With nothing happening on the field in Welsh football, Haverfordwest County have received some good news off it.

The club have been awarded their FAW Tier 1 Licence for the 2020/21 season.

It means that should the Bluebirds be able to finish their current campaign in the JD Cymru South League, and manage to overhaul Swansea University in top spot, they will be free to take their place in the Welsh Premier.

Should they end up second, they will still be promoted back to the top flight if Swansea fail to get their domestic licence.

With five games each remaining, Wayne Jones’ side were lying second and just a point off the students when all football was halted due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Haverfordwest were one of 11 clubs successful with their application, and Chairman David Hughes said a lot of work had gone in to ensure “all boxes were ticked.”

Speaking to Telegraph Sport, Hughes, who continues to undertake vast amounts of work at the club, said: “We had done our homework and were ahead of the game in that respect.

“We were determined to make sure we got the application over the line and would have been very disappointed in the end if we hadn’t received it.

“It took a lot of work and I should also mention Rob Davies who put in a vast amount.”

Like a lot of clubs of course, the Bluebirds remain in a strange situation, no closer to knowing when the 2019/20 season will resume, if at all.

But Hughes was optimistic that the authorities will try and play the top two leagues in Wales to completion.

“I’d have thought the tier 1 and 2 leagues will try very hard to finish and have a good chance of doing so because there is just a few games left.

“In leagues below that there are some sides who still have 16 or 17 games to go so I suspect they could be made null and void, but in truth that’s in the hands of the FAW.”

European qualification is at stake in the Welsh Premier, and this is something Hughes hopes will help.

“The top two leagues will be guided by UEFA to a degree, because if the dates of qualifying games are put back it will give more time for the leagues to be completed.

“I think there is a high chance we could run into next season.”

The Chairman also provided an update on the state of the surface at the Bridge Meadow, which has not hosted a game since Goodwick United played Merlins Bridge in the Senior Cup semi-final on March 5th.

“The pitch is looking absolutely first class and is ready to go. Obviously we aren’t getting any gate revenue in at the moment but one plus is the pitch doesn’t need any renovation.

“We won’t be sowing seeds or spreading sand like normal at this time of year, so won’t have the bills to go with it.”

The Haverfordwest players are currently doing fitness programmes at home as well as timed road runs, with manager Jones in touch with all his squad and monitoring performance levels.

“It’s great news that the club obtained a domestic licence which is a credit to the directors and the committee,” he added.

“The players are adhering to their fitness programmes and showing good stats in their levels to be fair. So we hope to be able to continue the season at some point and be champions.”

FAW Tier 1 Licence and UEFA Licence for 2020/21 season (9 clubs):

Aberystwyth Town

Bala Town

Barry Town United

Caernarfon Town

Cardiff Met

Carmarthen Town

Connah’s Quay Nomads

Penybont

The New Saints

FAW Tier 1 Licence for 2020/21 Season (2 clubs):

Haverfordwest County

Newtown