Last night’s match between Cardiff Met and Barry Town proved to be a pivotal one for both teams.
For the home side, it moved them closer to the championship phase, now only four points behind sixth-place Caernarfon.
For the visitors, they have firmly cemented themselves in a relegation battle alongside Aberystwyth and Haverfordwest.
But what were the key talking points of last night’s game?
Wings are key for Met
While most people would describe the game as a turgid affair, Met did have some bright points, and those come down the wing. When the likes of Matt Chubb and Kyle McCarthy came out to attack from their full-back roles, they caused the Barry defenders a few problems.
Add wingers Lewis Rees and Harry Owen into the equation and Met have a fearful attack. Even when forward Adam Roscrow comes out onto the wing, he is a match for anyone. The problem is they don’t utilise the wings nearly enough.
If they are to propel themselves into the championship group, they must use the wings more in order to hurt the opposition.
Barry too reliant on McLaggon
I have seen Barry a lot of times this season and there is no doubt that the spearhead to their attacks has been captain Kayne McLaggon. The forward has nine goals this season and has always been a positive whenever I’ve been down to Jenner Park.
However, when McLaggon is injured or can’t get an attack going, Barry don’t really offer much in terms of a contest, and it has certainly hurt them this season. When Town signed the likes of Marcus Day and Nat Jarvis, there was a lot of hype and expectation, that these signings could take Barry to the next level, but they haven’t lived up to it. While it is perfectly possible that it takes this amount of time, or more, to settle into a new club and new surroundings, Barry don’t have the luxury of time.
They need good performances immediately. Rhys Kavanagh when he came on yesterday was a problem for the Met defence, and yes, they didn’t win, but his impact off the bench didn’t go unnoticed. Barry need more performances like that across the pitch, otherwise, it could be a nail-biting end to the season for the Yellow Army.
What is the identity of both clubs?
One of the new things that has come with modern football is the fact that clubs need a playing identity or a culture. This could be an attacking one, a defensive one, a counter-attacking one, or even a long-ball one.
What struck me the most perhaps watching both teams play a lot over the past couple of months is that I cannot see any sense of identity in either of them.
Christian Edwards has done remarkable work with Met over the years, and him leaving at the end of the season may have something to do with some of their performances this season. There isn’t that flair, there isn’t energy. With a new manager, perhaps this might change, but you really get the sense that the Archers are limping over the line.
The term legend is often overused but Gavin Chesterfield is a Barry Town legend. This season he has reached over 500 games as manager of Town and his influence in the club cannot be stressed enough. But, in the previous three seasons Barry have finished third, fourth and fifth, and this season they are in a relegation battle.
Barry are slowly going backward and perhaps Chesterfield’s style has become a little stale. The players have not gelled together as well as many had previously thought.
There is no doubt in my mind that if both clubs want to reach the upper echelons of the Cymru Premier table, as they have done in the past, a tactical identity is needed.
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