Hughes bags brace and West opens account as Nomads shine at Haverfordwest

Connah’s Quay Nomads returned to winning ways in the JD Cymru Premier with an emphatic 3-1 victory over 10-man Haverfordwest County at Ogi Bridge Meadow on Saturday afternoon.

Callum West netted his first Nomads goal to find the breakthrough on 13 minutes, but the Bluebirds were level shortly before the half-hour mark as Ben Ahmun fired home from the penalty spot.

However, the Nomads responded brilliantly in the second half and eventually restored their lead thanks to a superb strike from Rhys Hughes on the edge of the area.

The hosts were then reduced to 10 men after Hughes’ stunner as Ahmun was shown a second yellow card for a foul on Dan Cowan.

The Nomads took full advantage and wrapped up all three points when Hughes tapped home from Harry Franklin’s square ball. John Disney’s side now climb into the top six.

Team News
Disney made three changes from last weekend’s 1-1 draw with Cardiff Met as Franklin, West and Jacob Cook replaced Abdi Sharif, Zeli Ismail and Marco Fregapane. There was a special moment for 17-year-old Mason Parry, who returned to the First Team squad after recovering from a year-long injury.

Haverfordwest duo Ben Fawcett and Alaric Jones were both suspended following their red cards at Colwyn Bay last weekend, while there was also a change in between the sticks for Tony Pennock as Ifan Knott replaced Luc Rees.

First Half
Callum West caught the eye early on and he nearly scored directly from a corner as his delivery forced Knott into a fingertip save.

However, the 19-year-old would not be denied seconds later as he opened the scoring with his first goal for the club. Franklin’s close range header rattled the crossbar, but West reacted well and fired home the rebound.

Haverfordwest were awarded a penalty with 28 minutes on the clock after Rhys Abbruzzese went to ground following a challenge from Cowan. Ahmun stepped up from the spot and found the top corner to level the scoreline.

The Nomads appealed for handball and a penalty of their own after Cook’s cross scooped up onto the body of a Haverfordwest defender, but nothing was given.

Franklin then met Declan Poole’s cross and headed straight at Knott, while Jack Kenny intercepted the ball and raced through on goal with only Knott to beat, but the striker was denied when trying to round the goalkeeper.

Second Half
Knott was forced into more saves in the opening stages of the second half, tipping away efforts from West and Kenny again.

Ahmun soon appealed for another penalty after he ran into the area and went to ground, although the referee saw nothing in the challenge from Nash.

The Nomads were eventually rewarded for their second half pressure count as Hughes added another stunning strike to his collection. West’s curling free-kick was not fully cleared by the hosts and the attack was kept alive before Hughes beautifully curled into the bottom corner, leaving Knott no chance of the save.

Haverfordwest’s hopes of another equaliser suffered a huge blow as Ahmun was sent off for a second bookable offence following his late foul on Cowan on the byline.

Kenny sent a neat low finish into the bottom corner as the Nomads continued to dominate proceedings, but the goal was ruled out after our no.7 was deemed to be offside when receiving West’s pass.

However, an important third goal arrived in the 90th minute as Franklin did extremely well to intercept Abbruzzese before he sprinted into the area and squared the ball for Hughes, who scored into an empty net to put the game to bed.

Disney turned to his bench for the first time in stoppage time as Fregapane replaced Cook, while Max Woodcock returned from a short spell on the sidelines by replacing our first goalscorer West.

The Nomads saw out the final few moments of the contest to make it back-to-back wins on the road and move up to sixth in the table.

What’s Next?
The Nomads aim to build on this impressive victory as the lads host current JD Cymru Premier leaders Caernarfon Town at the Essity Stadium on Tuesday, 23 September.

Rhys Hughes opened the scoring with a penalty in this fixture for the Nomads last season, but Cofis forward Adam Davies netted in the second half to rescue a 1-1 draw for his side.

Match Photos

Match Report by Adam Angerer