Davies' tenth of the season not enough as Nomads draw with Aber

Friday night saw The Nomads’ winning run come to an end as Jordan Davies’ cool header was cancelled out by a John Owen finish on the stroke of half time. A goalless second half means The Nomads stay in second behind league leaders TNS.

Jordan Davies continued his fine form in front of goal for The Nomads as he headed home from a Harry Franklin cross in the 41st minute. However just a few minutes later, Aberystwyth struck back through John Owen which was enough to earn the hosts a point as The Nomads went home frustrated that they were not sat top of the JD Cymru Premier heading into the rest of tomorrow’s fixtures.

The Nomads were seeking revenge from last season’s 2-1 loss courtesy of a late Jack Thorn finish and Nomads came agonisingly to doing what Aber did to them a year ago. A flurry of saves from Aberystwyth goalkeeper Dave Jones meant he was certainly the town’s hero tonight. Deep into stoppage time, Noah Edwards thought he found a way to snatch a late winner but unluckily for the midfielder, his effort thundered against the woodwork and the full time whistle blew shortly after. The Nomads’ frustration showed as manager Neil Gibson received a second yellow card in the final minute, meaning he will serve a one match suspension along with captain John Disney who received his 5th yellow card of the season. Both men will now miss a midweek clash with Bala Town on October 18th. However, both will be available for next Saturday’s JD Welsh Cup matchup with Caernarfon as the suspensions do not carry over into a different competition.

Form
Before Friday's game, The Nomads were victorious in their last seven consecutive games and were averaging a staggering 3.4 goals each game. Recent victories over tough opposition such as Haverfordwest, Colwyn Bay and Penybont saw Neil Gibson’s side keep up the pressure on The New Saints who still sit at the top of the table. Last weekend, a spirited Nomads side saw off a late Penybont fightback to go home 4-2 victors, a game which saw the Cymru Premier’s top goalscorer Jordan Davies grab two goals and an assist. That victory marked the 5th game in which The Nomads have scored four goals in this season, a truly remarkable stat that not many teams in the world can say about themselves.

Just like last season, a relegation battle may be on the cards for Aberystwyth who are in search of some much needed points. A hard fought first win of the season away to Bala in extremely tough weather conditions brought a huge sense of togetherness within the club as they edge closer to the teams slightly above them. Aber weren’t able to make it back to back wins as three days later, Haverfordwest, also in need of points to avoid a bottom six finish, came home with all three points in a comfortable 3-0 victory.

Team News
Neil Gibson made just the one change to his side that edged past Penybont last Saturday as a fully fit Declan Poole was handed his first start since returning from injury as he replaced Aron Williams at right back. There was a return to the matchday squad for Kai Edwards after a short spell on the sidelines, the defender was named on the bench along with Lawlor, Wilde, Clarke, J.Williams, Burman and Waters. Callum Morris started his 283rd game in Nomads colours as he continued to take an injured Callum Bratley’s place in midfield.

Anthony Williams made two changes to his Aber side that lost out to Haverfordwest last Saturday as on loan Nomad Harry Owen was unable to play against his parent club due to an agreement between the two clubs, meaning Owen Taylor was named in the starting eleven. The other change for the Seasiders saw Billy Kirkman come into the side to replace a suspended Alex Darlington who received a red card last weekend.

The First Half
The first big opportunity fell to the home side in the 10th minute. Billy Kirkman’s inswinging corner towards the back post was cleared but only as far as young defender Ben Woollam whose header clipped the top of the crossbar and out for a goal kick.

Harry Franklin and Jordan Davies were certainly causing problems for the Aber backline as a series of counter attacks forced full back Akeem Hinds to make some vital clearances after racing back into his own half.

The game didn’t really see any “must-score” chances as we reached the midway stage of the first half and it was more the case that both sides were defending extremely well. The Nomads did well to see off a wide Billy Kirkman free kick and up the other end, Ben Woollam’s last ditch clearance prevented Declan Poole’s inviting ball from reaching it’s target.

After Jordan Davies was denied by Dave Jones for the first time in the 37th minute, the striker made sure he wasn’t going to be frustrated four minutes later in the 41st as a Harry Franklin cross from the right allowed Davies to get in front of his man at the near post and head into the far bottom corner to bag his tenth goal of the season and send Nomads into a 1-0 lead.

The lead didn’t last long as Aber hit back on the stroke of half time. Billy Kirkman’s left footed delivery saw John Owen rise highest to prod home past Jon Rushton and level the scoreline heading into the interval.

The Second Half
Dave Jones came to Aber’s rescue at the beginning of the second half to deny Declan Poole. Ben Woollam’s clearance was a tame one which allowed Poole to get his shot away, but a diving stop from Jones kept things at one a piece.

The Nomads certainly proved their goalscoring ability was one of the best in Wales during recent weeks with a number of stunning strikes and Ryan Harrington nearly put his name on that list. Noah Edwards laid the ball off to Harrington on the edge of the area whose audacious first time strike forced Dave Jones into a fingertip save to prevent Harrington’s shot from flying into the top corner.

The Nomads were on the end of another controversial decision in what many players, staff and fans thought should’ve been a Nomads penalty. Harrington’s cross into Franklin saw the No.12 control the ball inside the area and look to take it past Iwan Lewis and the ball seemed to be blocked by the arm of Lewis but the referee waved away the penalty claims and play continued. Neil Gibson was booked on the sidelines after showing his frustration towards the referee’s decision.

Jon Rushton had to stay alert to Iwan Lewis’ strike from distance in the 75th minute as Lewis kept his volley down and on target but the aim allowed Rushton to catch safely. If Lewis had been able to divert his effort into the corner, then it would’ve certainly gone down as one of Aber’s goals of the season.

Substitute Mike Wilde didn’t take long to get his first chance of the night as Jordan Davies’ hooked ball over the top allowed Wilde to race through and get his shot away, Wilde looked for the far corner with a half volley but Dave Jones was there again to tip the ball past the post.

Time was ticking for Nomads and as for Aber, it looked like they were going to pick up a crucial point certainly for the course of their season. The final chance of the game was the closest Nomads came to restoring their lead. An Eddie Clarke cross into the box saw Louis Bradford’s clearance fall to Noah Edwards at the back post who looked to place one past Jones at his near post but the midfielder was denied by the woodwork, leaving Nomads annoyed, knowing they have missed a glorious chance to go top of the JD Cymru Premier.

Next Fixture
The Nomads’ JD Welsh Cup campaign gets underway next weekend as we host Caernarfon at The Essity Stadium in an all top flight clash. The two sides have already faced each other this season with The Nomads defeating The Cofis 4-0 away from home so Neil Gibson will definitely be looking for a similar performance next weekend. The match will take place on Saturday 14th October with a scheduled 2:00pm kick off time.

Match Report by Adam Angerer