The New Sons

Corwen  3  Rhostyllen  2

Welsh National League (Wrexham Area) – Premier Division

Owain Glyndwr was once named second in a list of the top 100 Welsh Heroes.

This from a man who inspired a group of Welsh Nationalists to set about fire bombing Holiday Homes owned by the English in the principality. The Sons of Glyndwr because infamous in the Eighties and early Nineties due to concerns over housing. They were also known to have planted / sent incendiary bombs to estate agents across the land.

Terrorist attacks was probably not the legacy Owain was hoping for when he set about battling the English in an attempt to free the Welsh from British rule in the 1400’s. Ultimately he didn’t succeed, but, he remains a national hero, with his name attributed to many buildings and monuments throughout the country.

One of those is a statue of the last Welshman to be given the title Prince of Wales, sat upon his horse, in the centre of the town of Corwen. The connection with Corwen is quite simple, he was born and owned property nearby. A former coaching inn in the centre of the town is also named after him, sitting right opposite his statue.

Why the hell am I banging on about this fella then?

Dead simple, I’d chosen to go and watch Corwen play Rhostyllen in the Welsh National League, largely because the hosts sat in the box seats for a promotion place into the new Northern Tier 2 League next season, which is effectively replacing the Cymru Alliance. A victory would see them needing two points from two games, and having passed the ground grading earlier in the day, it looked a pretty done deal as far as I was concerned.

Corwen sits on the A5, West of both Wrexham and Lllangollen, but before reaching Bala. I’ve driven through it before on the way to both Bala and Porthmadog, but never had the chance to stop off.

The journey from Sheffield took me over the Woodhead to the M60, and then along the M56 to Buckley. Once at Buckley it was a cross country run (albeit very scenic) down to the town which is also the end of the lane as far as the Llangollen Steam Railway runs.

The football ground sits just North of the centre of the town and is only a few minutes walk from the main car park. I decided to have a pint in Owain’s place, which is also a hotel, and have a quick walk up and down the main road to take in the sights, including the impressive statue.

Once at the football ground, it’s a tidy venue but the standout is without doubt the stunning scenery on all four sides. Corwen is in a valley so it’s an idyllic location to watch the football. A community centre style building serves as a dressing room and clubhouse facility, while the pitch has hard standing on three sides, with a fourth sharing with cricket. The club have built a small seated stand behind the goal, but because the ground is in a public area and can’t be secured, the stand has had to be effectively fenced in with lockable fascia boards.

I chatted to a club official before the game who told me about the successful ground inspection, and how they were going to control the access of spectators next season when they need to charge admission. They will need to have staff stationed on the two entrances to the park to collect money, but, I guess, how they enforce that with it being a public space may be up for debate?

The history of Corwen is one of a club that has pretty much spent most of their recent history in the Welsh National League, albeit for one season in 1999-00 when after winning the league they had a solitary season in the Cymru Alliance, finishing bottom. This time round, you would hope for their sakes after the money they’ve spent on the ground, it’s a longer stay.

On the field this season they’ve been impressive. They’ve won 20 of the 26 games and scored 90 goals in the process. They are a point behind FC Queens Park who themselves have finished their games, hence the need for just two points from the final games.

The game against the South Wrexham based visitors was very entertaining, especially the first half. The visitors took the lead through a fantastic shot from distance by Lee McBurney, but ten minutes later the impressive Sam Henry found the net to equalise.

McBurney made it 2-1 with his second goal ten minutes before the break, but Joe Williams was on hand to equalise for Corwen the second time around with less than five to go before half time.

The second half was a much tighter affair, but the all important fifth goal of the game came in the 61^st minute through man of the match Henry. Rhostyllen gave it everything in the final half an hour but couldn’t break down the organised and resolute home defence. One down, two to go, they can almost smell the polish on the trophy!

The journey home took me via Wrexham, Nantwich and Stoke, and I was pulling on the drive by 10.30pm, it was a relatively easy journey back. But what an enjoyable evening, watching the new ‘Sons of Glyndwr’ putting the local football club firmly on the map.