Bluebirds blow chance to go third (From Western Telegraph)

Bluebirds blow chance to go third

mitsubishi Welsh premier league

NEWI CEFN DRUIDS 1 Haverfordwest County 0

The Bluebirds would have gone up to third place with a win in this game, but in the end it really was a case of the conditions beating both sides, as less than a hundred supporters watched both teams struggle to put constructive moves together.

After Aberystwyth had dropped two points in a 1-1 draw with Newtown on the Friday evening, the Blues travelled to Cefn Mawr with high hopes of the three points which would take them past the Seasiders.

Deryn Brace continued with the experiment of playing Eston Chiverton as striker, with Rob Jones slotting in as centre-half.

From the start however any tactical formation was likely to fall foul of the strong and swirling wind which ruined the game as a spectacle and as a contest.

The Blues defence, with Rob Jones and Thomas at its heart, managed to stamp its authority on the game from the start, with their attackers, naturally enough, finding control and precision more difficult.

But in the 28th minute they came within a whisker of taking the lead when Simon Heal's well-flighted ball into the box was adjudged to have been handled by John Main.

In the absence of regular taker Chris Miller, dead-ball specialist Colin Loss stepped up to take the penalty. His shot was hard, well-directed and rocketing towards the top of the net only for ex-Aston Villa keeper Mike Price to pull off a blinding tip-over.

As so often happens, this let-off was followed by a lapse at the other end. In the 34th minute, home striker Anthony Williams was able to nip in between Deryn Brace and Lee Kendall to poach what was to prove the winning goal.

The second half saw the Bluebirds applying a lot of pressure in their efforts to get at least an equalizer.

They came closest in the 50th minute when Wyn Thomas headed powerfully against the bar, but always the swirling wind broke the move up.

The Blues brought on all three substitutes in an effort to pep up their attack.

Rhys Griffiths replaced Chiverton in the 68m minute, Dylan Blain replaced Nicky Palmer on the wing with twenty minutes left, and finally Darren Ryan replaced Rob Jones. But there was no way through.

Meanwhile, the Druids played economically and intelligently to their limitations, defending in numbers, keeping the ball on the deck and pushing forward warily. The Bluebirds now go on to another away game, against Cwmbran Town, on Wednesday evening.

Haverfordwest County: Kendall; Brace, Wayne Jones, Harris, Thomas, Rob Jones (Ryan, 87), Heal, Hicks, Chiverton (Griffiths, 68), Loss, Palmer (Blain, 74).

Last Monday evening, a young Bluebirds side went out of the West Wales Senior Cup, losing to Briton Ferry on penalties after the score was 1-1 at 90 minutes. A Chris Miller penalty in the 85th minute was followed by a Ferry equalizer in the second minute of injury time. There were fine displays though, from several of the Blues' younger players, notably Haydn Ralph, Aaron Devine and Lee Waters.

* The winning numbers in the Bluebirds Tote last weekend were 13, 46 and 48. There were no winners and a jackpot of £2,500 rolls over to next week.