Eardley stunner gives Nomads another important three points

Tuesday night saw Connah's Quay Nomads defeat Caernarfon Town 1-0 in the 13th set of fixtures in the JD Cymru Premier thanks to a Neal Eardley wonder strike.

• The Nomads travelled to Caernarfon in which The Nomads looked to pursue their position of being top six contenders
• The first half saw both teams go end to end as they looked to open the scoring
• A Neal Eardley stunner put The Nomads 1-0 up in the 69th minute
• Former Nomad Rob Hughes saw red for Caernarfon in injury time at the end of the second half

The Nomads came into the game on the back of a comfortable 4-0 victory over Bala Town last friday in the league as well as two more 4-0 wins against Holywell Town in the Nathaniel MG Cup and against Cefn Druids a few weeks ago.

Caernarfon Town came into this game with their previous results featuring a 2-1 home defeat to the hands of Barry Town as well as an impressive 1-0 away win last weekend against Cardiff Met in which The Nomads conceded a late equaliser too in October.

The game started of with constant pressure from The Nomads as they pushed Caernarfon deep into their own half straight from kick off and The Nomads enjoyed possession down both wings as Mullan and Poole looked to deliver a set of crosses.

Caernarfon did show early signs of danger as Mike Hayes looked to press through the middle of The Nomads defenders George Horan and Danny Holmes but Horan eventually stopped Hayes from threatening Ollie Byrne in The Nomads goal.

In the 13th minute, The Nomads created their first opportunity as Callum Morris delivered a cross which fell to Jamie Mullan who shot from close range but was blocked and Mullan's shot fell to Aeron Edwards, whose shot was also blocked by the Caernarfon defence.

Caernarfon then continued the early end to end stuff as Noah Edwards looked to slide a through ball to Mike Hayes but Ollie Byrne was there to rush out and collect the ball safely.

In the 24th minute, The Nomads continued to build severe pressure on the Caernarfon defence but Rob Hughes who tracked back to defend, fouled John Disney and was shown a yellow card for the challenge.

The Nomads then enjoyed the majority of possession for the next ten minutes but their final pass was stopping them from getting shots on target as long balls from Neal Eardley and Aeron Edwards were intercepted by Caernarfon.

Caernarfon striker Darren Thomas then showed his attacking prowess as he ran through The Nomads defence and eventually took a shot which slightly deflected but was no trouble for Byrne as he comfortably saved the shot.

Just before halftime, the 44th minute saw Mike Hayes create Caernarfon's best chance of the half as he controlled a through ball from Darren Thomas and drove a powerful shot on goal but Ollie Byrne pulled off an outstanding save to deny him and keep the score 0-0.

As we reached half time, it was evident that The Nomads enjoyed the majority of possession but Caernarfon enjoyed more big chances which were denied from incredible saves by Ollie Byrne.

As we reached the second half, we saw the end-to-end stuff continue but no chances were created. Aeron Edwards was found in the middle of the park and tried a delightfully chipped ball into Jamie Insall but Ojrzynski was there to retrieve the ball.

The 54th minute saw a yellow card be shown to Caernarfon captain Dion Donohue as he brought down Jamie Insall just inside the final third.

This Nomads free kick led to a series of throw-ins which resulted in a Neal Eardley cross almost being met by the likes of George Horan and Jamie Insall but it was narrowly missed and Caernarfon regained possession.

The 57th minute saw a Nomads corner swung in towards Danny Holmes who rose high and nodded a powerful towards goal and as Ojrzynski saved low, the ball ricocheted onto the crossbar and out of the danger area.

Ryan Harrington then picked up a yellow card as he halted a dangerous Caernarfon attack led by Rob Hughes but Caernarfon did not manage to create any big chances.

In the 69th minute, the highlight moment of the game came as Danny Holmes received the ball on the right and put in a delicious cross which was punched out by Ojrzynski but only fell to Neal Eardley who was not closed down and set himself up before volleying a wonder strike off the crossbar and into the back of the net to give The Nomads a 1-0 lead with only 20 minutes to play.

WOW!

Neal Eardley yn sgorio ei gôl gyntaf i Gei Connah, ac am gôl!

68' Caernarfon 0-1 @the_nomads#JDCymruPremier pic.twitter.com/v8oxuvoOSs

— Sgorio (@sgorio) November 9, 2021

Five minutes later, Caernarfon pressed The Nomads and Rob Hughes picked up the ball on the left and attempted a 25 yard strike which took a deflection making it whistle past the post.

The Nomads continued to dominate possession and evidently had the better build up play as a pass was fizzed into Jamie Insall but he was fouled by Aaron Simpson in a dangerous area and so Simpson received a yellow card.

From the free kick, Neal Eardley took aim and went for goal again but the Caernarfon wall was there to stop the shot and stop the game going fully into The Nomads' favour.

The first substitution and the only substitution of the night from The Nomads as the returning Jamie Insall was replaced by Aron Williams who has impressed in his recent appearances.

Aron Williams was then in action right away as Callum Morris' pass reached Williams over the top but his pass back into the middle which was aimed for Mullan was intercepted by the Caernarfon defence.

As the match neared it's conclusion, the 93rd minute saw former Nomad Rob Hughes receive a red card as Aron Williams looked to dribble the ball into the Caernarfon half to stop any signs of a late equaliser but he was brought down by Hughes near the halfway line and so picked up a second yellow and was sent off.

This was the final action of the match and The Nomads enjoyed another victory and another important three points in their pursuit of a top six position all thanks to a Neal Eardley stunner in the 69th minute.

The Nomads now overtake Bala Town and Caernarfon and so sit fifth in the league table. This is just what The Nomads needed in order to revive our indifferent start to the season and achieve a top six position.

The Nomads' next fixture comes on the 20th November as we take on Penybont at Deeside Stadium with a 2:30pm kick off. Let's hope The Nomads can carry their fantastic form into this upcoming fixture.

Match Photos

Match Report by Adam Angerer