Football

Aber ready to face Exiles

by Adam Hughes

ABERYSTWYTH Town will welcome Blue Square Conference South champions Newport County to Park Avenue in their first pre-season friendly this Saturday.
Alan Morgan’s squad has been back in training for two weeks, and the Aber boss says his side is looking forward to getting vital match practice under their belts.
The ambitious Exiles, managed by former Bolton and Wimbledon striker Dean Holdsworth, will provide tough opposition, having been promoted to the Conference Premier as runaway champions.
Meanwhile Morgan (pictured)  has confirmed that Conference Premier club Wrexham have also agreed to play the Seasiders the following weekend, on Saturday, 17 July.
“We’ve got two big friendlies to look forward to in the next two weeks, Newport are a decent side, having done fantastically well last season,” said Aber boss Morgan.
“I am not bothered about the results in these games, but hopefully they will be a good work out, attract the interest of supporters, and can become annual fixtures.
“We will have had six training sessions, and I’m chuffed with the early fitness of the players, but we are not resting on our laurels, and we need to build up endurance.
“I am taking a good look at the players and I’m in the process of finalising the squad, and also trying to work out which players we might need to put out on loan.”
The Aber manager has moved to sign Newtown’s highly-rated full-back Craig Williams, and is also hoping to sign full-back Mike Howard this week from Llanelli.
The 24-year-old Birkenhead-born defender made 222 Football League appearances for Swansea City after starting-out as a junior with Liverpool and Tranmere.
He spent six years at Morecambe and had a short loan spell at Oxford United, before his release from the Shrimps in May 2009. He joined Llanelli two months later, making 11 Welsh Premier appearances for the Reds last season.
Morgan revealed: “I am hoping to sign him this week, and he would further increase the competition for places in the full-back position, with Steve Bowen, Gareth Hughes and Craig Williams.
“There are still three positions I am hoping to fill, and I’m looking at bringing in a couple of other players to complement the squad, but I’ll not just bring anybody in.”
With the Reserve team now disbanded after being pushed out of the Mid Wales League, the Aber manager will face some tough decisions in finalising his squad.
The club has confirmed that a number of players will be loaned out to neighbouring clubs during the season, to be later called on.
“Hopefully I will be able to play two teams on Saturday, and I will be looking to finalise a squad of around 16, while some will also be going out on loan next season.
“We put Dave Roberts and Robert Evans on loan last season to get experience playing, and we’ll call on players when they do well.”
Aber’s pre-season friendlies will continue at home to Wrexham on Saturday, 17 July, at home to Porthmadog on Tuesday, 27 July, away at Aberaman Athletic on Saturday 31 July, and away against Caersws on Monday 2 August.

Saturday games marginalised

LESS than a third of Aberystwyth’s first round of 22 matches in the new Welsh Premier League Super 12 will be played on a Saturday afternoon, as Friday and Sunday games get more prominence.
The Seasiders will start their campaign with a trip to Carmarthen on Saturday, 14 August, and that will be one of just seven matches to be played on a Saturday, before the league is split in January.
Seven matches will be played on a Friday, and eight on a Sunday.
Aber’s home supporters will miss out on a Boxing Day fixture, as they travel to play Haverfordwest County, while the return match is on New Year’s Day.
Meanwhile, the draw for the Loosemores League Cup will see Aber take on Carmarthen over two legs, with the winners facing either Haverfordwest or Neath, again over two legs in round two.
The two-legged League Cup fixtures mean that some clubs will play each other at least six times next season, with the possibility of also meeting in the Welsh Cup and the end-of-season play-offs.
Clubs will play each other twice, before the league is split into top six and bottom six, with the clubs in those groups playing each other twice again, to make 32 fixtures
Clubs finishing in third to seventh position will then take part in a play-off to determine who gains the third Europa League spot.
Should the Welsh Cup winners be amongst those clubs, the eighth placed club - fourth from-bottom in the Super 12 - would also compete in the play-offs for Europe.
The season has also been extended, as the play-offs will not be able to take place until after the Welsh Cup Final has been played.