Morgans class shines through in Tenby win (From Western Telegraph)

Morgans class shines through in Tenby win

Haverfordwest County 0 Tenby 3

If there are any footballers in the county who want to improve their game then they could do no wrong than sign League of Wales forms with Milford Haven. Under the tutelage of Micky Lewis and Mark Powell you are sure to get better and therefore a transition back into Pembrokeshire league football would be an easy one. Put succinctly whoever made the move would be a star in local football.

If anyone requires any proof of this then they should have witnessed the display of Tenbys Ricky Morgan against Haverfordwest on the weekend.

The diminutive striker raised a few eyebrows last year when he signed for Micky Lewis men, but it has obviously done him the world of good as he was head and shoulders above everyone else on a windswept Bridge Meadow on Saturday.

From the outset until the final whistle, he never stopped looking for the ball and whenever he took control of it there was a buzz of anticipation as to what he was going to do next.

Naturally, he couldnt do it all on his own and he was helped a great deal by the rest of the visiting team who all had good games.

Playing against the wind in the first half, Tenby made all the running. Being unable to play the long ball into the box, they had to resort to playing the ball along the deck and it seemed to suit their skilful approach to the game. They looked particularly strong on the left with left back Greg Helmich having a good game in defence and attack and he forms a good partnership with Ryan Lawrence who is quick and skilful in midfield.

The visitors scored within five minutes as Haverfordwest, who were strengthened by the return of Marcus Taylor, Brett Hawkridge and Jamie Gilderdale, had no answer to their sleek, sharp brand of soccer and Morgan was to benefit as he took the ball outside the box, beat a few men and calmly picked his spot to slam the ball home.

This early goal obviously rocked the home side a little and they allowed Tenby to come at them with James Thomas, Ryan Lawrence and Anthony Griffiths all having chances before Morgan made the score 2-0 with a neat finish.

Despite finding the ball difficult to control due to the elements, Haverfordwest also had their chances to score. Marcus Taylor, who proved to be a constant threat throughout the game, saw a powerful volley fly over the bar, while Brett Hawkridge had a nice wavy run that should have resulted in a goal but he lost control when Tenby keeper Dewi Davies came out to narrow the angle.

At the same time, Tenby were attacking at every opportunity. First, Morgan saw his attempt at a hat-trick hit the side netting while Ryan Lawrence shot just wide. They did score just before half time however, when a good tackle by Dominic Subbiani allowed Helmich to storm up the left and chip the ball over the defence wide to Morgan, who calmly beat his man to pass the ball to Luke Lawrence who made no mistake to score.

With the wind at their backs in the second half, you could have been mistaken if you thought Tenby would run riot. In the end the opposite was true as Haverfordwest came into it more as Micky Ellis showed his class on a number of occasions while Taylor and Hawkridge grew in confidence by the minute.

One piece of magic by Taylor sticks in the memory as he turned in the box and in one movement smashed a volley, which on another day would have sailed into the net, but it went over the bar.

Morgan could have claimed his hat-trick on a number of occasions but he was denied by Steven Price in the Bluebirds goal who played very well, while at the opposite end Davies did well to stop a couple of shots from Taylor and Hawkridge.

Despite the wind and the sudden down pour half way through the second half it was an excellent game with Tenby being deserved winners in the end.