Quay play for Keeps

If they have an August goal of the month competition at the Halfway, heaven help whoever has to pick the winner.

Four second half crackers from the men in white sent League of Wales new boys Caernarfon - and their rowdy supporters - back down the coast with much to think about.

The former Unibond League side may well have been expecting an easy return to Welsh competition - but they'll know the League of Wales is much tougher than many critics claim.

With four European spots up for grabs this season, the will to win the Principality is greater than ever. And on Saturday, Connah's Quay set their stall out as a potential Euro team with some stunning finishing which had the sizable crowd on its feet - and even on the pitch.

Few chances were created during a nervous first 45 which saw two teams sizing each other up, eager not to concede the advantage.

Nomads skipper Barry Thomas came closest to breaking the deadlock with a 17th minute bullet header from Vernon Keep's corner, but his opposite number Alan Schumaker got in the way.

Apart from that, and some sterling work up and down the right by Nev Powell, the Nomads did little of note. But after the break it was a different game.

Much has been said about Dave O'Gorman's journey south in search of riched. Much too has been said about his replacement, ex-Flint man Chris Davies.

But the spotlight has been well off O'Gorman's striking partner of last season, Peter Hughes.

However, it was Hughes who lit up the Halfway with two super shots within a minute - both setup by his player-boss.

His first was a brilliant left-foot strike from the edge of the box which left Canaries keeper Philip Owen clutching at straws.

The second, which effectively killed the game off with 35 minutes to go, rounded off a great move involving Mike Carroll and Powell which saw the ball move from left-back to bottom corner in a flash.

Seven minutes later a rout looked on the cards when Darren Wynne made it 3-0. New boy Keep - who was by this time running the midfield - passed through the visitors' defence like a knife through butter for Wynne to hammer home from 18 yards.

Owen then somehow kept out a Powell piledriver before the excellent Schumaker gave his team hope by heading Alan Woan's deep cross into the Nomads net with six minuted to go.

But if Caernarfon thought they might get anything from the game, they were well and truly buried when Danny McGoona sparked a pitch invasion with an unstoppable shot a minute from time.

Report from Evening Leader, Monday August 21, 1995