'Merthyr can go as far as people want'

Merthyr Town are the only Welsh club in the men's English non-league pyramid

Manager Paul Michael says Merthyr Town are ready to compete at a higher level next season as the Martyrs build towards achieving their long-term dream of reaching the English Football League (EFL).

Merthyr will play in the sixth tier of the English pyramid – either the National League North or South – in 2025-26 having clinched the Southern Premier League South title on Monday.

Their success comes just three months after the fan-owned club turned down a lucrative offer to join Wales' Cymru Premier.

Michael believes promotion will make Merthyr's "supporters and owners feel vindicated" following the decision to remain in the English non-league system.

"It was no slur on the Welsh domestic game, it's just that you have the hope - how high can we go in this pyramid?" Michael said.

"You have the hope and the dream that one day you could be in the Football League or even higher and, once you make the decision to switch, you can never reverse it. I think that's the main factor that was on the owners' minds."

More than 3,000 fans were at Penydarren Park to see Merthyr seal promotion with a 3-0 victory over Hungerford Town.

They have lost only four of their 41 league games this season, registering 27 wins and scoring 105 goals.

Michael says Merthyr "have the support base" to make further progress.

"I looked at the average attendances at the bottom of League Two and some clubs are getting just over 2,000 - Newport County's average is 4,000," he told BBC Radio Wales Breakfast.

"I honestly think a club in the [Welsh] valleys could bring that kind of crowd in, so who knows? But we need investment and we need sponsorship to continue. We are fan-owned and we don't have an investor pumping in millions to take us [forward] like Wrexham have had over the last few years.

"We can go as far as people in the community want us to go I guess, by getting behind us."

As Merthyr wait to discover which division they will go into next season, Michael says his side can expect significant challenges in either National League North or South.

But he added: "We have a fantastic group of players and hopefully, next season, we don't think we are going to be daunted by the challenge.

"We are looking forward to going and having a go at the next tier up."

Merthyr battled back to regain their Southern League status following liquidation in 2010.

As Merthyr Tydfil FC they competed in the fifth tier of the English system as recently as the 1990s, but their only spell as a Football League club came prior to World War Two.