After a thrilling opening weekend, the Adran Premier roadshow rolled into its second week on Sunday.
Every team was in action, while the qualifying round of the Bute Energy Welsh Cup was also taking place.
So, without further ado, let’s take a look at the week that was.
Adran Premier
We begin this week at Old Road, and after dismantling Aberystwyth Town in their opening game, Briton Ferry returned home. Up against them was Wrexham, who lost to Cardiff City on the opening day. There is a great history between these two, with the Red Dragons getting the better of the results as of late, but that all changed on Sunday, as Ferry recorded an impressive 3-0 win over the Hollywood Reds.
The game started at a frantic pace. Rosie Hughes was denied by a fine Courtney Young stop, while at the other end, Lucy Powell was denied by Lizzie Craven. However, the home side would find the back of the net eleven minutes in, as Lowri Ridings scored from Powell’s free kick.
While their first goal may have been a well-worked move, their second was a moment of brilliance. Alice Broadley ran out to the left, before looping Craven from range and sparking wild celebrations. Wrexham had got the better of Ferry on three previous occasions, but inside 20 minutes, they were on the ropes.
Even when Wrexham went on the attack, they couldn’t find a way through a stout defence. Hughes raced through on goal, but she was denied by a fine tackle by Brooke Llewellyn. How Hughes wished she could have that chance back, especially as two minutes into the second half, Ferry found a third. Powell was yet again the provider, but there to guide the ball in this time was new signing Tija Richardson.
The third goal seemed to wake Wrexham up, but they couldn’t find a way through. On a number of occasions, Young made vital saves to not only keep her side ahead, but to preserve her clean sheet. As the final whistle blew, the Red Dragons were well beaten, and finally, Briton Ferry got their revenge.
The side who topped the table after one game were TNS, who stormed to a 5-0 win away at Barry Town on the opening day. Their opponents were Aberystwyth Town, who had just come off a defeat to newly promoted Briton Ferry. Things went from bad to worse for the Seasiders, as the Saints romped home to a 6-1 win.
It only took six minutes for TNS to break the deadlock, as Tiggy Webb headed home from Maria Francis-Jones’ free-kick. However, they were pegged back midway through the half, as Maria Ewers found the bottom corner from outside the box.
Shauna Duffy’s team had dominated the first half, but somehow found themselves level. Yet, they would fight back and ensure they headed back into the dressing room ahead, as Molly Havard converted from Chantelle Teare’s clever pass across the box. While the first half may have had plenty of missed chances, TNS made sure to rectify that in the second.
Within ten minutes of the second period beginning, the hosts had found two goals. Firstly, Lia Lewis looped a shot over Chelsea Herbert, before Lexi Jones tapped home from a Francis-Jones cross.
Now it was a case of how many TNS could score, as Aber struggled to get out of their own half. In the closing stages, yet another two strikes were added to the tally. Having worked hard all game, Teare finally got herself on the scoresheet, as she finessed the ball past the keeper, before Webb grabbed an unexpected second of the afternoon, smashing in from Francis-Jones’ corner.
Eleven goals in two games for the Saints, who are showing no signs of slowing down early in the campaign.
To the Swansea.com Stadium now, and after picking up a win over Cardiff Met, Swansea City were aiming to put on a show in front of their adoring fans. On paper, a matchup against Barry Town seemed ideal, especially as the Linnets lost 5-0 on opening day, however, the Swans were left frustrated, as they were held to a goalless draw by Barry.
As perhaps expected, Swansea dominated possession and found themselves in Barry territory for most of the game, but finding the back of the net was proving to be a tricky task. Stacey John-Davis headed over from Emily Thomas’ cross, Robyn Pinder had an effort tipped past the post by Molly Arnesen, while Taite Trivett had a goal ruled out for offside.
That’s not to say Barry didn’t have any chances. Lauren Harris’ strike stung the palms of Claire Skinner, and Erin Murray came agonisingly close to scoring an outrageous volley, but at half time, Swansea had the better of the chances.
That narrative continued in the second half. Maddy Murray went close, Katy Hosford saw her header cleared in fine fashion, before Murray had the ball in the net, only for the offside flag to deny the Swans again.
A frustrating first home game for Swansea, but for Barry, it’s a famous point.
Finally, to the Cardiff derby. Cardiff City started the defence of their title with a professional performance away to Wrexham, while Cardiff Met lost to Swansea, but impressed many. Despite taking an early lead, Met failed to hold on, as the Bluebirds claimed capital bragging rights with a 3-1 win.
Against the run of play Met took the lead, and they did so in stunning fashion. India Shanahan spotted Ceryn Chamberlain off her line and curled a sumptuous strike in from 25-yards. That was to be the only threat Met had going forward all game, as they tried to defend what they had for 83 minutes.
For most of the first half, it felt like the Archers had nine lives, as City failed to take their chances, and it looked like they would head into the break behind. However, with a minute until the whistle, they did find the leveller, as Fiona Barry headed in from Lisa Owen’s cross.
In the second half, the Bluebirds dominated and found their two winning goals before the hour. After Owen was brought down in the box cynically, Ffion Price stepped up and slammed the ball into the bottom corner. Ten minutes later, Price scored yet another trademark free kick to seal all three points for Iain Darbyshire’s side.
Three stars who shined as Cardiff City defeat Cardiff Met in Adran Premier
Bute Energy Welsh Cup
There were plenty of fixtures in the qualifying round of the Welsh Cup, and there were plenty of goals!
There was almost a shock Y Morfa, as Kinmel Bay came from 3-1 down to draw 3-3 with Adran North side Felinheli, but when it came to penalties, it was Y Felin who prevailed 4-1. However, a brace from Kinmel Bay’s Amy Chesters will be a highlight for the defeated side.
One Adran North side who weren’t so lucky were Flint Town United, as they lost 6-2 away to Llangefni Town. Flint had found themselves ahead in just two minutes, but Llangefni responded tremendously to record an impressive victory. The star of the game was Jessica Jones, who scored a hat-trick and bagged two assists.
Three sides managed to reach double figures in big wins. Talycopa hammered Aberaman 12-0, Llanelli Town picked up a 12-0 victory over Morriston Town, while Penybont trounced Rogerstone 20-0, where Mollie Jones scored four and assisted three.
In all Adran League ties, Llandudno sailed into the next round with a 7-1 win away to Bangor, while Connah’s Quay sneaked past Llanfair United 2-0.
The other teams into the next round are Johnstown, Taffs Well, Caldicot Town, Swansea University, Pontypridd United, Carmarthen Town, Pwllheli, Rhyl, and Llanystumdwy.
There were plenty of fixtures also postponed, so keep an eye out for news regarding those ties.
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