📝 Words by Tom Hicks of the Caerphilly Observer
📸 FAW
A spirited Cwmbran Celtic performance wasn’t enough to overcome title contenders Trethomas Bluebirds, as Simon Berry’s men suffered a 1-0 defeat in the Cymru South.
The pair met at the Centre for Sporting Excellence, Ystrad Mynach, on Friday March 7, with Celtic out for revenge having lost the reverse leg 6-4.
Despite a somewhat promising start, Trethomas soon showed why they’re pushing for top spot, and a Gareth Tedstone goal was the difference on the night.
Kick-off
It was a decent start to the game from the hosts, keen to put last week’s loss behind them, the players looked sharp starting from keeper Harry Irving who was pinging some beautifully weighted balls into the channels.
Cwmbran were well-organised to their credit, not leaving much space in the wide areas for the likes of Ethan Edwards and Thomas Gameson to get going.
Up the other end and the few touches Cwmbran captain Andrew Larcombe had looked promising. The club’s top scorer was operating on scraps however.
After a spell of head tennis, Trethomas talisman Gareth Tedstone dropped into the midfield, controlled the ball and played a nice pass to set-up left back Lee Baldock.
His chip to Edwards was a little pacey, but the idea was there in a rare moment of composure during a fairly frantic game.
It was Edwards who had the first half chance for the hosts; a ball fizzed in from the left.
The young winger used the pace on the ball to try and glance one over Lewis Watkins in the net. Just over on this occasion.
Trethomas still on top, it was fullback Harvey Selway to have a go, this time with a great driving run down the right. His cut back cross was well blocked by a Celtic defender for a corner.
To the frustration of the Bluebirds dugout, the superb resulting corner from Baldock bounced on the six yard line and behind without an attacking touch.
There was a bit of anxiety amongst the 200 or so fans after 30 minutes, but Kallum Thomas was doing his best to settle any nerves. The Bluebirds midfielder looked up for it from minute one.
He almost gave his side the lead when a Selway cross was stood-up in the centre of the box. A little above Thomas though and his header crept over.
A moment of skill for Celtic going the other way saw Gabriel Howells break through the lines, but the centre back pairing of David Vincent and Andrew Evans were solid.
The game was beginning to open up though, and a brilliant bit of strength and determination from Thomas led to the inevitable Trethomas opener.
Down the left, the midfielder muscled his man out of the way before threading a cute ball around the corner for Edwards to collect in the centre of the Cwmbran penalty area.
His effort was partially saved by Watkins, but like any good striker, Tedstone was there in the middle to finish the move off. Not his greatest strike, but enough to cross the line.
An important goal at an important time, the Bluebirds entered the half-time break feeling quietly pleased with their work.
Second-half
It was a fast start to the second-half from Trethomas. Always quite a fluid front three, Tedstone was finding joy down the left in the early stages up against the smaller Oliver Berry.
Nobody could get on the end of a few dangerous first time crosses however.
Baldock almost doubled the Bluebirds lead when an Edwards cross fell kindly to the fullback on the edge of the area. He caught the half volley sweetly but it skidded just wide of the far post.
The pressure was pretty relentless from the hosts, who were about as comfortable as you could be while 1-0 up.
Selway played a lovely early cross to Tedstone from the right with 70 played, but the number nine was stretching and his effort was saved easily enough by Watkins.
The Trethomas defence was having a pretty good time of things given the score line. Defender Evans made a crunching tackle on Larcombe to stop a shot, but the need to ‘defend’ was rare.
With ten or so minutes left in the game, the Bluebirds went into management mode, controlling the clock and letting the likes of Gameson hold the ball up and draw fouls.
Captain James Saddler looked a composed figure in the centre of the park as did Vincent – two hugely important veteran players in this side.
The game should have definitely been all over when Bluebirds substitute Jack Jones was rolled the ball in front of an empty net after a mishap at the back, but the winger was leaning back and blasted over.
The final whistle went on a pretty uneventful, but crucial win for Trethomas. With just four games to go in the season, results are more important than performances for this Bluebirds side who remain two points off top.
For Cwmbran, their mixed bag results continue. They’d have been looking to cause a bit more trouble after a promising win over Pontypridd United, but another loss means they remain 12th of 16.
Reaction
After the match, Caerphilly Observer spoke to Bluebirds manager Mark Dunford, he said: “I think the biggest thing is that we bounced back and we do that very often.
“I thought it was a good performance overall, our tempo was a lot better than last week and most of our decision making was better.
“It’s fine margins though and on a different night it might not have been three points, but I think we fully deserved them.”
Asked how comfortable he felt at 1-0, Dunford said: “I don’t think we conceded one ‘chance’ throughout the whole game so from that perspective we’ve seen that game out really well. It’s always a bit nervy though just because of where we are in the league.”
Dunford was full of praise for young fullback Harvey Selway who he described as “outstanding” on the night, and had a “near perfect” performance.
With just four games remaining, the Bluebirds now have a “not ideal” week off, but Dunford added how it’s all to play for with 12 points up for grabs.