Cymru Premier round-up: Colwyn Bay down as Aberystwyth stay up and New Saints finish unbeaten
- Published
Louis Bradford celebrates after scoring his first league goal of the season to put Aberystwyth ahead
Sunday, 21 April
Championship Conference
Caernarfon Town 2-2 Bala Town: Bala claimed a point on the final day despite seeing goalkeeper Kelland Absalom sent off early in the second half after he received a second yellow card, which forced defender Nathan Peate to go in goal. Caernarfon went ahead through Zack Clarke only for Naim Arsan to level before the break. The 10 men of Bala went ahead through Joe Malkin's close-range finish on 52 minutes but Louis Lloyd made it 2-2. Bala finish third with Caernarfon fifth.
Cardiff Met 1-3 Newtown: Newtown secured a fourth-place finish thanks to a final-day win at Cardiff Met. Dom Smith and Arron Williams struck in the first period before Callum Roberts made it 3-0, with Sam Jones pulling one back on 70 minutes for Met, who finish sixth.
The New Saints 2-0 Connah's Quay Nomads: The New Saints completed an historic unbeaten Cymru Premier season with a home win over Nomads, who finish a distant second in the table. Adrian Cieslewicz scored an 88th-minute opener goal for champions, with the points secured thanks to a late Kai Edwards own goal. It was the first time a team had gone unbeaten in the league since Barry in 1997-98. In doing so the Saints dropped just four points all season, taking 92 from a possible 96. The 33-point gap between them and Nomads is also the biggest in the competition's history.
Play-Off Conference
Aberystwyth Town 3-0 Pontypridd United: Aberystwyth claimed the victory they needed to avoid dropping out of the Welsh top flight for the first time, having been members of the league since its inception in 1992. Louis Bradford gave Aber a first-half lead with a powerful header before Steff Davies scrambled in the second. Jonny Evans sealed Aber's victory late on. Pontypridd's fate was decided on Thursday when their appeal against a tier one licence refusal was rejected, confirming their relegation irrespective of their final position. Defeat on the final day meant they ended bottom of the pile.
Colwyn Bay 1-0 Barry Town United: Colwyn Bay were relegated despite Alex Downes' late header giving them victory over Barry Town United. The Bay, who along with Barry were promoted at the start of the season, had no chance of final-day survival regardless of their result because Aberystwyth beat Pontypridd.
Penybont 1-0 Haverfordwest County: Chris Venables' early goal proved decisive as Penybont claimed a place in the European play-offs ahead of Haverfordwest. Tony Pennock's County were the play-off final winners last season, but missed out on the chance of a repeat thanks to defeat on the final day. They finish eighth with Penybont seventh.