Since joining The New Saints from Swansea City, initially on a short-term loan then later a permanent transfer, it’s certainly been a productive few seasons for Dan Williams.
The midfielder has already lifted four pieces of silverware during his time at Park Hall, and on Friday, has the chance to add another trophy to his collection when his side take on Aberystwyth Town in the final of the Nathaniel MG Cup.
“Although it’s a final, I think it’s important that we try and treat it the same as we would any other game,” Williams said.
“It’s been a good week of training so far, and all of the lads have been looking really sharp.
“We’re going into Friday’s game on the back of 10 consecutive wins in the league, so there’s a lot of confidence within the squad.”
Both sides have experienced hugely contrasting league fortunes this season, and while The Saints are 12 points clear at the top of the table, Antonio Corbisiero’s side are fighting to preserve their status as JD Cymru Premier ever-presents.
Williams, however, believes that league form will count for nothing once the first whistle blows at Latham Park.
“It’s a bit of a cliche isn’t it, but in a cup final form goes out of the window,” he said.
“In a one-off game like that, I don’t think you can look at it like it’s a top vs bottom clash. We need to make sure we do our job as professionally as we have done all season and hopefully that’ll be enough to see us over the line.”
With the added experience of UEFA Conference League football now under their belts, the former Swansea City man says The Saints can lean on their European exploits to help them in big games such as this.
“The European run has definitely helped us when it comes to dealing with the occasion better,” he said.
“We played some big and must-win games in Europe this season and played in front of a lot of fans, so experiences like that definitely help you.
“It means you can take those experiences with you moving forwards and then use them when you go into other big games in the future.”
And after suffering the disappointment of a 2-1 defeat against Connah’s Quay Nomads in their last domestic cup final, the Wales U21 international says that the squad are desperate to avoid a repeat of that this time around.
“We all remember that feeling of losing the Welsh Cup final last year and it’s not a feeling we ever want to feel in football again.
“We’ll be doing our best to make sure we’re not feeling that way again come the final whistle on Friday.
“Obviously we did very well in Europe this year, but at the start of the season our target was to win three trophies. Getting the first on Friday would put us in a really good position to do that.”
