Davies hat-trick inspires last gasp cup win

In a dramatic JD Welsh Cup third round game at Deeside, The Nomads beat Goytre United 3-2.  Despite trailing by two goals to one in the 91st minute, a Les Davies hat-trick sent The Nomads into the fourth round.

The game saw The Nomads enter the JD Welsh Cup to begin the 2016/17 campaign, whilst Goytre United had entered in the first round, beating Croesceiliog and Trefelin BGC to reach the third round.

The Nomads started a strong lineup including Danny Harrison, Nathan Woolfe and Wes Baynes.  Goytre United also announced a formidable line up including Welsh Premier League stalwart Martin Rose.

Both clubs came into the game with high spirits, following The Nomads’ 2-1 win at Rhyl and Goytre United’s emphatic 5-0 win over Ton Pentre.

The game began and although both sides enjoyed early chances via Nick Rushton and Martin Rose, the opening stages were largely uneventful as The Nomads and Goytre United looked to get a hold on the game.

In the 16th minute, a melee occurred in the Goytre United area from a Les Davies cross, with Woolfe and Rushton unable to get a shot on goal.

The visiting side came to Deeside aiming for an upset, and this showed in their surging runs into The Nomads’ area.  Goytre United came close to taking the lead on 20 minutes, when a free kick bobbled and went off the post in a lucky escape for The Nomads.

From this point in the game the half was largely a subdued affair, with The Nomads enjoying a lot of possession but failing to convert it into serious chances against a battling Goytre United side.

The game was to become more difficult for The Nomads, when John Danby had issues with a leg injury in the 30th and 38th minute but managed to continue with Wes Baynes taking goal kicks.

Goytre United went ahead in the 43rd minute, when Tim Hicks sent a great header into the bottom left corner of The Nomads' net, forcing the home side to go in at half time both trailing and frustrated with an ineffective performance.

In the second half, The Nomads came out to try and avoid an upset, with Les Davies scoring the first of what would come to be a dramatic hat trick in the 49th minute.  Davies scored from yards out after connecting with a slick cross into the United area from Lewis Short.

Yet The Nomads were on level terms for just four minutes, with a Dylan Blain strike for Goytre United beating the injured John Danby to go neatly into the bottom left corner of his goal.

With The Nomads’ place in the JD Welsh Cup under serious threat, changes were made with Chris Rimmer replacing Wes Baynes to join Declan Poole who had replaced Nick Rushton at the start of the second half.

Minutes later, Ashley Ruane replaced Jay Owen, as The Nomads put their faith in fresh legs to give the side a much needed boost.  Despite this, The Nomads remained frustrated with series of attacks on the Goytre United end being blocked and wasted.

Time began to run out and with ten minutes to go the game was Goytre United’s to lose, with the Welsh League Division One side coping well with The Nomads’ pressure and still able to make darting runs into the home half.

In the 88th minute, The Nomads were reduced to ten men, when Tom Field was shown a straight red card for violent conduct.  Losing 2-1 and down to just ten players, it looked as if The Nomads were on their way out of the JD Welsh Cup, but a dramatic four minutes of injury time saw them make a remarkable comeback.

With four minutes added, Les Davies equalised in the 92nd minute when he got on the end of a Nathan Woolfe cross, looping a header from the edge of the box over Luke Martin in the United goal to bring Nomads level at death.

Many at Deeside presumed extra time was on the way, but Davies completed his hat trick in the most dramatic of fashions with a 94th minute header which went high into the Goytre United goal.

This stunning end to the game saw two goals for The Nomads in two minutes, which handed them victory after a largely disappointing performance during which Goytre United looked deserved of a cup upset.

The Nomads now take a short break with no game next weekend before hosting Cefn Druids in the Dafabet Welsh Premier League for a 7:45pm kick off at Deeside on Tuesday 13 December.

Match Photos

Match Report by Will Catterall