Welsh Cup final: Penybont 2-3 The New Saints
- Published
Man-of-the-match Jordan Williams scored 15 goals in The New Saints' title-winning campaign
The New Saints survived a late Penybont fightback to win the JD Welsh Cup final and complete the domestic double.
Jordan Williams scored two goals in the space of a minute in the first half to put Saints firmly in control at Cardiff City Stadium.
Declan McManus's penalty, after he was brought down in the area by Ashley Morris, made it 3-0.
Shaun MacDonald and Dan Jefferies scored late on for Penybont but Saints held on to clinch an eighth Welsh Cup.
Victory for Saints, who had already qualified for next season's Champions League, means Newtown will play in the Europa Conference League after finishing third in the league.
Saints went into Sunday's game as holders of the competition, having won the last final to be contested in 2019, when they beat Connah's Quay.
Penybont, formed following a merger between Bryntirion Athletic and Bridgend Town in 2013, were appearing in their first Welsh Cup final.
Saints' Williams saw his shot deflected off the head of Jefferies but Penybont keeper Ashley Morris gathered the ball comfortably.
The Cymru Premier champions were getting a foothold in the game, although Ryan Brobbel's speculative effort went over the crossbar while McManus' effort was blocked.
But Penybont, boosted by five players passing pre-match fitness tests, were proving more than a match for the full-time side.
Their disciplined defence, marshalled by ex-Swansea and Bournemouth player MacDonald, restricted Saints' Brobbel and Danny Davies to long-range efforts which sailed over the bar.
Shaun MacDonald scored one of Penybont's two late goals
But their pressure paid off on the half-hour mark as Williams was given too much space before unleashing a low shot from 25 yards which beat Morris.
Williams scored his second a minute later, netting from a tight angle after Morris could only palm away Brobbel's cross.
Davies' shot was tipped on to the woodwork by Morris as the first half drew to a close.
Kane Owen's free-kick early in the second half, which struck Saints' defensive wall, summed up the frustration of Rhys Griffiths' team.
That was compounded further when Morris brought down the advancing McManus in the area and the Scottish striker converted the spot-kick which followed.
McManus, the Cymru Premier's top scorer with 24 goals, had not previously scored in this season's competition.
Penybont made a strong finish with an effort cleared off the line before MacDonald struck with a half volley with seven minutes remaining - the first goal Saints had conceded in this season's competition.
Owen's free-kick was turned away by Connor Roberts and from the resultant corner, Jefferies headed home to set up a frantic finish.
The New Saints head coach Anthony Limbrick told BBC Sport Wales:
"At 3-0 I never thought the game was won against Penybont - they always go to the end and they've always got something in them that keeps going.
"We feared if they got one they could get back into it and they did but credit to our players to see that through that little period at the end and I thought we did well that
"We knew we'd have a high percentage of possession for this game but it was whether we could break them down.
"We knew they would be dangerous on the counter attack and good from set plays, which they found to be.
"But I felt if we did get that first goal then we would go on and maybe get a second or third and we did."