Nomads draw to stay second at Maes Tegid

The Nomads completed Phase One of the Dafabet Welsh Premier League with a 0-0 draw at Bala Town on Saturday evening.  The goalless draw was enough for The Nomads to retain their position of second with a three point advantage.

The game pitted second placed Nomads against third placed Bala, and was therefore billed as an early indicator of who may finish second in the league to automatically qualify for Europe.  The Nomads came into the game off the back of two consecutive wins over Airbus UK, whilst Bala were looking to bounce back from a 2-0 loss at home to Rhyl.

The Nomads brought an updated squad to Maes Tegid, with new signings Kai Edwards and Ryan Wignall available for selection.  Edwards started alongside Baynes, Horan, Disney and Smith in defence while Wignall started on the bench.

In the first stage of the game there was little between the sides, with Bala sending long balls into The Nomads' area whilst Disney and Davies tried to cause problems for the home defence.  The Nomads' first chance of the game came in the eleventh minute, when Matty Owen sent a header towards goal from 10 yards, which goalkeeper Morris saved well.

Bala enjoyed more possession as they tried to get past The Nomads' defensive line, with Kieran Smith slicing a shot over the goal from a wicked cross via Venables.  Former Nomad Mike Hayes then missed a diving header at a close range to the Nomads left goalpost.

In the 35th minute, Wes Baynes was unlucky not to pull off a great free kick goal, when his effort from 25 yards went just above the top left corner of the Bala bar.

The Nomads again tested Bala via a free kick in the 44th minute, when Nathan Woolfe forced goalkeeper Morris to push the ball out for a corner which was cleared by Bala just before half time.

The second half saw The Nomads build on their performance to seriously challenge Bala.  However, a Mark Connolly free kick minutes after the restart saw John Danby make an excellent save on his 50th Welsh Premier League start for The Nomads.

Just before the hour mark, Davies sent a header over from 10 yards after Wes Baynes sent a quality cross into the Bala area.  Changes were then made, with Ryan Wignall getting his Nomads debut replacing Matty Williams.

Wignall had an instant impact on the game, beating Bala's midfield on the left wing to get the ball high into the opposition's end. Nomads' other new signing Kai Edwards also enjoyed an impressive debut, staying solid at the back and also using his strength to send a header effort over on a corner.

With 10 minutes to go the game remained goalless, but it was an end-to-end affair with Bala continuing to press The Nomads, with Horan and Edwards remaining resilient to keep them at bay.

Michael Wilde was brought on in place of Les Davies, and went on to feature in The Nomads' best chance of the game, heading the ball low against Bala's left post from a Ryan Wignall cross in the 84th minute.

On 89 minutes Chris Venables sent an effort goalwards from seven yards, only for Danby to make a good low save.  Both sides had corner kicks during the game's three minutes of injury time, but neither could capitalise on them.

After full time, The Nomads reflected on an impressive away performance against one of the league's main contenders for automatic Europa League qualification. The result keeps them second with a three point gap over third placed Bala, and a seven point gap over Bangor in fourth, who lost 4-2 to Airbus on the same day.

The Nomads now turn their attentions to the JD Welsh Cup fourth round, facing Haverfordwest County away on Saturday 28 January for a 2:30pm kick off.

Match Photos

Match Report by Will Catterall