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November 9th: Porth Tywyn Suburbs 0 v Ton Pentre 2
Cynffig Motor Factors League Cup Round Two

This game was the first of two visits to Porth Tywyn in West Wales in a week. And the match proved to be a useful dress rehearsal for next Saturday's Welsh Cup Third Round tie.

In the first five minutes the Welsh League Division Two side looked sharper than Ton Pentre, with Mike Smith and Aneurin Evans linking in a useful looking attack. However, the Rhondda Bulldogs had a couple of changes to their usual line-up with Alex Lawless starting for the absent Jamie Michaels and Mark Evans replacing Ceri Harding who was on the bench.

The playing surface was very rough and was exemplified with the amount of freekicks given for handballs with the referee failing to take note of the conditions.

The first real action arose within the 29th minute when Nathan Prygodzicz hit a weak clearance that Porth Tywyn's Mark Evans pounced on. It appeared as though Prygodzicz had pulled the striker back to stop him from breaking free but the referee waved play-on which in-turn enraged the home teams dugout.

Ten minutes later Lawless was fouled on the left wing. Ton Pentre's Mark Evans took the freekick and directed it towards Andrew Hughes. The Ton captain connected with the ball but directed it wide of Anthony Johns in goal.

Carl Thomas headed in Ton's first goal a minute from half-time after Smith had conceded a freekick for Porth Tywyn. Evans was the player who assisted the Ton Pentre striker to his goal that went in off the post.

The Rhondda Bulldogs started the second half with a cracking chance of doubling their lead when Hughes wriggled through the home team's defence. Instead of shooting he attempted to pass to Lawless, however, a Porth Tywyn defender was on hand to clear.

An excellent display of strength saw Craig Thomas retain possession of the ball after several challenges from the oppositions' players. He passed to Dean Morris who hit the ball up the pitch towards Carl Thomas. With the goalkeeper advancing from his line Carl Thomas was unlucky not steal possession from him. Porth Tywyn's defence at this point was balancing on a knife's edge.

With less than fifteen minutes of the second half played, drama erupted in this League Cup clash. A Porth Tywyn freekick hit the Ton Pentre goal post and went out of play. The referee awarded a corner kick to Porth Tywyn. However, Bulldogs player Neil Davies attempted to point out to the referee that his assistant was flagging for offside. For his protest Davies was booked. Then the referee ran over to his assistant and gave Ton the freekick for the offside. It was a crazy decision as Davies was shown the yellow card for being correct.

The lead was nearly increased in the 72nd minute when Davies carried the ball forward for Ton and passed to Carl Thomas who had taken up a position wide on the right. He sent a lovely cross into the box but a Porth Tywyn player cleared, but only as far as Davies who was still forward after his run. He struck a powerful shot goalwards, which unfortunately went wide. p> The West Wales side nearly drew level when an excellent attack in the 79th minute saw Evans whiz his shot just past John Howe's goalpost.

The Rhondda Bulldogs replied with a goal that put the match beyond Porth Tywyn's reach. Lawless had ran up the left wing and across the backline before passing the ball straight into Carl Thomas's feet. And he made sure the ball made the net ripple.

Three minutes from full-time Porth Tywyn's goalkeeper, Johns, was sent off after handling the ball outside the area. Carl Thomas was running through on goal and attempted a chip ball but the 'keeper was judged to of handled by the referee's assistant. With Thomas striking the ball less than a yard from the player the sending off may have been a little harsh.

The last action of the game came after three minutes of injury time when an excellent save by Howe denied Steven Andrews a consolation goal for Porth Tywyn.

Even though Ton had got off to a groggy start on a groggy Saturday afternoon, the teams' performance was professional and it must be noted that second half performances from Carl Thomas and Craig Thomas helped the Rhondda Bulldogs to this League Cup victory.

It's a trip to Porth Tywyn again on Saturday 16 November as Ton Pentre play them in the Third Round of the Welsh Cup. Kick-off is still to be confirmed but will be published on Ton Pentre's website at tonpentreafc.com as soon as it is known.

Ton Pentre: Howe; Tapper; Davies; Jason Roberts; Prygodzicz; Hughes; Morris; Craig Thomas (Kiyaga, 83mins); Carl Thomas; Lawless; Mark Evans (Harding, 76mins).

Porth Tywyn: Johns; Andrew Evans; Luke Jenkins; Buckingham; Simon Roberts; Callaghan; Dean-Davies (Thomas, 77mins); Andrews; Smith; Mark Evans; Aneurin Evans.

Match report by Rob Dowling.


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