The day didn't start well. Before setting out, I received a disappointingly thin letter from Oxford which could only mean one thing. Needless to say this did nothing to raise my spirits, neither did the glowering clouds which surrounded us by the team we were half a mile down the road in Cwm-ann. It was a day for dark poetry, but as I am not a dark poet, a simple match report will suffice.

It goes without saying that Barry are good. It is such an obvious statement that the ground gives off an all pervasive air of arrogance. They have only been beaten once by an LoW team since March last year, and that was on Wednesday by Inter in the League Cup. Unlike last year, Aberystwyth did not look overawed and had the better of the early attacks. The warning signs were there though as they failed to connect on the last ball as all three attackers looked to be out of sorts at some time or another. Unsurprisingly, Barry did not fail to connect.

It was 2-0 at half time thanks to two well taken goals by Danny Carter. The Dragons were down to ten men though after Gary Lloyd's ferocious attack on Hayden Fleming, for which 'Flembo' (thanks Dave) was booked. Aber pulled one back after the break through Ryan Nicholls and a recovery looked a distinct possibility and then ...

Barry broke and the ball hit the post and across the line. Any other team would have hoofed it clear but Wyn Thomas did the decent thing and looked to see to where he should launch it. Carter punished such foolish thinking and claimed his hat-trick. Wyn trudged back to the middle, John Morris received a second yellow card for lip and the match was lost. Barry's remaining goals punished Aber's now reckless defending and the final goal was a penalty.

It seems strange to take heart from a 6-1 defeat but Aber deserve credit for playing to their strengths and being in contention for so long. Barry still don't draw the crowds to the municipal joy of Jenner Park but they will carry on winning. Next up for Aber is Cwmbran where they lost 6-0 last year, another result they will be hoping to improve on this time around.