📝 Words by Nevan Rea
📸 Photo by Gabe Photography
After such an impressive start to this season’s Gwent Premier Division, I asked Cwmbran Town AFC’s manager Dale Clark about his ambitions, delving into the team’s success and talking about the competitive nature of the league this time around.
First of all, I wanted to know his ambitions for the team this season. He said: “My ambition for this season, like everyone associated with the club, is to get Cwmbran Town back into the Welsh football league pyramid’’ which is seen as the pivotal aim and one the team seem on the way to achieving.
Dale admitted promotion is ‘‘tough’’ but is “confident’’ in his team’s overall chances at this point.
“Currently unbeaten”
Naturally, it seemed important to discuss the strong start to the campaign with Dale highlighting that his team is “currently unbeaten in the league playing 20 games, winning 19 and drawing one game“, an impressive start marred only in the eyes of the manager with loses to “Penrhiwceiber in the Welsh Cup and Marshfield in the Gwent Premier Motor Challenge Cup.”
On a personal level, Dale noted that this was his first season in a managerial role which he has clearly taken to very quickly, with Dale attributing his success in part to his “great team and committee”.
He said: “For myself being my first managerial role it’s been a big learning curve both on and off the pitch, but luckily I have a great team around me in, John, Wayne, Elliot, Coxy, Fitzy, John Hanrratty and Mark along with a great committee and of course Dan O’Connell who has been amazing since I’ve taken over and been really supportive.”
Shaping the team’s foundations
After such a strong start the secrets to the team’s success became a topic of interest, with Dale saying the most important thing is “creating an environment where they want to come and enjoy their football” as it shapes the foundations for the team.
Dale also pointed to last season’s heartbreak of such a strong campaign with 20 wins out of 30 and 103 goals and saying he knew the players had quality but had to allow them to “express it.” The success he also attributed to the “mixture of young players and experienced players.”
Dale admitted his “cliche” response noting no player as key but each being “important to us.”
This comradery and togetherness seem to be an ingredient for success saying that the subs are noted as “not sulking or being disappointed to be on the bench”. In one match the five substitutes came on and “scored four goals and assisted two goals “showing both the quality and attitude which has helped the team dramatically as well as causing the manager a “headache, but a good headache.”
“No easy games”
In such a tough and competitive league Dale stated “there are no easy games, there are no harder games” a mindset that seems befitting of a team potentially getting promoted, possibly as champions.
The evident quality in the league goes to show how impressive of an achievement this run of form is for Cwmbran Town with Dale labelling it as an “unbelievable achievement from everyone associated with the club.”
When discussing his style of football Dale claimed he likes to “tire teams out” a method he claims is made possible by “gifted and talented players in our squad who are all confident on the ball” making a team easy on the eye who control possession but can also “mix our style up” with a more direct approach, with Dale utilising various different tactics and strengths to keep up their impressive run.
Finally, I asked him about what he sees as the important aspect of managing the team, reiterating the importance of the “environment”, and remarking the club being an “escape” from “busy lives.”
Most important to Dale is filtering this good environment and feeling throughout the entire club whereby “members of our reserve, youth and girls’ team can take something from that and turn it into a positive for themselves.”
With such a positive feeling around the club, it seems achieving their aims is only around the corner.
He said: “Cwmbran Town is a fantastic, friendly, family environment, which is on the rise again, with so many fantastic volunteers and coaches who give up their time for this great club to help it achieve its goals. Hopefully one day we can find our next Gareth Bale or Jess Fishlock from the colours of Cwmbran Town!”
Can they go all the way and win the league?