Prestatyn Town 3-1 Llanrhaeadr: Winning start for Cymru North title defenders
Prestatyn Town got their JD Cymru North title defence off to a perfect start with a 3-1 victory over Llanrhaeadr at Bastion Gardens.
Ryan Kehoe got the Seasiders up and running, before substitute Patrick Hamid and Ashley Ruane made sure of the victory.
Zack Davies pulled a goal back for Marc Griffiths’ side but ultimately his effort was in vain.
The home side made a strong start, forcing Lee Andrew into an early save from a Kehoe chance, pouncing on his spill before Ruane could follow up, and four minutes later the hosts were in again, this time from a long throw finding Jamie Reed whose edge of the box volley was hit just over.
Reed then provided Town with the best chance of the first half as he broke into the box and committed Andrew into a messy challenge which gave the official no choice but to point to the spot. Reed stepped up to take the kick and his low effort was matched by Andrew, who dealt with the rebound expertly.
The home side controlled the first half an hour, giving Llan no opportunities to get forward as they settled into their game plan, a Kearney header just after the half-hour mark was met well on the line by Wyton, and it was from the resulting throw-in where the Seasiders opened the scoring through Kehoe.
The Town midfielder rushing onto a charged down clearance from Andrew, dispatching a chipped shot from distance into an empty net.
The second half drew started the way the first concluded with Prestatyn struggling to create many opportunities, and it was the visitors creating the first key chance to draw level as Bulmer was forced into a great stop to tip a free-kick onto the bar.
The missed chance was a scare for the home side who put the pressure on, creating a pair of quick chances after the hour mark with Reed scuffing a volley wide, and Ruane finding space in the area hitting a deflected shot across Andrew’s goal,
The following corner saw the second goal for the hosts as Blackwell-Jones sent the set-piece deep to find Patrick Hamid on the edge of the box to volley home, just a couple of minutes after replacing Charlie Mann.
From there the game looked simple for Prestatyn and they looked to have killed the game off, Blackwell-Jones won the ball deep in the Prestatyn half and skipped a challenge before driving forward in a two-on-one break, his pass found the substitute Campbell who could’ve taken a shot on himself but he selflessly played in Ruane who had a simple tap in.
The final 15 minutes were dominated by the visitors, with Bulmer called into action to prevent damage to the scoreline, unfortunately for the hosts, there was to be no clean sheet as Bulmer was beaten from a low free-kick by Zack Davies with the Prestatyn keeper would look back and think he could’ve done better.
Llanrhaeadr’s continued pressure forced Bulmer into some very good stops, and goalscorer Hamid was needed to make a pair of goal-line clearances which saw the late threat off and clinched a well-earned three points to start the Cymru North season.
Prestatyn Town: Nik Bulmer, Kai Wallis (James Webb, 76), Dominic Elsey-McHugh, Ian Kearney (C), Paul Johnson, Brandon Burrows, Charlie Mann (Patrick Hamid, 62), Ryan Kehoe, Mason Blackwell-Jones, Jamie Reed (Rory Campbell, 70), Ashley Ruane.
Goals: Ryan Kehoe 35, Patrick Hamid 64,
