Nomads set new club record in tense Caernarfon draw

Connah's Quay Nomads set a new club record by extending their JD Cymru Premier unbeaten run to 16 matches in a 1-1 draw with Caernarfon Town at the Essity Stadium on Friday evening.    

The Nomads took the lead on the stroke of half-time as Iwan Lewis brought down Callum West inside the area, allowing Rhys Hughes to step up from the penalty spot and slot home his 13th league goal of the season. 

Both sides had their fair share of chances in the second half with Kit Margetson producing several key saves to deny the Cofis at one end before Declan Poole missed a glorious chance from close range to double the Nomads' lead. 

Caernarfon found their late lifeline though, as Jason Oswell's foul on Adam Davies inside the area meant Sion Bradley was able to convert the resulting penalty and salvage a point for the visitors. 

Despite conceding another late goal, the new club record marks another incredible achievement in John Disney's first season as manager, while a point also keeps our hopes of an automatic European qualification spot well and truly alive. 

Team News

John Disney made two changes from our 2-2 draw at Colwyn Bay almost a fortnight ago as Max Woodcock and Dan Cowan returned to the squad to replace Callum Bratley and Dan Roberts. There was a moment to savour for 16-year-old goalkeeper and scholar Dani Liepa, who was named in the First Team squad for the first time ever. 

Caernarfon manager Richard Davies also made two changes to his side's last outing - a 4-1 win over Colwyn Bay in the JD Welsh Cup - as Dominic Smith and new signing Adrian Cieslewicz came in for Matty Jones and Adam Davies. 

First Half 

Margetson was alert to Lewis' early effort from distance inside just three minutes, before Connor Roberts and the Cofis defence kept the ball out to deny two long range strikes from Hughes either side of Poole's low drive from West's cutback. 

Hughes tried his luck from distance one more, and this time he went extremely close as he forced Roberts into a fingertip save from his dipping strike on the right hand side. 

Five minutes later, Brad Young tried to get in behind the Nomads defence, but James Jones read him all the way and provided a crucial block to prevent the forward from a sight of goal inside the area. ~

The Nomads were awarded a penalty just one minute before half-time as West was brought down by Mooney down the left hand side of the area, giving referee Tom Owen an easy choice to point to the spot. Hughes stepped up from 12 yards and fired home into the bottom corner, sending Roberts the wrong way in the process to bag his 13th JD Cymru Premier goal of the season. 

Second Half 

Caernarfon applied pressure in the opening stages of the second half, but Margetson made some impressive saves to deny Bradley's low curling shot, Mooney's header from close range and Lewis' fierce effort from the edge of the area.

The Nomads then enjoyed some dangerous attacking spells of their own, with Abdi Sharif forcing another save from Roberts with his low drive out on the left. 

Sharif was involved again and this time he looked to be the provider as he played a perfectly weighted low ball across goal, only for Poole to somehow fail to hit the target from just 10 yards out. 

The Nomads were reaching the stage of trying to defend their lead as Bratley and Oswell replaced Hughes and Woodcock in two quick substitutions.

However, there was late heartbreak for the third game running as Oswell's challenge on Davies from Matty Jones' corner resulted in a penalty for the away side. Bradley stepped up and squeezed his effort beyond Margetson in the bottom left hand corner despite the goalkeeper getting a slight touch to the ball.

Although it is a third consecutive draw for the Nomads, the club-record 16-game unbeaten streak in the JD Cymru Premier still puts John Disney's side in a commanding position to claim a guaranteed spot in European qualification. 

What's Next?

Next up is a first trip to South Wales since November as we travel to face third-place Penybont at the DragonBet Stadium on Saturday, 14 February (12:30pm KO). 

With five wins and one draw, the Nomads earned an impressive 16 points from 18 available when travelling to South Wales in Phase One, and with the preparation going to be high-quality as always, the lads will be hoping for a positive result as the road to Europe continues. 

Rhys Hughes' brace along with goals clinical goals from Declan Poole and Callum Bratley gave the Nomads convincing 4-0 victory over Bont in November's reverse fixture.

For those of you who are unable to make next Saturday's early kick-off, you can still catch all of the action as the match will be shown live on Sgorio's online platforms. 

Match Report by Adam Angerer