Cwmbran Town 0 - 5 Ton Pentre
MacWhirter Welsh Football League Division One
Saturday 24th January 2009
A confident performance by Ton Pentre saw them dominate their match at Cwmbran Town as Chris Jones notched up a hat trick to help the Rhondda Bulldogs dominate their way to victory.
Ton had failed to score in their previous two matches despite creating many chances and the Bulldogs management were looking towards the fixture at Cwmbran as a must win match so as not to get sucked into the relegation dogfight at the bottom of Welsh Football League Division One.
The Bulldogs were creating chances right from the off but as in previous matches they were unable to convert them.
Ryan Shugar’s strike from a loose ball outside the box was well saved by the Cwmbran goalkeeper and another good chance was wasted when Alyn Jones broke into space with the ball. He threaded a lovely pass to strike partner Chris Jones but the former Caerleon front man shot wide of the goal.
Ton eventually took the lead in the 27th minute when they were awarded a penalty after Shane Brewer’s back heel to Phil Clarke provided the winger with a route into the box. As he entered the 18-yard box a clumsy challenge from a Cwmbran defender saw Clarke tripped from behind.
Andrew Hughes took charge of the penalty and he converted it well by sending the goalkeeper the wrong way.
The goal gave Ton a confidence boost and they scored a second a few minutes before half time but not before a small scare.
In a race to the ball with a Cwmbran attacker, Kieron Blackburn was forced to rush outside his area. He won the race and booted the ball up field where Steve Edwards picked up possession on the right. He crossed the ball into the box where Chris Jones brought the ball down with exquisite control before unleashing a strike that ended up in the back of the net.
Early in the second half Cwmbran hit the post and had they scored the Crows may have found the confidence needed to find an equaliser. Instead the Gwent club soon found themselves even further behind when excellent build-up play saw Ton go three goals up.
In the latter stages of this build-up play Clarke and Brewer linked well to find Chris Jones in the box. He applied another good finish as he grabbed his second goal of the match.
Jones scored again soon after to notch up his hat trick and Ton’s fourth goal against Cwmbran. Hughes was in possession of the ball in midfield when he suddenly found himself under pressure from an opposition midfielder. The Cwmbran player looked likely to win the ball but just as he was about to snatch ownership the Referee, who had his back to the player, accidentally turned and bumped into the midfielder. This allowed Hughes to regain possession and send Jones through on goal.
Ton’s goal scoring was completed by Alyn Jones when he was able to run free of the last defender 7 minutes from time. With just the goalkeeper to beat Jones picked his spot well to score his first goal since 27th September 2008.
This result sent Cwmbran to the bottom of the League table as the inaugural Welsh Premier League champions look prime candidates for relegation to Welsh League Division Two.
Ton will look to take this goal scoring form into their next League match at Ynys Park on Wednesday 28th January at 7.15pm when Pontardawe Town visit.
Match report © Ton Pentre AFC Press
