Resignation, Fighting Back and Long Live the King.

November was full of shocks, surprises and challenges on and off the field for Caernarfon Town and I think it’s safe to say that the club dealt with it, got on with it and thrived.

I’ll get straight down to the business end and say that Iwan’s decision to leave the club for Llandudno stung me but was not totally unexpected. When he told me he was going I felt a mixture of disappointment and frustration, mostly because he and the club had come a long way together in two and a half years and, as far as I could see, we were on the cusp of something special. Our former manager has already shared his reasons on why he left and I can certainly understand them, although I would like to think that he could one day have achieved all his managerial goals at the Oval.

Once his decision was announced, immediately after our 4-1 Welsh Cup victory over Berriew, social media was inevitably fairly bouncing along with the news and it was good to see the excellent reaction from Caernarfon supporters who were quick to thank him for everything he had done for the club. The reaction was a no brainer really as Iwan was a very popular figure with all the club’s stakeholders and his track record at the helm speaks for itself. In two seasons he led us to the Cymru Alliance League title (and runners-up), two league cup triumphs and a first Welsh Cup semi-final in twenty nine years. Impressive by any standards but particularly so when taking into account that this was his first management job in the game.  

When I met Iwan for a photoshoot to announce his appointment as Lee Dixon’s successor I remember him telling me how nervous he was at taking on such a big job but he of course he proved more than up to it and not only brought success on the field but transformed the professionalism at the club, which has in turn helped drive us forward. The title and cup successes have of course been wonderful but equally as important is the ‘One Club’ ethos he brought to the Oval. It has become synonymous with Caernarfon Town Football Club because it’s not just a soundbite, it actually means something, to us as a club and also to the community.

Darren Thomas bagged another brace against Berriew.

I read a disappointing comment on social media from a Cymru Alliance manager who suggested Iwan should have shown more loyalty to us and stayed on to see us reach the top tier. The loyalty aspect of the comment was not something I can agree with because, in my opinion he showed his loyalty tenfold during the course of his tenure and especially after we were denied promotion due to matters that were beyond his control. I am certain that other clubs would have been only too willing to snap him up during the summer of 2016 but he decided to stay on and that’s what I would call loyalty.

A more interesting comment I read, and something I am much more inclined to agree with, was that moving from Caernarfon to Llandudno is akin to moving from Aston Villa to Watford. The comparison is clear: Watford are in the EPL but Villa are a bigger club with more potential IF they can get things right on and off the field. Sounds familiar and about right to me and it’s now up to everyone at our club to make sure that we get everything in place to reach the top tier and start making some noise once we’re there. We’ve already shown over the past three years that the team is more than a match for most Welsh Premier League sides and the goal now is to get up there and go for it!

Iwan after last season's league cup final.

Iwan has been brilliant for Caernarfon Town in every way and, as the club’s media officer, it has been an absolute joy getting to know and to work with him. From that first photoshoot to our final post-match interview against Berriew it’s been plain sailing all the way and we’ve had lots of fun as well. I honestly believe he’s going to be a huge success at his new club but I’ve already told him he’d better get all his victories and successes as soon as possible because once we’re in the top tier no one at Caernarfon Town Football Club will be looking to just make up the numbers!

Finally on this matter, I have to say I was less than enamoured with how Llandudno went about releasing the news, or rather their attempt to bully us into an announcement on their terms. In short, they contacted me five minutes before they were planning to publish their announcement which, as far as I am concerned, was unfair on our supporters and us as a club. I had understood that Caernarfon Town Football Club would be making the announcement later in the evening and so to be told by Llandudno’s media officer that they were going to break the news in five minutes time was unacceptable. I obviously made my views clear and thankfully sense and decency prevailed and we managed to co-ordinate the announcement but the matter has certainly put my guard up where Llandudno is concerned. We may not be in the top tier yet but we like to try and act as professional as possible, which is what we’d expect from all clubs, especially those in the WPL.     

Ain't Nobody Like Sean Eardley.....

So, our 4-1 victory over Berriew, where Darren Thomas continued his fine recent form with a brace, in Iwan’s last match meant we were through to the third round of the Welsh Cup, were top of the league and now looking for a new manager! Two words immediately came to mine, and from what I know, all the other Board members’ thoughts as well: Sean Eardley. Eards joined us as assistant manager during the summer and, although he’s only been at the Oval for a few months, he’s made a big impact at the club. Highly-respected in the North Wales football scene after a successful time with Alan Morgan at Llandudno, Eards has an infectious personality and a real spark about him. 

As a Liverpool supporter of a certain age I have always believed that promoting from within is the best way to go but of course it does not always guarantee success. For every Bob Paisley there is a Ray Harford, John Carver and Craig Shakespeare but I believe the key to ensuring it works is to do it when the team is in a strong position. When Liverpool experienced such huge success in the seventies and eighties and promoted from within, they were on top and doing well. And this is why I firmly believe Sean will be a huge success as manager of Caernarfon Town. We’ve got a very good squad that to me is a match for everyone in the Welsh pyramid and when you have someone of Sean’s experience and enthusiasm taking over of the reigns, I believe there’s an excellent chance he will continue the success we’ve enjoyed in recent seasons.

Richard Davies

Whilst we all wanted Sean to take on the job we still needed to ask if he wanted it so we met with him and Richard Davies and were delighted that he was indeed up for the challenge and would love a crack at taking us up to the Welsh Premier League. Richard was to step up as his assistant with Mike Innes coming in as coach and from what I have heard from the players and supporters, everyone felt as excited as we were with the news.

It seems to me that Richard often gets overlooked by people outside the club but he has been a highly successful manager himself with Penrhyn and is another well-respected figure in the area who brings a lot to the set up. Mike of course has been with us for a few years and it’s great to see him join the management team after a spell out following an operation. So, just two days after Iwan’s resignation we were in a position to announce his successor and, as expected, the news was very well received by the club’s stakeholders.

Sean, Richard and Mike’s first challenge as our new management team was a trip to second-placed Airbus UK for a meeting of the league’s top two sides up to that point. We all know that the Wingmakers have had a decent run in the Welsh Premier League, and were in fact runners up for two successive seasons recently, with many people seeing them as favourites for promotion this year. They were just two points behind us before the match and after twenty minutes it seemed inevitable that they’d overtake us as they raced into an early three-goal lead.

So impressive had the hosts been that when Fosu-Mensah put them three goals ahead I feared an embarrassing scoreline was on the cards. They were excellent during the first quarter of the match but Town dug deep and found a way to stem the tide. Then, slowly but surely, we started getting a foothold in the match and had gained parity, possession-wise at least, when he half time whistle sounded. I’m sure that Sean would have wished for better circumstances for his first half-time talk but whatever he said worked because the team was transformed after the break.

Gaz Edwards

The introduction of Gareth Edwards and Jay Gibbs for the restart had a massive impact on proceedings as Gaz stopped the supply to dangerman Fosu-Mensah whilst Jay produced an amazing forty five minutes in the number ten role to drag the team back into contention. Having already gone close to pulling a goal back on a number of occasions, once Gaz scored in the sixty third minute there was a real feeling that we could go on and salvage a point.

Darren Thomas set Danny Brookwell up to further reduce the deficit and the highlight of the afternoon arrived in the closing minutes when Jay Gibbs produced a stunning free-kick from all of thirty yards that flew through a crowded penalty area and past Airbus stopper Coughlin, much to the delight of the travelling Cofi  Army. It was a top drawer goal from Jay to cap off one of the best halves of football I’ve seen from a Caernarfon side and the midfielder can quite rightly claim to have been the catalyst for it. We very nearly found time for a winner too when Darren Thomas danced through the Airbus defence but stubbed his foot as he was about to strike with just Coughlin to beat. For once Messi could not quite manage to find the net, but at least it showed that he’s human!

Jay Gibbs.

So, a thrilling fightback by the Cofis that showed the determination that runs through the side and I cannot think of many, if any, other teams in the league who could have secured a point after such a tough opening twenty five minutes or so. It goes without saying that we were all thrilled to get a point but it was interesting to see that the players seemed disappointed to not have won all three.

In fact, I also found out that there were one or two members of the Airbus fraternity who were just as disappointed as our players. Whilst waiting for Sean for our first post-match interview I was approached by one of the host directors who offered me some advice on how to behave at football matches. I won’t bore you with the finer details of our conversation but I gathered that he had not been too pleased with me celebrating Jay’s equaliser in front of the Airbus supporters, who I was walking past at the time. I don’t really expect, or require, life-lessons at football matches and we agreed to disagree, although I’m still not sure what the finer points of his advice were. Nothing could dampen my excitement at the side’s thrilling fightback however and, just as I was carrying out an interview with Jay for the club’s youtube channel, we were plunged into darkness as the stadium lights were switched off. Of course it was pure bad timing as we had to stop the interview in in mid flow but It’s much more fun to imagine that it was one final show of mock defiance from a disappointed member of the Airbus board!

Things would not get any easier for our new management team as our next opponents were our old friends from Halkyn Road. Holywell may not have been in the top tier for a few years but they’re certainly one of the most respected sides in North Wales. There are never any easy matches against them, especially under the guidance of John Haseldin and regular readers of this blog will be aware that I have taken part in some banter with the Wellmen’s manager in the past. Whilst it’s also true that Caernarfon Town supporters enjoy a ‘special’ relationship with him, there can be no doubt that he has done a great job with the club. We may have a great record over Holywell in recent seasons but not many clubs can say that and their visit to the Oval promised to be another thriller for the spectators.

Preparing for the Holywell match.

A good start to proceedings was required and the Cofis got one, racing to a two goal lead, courtesy of goals from Rhys Roberts and Clive Williams. We eventually ran out 4-2 winners with Rhys grabbing a second and Jay Gibbs wrapping up the points from the penalty spot but the Wellmen made the Cofis work hard for the points, with former Town striker Steve Lewis a handful all afternoon. It made me smile to hear him complaining with the referee after the match, and later on social media, that he should have had more decisions go his way because that’s exactly the kind of thing he’d say after a defeat when he played for us.

Rhys Roberts netted twice against Holywell. 

An interesting point about our goals on the day is that three of them came through headers directly from set-pieces, which is quite rare for us. I believe the players have been working on this aspect of play since the summer and it paid off against Holywell, who struggled with deliveries to their far post. Rhys Roberts was man of the match and quite right too. His two goals were invaluable on the day, but also his contribution at the back, where he partnered Gareth Edwards, was very impressive. Rhys was in and out of the side earlier in the campaign but has now cemented his place in the starting line-up and although he seems a quiet individual, he is quite obviously a leader and, as far as I’m concerned, no team can ever have enough of those.

As an added bonus to the afternoon, we heard that Airbus had lost at Denbigh and so our lead at the top of the league had extended to five points, although it’s worth noting that Denbigh have suddenly, and very quietly, climbed the table in recent weeks and are presently in second position.

The players enjoyed two weeks off after the victory over Holywell and I’m sure would have been counting the hours, or minutes, to our next match, a Welsh  Cup encounter with Welsh Premier League side Barry Town United, in front of the Sgorio cameras. This competition was very good to the club last season as we reached the semi-finals stage and enjoyed impressive victories over top tier outfits Carmarthen and Rhyl before eventually bowing out to Bala in a thriller at the Corbett Sports Stadium.

The Sgorio cameras at the Barry Town Cup tie.  

The Rhyl and Bala matches had been broadcasted live by Sgorio and had given the club plenty of exposure, and given the players a platform to show that they belong amongst the elite in Wales. Our tie with Barry was the standout fixture of the round and we were delighted that Sgorio had picked it as the live match of the weekend.

I was disappointed to learn that Jay Gibbs and Darren Thomas would be unavailable for the tie but still felt the squad had enough to win. It was never going to be easy but with the players of the calibre of Nathan Craig and Gareth Evans returning to the side it proved that Sean had quality options for the big match and that, despite the absence of two influential players, the starting eleven looked more than capable of getting the result we wanted.

There can be no doubt that the television cameras adds something to match day at the Oval, probably because we rarely have them at our ground, and the feeling I had as kick off approached was one of expectancy and not a little apprehension. It was good to see Iwan Williams at the match in his role as a guest analyst for Sgorio, and whilst I found it odd that he wasn’t wearing his Caernarfon Town tracksuit, I was not surprised to hear his positive comments about the team and club when I watched the coverage later that night.

Celebrating Breesey's opener.

The action got off to a frantic start and the visitors felt hard done by when Kayne Mclaggon stumbled in the penalty area in the second minute but the referee waved away his penalty shout. Jamie Breese showed Mclaggon how it should be done ninety seconds later when he took possession of a Brookwell pass on the edge of the penalty area and skipped past a defender before firing past Mike Lewis in front of the Rondo Stand. The Cofi Army loves Breesey, as do I, and in addition to putting us ahead, I thought he had one of his best matches in a Caernarfon shirt on the day. His first touch was excellent and, as always, he put in a hefty shift, constantly occupying the thoughts of the vistors’ backline with his intelligent running and impressive workrate. The goal gave the Cofis the belief to go toe to toe with Barry and we went on to dominate the first half, forcing visiting stopper Lewis into numerous saves, most notably to deny Nathan Craig and Gareth Edwards. When Nathan Craig secured a deserved second goal, it was one of the best I’ve ever seen anywhere, never mind at the Oval. I know everyone who is reading this will have already seen the goal and so won’t need reminding how special it was but, just to remind you, here’s the link to Sgorio’s video of the magical moment:  https://twitter.com/sgorio/status/937344995266195456 

Sean and Nathan taking a breather against Barry Town Utd.

It was a stunning strike by Nathan and something he is always capable of. I believe Nathan is one of the best players in Wales and we are lucky enough to see him score this type of goal for us on a regular basis so it was great that the cameras were there to share this one around the country. Our captain will always attract attention from those with an interest in the Welsh pyramid system because he is a special talent and has a real pedigree in the game and goals like this will just add to his already massive reputation.

Barry seemed to improve in the second half but Caernarfon were still on top and, although we didn’t manage to find the target after the break, I don’t think anyone could argue with the 2-0 scoreline. I was quite near the dugout at the end of the match and Sean and Richard were kicking every ball with the players as they saw the match out, and how good must it have been for our new manager to hear the Cofi Army giving their new chant of ‘Ain’t Nobody Like Sean Eardley’ an airing?

Sean enjoys the final moments of his side's impressive victory

in the televised Welsh Cup tie.

Nathan Craig was named man of the match by television commentator Malcolm Allen whilst Kevin Roberts was the supporters pick but, in all honesty, everyone wearing a Caernarfon shirt on the day could have had a legitimate claim for the accolade. Barry are a good side and are a perfect example of a Welsh Premier League outfit; Big and Strong but maybe a little uncomfortable on a real football pitch. That’s not being disrespectful to them, just an opinion that the FAW’s preference for teams to play on synthetic surfaces is having an adverse effect on them when they revert back to grass pitches. Something that stood out on the day for me was how well Barry manager Gavin Chesterfield spoke on camera after the match and, unlike Rhyl’s manager last season after we beat them, he refused to blame the referee or anyone else for their defeat, making it clear that the Cofis deserved victory. A class act.

As I carried out my post-match interview with our new manager I was reminded of a famous old saying: ‘The King is Dead, long live the King’.

The new King at the Oval is Sean Eardley, and he’s already proving that he knows how to rule.