Welsh Cup Final: The New Saints 6-0 Bala Town - Saints complete double
- Published
New Saints players celebrate with the Welsh Cup after the club lifted the trophy for the ninth time
The New Saints secured a second successive Welsh domestic double with dominant 6-0 win over Bala in Bangor to win the JD Welsh Cup final .
Declan McManus' strike gave the Cymru Premier champions a first-half lead
Two goals in the opening 11 minutes of the second half from Danny Redmond and Ryan Brobbel extended their advantage.
Substitutes Jordan Williams and Adrian Cieślewicz and Brobbel's second secured the biggest Welsh Cup final win since 1931.
Having already qualified for the Uefa Champions League, Saints' win means that third-placed Penybont will play in next season's Europa Conference League qualifiers.
Bala, who had beaten Saints 2-1 at the same Nantporth venue in the 2017 final, will now have to win the end of season play-offs to qualify for Europe.
Josh Daniels missed a golden opportunity after 10 minutes when he headed Brobbel's cross wide from close range as Saints controlled the opening quarter.
Redmond and McManus had efforts saved by Bala keeper Alex Ramsay before the two players combined to open the scoring.
Redmond capitalised on a slip by Antony Kay to set up the opportunity for McManus to fire home his 33rd goal of the season and give Saints a deserved lead.
Ramsay, struggling with an injury which had seen him miss Bala's last three league games, made a crucial save to deny Daniels from extending the holders' lead.
Bala had barely threatened Saints keeper Connor Roberts until a free-kick from former Wales midfielder Dave Edwards forced him into a save.
Colin Caton's side ended the half strongly and also made a promising start to the second half with a long ball from captain Chris Venables found Ollie Shannon, who turned inside before firing over the crossbar.
But two minutes later Saints had extended their lead as man of the match Redmond scored a fine individual goal as he weaved his way into the area, beating Ramsay before applying the simplest of touches.
Five minutes later Brobbel made it 3-0, cutting in from the left before coolly slotting past Ramsay.
Williams, who scored twice in the 2022 final, intercepted a backpass for Saints' fourth before fellow substitute Cieślewicz struck a first time effort a minute later.
Brobbel got his second in stoppage time when he beat the offside trap and beat Ramsay as Craig Harrison's men comfortably won the cup for the ninth time in the club's history.