The Yellow Dragon previews the club who are
TUESDAY, 6th OCTOBER LEAGUE OF WALES CUP, FIRST ROUND REPLAYIt's not as if Caersws need any sort of introduction to Barry supporters, especially those who traveled away to the Recreation Ground for the original League of Wales Cup match and for the League of Wales game last week.
Despite being holders of the League of Wales Cup after that penalty shoot-out at Bangor last May, we ended up with the short straw and were drawn away against the mid-Walians, the most Northerly club in the Southern section of the League Cup draw.
Caersws, of course, went off like the proverbial train, scoring after only 3 minutes theough Damon Russell, and with Geraint Lewis adding to that later on in the game. Indeed, some might say that we were extremely lucky to earn the replay, with goals from Eifion and Justin Perry late in the game.
That match, and, indeed, last week's LoW game are both in the past now, although there are some rays of sunshine which we can gain from the Cup match, and other previous knock-out games against the mid-Walian Bluebirds.
For one thing, we've never been knocked out of a cup by Caersws, having previously defeated them twice in the Welsh Cup quarter-finals. The other way of looking at it, though, is that they'll be hungry to beat us, and eager to lose their tag of 'plucky villagers', and take a genuine scalp - and there's no bigger side than us. Bangor might consider Caersws their bogey side, having consistently lost in mid-Wales, but the Bluebirds will be more than happy to add Barry to any list of targets.
The recent signing of Graham Evans to Aston Villa points to Caersws's famed youth system, with the 18-year old having been the Bluebirds top scorer last year with 13 LoW goals.
Close behind him, though, was Damon Russell, who joined Caersws after scoring a hat-trick for Welshpool in a local derby against them. Despite being 13 years the senior of Evans, Russell found the net on 12 occasions in the LoW, and has continued that vein of form this season, including his goal against Barry in the League Cup.
Also back in the habit of scoring goals is Sean Jehu, who caught Barry napping at Jenner Park last year, scoring after only 9 minutes. He found the net recently in their 3-1 win over Rhyl.
Caersws remain under the stewardship of former Wrexham star, Mickey Evans, by far the longest serving manager in the League of Wales, and have got off to a reasonably good start to the season, with home form being especially good. Prior to our visit in the LoW, they were unbeaten, having defeated Bangor City 2-0 and Rhyl 3-1 at the Recreation Ground. Away form had been slightly more disappointing, narrowly losing 2-1 at Total Network Solutions, but gaining a credible point in a 0-0 draw at newly-promoted Holywell Town.
With the change in format of the League of Wales Cup, our game has gone to a replay rather than a second leg, and Barry will have to be at their best to ensure that nothing goes wrong and that the defence of our Cup goes according to our plans, not theirs.
See you here on Tuesday to see if Barry can keep their hands on the silverware. Kick-off 7:30p.m.
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This page edited by the Yellow Dragon, 1998.
All material on the page was first published in the Barry Town Matchday Magazine v Rhayader Town, League of Wales, 03.10.1998.
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