All good things must come to an end
The 2-1 defeat against Connah’s Quay Nomads in the JD Welsh Cup final halted an impressive run of 53 domestic games unbeaten for The New Saints.
All good things must come to an end, as they say, but it was disappointing on the day, as victory in the game would have secured a 2023/24 Welsh treble.
Credit goes to the opposition
In last Sunday’s dress rehearsal, Connah’s Quay Nomads pushed The New Saints all the way, with two very late goals eventually securing a 2-0 victory for Craig Harrison’s side.
Would it be an exasperated cry of ‘What do we have to do to beat TNS?’ or a motivational ‘We can do it, come the final.’ Well, as far as Nomads were concerned, it was most definitely a case of the latter.
They were well-drilled, confident and took their chances. Congratulations go to Neil Gibson, staff, players and supporters on lifting the trophy.
Another quality assist
Danny Redmond had more assists (16) than anyone in the Cymru Premier 2023/24 campaign and we chatted with the midfielder on the morning of the game, where he talked about that particular statistic.
It was Redmond again to the rescue, as his pinpoint ball in from the left was met by Ash Baker, who levelled the score in the 36th minute.
Both players have had excellent seasons.
The first and last goals of the domestic season
Ash Baker’s header against Connah’s Quay Nomads proved to be the final one of the domestic campaign for The New Saints.
The first goal of the season, way back in August of last year, which was also against Nomads, was scored by Jordan Williams.
Sandwiched in the middle were 100+ other goals with only one game – a 0-0 draw with Bala Town – ending in a TNS scoring blank.
Final interviews of the season
We have conducted three-figure interviews during the course of 2023/24, and on behalf of club media, we want to thank Craig Harrison, Chris Seargeant and all the players for their support and encouragement.
Not once have we had any issues, and we have experienced nothing but total cooperation, as we all work together for the common good.
Even following a defeat – although the tone of the interview will naturally be different – the professionalism of the staff and players has always been of the same high standard.
Following the final whistle at Rodney Parade, for our final player interview of the season we chose Chris Marriott.
Not only did he have a good game, as always leading by example on the pitch, but as the senior player and club captain, he’s one of the obvious choices when things haven’t gone our way.
As with Craig Harrison’s interview, both of them were bitterly disappointed but maturity of character and the level of professionalism that they adhere to, is such that it didn’t affect their delivery during the chats themselves.
Lead image courtesy of FAW.
