Photo by Nik Mesney/FAW. All other photos taken by me.
The Agony and the Ecstasy
The story of my first season watching ladies’ football, culminating in the title-decider between Llandudno Ladies and Wrexham Ladies
It is one year since I moved into my new home in Llandudno (27th July 2021). I have spent my entire life in St Helens, Merseyside. St Helens is a rugby league town, with football-mad Liverpool ten miles or so away. I am a Liverpool football club supporter and was a season ticket holder for many years, never missing a game. Llandudno is a different place and a change of pace. I noticed, however, that it had a football club and decided to pay it a visit. My first game was the local derby, Llandudno vs Conwy, resulting in a very good 2-0 win for the men. I enjoyed the game and enjoyed the atmosphere. I was close to the pitch and got a real feel for the game. I noticed, too, that Llandudno Ladies played at the same ground as the men and had a game coming up. I had never attended a women’s match before. I’d seen women’s football on TV, but had never seen a game live. I thought it wouldn’t hurt to investigate further.
So began the journey to one of my greatest days in watching football. The final match of the season proved to be a title-decider between the best two teams in the division, winner taking all. The game was on a knife-edge from first to last and it is a wonder my nerves survived. What made the game all the more gripping is that I had attended every Llandudno Ladies home game leading up to that great climax. So I had a huge emotional investment in the team when it came to that final game, making that cliff-hanger an incredibly intense occasion, and the final victory a huge explosion.
My first ladies game came on September 12th 2021, Llandudno Ladies vs Bethel Ladies. I was impressed by the fast pace of the game, the superb moves that were worked, the great skill on display, and the commitment of the players. And the goals! There were six of them! The run down the right leading to the shot that hit the woodwork would have been a goal of the season had it found the back of the net. The final score was 6-0 to Llandudno, with Ella Jones hitting four of those. This was my first ever time watching ladies' football, and I vowed to return. I also got the distinct impression that Bethel were a much better side than the 6-0 scoreline showed. I learned that the two would be playing again shortly and anticipated a closer game. I enjoyed chatting to the guy who was running the line, asking him who was supposed to be keeping score. It seemed that Bethel had a couple of their best players missing. It made me interested in the return. I did think Ella Jones fabulous, though, a real goal machine. She put me in mind of a young Michael Owen from the days before he made the Liverpool first team. It was the same buzz around goal.
The return with Bethel came on October 24th. It was a fantastic game of football, and six goals were scored again. This time, however, the goals were shared between the teams, with Llandudno Ladies scoring in the first and the last minutes, but behind for long stretches in between. It made for a tense but thrilling clash that lived up to its top billing, a real credit to both sides. Ella Jones’ last minute equalizer was a goal so good that it felt like the winner. ‘And that’s all you’ve done today,’ someone grumbled a short distance away from me as Ella pulled away in celebration. I think she may have been a Bethel supporter. I mean, what more can a forward do? I can see the goal now, Ella cutting in from the right flank to send a left footed shot at distance soaring and curling under the bar and into the net. A thing of beauty.
Another great game on the road to the end of season cliff-hanger was the 4-2 victory over a very competitive Airbus Ladies early in January. Although Llandudno Ladies were always ahead in the game, Airbus Ladies were always in touch, making for an edgy afternoon of good football. Llandudno’s fourth goal was a superb lob from the left flank from Stacey Tradewell, soaring high and then dipping under the crossbar. I got a photograph of the ball just edging under the bar. Which is better than nothing. By this stage I was in the habit of taking photographs at the game and posting them on social media, to give a feel of the games taking place. They started to get shared around a bit, accompanying the odd report. And I was told that I take ‘nice photos,’ which was pleasing. It’s a hobby. I’m no great photographer, mind; I just point and press. But it adds to the feeling of being involved, doing something to promote and publicize the game. I was also ‘involved’ in another sense, too, namely in ball retrieval. In the main, the footballers are incredibly controlled in possession and precise in passing, with even clearances staying the right side of the pitch. On the odd occasion the ball comes over the fence, I’m happy to go scurrying after it to fetch it back into play. It’s the nearest I get to playing these days. I’ve climbed over the odd stantion, too. I’m lousy at catching the ball, though. I really can’t judge pace and depth and it’s all I can do to hold my hands out and prevent myself from being hit in the face or worse. It’s good fun, though, as I follow the play up and down the pitch, ever-ready if called upon to show my talents as unofficial ball-boy. It’s miles better than just standing and applauding.
January 9th 2022 saw a great 4-0 win for Llandudno Ladies versus Llanfair. Llandudno played patient football, controlling possession and maintaining pressure throughout the game, playing the ball to feet and delivering penetrating passes to open up the flanks. Llandudno must be an awfully frustrating team to play against, because they are so controlled and relentless. To their credit, Llanfair kept their shape and offered a real threat in the attack. To their credit, the Llandudno defence maintained concentration at all times to keep a clean sheet. I made a comment to Claire Colville who was running the line that Ffion Owen is on form again, a class act in midfield, with vision, time and space. It’s that kind of statement of the obvious upon which we can make common cause. It’s a way of offering an ‘expert’ opinion with which no one could disagree. In truth, there are a lot of class footballers at the club, as shown in the performances and the results.
January 23rd saw a superb 3-2 win for Llandudno Ladies away against a very tough Bethel side. This game was always going to be a huge test of character, and so it proved as Shannon Jade Jones opened the scoring for the hosts on five minutes, with Bethel still ahead to the interval. A goal down at half-time and Llandudno were up against it. Titles are won and lost in games like this. Jasmin Dutton, with a 52nd minute penalty earned by Stacey Tradewell, and a second-half double from Tradewell herself gained all three points for Llandudno, taking the side up to second in the table, two points behind leaders Wrexham with a game in hand. Bethel never lay down, levelled at 2-2 (Shannon Jones again) before Tradewell hit a beauty from the edge of the box to secure the win. To win a league title a team has to win a number of cup finals along the way. Points lost can mean titles lost. Even a hard-fought draw away can cause a team to lose ground in the title race. This was a great win, a hard-fought victory against tough opponents.
February 27th saw a big win in the sun for Llandudno Ladies versus Welshpool, with goals galore in the NEWFA Cup. Llandudno were incisive on the ball and relentless in opening Welshpool up, who deserve credit for bearing up and staying keen to the end. It takes two to make a game. Welshpool got off to a good start and it took a goal from Ffion Owen, from a through ball from Ella Jones, to settle nerves. It was good to see Ella Jones back after a long injury, having seen her hit a massive 22 goals in just 12 appearances this season. Unfortunately she had to come off with a knee pull on the half-hour. Llandudno were 4-0 up at half time and stepped up the pressure in the second half, the twelfth goal a beauty when Hassall sped down the left and crossed for Ffion Owen to shoot home into the bottom left-hand corner.
A couple of days later, on March 1st, it was Denbigh’s turn to be on the receiving end of Llandudno’s hot shots. Llandudno clearly had goals difference in their sights. Talking to Claire Colville, who was running the line, I was told of a couple of years earlier when the Ladies lost the title on goal difference. Llandudno were relentless in the goals pursuit to the end. I ran out of fingers but made it 14-0. This was football under the floodlights and an absolute dream. Unless you were Denbigh. Indie Hassall hit a hat-trick, as did Stacey Tradewell, with Ffion Owen, Maisy Johnson, and Maddie Williams each hitting a brace. I took a great photo of Indie Hassall as she flew past to menace the Denbigh defence again..
March 13th saw a huge win 3-1 for Llandudno Ladies against a really impressive Connah's Quay Nomads. The Nomads were dangerous throughout the game and looked more than capable of scoring goals, even winning the game. This was one of those ‘cup final’ games that teams seeking to claim the league title have to win The Nomads started strongly, controlling possession and threatening in all directions in the final third. Llandudno got more into the game as the half progressed, but struggled to create any goal scoring opportunities. It was a keenly fought context but Llandudno edged ahead just before the break, Ceri Slaney driving a shot low into the bottom corner, a clinical finish after a goalmouth scramble. Nomads hit straight back, Kirstie Kural’s curling shot saved by Llandudno keeper Sara Williams.
Llandudno doubled their advantage after the break, Ffion Owen's deflected cross being seized on by Stacey Tradewell, who slotted past keeper Charie Bolland. The Nomads didn’t lie down, though, Niamh Grimshaw pulling a goal back just seven minutes later. Nomads made this a tough final 30 minutes, coming close on occasions, always probing, always threatening. Particularly impressive was nomads’ no. 7 Tamara Hamer, who was constantly involved, running incisively and creating chances from deep. She was the source of any number of dangerous moves which threatened to level the game, delivering a free kick towards the far post which forced Sara Williams into making a great diving save as the ball crept into the bottom corner. Maddie Williams then made it 3-1 to Llandudno, played in by Stacey Tradewell. This had been a mighty clash, effectively an eliminator, with both sides playing for pole position in mounting a challenge to Wrexham. The upshot was that Llandudno pulled four points clear of The Nomads, with Wrexham to come. This was a huge performance and massive victory. Tense, tight, and competitive from first to last, this was a very big game to win. This was a top quality football match with standout performances on both sides, a real credit to all involved. How big a win this was became clear when the Nomads defeated Llandudno in the cup final a month or so later. This is the kind of victory of which title win’s are made. There was no margin for error by this stage of the season, with just two games to come after this one.
Next up were Pwllheli. It was 0-0 at half-time and hard going. I got the distinct impression that the effort to keep winning and winning well may well have tired the Ladies out. It would have been understandable. As it happened, Llandudno came out on fire for the second half, pressed high up the park, scored two quick goals, and kept the pressure on to the end to win 3-0.
The upshot was that a draw at home against Wrexham would secure the title for Llandudno. Whilst it might seem better to be in pole position, I really didn’t like the way the final game was set up. Llandudno Ladies might have seemed favourites, but this is a deceptive and dangerous illusion. Both experience and reason show that it is the competitor poised on the shoulder, reacting in full knowledge of what they need to do that win. My favourite athlete was Steve Ovett. He would typically perch himself on the lead runner’s shoulder and then overtake on the bend and show a clean pair of heels to win. In football, a team that plays for a draw often loses. I’ve seen it happen many a time. A team goes into a game defending an advantage, only to find the team playing to win taking the initiative and going ahead. The problem is that once you enter a game in a defensive frame of mind you find it well-nigh impossible to shake that mentality off. Lose the advantage and you tend never to get it back. I saw Liverpool go into the last game of the 1989 season knowing they would take the title if they avoided a two goal defeat to Arsenal. Liverpool were on form, closing the season with a long run of victories. Arsenal won 2-0. An in-form team should just play. An advantage to defend often sets a team up to fail. It takes great psychological strength to win from the front, which is precisely what Llandudno Ladies had to do in this final match.
I was nervous going into this final game. Wrexham are an excellent side. Indeed, the one and only game that Llandudno had lost in the league this year had been 5-3 away to Wrexham in December. Wrexham were formidable opponents. They knew what they needed to do to take the title and were more than capable of rising to the challenge. As the game approached, I remembered a scientist friend explaining to me the physics of why the gunslinger who draws second tends to outgun the one who draws first – the speed of reaction is determined by the speed of the first draw, the latter quicker than the former, allowing no time for the former to re-adjust. This Llandudno had drawn first, the tempo had been set, and it was for Wrexham to draw quicker. I felt it in my bones. My fear was that Wrexham would start the game on the front foot, take the early initiative, seize control of the game, and never let up. If Wrexham scored early to wipe the advantage out, the psychological blow would be immense. It would take massive strength of character for Llandudno to come back from that.
My fears were more than justified. I had called this game right. It made for an incredibly tense but thrilling afternoon of football, a title decider that was effectively the cup final of cup finals.
The game between Llandudno Ladies and Wrexham Ladies to decide the first Genero Adran North League title was certainly one of my greatest days in watching football and in many respects could even count as my greatest day. I shall give the reasons why as I write on the day. A little of my background establishes the context. I am a big fan of Liverpool football club and held a season ticket from the 1980s. I have had many great days watching Liverpool, both in the flesh and on screen and on radio. I’ve seen Liverpool win titles, European and FA cups, great derby games, clashes against close rivals, the fantastic 5-0 win over Nottingham Forest in April 1988, described by Tom Finney as the greatest game of football he has ever seen. I was there! I can go back to Liverpool becoming the first team to beat Barcelona in Barcelona in 1976 and forward to Liverpool’s 4-0 win over Messi’s Barcelona in 2019. The 3-2 win in the first Merseyside Cup final of 1986 versus Everton takes some beating, not least because it meant that Liverpool won the league and cup double. We all know the glorious history of Liverpool football club, so I shall not rewrite it. Suffice to say, I have had many great days and nights watching Liverpool football club.
With that background, it takes a lot to get me excited. But football is football. It’s the same game and the same passion. As with everything, you only get out what you put in, and by the last game of the league season I was all in. But watching Liverpool and watching Llandudno Ladies as a spectator is a very different experience. With Liverpool, I was just one fan among tens of thousands, anonymous in the crowd. I never felt that my applause and cheering ever added that much to the total noise generated. There were many others who were much louder and more spectacular in their support than I was. As a Liverpool supporter, I was one of a huge red mass. At Llandudno, things are a lot more personal and intimate. There is no hiding in a crowd. In many of the games, I was one of the few on one side of the ground. I rather enjoyed retrieving the ball whenever it cleared the fence, following the game up and down the pitch as if I was actually playing. I felt involved as unofficial ball-boy. It was the nearest I've been to actually playing since the 1980s and I rather enjoyed it. I was no longer just a passive spectator.
When it came to the Llandudno vs Wrexham title decider, mind, it was my past experience as a spectator at big football matches that proved more useful than my abilities as a ball-boy. When I entered the ground on match day, I soon noticed the numbers of people who were around. ‘Big crowd today,’ I said to the guy who took my money. I moved quickly on, eager to get into the ground and sample the big match atmosphere.
There was a genial mood in the ground, thirty minutes before kick-off, with lots of people milling around, lots of families in the sun, and Dai the Dragon entertaining the kids. There was a great party mood, with people walking round chatting and enjoying themselves. I like that the kids had brought a ball along, too, enjoying a kick-about as we waited for the game to start. I fancied a game myself.
I had presumed that all the numbers milling around were Llandudno fans, hence my cheery ‘big crowd today’ greeting to the guy at the gate.. I soon discovered that there were many Wrexham fans. Wrexham had brought coaches and their fans were many and vocal. I felt terribly outnumbered standing in my usual spot. In fact, I felt like I was an away fan, a stranger in my own home ground. I thought there were more Wrexham than Llandudno fans, and that the Wrexham fans were much louder. This was going to be a tough afternoon off the pitch as well as on it.
I lead a charmed life when it comes to football. This was the inaugural season of the Genero Adran North League and we were being treated to a title decider between the best two sides on a sunny afternoon. Wrexham were on a ten-match winning streak but Llandudno were in hot form too, having won eight games in a row. This was a real clash of the titans at the top. Llandudno went into the game as league leaders, knowing that a draw would earn them the title; Wrexham were second, knowing that a win would see them crowned champions. The season’s end could not have been scripted better. Incredibly, the match itself more than lived up to its billing.
The game was poised on a knife-edge from the start. Each goal scored by either side would see the destination of the title changing hands. That’s a recipe for high drama. The margins separating success and failure are often fine in sport, but these were the finest margins of all. It would take nerves of steel on the pitch and off it to get through this ordeal.
This was an incredibly tight and tense game. In truth, the word ‘tight’ underestimates just how much in charge of the game Wrexham were, although it describes the scoreline – from first to last there was never more than a goal in it. Truth be told, though, Wrexham were better all over the park, making all the running and dominating possession. That made for awfully worried times for those of us watching on the sidelines. Proceedings seemed to be in the grip of a horrid, unassailable, inescapable, inevitability. It wasn’t the prospect of defeat at the last gasp that was oppressive but suspectingthat a likely defeat was coming and that it would come in slow motion, each minute an eternity. The fact that there was never more than a goal in it kept you hoping against the odds. I noticed that the Llandudno players were being outnumbered and overrun, being quickly relieved of the ball on the few occasions they had it. Wrexham opened the scoring after just four minutes and deservedly so, as they were very much on top. As I had feared, Llandudno’s advantage had been wiped out in no time. It was a huge psychological blow and one that would be difficult to overcome, not least because Wrexham never let up. Amazingly, Llandudno levelled a few minutes later, with Jasmin Dutton scoring a screamer from a free-kick over 20 yards out.
I say ‘amazingly’ for the reason that it was one of the few occasions Llandudno had had the ball and had attacked Wrexham in the last third. It came as a big surprise. Llandudno had been restored back to the top of the table in the 11th minute. It already seemed that there had been a full game. But normal service had not been resumed. Having seen the mood Wrexham were in I was full of fear and trepidation; it was clear that Wrexham could wipe out Llandudno’s advantage at any time. That kind of thing tends to make a spectator nervous. You don’t enjoy games like this, you endure them. They are not for the faint-hearted: only the strong survive.
I was on the side watching the game unfold. It looked and felt most uncomfortable. The Ladies were holding their own in individual battles, just, but were getting isolated and picked off. The Llandudno Ladies looked as though they were outnumbered on the park. I took a photograph of Maddie Williams. What is striking is that there are six Wrexham players around her, giving her no outlet and no escape.
Wrexham had a vice-like grip all over the park and were incredibly tough to play against. This was a mighty struggle, with personal battles all over the pitch. I was impressed by the extent to which players - on both sides - held their nerve and looked to play their way out of trouble, keeping shape and discipline. That’s a huge tribute to the quality of coaching. But Wrexham were prevailing. No sooner did a Llandudno player get the ball, Wrexham players would move in and take it back. I’ve seen this in football many times and it always means that one team is much stronger than the other. It never ends well for the team being overpowered. Even though it was 1-1 and Llandudno were still top of the league, I felt that it was only a matter of time before Wrexham went ahead and, from there, went further ahead.
I was stood in my usual position at the ground, just to the left of the gantry. I wasn’t happy there. I had Wrexham fans to my left, to my right, and behind me too. They were everywhere, offering the most enthusiastic support for their side, and complaining most rudely about the Llandudno Ladies, claiming that there were fouls off the ball and other such outrages I had never seen the Ladies commit. I’m not listening to this, I thought, thinking it most rude and impolite, and moved further down in search of more genial company. I couldn’t find a Wrexham-free place, but I did find a few more Llandudno fans, meaning that I would no longer feel so self-conscious when applauding and making my presence felt. And noise most certainly needed to be made off the pitch, because Llandudno were really up against on the pitch.
To their credit, Llandudno were holding on and, most importantly, keeping their shape. Amber Lightfoot was a real handful on the right, but Rebecca Jarvis-Evans was, just, incredibly, containing her. But Wrexham were hard to hold.
There were strong defensive showings from Samantha Jarvis-Evans at right back, and Jasmin Dutton, and there needed to be, because Wrexham were rampant. I was already thinking ahead to the words I would write at the end of the game. In my head, I was still seeing Llandudno as league champions. I was wishing the game over at 1-1, I’d seen enough. I was preparing to sing the praises of the defence and of goalkeeper Sara Williams.
All season, the Llandudno forwards had won all the plaudits, but here at the crunch it looked as though it would be the defence that would save the day and win the title. I had my story written in my head. It was wishful thinking. Shortly before half-time, Wrexham made it 2-1. It’s never a good time to concede a goal, but to lose a goal just before the break really was crushing in the context of this game. Had the teams gone in level, Wrexham would have had nothing to show for all their effort and superiority. That could not but have played on the minds of their players, sapping their energy, knowing that they had given it their best and were still behind in the title-race. Llandudno, on the other hand, would have taken heart from still being in pole position, taking the opportunity to regroup, re-think, and return to turn the game around. It was an awful way to end the half, sending the Llandudno players into the dressing room down and despondent. It was a huge blow.
In my heart of hearts, I knew Wrexham should have been further ahead. Usually I would have thought Wrexham disappointed to only be a goal up and Llandudno relieved to be only a goal behind, but so dominant had Wrexham been I couldn’t see a way back for Llandudno. I couldn’t see how Llandudno could even win enough of the ball to be able to be able launch any attacks, let alone score a goal. I was already reconciling myself to defeat at this stage, because Wrexham were first to the ball, incisive in their passing, and always looked like scoring.
I gathered my thoughts as I watched the antics of Dai the Dragon and the Penrhyn Bay Wildcats girls’ team. I’m a philosopher by training and temperament, and so was contemplating the state of play. I must admit, I was very gloomy at this stage. Frankly, I was resigned to defeat. Wrexham looked to be just too good, were first to everything, were winning everything, and looked too quick and sharp to be stopped, whilst Llandudno couldn't retain possession. The best that I could say of Llandudno was that although they had barely been in the game, at least they had kept their shape and – no mean achievement – were withstanding the storm. I thought I'd be having to remind myself, for the umpteenth time, that it's only a game … Such is football, such is life. Football is life. It had been a great season and I had enjoyed myself thoroughly, but this looked like one game too far. Sometimes you just have to accept it when you are beaten by the better team. And Wrexham were the better team. I thought a two or more goal defeat to be on the cards. I just hoped that Llandudno might be able to keep the score down. But as the club motto says "Keep the Faith." Personally, I'd have put the dragon on for the second half, to breath some fire into the team, or just all over Wrexham, frankly, because it looked as though it would take something drastic to stop them.
Maybe Wrexham also felt that the game was over, job done. They were not quite the same dominant force when the match resumed. But, more likely, Llandudno had taken stock,with the players regrouping and the coaches making changes in the game plan. There was nothing more for Wrexham to do other than keep playing the same way. Half-time gave Llandudno pause for thought. Here’s where cool heads win the day. Llandudno saw more of the ball and started to retain possession. They were also more of an attacking force. Not that Wrexham had stopped pressing forward. Every time Wrexham had possession they looked to go forward. And every time they went forward we knew that one more goal would more than likely seal the title. With the league’s top goalscorer Rosie Hughes on fire, Wrexham looked as though they could score at any time. With Llandudno needing a goal back and playing further down the park, the Llandudno defence were pretty much standing toe-to-toe with the lethal Wrexham forward line. I don’t know what that’s like to play in, but my nerves were shattered just watching. What made it worse was how close the game was, with just the one goal in it. As the great line from the movie Clockwise has it, ‘it’s not the despair, I can take the despair, it’s the hope ..’ So long as there was hope that Llandudno could, somehow, find a way back, there was nerve-shredding tension. The players did incredibly well to hold their nerve, and to retain hope against all odds.
By this stage I was making a bit of noise in support. There were a couple of Llandudno fans to my right and a couple more behind me, up on the stairs, also clapping and shouting. Given how vocal the Wrexham fans were, noise and animation was much needed. Slowly but surely, on and off the pitch, Llandudno were no longer being outnumbered. Llandudno were in the game, the players were seeing more of the ball, keeping it, using it, moving it into the dangerous areas, asking questions of the Wrexham defence. Every move was cheered and applauded. Things were getting better, the game was being turned. We now had an even contest. Llandudno had hung on in there, rode the punches, and were now punching back.
But Llandudno were still up against it. If Wrexham were not quite the same force they had been in the first half, they were still a force and were still looking capable of scoring the goal that would secure the title. But it was noticeable that Llandudno were pressing further up the park come the second half. I thought we would be facing a long, uphill climb back, but there were encouraging signs. As Ffion Owen got more and more involved, Llandudno started to take more control of the game.
Llandudno were testing the Wrexham defence more and, in the fifty seventh minute, forced a defensive error upon which Indie Hassall pounced, rounding the keeper for the second equalizer of the game.
Cue an outbreak of smiles on and off the pitch. I didn’t immediately celebrate. In fact, I blinked to make sure a goal had been scored. I took a photo of the Ladies celebrating, as if seeking proof.
If I smiled, I smiled nervously, with reservations. I couldn’t quite believe it: not only were Llandudno level in the game, they were back on top of the league! That represented a huge turn around. This was a game of high stakes, the title changing hands with each goal scored. It was too good to be true, and I steeled myself for a gruelling conclusion to the match. I was relieved but knew that Wrexham could score any time. In fact, I fully expected Wrexham to come back strong and hard. Llandudno were back in the game, but the title had still to be won, and could only be won the hard way. There was joy to be had somewhere down the line, but the road to ecstasy was a long and hard one to travel.True love travels on a gravel road.
In the sixty second minute a great effort from Stacey Tradewell took a deflection and just went wide for a corner. It was so desperately close that my footballing pessimism kicked in to tell me that this could turn out to be one of those days. Then it struck me that Wrexham could have good reason for saying exctly the same thing. Football makes pessimists of us all. And optimists. It’s always the best of times and the worst of times as a football fan.
The minutes dragged like eternities, each moment accompanied by the thought that Wrexham will hit the decisive goal at any moment - they looked more than capable of it. Every time Wrexham attacked – which was often – I felt sure that they would score. Part of me willed that they would and put us out of our misery. It looked as though we would be kept in a state of hopeless hope until the inevitable final blow was struck. Wrexham were sharp and penetrating. It is a powerful tribute to the Llandudno defence that its members held their nerve, stayed cool under pressure, and never panicked. And it was credit to the team as a whole that it resisted the temptation to fall back seeking safety in numbers. I was really impressed with Samantha and Becky for driving the team forward from the flanks, turning the pressure back on Wrexham, playing on their nerves as the team chasing the goal that would win the title. Concentration is everything. It is a massive tribute to Llandudno that, despite being outplayed for long stretches of the game, they never lost concentration. The players showed great physical strength but, more than that, they showed great psychological strength. With those things in place, you have a chance of bringing your skills and abilities to bear. The teams were so finely matched that if two or more players had dropped their level by just 5% it could have made all the difference. Each player had to be on her mettle and win her battles. That is psychologically tough to do for 90 minutes.
The game was on a knife edge until the eighty ninth minute, when Indie Hassall struck for the second time in the game to make it 3-2. This photo captures the agony and the ecstasy.
That meant that Wrexham now needed to score twice to take the title. It was the first time in the match that there had been distance between the teams. Wrexham had been rampant, but Llandudno had been the epitome of grace under pressure. Llandudno are the more experienced team, and maybe it is this that kept them in standing up strong against the Wrexham whirlwind. Stay in the game long enough and chances will come your way. Llandudno took them, Indie Hassall both times.
That's joy.
Celebrations almost broke out. But not quite. The referee decided to play seven minutes extra time and shatter what was left of our nervous systems. It was a tense and keenly-fought game from first to last, with Wrexham pressing forward in search of the goal that would bring them back into the game. They nearly got it, Llandudno defence and goalkeeper performing heroics again.
Each minute felt like an eternity.
There was a massive outbreak of joy at the final whistle.
The agony of the Wrexham players and the ecstasy of the Llandudno players. I felt sorry for the Wrexham players. They had played so well and would have been worthy title winners. To have prevailed over such a side is a measure of how great Llandudno’s achievement had been – strong in defence, mentally strong in holding on and finally winning individual battles, being cool and clever, finding ways back into the game, creating space, creating opportunities, taking your chances. At the end, as the Llandudno players joined together in celebration, I noticed the Wrexham players stood frozen on the spot, alone in their thoughts of what might have been and what so easily could have been. I wasn’t too sorry, though – there’s no doubt they’ll be back.
Had Wrexham gone on at half time to win this game 4-1 or more I would not have been the least bit surprised. It is an immense tribute to Llandudno Ladies that they managed to turn this game around. It took real nerve to hold on in the first instance, some real nous in the second to get back into the game, and some real class to finally win. Wrexham played so well and couldn't have done any more. On another day, with the ball running differently, the game could easily have gone the other way. These games are a real test of character, You have to keep going. You have to “keep the faith.” Keep hustlin' tomorrow and you might just find that elusive something.
The agony and the ecstasy.
Either side could have had the agony or the ecstasy at the end, with both sides experiencing both emotions at different points of the game. It was tense watching on the touchline. It was a very similar feeling to the one I had watching the Liverpool vs Arsenal match that decided the title in 1989. I was there on the Kop, keeping time for all around until the few seconds left when Michael Thomas scored the goal that won the title for Arsenal. I remember the agony to this day. And now I have a lot more ecstasy to keep me company.
Llandudno: Sara Williams, Samantha Jarvis-Evans, Madison Williams, Jasmin Dutton, Rebecca Jarvis-Evans, Stacey Tradewell, Maddie Williams (Jessica Jones, 60), Sofie Owen, Indie Hassall, Ceri Slaney (Sioned Phillips, 79), Ffion Owen.
Goals: Indie Hassall Jasmine Dutton 4, 57, 89′
Wrexham: Delyth Morgan, Erin Lovett, Rebecca Pritchard (Libby Mackenzie, 90+1, Kimberley Dutton (Natasha Spearing, 78), Rosie Hughes, Tonicha Dickens, Katie Sharp, Lili Jones, Ella Clifton-Stringer, Amber Lightfoot (Sophie Hodson, 66), Mia Roberts.
Goals: Amber Lightfoot 4, Tonicha Dickens 40′
It was an immense effort from Wrexham, who maintained their challenge to the final minute. Even though they needed two goals to take the title, I along with the Llandudno fans around me were keen for the referee to blow the whistle. Wrexham never lay down. Credit, too, to Bethel and Connah’s Quay Nomads in third and fourth place, who had also been in title-race contention until the final couple of games.
For my part, it has been an honour and a privilege, and a pleasure and a passion, to have been an aspiring/perspiring ball-boy/photographer/cheerleader/supporter in what turned out to be a title winning season. At the start of the season I had gone along out of curiosity, determined to explore my new home for all it had to offer. I went to the men’s football first, and continued going for the rest of the season. The men put up a great challenge, taking Airbus to the wire. That’s all you can do; you can do no more than your very best. But it was the ladies’ game that became a special passion. Maybe it was running up and down retrieving the ball. Maybe it was feeling more special than I am when hearing my encouraging claps ring around the ground on a cold and dark night. Maybe it was the thanks of the players for my efforts in returning the ball. I remember distinctly the first thank you, thinking it the first time ever in all the years watching football that one of the players had thanked me. Fair enough, it was one of the Bethel ladies, but the Llandudno ladies were just as thankful. But maybe, indeed more than likely, it was the skill, the enthusiasm, and the dedication of the players playing for the sheer love of football that really won my heart. I had had no thoughts of winning titles and cups. But as win piled on win, I found myself hooked on live football again. And it mattered.
After that first Wrexham goal I really thought that Llandudno were going to get pipped at the last. Wrexham could have wrapped it up in the first half and the game was in the balance to the very end. But Llandudno kept battling, kept their head, kept looking to turn things around and finally prevailed. I have praised Wrexham for their performance throughout this piece. Now I shall praise Llandudno. Because this wasn’t a last minute win snatched from the jaws of defeat. Llandudno were back ahead in the title race when they struck the equaliser in the 57th minute. With seven minutes extra time, that meant that Llandudno spent the last forty minutes on top. That’s a title win that is hard-earned and well-deserved.
The games I saw this season were a huge credit to the women’s game. Eduardo Galeano wrote well on his love for the beautiful game as a whole exceeding his love for any one team:
“Years have gone by and I’ve finally learned to accept myself for who I am: a beggar for good soccer. I go about the world, hand outstretched, and in the stadiums I plead: ‘A pretty move, for the love of God.’ And when good soccer happens, I give thanks for the miracle and I don’t give a damn which team or country performs it.”
All that said, I was still mightily pleased that Llandudno Ladies had won. The scenes at the end were the kind you want to go on forever.
I'm not sure what the crowd was, but it was packed. I am used to running the line retrieving the ball, but I only got the one opportunity today, the ball dropping straight at me from a great height, with the great public all watching – I missed it, completely, and had to go chasing it in a most undignified way. With the tense atmosphere, with both players and spectators wanting the ball in play, I felt a right Herbert. Still, I can laugh about it now. And reaffirm the enormous respect for goalkeepers who have to catch these balls all the time. It was a day of nerve, nous, skill, and drama. And the biggest crowd I've seen at a ladies' match yet. I would expect many to return in future, because this was a great game of football.
The ecstasy and the history
There is a history to Llandudno’s title win that makes the achievement all the more impressive. Llandudno had been the sole North Wales team in the Welsh Premier Women’s League, making long journeys south year after year, holding their own, but finally having to resign their place in December 2019 after eight seasons in the Welsh Premier.
This great achievement was based on the skill and dedication of unpaid players who play for the love of the game, all with other commitments and responsibilities in life, making big sacrifices to put the time and the effort in.
I read that the team was rebuilt in the summer by sisters/coaches Sarah and Claire Colville, with important additions made to the squad and key figures retained. I knew none of the history. In the first instance I was impressed by young striker Ella Jones and her four goals against Bethel. This was her first full season in senior football, thumping 22 goals in just 12 games before injury prematurely ended her season. I’m still raving about her last minute equalizer against Bethel, a contender for goal of the season. And I worried that the team might struggle for goals in her absence. As it happened, Maddie Williams proved even more prolific than Ella.
Forwards and wingers always catch the eye, of course. Sioned Phillips and Indie Hassall both did precisely that with their excellent performances.
With so much attacking quality and so many wins, it would be easy to overlook the defence. Llandudno conceded the least goals in the league, a real tribute to goalkeeper Sara Williams and the defence. Madison Williams and Jasmin Dutton were exceptional at the heart of the meanest defence in the league. Special mention too to Sofie Owen. The words ‘dependable’ and ‘reliable’ don’t quite do her justice. I’ll call her a rock. Rebecca Jarvis-Evans was immense at left back. Samantha Jarvis-Evans also caught the eye with pace and power at right back. Special mention to pacy left-winger Jess Jones, who followed a great two-goal performance against Pwllheli with a massively important intervention as an impact player versus Wrexham. Also Maisy Johnson, who shows real future potential with her important contributions over the season.
Ceri Slaney and Stacey Tradewell goals, class, and power to the side. When it came to the Player of the Year, though, my vote went to Ffion Owen. She is slight of stature but mighty in performance. Like all great players she has time and space. She doesn’t just find time and space, she always seems to have it. In the thick of the action, boots flying, she finds a way through. She has vision, class, and composure and threads the most wonderful passes through to the flanks and forward line. She is a great passer of the ball, a dreamweaver at the centre of the midfield.
‘I’m attracted to soccer’s capacity for beauty. When well played, the game is a dance with a ball.’ (Eduardo Galeano)
I really thought my days of getting excited over football were long over. I’ve seen it all with Liverpool, both triumphs and tragedies. When you witness European cup wins in the plural, and also deaths in the plural as at Hillsborough 1989, it takes a lot to restore your enthusiasm levels back to the days when the world was young and so were you. I kicked every ball in the Llandudno vs Wrexham game, from the first minute to very last, including and especially the never-ending seven minutes of extra time. My nerves were shattered by the end. There were scenes of great joy at the end. The players came over to the fans, sharing the moment. I took a nice photo of Ffion Owen.
A win for Wrexham would have given them the title, and they meant business from the first and were twice ahead. It took real strength of character to hang on against the onslaught and then to come back not once but twice. It was a big game today, a title decider, and received a match that more than lived up to the occasion. It was a tough, highly competitive, game with no quarter asked and none given. It was played in the right spirit, too.
Congratulations to Llandudno Ladies for the superb victory over Wrexham to win the Genero Adran North league title. It took real strength of character to twice come back against title rivals Wrexham. It was a big game and received a match that more than lived up to the occasion.
Well done Llandudno Ladies for winning the inaugural Genero Adran North league title.
And for going on to win two cups as well as being losing finalists in another cup. That’s more even than the mighty Liverpool won.
Hail Llandudno Ladies, the Stars with the Stripes!
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