North East Wales League

Championship Division

Saturday 26th April 2025

Kick Off 13.00 Actual 12.55!

C.P.D. Cei Connah 1 Rhydymwyn 4, attendance 19

36’ 0-1

40’ 0-2

42’ 0-3

71’ 1-3

81’ 1-4

@ Dock Road

Connah’s Quay

CH5 4DS

No Admission or Programme.

The drive from my overnight stay in Cumbria took just over two and a half hours and I was pleased to see players already arriving as I pulled into the car park about an hour before kick off. I’ve had problems with this league twice already this season, having turned up at both Acton and Yr Wyddgrug, only to find that the games had been called off whilst I was en route. At least I had the bonus of the earlier than normal one o’clock start today, just in case I was faced with another no show, so I’d still get a game in somewhere else if need be.

The ground is on an industrial estate, just to the south of the River Dee. As you enter the car park, the changing rooms are to the left, with the pitch in front of you, running lengthways. The pitch is almost entirely railed off, with a pair of brick dugouts on the left hand side. Both were minus a roof, which looked to be due to wind damage, as they were both lay in the long grass behind. There is hard standing from the dugouts to the near corner, continuing behind the goal and along the right touchline. The far end is accessible, but very overgrown, rather like the pitch, which hasn’t been mowed in quite some time by the look of it.

At least the match had something on it. Cei Connah were bottom of the table, following the withdrawal from the league of previous incumbent Deeside United, but a win in this, their last game of the season, could still see them go above Skippy and Deeside Dragons. Broughton United have already won the league, but Rhydymwyn, currently third, could still finish second, if they won their last two games and Sychdyn United failed to win their final game today, with a five point gap separating them coming into this and Rhydymwyn having the better goal difference.

Cei Connah started well and almost went ahead when a visiting defender headed against his own crossbar when defending a long throw in and also saw a volley from the edge of the box well saved by the ‘keeper. After thirty six minutes the visitors broke the deadlock, following in after an initial save by the ‘keeper. Four minutes later the ‘keeper made another save, this time from a downward header, but it fell perfectly for a player following in and an easy tap in made it 0-2, quickly followed by an unmarked header at the far post to see it end 0-3 at the break. With nineteen minutes left Cei Connah volleyed in a flick on from a long throw to give themselves hope of getting back into it. They did miss another good chance before Rhydymwyn added a fourth goal, when a home defender miss hit a back pass to his ‘keeper, which sailed over him into the far corner.

Unfortunately, the win wasn’t enough for Rhydymwyn, as Sychdyn won their match 4-1 as well, so take second place. There was talk that they won’t meet the ground grading required though, so all may not be lost yet for Rhydymwyn.

With having kicked off five minutes early and everyone staying on the pitch at halftime, this was over by 14.34 and I was home just 4 hours later, thanks to no traffic problems until reaching Cobham Services on the M25, where there was a mile long queue of cars trying to gain access from the motorway and it was the same on the opposite carriageway.