F.A. Wales Amateur Trophy

2nd Round

Saturday 3rd October 2026

Kick Off 14.00 Actual 14.01

Talysarn Celts 4 Mynydd Isa 4 (5-4 pens), attendance 90

5’ 1-0

28’ 1-1

45’ + 1, 1-2

47’ 2-2

57’ 2-3

59’ 3-3

66’ 3-4

85’ 4-4

@ Gloddfa Glai

Bryncelin Road

Talysarn

LL54 6AB

£3 Admission

No Programme.

It was a drive of just under two hours from my overnight hotel into Wales, on the western side of Snowdonia National Park. The Gloddfa Glai home of Talysarn Celts is in the centre of the village and as you’d expect, has a cracking scenic backdrop, whichever way you look. Car parking is as you enter off Brycelin Road, with a second pitch nearest here, with the main pitch running end on beyond here. It’s railed on three sides and currently has hard standing on two. The changing rooms are on the right, where there was a tea bar, which served hot food and drinks, with a large dugout on the far side, which serves both teams. Raised grass banking runs along this side with the North Wales Pilgrims Way behind, sandwiched between the ground and Afon Llyfni. It was a surprise for a Tier 4 ground to see no cover at the ground, not that it was needed on such a glorious day, but it was very unusual that there were no spectator toilets…..I did ask, but was told they were in the changing rooms, which isn’t much use when you want to go at halftime and the players are in there! One thing that can’t be disputed is the quality of the pitch. Absolutely superb and was being mown and re-marked about an hour before kick off.

I’d picked this game as it was the only ground I hadn’t seen a game at in the North Wales Coast West League Premier Division, whilst the visitors play one level higher, in the Ardal North West at Tier 3. Talysarn got off to a great start, curling one into the top corner after five minutes, but Mynydd Isa levelled just before the half hour, smashing in from close range after the home ‘keeper had flapped at an attempt to deal with a corner from the right. The visitors edged in front a minute into stoppage time at the end of the first half, stooping at the near post to head in a diagonal free kick from the right. Talysarn were level two minutes into the second half, scrambling in from close range after a corner wasn’t cleared. A goal following a quick breakaway saw the visitors go 2-3 ahead ten minutes later, but the hosts were back level again within two minutes, when a shot from the angle of the 18 yard box went in off the underside of the crossbar. A downward header, back into the far corner, saw the visitors edge in front again to make it 3-4 with just over twenty minutes left. They couldn’t hang on though and Talysarn equalised again within two minutes five minutes left, when a corner from the left was headed in from six yards. We almost had a winner in the dying seconds, but a Mynydd Isa header, from a long throw, was headed off the line by a defender. So, it was on to a penalty shoot out to decider the winners. Mynydd Isa went first. They scored their first two, before number three was saved. Talysarn saw their first one saved, but were clinical with the rest and we were level after the initial five kicks each. Mynydd Isa hit the crossbar with their sixth one, leaving Talysarn the opportunity to win it, which they duly did. A great day out. The only negative point was the referee wearing all black, which isn’t great from a spectator’s point of view when one of the teams are playing in navy blue!

A totally traffic free drive home, arriving back a couple of minutes after nine.