Connah’s Quay Nomads lost their third game of the season on Saturday evening at Park Hall as The New Saints cruised to a 3-0 victory to move to the top of the table, but it is important that Andy Morrison’s side forget about that result moving forward.
A brace from Aeron Edwards and a Blaine Hudson goal handed The New Saints all three points as Morrison’s men lost their first game in five, after winning five games on the spin.
It was, of course, not the result that Morrison and his troops seeked. But they must not dwell on the result – they are, after all, still only a point off the top of the table.
And the perfect way to respond will be when they make the tough trip to face-off against a strong Caernarfon Town side, who have shown real quality following their promotion from the Cymru Alliance last season.
They currently sit in seventh place in the JD Welsh Premier League and they have shown that they can compete with the best teams at this level.
This is through the tenacious work ethic they show on a weekly basis, supplemented with their desire, belief and passion to win games – and they have emerged as somewhat of a surprise package in the top-flight so far this season.
The last time these two sides met earlier on in the season, the Canaries prevailed, winning a tightly-fought contest 1-0 at the Deeside Stadium and Morrison’s side will be eager to avenge for that defeat when travelling to the Oval on Friday evening.
It is also vitally important that the Nomads don’t let their heads drop. They’re still very much in this title race, and with the right mentality moving forward, there is little doubt that they can challenge the record Welsh Premier League Champions – with the Oswestry-based outfit winning the league 12 times in total.
But it is all about how they recover. They have a manager who has a vast amount of experience in Morrison and he will no doubt want his players to respond in the best possible fashion following their loss to The New Saints.
Now its time for the big players to step-up. This next game against Caernarfon Town could be crucial, despite it still being at the early stages of the season.
The likes of Michael Bakare and Callum Morris, who have 10 goals from wide positions between them so far this season will no doubt be crucial.
Their loss to The New Saints isn’t the end of the world, nobody believes that. But to lose in the way they did to the defending Champions coming off the back of five wins on the bounce would have frustrated Morrison and his players.
Not as much of an impetus will perhaps be put on the performance against Caernarfon Town on Friday. But if they can pick up the three points, it will do them the world of good and show that The New Saints game was just a blip.
They have been nothing short of sensational at times this season – there is no doubting that, but The New Saints game was a bit of a reality check.
It will now be interesting to see how they respond from that as they seek three points against Caernarfon Town, before hosting Llanelli Town at the Deeside Stadium, who are currently rooted to the bottom of the JD Welsh Premier League table.
(Featured image: NCM Media)
Trevor Green
Drubbing??? Did Josh Slack see the game?
Very even with Nomads and TNS both creating five good scoring chances. Difference was TNS taking three of theirs.