New Saints record remains intact as Manchester City succumb to defeat

New Saints’ 2016/2017 winning streak remains unchallenged in Europe after Manchester City’s attempt was brought to an end by Manchester United.

A penalty from Bruno Fernandes and a second-half goal from Luke Shaw gave Ole Gunnar Solskjær’s side a 2-0 victory over Pep Guardiola’s men at the Etihad Stadium.

Despite the defeat, they remain nine points clear of City rivals Man United and are still in four competitions.

Prior to the match, Man City had recorded 21 straight victories in all competitions, a run dating back from December 2020.

The winning streak prompted discussion of overtaking TNS’ European record of 27 straight victories which was achieved under the stewardship of Craig Harrison.

It had previously been a Guinness World Record but they were later eclipsed by Corinthians Women who notched up 28th wins. 

New Saints captain Paul Harrison, who has been a long servant of the club, spoke earlier in the week of his hope that his club would be able to hold on to such an impressive feat.

“I don’t want them to do it – I’m a Liverpool fan,” said the 36-year-old to the Press Association.

“I didn’t actually realise there was such a winning streak going on. I remember getting to about 17 games and people started really talking about it, saying how good the run was and it just snowballed from there.

“At the time, we didn’t really celebrate like it was that big an achievement, to be honest, it was a bit strange. We were that busy trying to win another league title, we just carried on.”

At the time, TNS could have extended their world-beating run to 29, however they let slip of a 3-1 led in stoppage time as Jamie Price rescued a point for Newtown in a 3-3 draw.

Manchester City’s failure to continue their run comes on the same day that the once world record holders sacked their manager in a shock dismissal.

Scott Ruscoe, who previously was a player, later turned coach and then manager, was relieved of his duties following 19-years of service at the club. 

(Featured Image: John Smith/FAW)