Cwmamman United 1-1 Clydach FC
(Cwm win 5-4 on pens)
Cwmamman United from the West Wales Premier League caused an upset in Round 1 of the FAW Welsh Cup when they knocked out Ardal South West side Clydach at Grenig Park on Saturday.
Cwm's new look side, a strong mix of youth and experience, were quickly out of the blocks and took the lead with a stunning strike from outside the box from midfielder Jack Evans in the sixth minute.
Their flow was then temporarily checked as goalkeeper James Kirkwood suffered an injury in the 10th minute and had to be replaced by defender Adam Wolley, who went on to have a solid game in goal.
Cwm continued to have the better of the exchanges, and they were unlucky not to be awarded a penalty when Ethan Dix appeared to be tripped in the goal area.
With the Cwm back four of Kyle Ashford, Emyr James, Callum Humphries and Ross Jones in fine form, Clydach struggled to create opportunities while Ellis James and Jack Smith came close for Cwm. Ben Richards, Evans and Charlie Price were pushing Cwm forward regularly.
Clydach increased the pressure as the game moved towards the end, and a failure to clear from a long free kick saw Cai Thomas scramble the ball over the line for Clydach.
It ended 1-1, and so the dreaded penalties. It was neck and neck with both sides scoring or missing in sync until a Clydach miss saw young Ben Richards step up to hit the perfect penalty to send Grenig Park into raptures.
Cwm will now look forward to the second round draw, hoping for another home fixture.
