Friday evening saw The Nomads suffer a narrow defeat to Bala Town courtesy of a bizarre own goal in the third round of fixtures of the JD Cymru Premier.

After dominating possession in the final third, The Nomads came away from Maes Tegid with nothing. Jordan Davies and Ben Nash went close in the first half but for the majority of the second half, it was the final ball which let Nomads down.

The game’s deciding moment came in the 48th minute where a coming together between Kai Edwards and Joe Malkin caused the ball to loop up into the air and head Jon Rushton’s way and bizarrely, the goalkeeper’s fingertip to the ball sent it backwards and into the net.

Form
The Nomads have no doubt had a difficult start to the domestic season after returning from Europe as Neil Gibson’s side faced TNS at Park Hall twice in one week with the first of those encounters coming in round two of the Nathaniel MG Cup. Unfortunately despite Callum Bratley’s opening goal, Saints were able to net twice in the final 15 minutes of the first half to progress. On the following Friday, both sides met in the JD Cymru Premier and although Noah Edwards and Jordan Davies got Nomads off to a lightning start, a strong second half spell from the reigning Cymru Premier champions saw them take all three points. The Nomads bounced back in style in the club’s first game at The Essity Stadium against Aberystwyth. Josh Williams’ brace, Callum Bratley’s clinical strike and Jordan Davies’ penalty did the damage in a sublime first half which saw Nomads run out 4-0 victors.

Bala have made a great start to their season, keeping three clean sheets in their first three fixtures. A comfortable 4-0 victory away to Ruthin Town in the Nathaniel MG Cup got things going before Colin Caton’s outfit secured a last gasp 1-0 win over Barry Town in the Cymru Premier courtesy of Iwan Roberts’ goal. Bala then made the long trip down to South Wales last weekend to take on Cardiff Met. These two sides always provided spectators with a tight game and last weekend’s meeting proved to be no different as both sides went away with a point each following a goalless draw.

Team News
Neil Gibson made two changes to his Nomads side with Jon Rushton replacing the injured Andy Firth between the sticks and Ryan Stratulis replacing a suspended Callum Bratley, who received a red card last weekend vs Aberstwyth. Youngsters Joe Lawlor, Jordan Pownall and Jack Burman were named amongst the substitutes along with Dan Roberts, Harry Franklin, Jack Kenny and Matty Waters.

Colin Caton made just the one change to his Bala side as Iwan Roberts came in to replace former Nomads midfielder Aeron Edwards. There was however a place for former Nomads striker Joe Malkin who led the line with George Newell.

The First Half
Both sides found it tough to break each other down inside the first 15 minutes at Maes Tegid as neither goalkeeper were forced into making a save. The Nomads nearly found the breakthrough as Mike Wilde slipped in Jordan Davies through the middle but Nathan Peate’s last ditch interception brought the attack to an end.

The home side came closest to taking the lead in the 19th minute as Iwan Roberts’ free kick on the left hand side thundered against the crossbar and out for a goal kick.

The Nomads continued to work the ball well in the final third, Ryan Stratulis received the ball at his feet and delivered an inviting ball towards the back post where Ryan Harrington was waiting, however Absalom stayed alert to dive down and make the save from Harrington at his near post.

The Nomads were dominating the game and were eager to find the breakthrough but again it was the final ball that left the scoreline goalless. Noah Edwards’ low and powerful delivery somehow wasn’t turned in by Wilde or Davies who both slid in to try and turn the ball home.

Jordan Davies was full of energy and used his pace to get in behind the Bala defence on two occasions, Davies sprinted down towards the byline and looked to cut the ball back to Mike Wilde on both occasions but Bala were keeping Nomads at bay by making some last ditch clearances.

Davies undoubtedly had Nomads’ best chance of the half as Declan Poole’s cross cleared towards the edge of the box was controlled by Davies who then looked to fire into the bottom corner and he was only a whisker away from putting Nomads ahead.

Bala were struggling to get the ball in the Nomads box and their best chances were coming from outside the area. Abadaki’s shot from distance forced Rushton into another save.

In the final minute of added time at the end of the first half, Ben Nash queued up at the back post and connected with John Disney’s cross but the centre back was unable to put his header on target and both sides went into the break goalless.

The Second Half
The Nomads were aiming to start the second half in the same way they finished the first, with dominant spells of pressure and attacking quality but a crazy own goal suddenly saw Nomads trail the Lakesiders.

Kai Edwards’ challenge on Joe Malkin caused the ball to loop up into the air and catch out Jon Rushton, who despite getting a fingertip to the ball was left stunned when the ball bounced behind him and over the line, putting Bala in front.

Bala nearly doubled their lead just before the hour mark. A curling cross searching for Nathan Burke at the back post found the No.8 but the angle was too tight for him to put his header behind Rushton as his attempt crashed into the side netting.

The Nomads were trying everything to find an equaliser but a series of crosses caught by Absalom certainly frustrated Neil Gibson’s side. Absalom was also able to hold onto Mike Wilde’s header following Ryan Harrington’s cross.

Neil Gibson then made a double change to add fresh legs to the attack as Harry Franklin and Jack Kenny both came on to replace Mike Wilde and Ryan Stratulis.

The Nomads drove forward once more but even with the fresh attacking duo, Bala fought for their clean sheet and continued to deal with heavy spells of Nomads pressure. The frustration mounted and time was ticking, The Nomads turned to the bench for a third substitution and on came Jack Burman for his first ever Cymru Premier appearance as he replaced last week’s star Josh Williams.

However, despite seven minutes of stoppage time, a flurry of crosses, corners and set pieces were dealt with by Bala and Nomads couldn’t find a way to break down the Lakesiders defence. The mind boggling own goal in the 48th minute was the decisive goal as Bala took home all three points.

Next Fixture
The Nomads are back in action this Tuesday evening for the Cymru Premier’s first set of midweek fixtures this season. The Nomads will look to bounce back from tonight’s defeat against Newtown at The Essity Stadium. The match will take place on 29th August with a 7:45pm scheduled kick off time. For those of you who can’t make the trip to The Essity, you can follow our Twitter page for live updates throughout the game.

Match report by Adam Angerer