were lucky to get two – the first before they had woken up, and the second as they wound down the clock. In the meantime, Ardley’s men hit us for no fewer than five goals, four of which came before the interval, to leave us reeling. The Rhyl Journal, along with much of the national press, had an absolute field day at our expense, hailing the end of our reign as champions and the re-emergence of TNS domination. As much as I hated to agree, the game had proved we were some way short of competing 11 vs 11 with our rivals.

That meant that in order to retain our Premier League crown, we would have to beat them for consistency over the course of a 32 game season and take advantage of their slip-ups. For that to happen, TNS would have to err. We bounced back from our humiliation with a 5-1 win at Connah’s Quay notable for a first ever goal for summer signing Guy Clarke, and then returned home for back-to-back victories over Haverfordwest and Bangor by the odd goal in five and three respectively. We were building up to something resembling form, even if the defence was leaking.

But the news from Oswestry was ominous at best and terrifying at worst. After hitting five past newly-promoted Cefn Druids on day one and repeating the trick against us, TNS then hit five without reply against Rhyl and three each beyond Bangor and Haverfordwest. They would finally concede in their final game of September, but they still found time to run in four at Aberystwyth to render our rather fortuitous 3-0 win at Afan Lido – two of the goals coming from the penalty spot – rather redundant. The season may have been young, but it already felt long.

Sign In

Pontin's, Kwik Save... and Bastion Gardens

Recommended Posts

Link to post

Share on other sites

Link to post

Share on other sites

Link to post

Share on other sites

Link to post

Share on other sites

Link to post

Share on other sites

Link to post

Share on other sites

Link to post

Share on other sites

Link to post

Share on other sites

Link to post

Share on other sites

Link to post

Share on other sites

Link to post

Share on other sites

Link to post

Share on other sites

Link to post

Share on other sites

Link to post

Share on other sites

Link to post

Share on other sites

Link to post

Share on other sites

Link to post

Share on other sites

Link to post

Share on other sites

Link to post

Share on other sites

Link to post

Share on other sites

Link to post

Share on other sites

Link to post

Share on other sites

Link to post

Share on other sites

Link to post

Share on other sites

Link to post

Share on other sites

Link to post

Share on other sites

Link to post

Share on other sites

Link to post

Share on other sites

Link to post

Share on other sites

Link to post

Share on other sites

Link to post

Share on other sites

Link to post

Share on other sites

Link to post

Share on other sites

Link to post

Share on other sites

Link to post

Share on other sites

Link to post

Share on other sites

Link to post