Pontypridd bounced back from defeat in their last outing to equal the club record win with a 6-2 victory over Caerphilly Argyle. The score matches that against Carn Rovers in the South Wales FA Intermediate Cup earlier in the season, but is a league best win for the first team.
After a tough opening half hour, during which they fell behind to a 20th minute penalty, Pontypridd kept their cool to finally get the better of their visitors in the second-half. With the goals spread across five different Ponty players, it was a good all-round performance and a positive reaction to arguably the poorest display of the season away to Treforest seven days earlier.
The fixture was the first meeting between the clubs, both formed for the start of this season. While Pontypridd have been the picture of inconsistency in their first ever campaign, Caerphilly Argyle’s has been more of a struggle. Bottom of the TERV League Division One, Argyle had lost every game going into this one. Nothing can be taken for granted in football though, especially as far as Pontypridd are concerned.
There were two changes to the starting line-up as Artur Cegielka replaced Adam Davies and Geraint Lewis returned to the side in place of Lewis Roberts. Lewis, who has had a luckless season so far in front of goal, started the game in typically tenacious fashion, willing to chase down any lost cause and combining well with the in-form Joe Vellam.
Lewis was in the thick of the penalty box action early on and was twice denied by good stops from the Argyle keeper. The first, a low drive that Argyle’s stopper did really well to get down and palm away; the second, a brave point blank save when Lewis looked certain to convert Vellam’s excellent cross. From the resultant corner, a header was cleared off the line before Josh Husband fired over the rebound.
It was less than a minute after this opportunity that Argyle were awarded a penalty; Hywel Patterson judged to have fouled an Argyle attacker dribbling into the box. The penalty was converted down the middle to give the visitors a surprise lead given league positions.
Fortunately, for the home side, the lead didn’t last long. Dan Outing’s long throw from the right reached Lewis, he flicked the ball goalwards and it looped over the Argyle number one into the net. A scruffy goal but one Lewis was no doubt grateful to score; the striker’s first league since the opening day of the season.
There was a further blow for Argyle just before the half-hour when their goalkeeper went down with an injury after taking a goal-kick. Sadly, he could no longer continue and Argyle were forced into a replacement. Up to this point Argyle’s performance had belied their league position; resolute and well-organised at the back, they even had the confidence to play their way out of trouble at the back on one or two occasions. But would the change of goalkeeper be the breakthrough Ponty needed?
Credit to the replacement keeper, he held his own and certainly carried no fault for the final result. However, whether it was the break in play, fatigue or other factors, from that point on Ponty began to dominate the match. Ceri Williams had two good opportunities, the second a one-on-one that he tried to take early and blazed wildly over the bar when he had time and space to advantage and pick his spot.
Holding on as they were at this stage, Argyle were fortuitous not to be reduced to ten-men when their captain made a wild lunge at Kieron Cook (having earlier been verbally warned for pushing Joe Vellam). The visiting captain was booked, but bizarrely Cook was also issued with a yellow card for dissent for expressing his frustration with the opponent’s actions.
Eventually Ponty did get the second goal, a minute before half-time. Gareth Kear’s corner caused a bit of head-tennis in the Argyle box before Dan Outing provided a clinical touch with a close range header. The defender’s first ever goal for the club.
HALF-TIME | Pontypridd 2-1 Caerphilly Argyle
The second-half almost started disastrously for Pontypridd with an Argyle attacker through on goal and rounding Tolak, but pushed away from goal the angle was too tight for a shot and the threat was snuffed out. There were a couple of further heart in mouth moments from corners, Tolak twice dropping crosses and Ponty somehow getting away without any damage. Otherwise it was a much more consistent performance from the Ponty number one.
At the other end chances were coming. Gareth Kear forced a smart stop when trying to catch out the keeper at his near post from a wide free-kick and the the floodgates opened soon after when Josh Husband curled home his first Pontypridd goal with a sumptuous strike from 25 yards to make it 3-1. Joe Vellam headed over a Lewis cross shortly before the fourth Ponty goal arrived when an Argyle defender diverted a Husband cross into his own goal on the hour mark.
Four minutes later Hywel Patterson scored his second goal of the season: an athletic, towering header after Gareth Kear’s corner had caused chaos in the away defence. Dan Outing might have doubled his goal tally, but a good save denied him a second headed goal before substitute Liam Griffiths made it a Ponty half dozen. The striker side footing home from the edge of the box after excellent work along the goal-line by Huw Ward.
Ponty may have grabbed one or two more goals, but the Argyle replacement keeper kept them at bay and despite being on the end of a heavy defeat Argyle kept plugging away and a late consolation goal was at least something for their efforts. In the end the win was Pontypridd’s and well-deserved on the balance of play and chances in the second-half.
FULL-TIME | Pontypridd 6-2 Caerphilly Argyle
Pontypridd FC: Piotr Tolak, Artur Cegielka (Ryan James 61), Daniel Perry (c), Dan Outing, Gareth Kear, Hywel Patterson, Kieron Cook (Liam Griffiths 67), Josh Husband, Joe Vellam (Tom Slater 78), Ceri Williams (Huw Ward 61), Geraint Lewis (Lewis Roberts 78)
Goals: G. Lewis (22), D. Outing (44), J. Husband (55), Own Goal (60), H. Patterson (64), L. Griffiths (76)
Man of the match: Geraint Lewis
Referee: Martin Williams
