Llantwit Major fell to their first league defeat of the season at the hands of Cymru South title rivals Pontypridd Town.
Lee Baldock and Sam Johnson gave Ponty the lead in the first half, before the victory was secured by Gavin Beddard and Luke Gullick. Both sides ended the game with ten men after Kris Evans and James Bloom were sent off.
Both sides enjoyed good spells of possession, but Ponty were far more clinical in front of goal.
The game started in a frantic fashion, with both sides getting good chances. Tom Walters tried to add to his 13 league goals in the first minute, but his free-kick was deflected wide by the wall. Ponty then went down the other end and had a golden opportunity to take the lead, but Beddard headed wide from point blank range.
Ten minutes later, the home side took the lead. Sam Johnson dispossessed Llantwit’s Sean Williams in midfield and broke free, only to be brought down just outside the box by Goldsworthy. Left-back Lee Baldock fired the free-kick into the bottom left corner with a brilliant strike.
Fifteen minutes later, things went from bad to worse for Llantwit. Kris Evans recklessly dived in to try dispossessing Gullick, but the tackle was badly mistimed, leaving Thomas Bevan no choice but to send him off.
Llantwit tried to make up for the loss of a defender by bringing centre-back Jamie Miller on for winger Rob Jones, but this tactical move didn’t seem to work out, as shortly after Ponty made the man advantage count with the scrappiest goal of the afternoon. The ball was played in from a long throw, and Sam Johnson was there to head home from close range.
Josh Jones came closest to scoring for Llantwit in the first half, when his powerful half-volley inside the box was inches wide of the target.
It took just five minutes of the second half for Ponty to add to their tally. Gavin Beddard rose higher than any defender to meet Aiden Lewis’ corner, and head it in and all but secure the victory for Pontypridd.
But the home side weren’t done yet, and with half an hour left, Luke Gullick scored his 12th league goal of the season. Gullick showed great pace on the wing, before firing a shot past Lansdown from a tight angle.
With fifteen minutes left, Pontypridd were reduced to ten men, after captain James Bloom was shown a second yellow for a foul. Llantwit found some momentum from this, but failed to make it count. Cullen Kinsella hit the uprights twice with headers – the first hitting the post and the second bouncing off the crossbar. Substitute Lee Jones saw his shot deflected over the bar, and a header from Josh Jones caused no problems for Morgan Davies in the Ponty goal.
The final chance of the game came to the home side. Substitute Craig Reddy did well to keep possession whilst isolated in the opponent’s half, before cutting inside and firing at goal, but the effort was just wide of the mark.
Llantwit Major have kept their spot at the top of the Cymru South table despite the loss, although the gap between them and second-placed Pontypridd is now just a single point, whilst Goytre United are also hot on their heels.
Player of the Match
Sam Johnson – Pontypridd Town
Whilst his goal is unlikely to be nominated for the Puskas Award, Johnson contributed well to Ponty’s attack. He kept Llantwit’s defence on their toes, and his work to win the free-kick which led to the opening goal was very good.
Pontypridd Town: Morgan Davies, Lee Baldock (Evan Fowler 87′), Vaughan Fowler, Dave Vincent, Aiden Lewis, James Bloom (C), Luke Gullick (Craig Reddy 81′), James Saddler, Sam Johnson, Oli Dalton, Gavin Beddard (Corey Jenkins 62′)
Unused substitutes: Taylor Marsh, Shane Parry
Goals: Lee Baldock 13, Sam Johnson 36, Gavin Beddard 50, Luke Gullick 60′
Yellow cards: James Bloom 26, Luke Gullick 45+2, Lee Baldock 32, Vaughan Fowler 53′
Red card: James Bloom 75′
Llantwit Major: Jack Lansdown, Dafydd Owen, Conner Goldsworthy, Jonathan Fletcher (Lee Jones 61′), Sean Williams, Kris Evans, Cullen Kinsella (C), Nathan Jones (Ben Keen 69′), Tom Walters, Rob Jones (Jamie Miller 30′), Josh Jones
Substitutes: Jack Davies, Kyran Gardner
Yellow card: Conner Goldsworthy 12′
Red card: Kris Evans 26′
(Featured Image: Darren Griffiths)
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