Caernarfon hit for six by Legia Warsaw in Europe

Paulo Mendes (right) in action against Legia's hat-trick hero Marc Gual

Caernarfon Town put on a brave and creditable performance as they went down 6-0 away to Polish giants Legia Warsaw in the first leg of the Europa Conference League second qualifying round.

Marc Gual’s header and Ryoya Morishita’s effort - which was unfortunately turned into his own goal by keeper Stephen McMullan - gave the home side a 2-0 lead at the break.

Gual completed his hat-trick with two second-half goals with Blaz Kramer also scoring after missing a penalty.

Claude Gonçalves completed the scoring at the end of a tough but nonetheless unforgettable night for Caernarfon.

Arguably the biggest game in Caernarfon’s history was played behind closed doors after Uefa sanctioned the Polish club for crowd trouble, a decision which manager Richard Davies said was “unfair” on the Welsh fans.

Subsequently there was an eerie atmosphere in the near-32,000 capacity Polish Army Stadium, reminiscent of games played under similar circumstances during the Covid-19 pandemic.

Japan international Morishita tried his luck from distance within the opening five minutes, but Caernarfon soon settled into the game.

Danny Gosset’s long range effort flew over the bar while a long clearance from McMullan found Zack Clarke in a promising position but the forward fired into the side netting.

Caernarfon's team line-up before the game at the Polish Army Stadium

Sloppy defending from the Cymru Premier side presented a first opportunity for Gual, who hesitated before he could take a shot and Caernarfon’s defenders recovered and cleared.

However it was Gual who broke the deadlock four minutes later.

Bartosz Kapustka’s corner was headed downwards by Steve Kapuadi into the path of Gual, whose close-range header crept over the line despite the best efforts of full-back Mathew Jones.

McMullan gathered Kramer’s shot but a mistake from the on-loan Fleetwood Town keeper saw Legia double their lead two minutes before half-time.

The 19-year-old attempted to tip Morishita’s cross over the bar but instead pushed the ball into his own net just before the interval.

Legia took just two minutes after the break to score a third – Kramer combining well with Gual who scored his second.

The Spanish striker completed his hat-trick five minutes later when he met Morishita’s low cross to score from close range at the far post.

Kramer then fired a penalty wide but made amends minutes late with a clever turn which deceived Caernarfon’s defenders before coolly slotting past McMullan.

And Legia’s sixth came courtesy of Goncalves’ effort from distance in stoppage time.

The sides meet in the second leg next Thursday, with Caernarfon hopeful the game can go ahead as planned at Bangor’s Nantporth despite safety concerns.