One Club Ethos and World of Sport Wrestling.

I finished the last blog by recounting how the Canaries secured the Cymru Alliance League title with an emphatic victory over nearest rivals Cefn Druids on their own ground. This was not quite the end of the season though as, whilst the league had been well and truly won there was still the exciting prospect of having the ‘double’ to play for, with the side having also reached the league cup final, which was to be the final match of the campaign.

There was no chance at all however that Iwan and his squad could take a breather before the attempt to pick up a second piece of silverware as they still had two league fixtures to play before facing Flint in Conwy and the first of these was a tough looking encounter with Holywell Town.

World of Sport's Wrestling Banter made a return at the Oval....

Everyone who reads this blog regularly will know what I think of the Wellmen and their manager and, if there’s any team you’d prefer not to play two days after winning a league title, they’d be amongst the frontrunners! They are a seriously competitive side, playing an abrasive in your face style and John Hasseldin knows how to push his player’s buttons. I’ve recently come to the conclusion that has more than a touch of the pantomime villain about him and this was re-affirmed when he and his team afforded the Cofis a guard of honour prior to kick-off. As most of our supporters will know, he is never slow at having a dig at us on social media but credit where it’s due, this was very classy of him. Of course, he was back to his usual touchline antics during the match but even that was more ‘World of Sport wrestling banter’ than anything else. 

Messi.

The match itself was no classic but it seldom is between these sides, although Town ran out comfortable winners in the end. It had been a workman-like performance in the opening half but, once Darren Thomas opened the scoring a minute before the break, there was only ever going to be one conclusion. Holywell were dogged throughout, but Town have shown throughout the season that we can more often than not find a way to get a positive result, and there is none better than the Cofi Messi at providing the spark that makes something happen out of nothing. Like every other supporter I was thrilled to see him return to the Oval after a brief sojourn with Aberystwyth and, whilst Jamie Breese, Jay Gibbs and Danny

Brookwell have, quite rightly, been enjoying the headlines during the season, Darren has been his usual, sparkling self, igniting the team in his inimitable style. The goal was typical of him, showing a cool head when the goalkeeper stopped his first effort and, despite being surrounded by three defenders, he found time to go past two men before finding the net from twelve yards. He also popped up with an assist for the second goal when he headed the ball across the six yard area for

Jamie Breese.

Breesey to finish off and it was left to Jay Gibbs to have the final say, the midfielder scoring from an impossibly acute angle, although the Holywell players claimed they had stopped playing due to an injury to Jamie. It’s a shame the referee failed to notice their efforts for the game to be stopped but it didn’t change the outcome of the match and the only downside to an enjoyable afternoon was the injury to our number nine. If there was a silver lining to be had as he limped away from the ground, it was that, with the title already in the bag, Jamie had twelve days to recover before the cup final, so was still in with a chance of taking part.

Caersws provided our final test of the league campaign and, where the Holywell encounter had been more of a war of attrition, our match with the Bluebirds was anything but! The afternoon started well when the players were welcomed onto the pitch by players and staff of the club’s Academy, who stood in the circle centre to acknowledge the team’s success. The first team players seemed as pleased by the reception as the youngsters and if ever there’s been an example of the ‘One Club’ ethos Iwan is pushing through at the club, this was it. It was excellent to see the first team and  Academy players and staff lining up for a photo, and it’s definitely been one of the highlights of my time supporting the Cofis. Brilliant stuff!

The players are welcomed onto the pitch by staff and players of the club's Academy. 

Celebrating Danny Brookwell's opener against Caersws.

The match started with a bang, as Town got out of the blocks faster than John Terry when there’s a trophy to be lifted and photographed with. The Cofis surged into a four nil victory inside eighteen minutes and, at that stage, the team was playing as well as I’d seen them during the season. Uncharacteristically, the players seemed to switch off for a few minutes and this let Caersws back into the match, as they fought back to trail by just 5-3 at half-time. Typically, the players got back into the groove after the break and found the net three more times before the final whistle. Darren Thomas had undoubtedly been the star of the show and he hit an excellent hat-trick to cap off a fine display.

The league's representatives began proceedings immediately after the match by presenting Iwan with his manager of the month award for March, which was richly deserved after his side's 100% success rate of five victories, in which they scored seventeen goals and conceded just two. 

Iwan receives his Manager of the Month award for March.

The league trophy was then handed to Grahame Austin in front of the home supporters at the Clubhouse End of the ground and that ‘One Club’ ethos shone through for the second time on the day as the players celebrated with the supporters. It was an excellent way to round off the title winning campaign and, from a personal point of view, I loved every minute of taking photos of the players with the fans, and individually with the cup. It was a memorable afternoon in every way and my big  hope now is that Iwan and the team can repeat the feat next season so that we can finally get back into the Welsh Premier League. Five hundred and ten supporters walked through the turnstiles to see the match and there aren’t many, if any, teams that can match that in the top tier. The team and the supporters deserve to be there and the club’s Board simply has to make sure that we’re in a position to get there as soon as possible, with the 2017/18 season unquestionably the objective!

The Canaries Club held their presentation evening for the players immediately after the match and it was the perfect way to celebrate the team’s achievements. I’ll be writing a report on the event for the club’s website soon but must mention here how good it was to see the club’s former chairman, Arfon Jones, in attendance. He was rightly given a standing ovation when he took the microphone and was his usual forthright self when addressing everyone. I’ve been on the club’s Board with Arfon for six years and no one has worked harder than him in dragging the team from obscurity to where it is now. The club’s been a massive part of his life, especially during the time of his stewardship of the Canaries, and I certainly hope we’ll still see him at the Oval and on our travels next season. In the meantime, he can practise his swing on the golf course and, from what everyone has told me, he desperately needs it!

Whilst on the subject of the presentation evening, it was great to see Caersws staying on at the supporters club for the duration of the awards and I thought it was a great gesture by them. Of course, Iwan played for the Bluebirds last season and from what I gather is friends with their manager Graham Evans, so I’m sure it would have meant a lot to our manager that is former club  made the effort to hang around.

The 2015/16 Huws Gray Cymru Alliance League Champions.  

I had intended to include the League Cup final in this blog but, as it’s probably already overlong, I’ll include it in the next entry, which may also include some recent news, including Iwan’s never-ending appetite to improve the team, both on and off the pitch.

Un Clwb.