Saturday 26th August 2024 ko 14:30

Cymru North

GUILSFIELD UNITED 3 (Haycock 17 59 Matthews 69)

RUTHIN TOWN 1 (Owen 69p)

Att 160

Entry £7

Programme £1

Back in the days when the Welsh Hop visited the Mid-Wales League we visited this part of the world a lot. The unscientific way of explaining the geography is to say flop over the border at Welshpool, then head towards the mountains. Over three years we visited a series of quite wonderful grounds, but why did Guilsfield somehow evade us?

The answer is a little surprising, the village may be home to only a shade over 1,500 people but the local football club has spent the entire time since the turn of the millenium playing in the second tier of Welsh football, firstly the Cymru Alliance and now the Cymru North. The reason we never got to the Community Centre Ground? The Cymru Alliance never were interested us visiting their league, and Guilsfield? They were just too successful for us!

It is a remarkable achievement for the village given the close proximity of both Welshpool, Newtown and Oswestry. As we parked up I wondered how they managed it, and continue to do so? I got my answer within seconds of exiting the car. I grabbed my camera and bag and made for the entrance, and a club official welcomed me and quickly spotted I was a groundhopper (is it really that obvious?)

He commented, no advised that both printed programmes and metal badges are available on the gate, and explained that while the league allow for online progammes, the club don’t like them so continue to print! Now for me, programmes and badges are a nice to have, not an essential but the welcome does show a friendly, outgoing club, one that people will want to go back to, and recommend to their friends. So yes, treat this as my recommendation!

But even without all that, a visit here is close to essential if only for the vista you’ll see. This is one of the most beautiful places you’ll ever watch a game from and that is in a country notable for precisely that! We were well entertained too, with the hosts being just that little bit too strong for Ruthin Town, another place on our to-do list!