After a sluggish early period of the season, Aberystwyth Town captain Kelly Thomas is eyeing a strong end to the season.
Last season, the Seasiders quietened their critics by finishing in fourth place in the Adran Premier.
This season, the West Wales club have found times a bit tougher in the league.
‘I think it’s been a challenging season for us so far at Aber Town for a number of reasons’, Thomas began.
‘The pressure we’ve put on ourselves this year to replicate what we did last year has been difficult to uphold because everyone else in the league is getting stronger every time’
‘There have been highs and lows, we made things difficult for ourselves in the first few games … But we’ve worked really hard to put ourselves back in a position to challenge.’
The reasons behind their early malaise could be down to the issue of having a small squad.
Due to players leaving in the summer and during the season, Aber currently have a squad of 14 players, and while Thomas admits it’s been a real struggle, there are other factors for their low squad numbers.
‘It’s no surprise that the teams down south seem to be the strongest teams in the league’
‘With the Welsh setup being predominantly down there and then you have some camps up Wrexham way, there is a real problem in mid-Wales’
‘We’ve got players that travel far to play for us. Rebecca Mathias has over an hour commute to come to Aberystwyth, Shaunna Chambers the same, Emily Thomas over an hour’
‘The number of players we need to be at the level that we play at in mid-Wales is few and far between.’
The squad may be small, but there have been standout performers across the team this season, none more so than Elin Jones.
The centre half has made a real impact on the league so far this season, and her captain is full of praise for her.
‘Elin Jones is an absolute warrior. She’s fantastic, considering her age she is absolutely phenomenal’
‘She’s got everything; she’s strong, she’s calm on the ball, she can pass, she can head, she’s a huge asset to us and we’ve been really lucky that’s she’s come in and enjoyed it so much’
‘She gives 110% every single time she plays for Aber and she’s been pivotal in some of the points we’ve picked up this season.’
Jones has been part of defensive unit which has looked very well equipped at times this season.
However, she is also part of a team that has the worst discipline in the league. Aber have so far picked up 14 yellow cards and 2 red cards this season.
While the Aber Sole Crew will be delighted at times with the players’ commitment to the Green and Black shirt, Thomas believes it shows how much the team battles for every available point.
‘I remember a few seasons ago when we were in the bottom two, we picked up the fair play award’
‘We were buzzing, more money for the club, chuffed. Kevin Jenkins, or Bones as he’s known, was our goalkeeping coach that season’
‘He stood up in the end of season do and he was fuming that we had won the award and he said that we were too nice, you don’t want it enough and really went hell for leather on us, and I’ll never forget that!’
‘We are passionate, we are trying our hardest to pick up points every week … sometimes you have to take a yellow and be clever about it … sometimes you’ve got to do what you’ve got to do in this league.’
Gavin Allen’s side currently sit in sixth place in the Adran Prem, three points behind TNS who occupy fourth spot currently.
While they will need wins and results to go their way, it of course isn’t impossible for Aber to finish in the top four again.
However, a real source of solace for the Seasiders has been the cup competitions. They are in the quarter finals of the Adran Trophy and the semi final of the FAW Cup, where they will take on Briton Ferry.
A cup final, according to Thomas, would be an unbelievable way to end the season.
‘When things weren’t going well for us in the league, the cups were a massive incentive to us to keep going and we have had a nice run in the cups’
‘It would be so good to get to the final of a cup this year. It would put a smile back on the girls’ faces and be a massive boost for us as a squad, but we take it one game at a time.’
‘Picking up silverware is always nice, we play in the Central Wales Cup too and we won that last year so it would be good to retain that and have something to celebrate in our end of season party.’
Aberystwyth will next be in action on Sunday January 15th, as they take on Wrexham at home in the quarter final of the Adran Trophy.
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