Trefelin BGC - Ynys Park

Trefelin BGC

Ynys Park 

Cwmavon Road

Cwmafan 

Port Talbot

SA12 8RB

01639 899286

Official Website

Twitter

Ground Number: 1086
Saturday 9th July 2022

Trefelin BGC 0-5 Swansea City
Friendly

TREFELIN BGC - A BRIEF HISTORY

The club was established in 1984 and initially played in the Port Talbot League at the Plough Recreation Ground. They won Division 2 in 1991 and the Premier Division in 1994 Thanks to a fundraising effort, in 1996 they moved to their current home of Ynys Park. They joined the South Wales Amateur League in the late 1994, starting out in Division 2 and winning Division 2 in their second season. They did OK at first, but had a bad season in 2001/02, gaining a single point all season after having nine deducted. They'd remain in Division 2 until 2007 when they won the league. It was a great first season back in Division 1 and Trefelin finished as runners-up before achieving the same feat in 2010. They would win Division 1 in 2014 but would have to wait until the following season to gain promotion to the Premier Division which they won at the first attempt. This handed them promotion to the Welsh League Division 3. They finishes as runners-up to Penydarren BGC and league reorganisation saw them placed in Division 1. Their debut season saw them win the league in a season that was decided on points per game, remaining unbeaten all season. They made their debut in the Cymru South this season, finishing 11th.

 In terms of local cups, Trefelin BGC won the FAW Trophy in 2000, beating Bryntirion Athletic 6–2. They also won the John Owen Cup in 2012 & 2014 as well as the Welsh League Cup in 2018. The club is located in Port Talbot which is notable for its steelworks and docks. The population is just over 37,000. Famous people from the area include comedians Rhod Gilbert and Rob Brydon. The two main teams in the town are Port Talbot Town and Afan Lido whilst Baglan Dragons and Goytre United are located nearby.

MY VISIT

Originally for this game, I was intending to go to Corsham Town for a revisit. It was on the way home from Cardiff and it would help split up the journey and get more value out of my petrol expenditure. However, I had to go to the Cardiff City Stadium to pick up my ticket for my afternoon game and whilst I was there, I bumped into another hopper who told me about an afternoon game at a ground that I had not been to. I double-checked on Twitter and indeed, Trefelin BGC were at home to Swansea City with U23s with the game kicking off at 4 PM. I checked on Google Maps and it was 35 minutes away, so easily done. I was going in 'blind' - not knowing anything about the club or the ground but I was pleased to be visiting something new ticked.

 Following the game at Cardiff, I legged it out of the ground and back to the car park so as to not be held up in traffic for too long. I left at 2.50 and had a great journey over, 32 miles in all and I arrived at 3.25. Entry was free, but they were doing a collection for mental health and I was more than happy to sling a couple of quid in the bucket. It's a very important cause and although I am lucky to not let things get me down, others are not so fortunate. Certainly, one thing that lifted my mood was the stunning backdrop to the ground with it set into a large valley. With it being the third game of the day, I fancied a drink and so got myself a pint of Strongbow for £3.40. It's not the greatest cider in the world but it was lovely and chilled and helped me relax. I then got a sausage and chips for £2. These were great, especially the chips which were really well cooked. I put out a tweet tagging the account @FootyScran and it got quite a bit of interest/ By Sunday evening it had 978 likes and 54 comments. It shows that the world is a bit mad, but that said, I am a sucker for that sort of stuff and love seeing what people have had.

The game kicked off on time in blazing sunshine so I took shelter in the covered terrace. Swansea dominated and hit the post in the opening minutes. They took the lead on 30 minutes, Lincoln McFayden opened the scoring from close range. Five minutes later, it was 2-0, an attack down the left and a low shot from McFayden for his second. The warm weather slowed the pace a little but Swansea made a number of changes at the break. They'd go further ahead on 63 minutes, a cross from the right and a low finish at the back post by Joe Thomas. It was 4-0 on 77 minutes, a ball into the area was finished by Azeem Abdulai. The final goal came on 85 minutes, a good passing move and a low finish by Josh Thomas to make it 5-0. I only recall Trefelin having one shot all afternoon, but as a club, they did themselves proud.

It had been the last game of a great treble and I was sad to be heading for home. I'd been hoping to get some Red Wall Cider to take home but the brewery outlet was only open on weekdays. I left just before 6 and was back in England at 6.50. I did the journey in one hot and was back home by 8.30. I had quite a lot to sort out. I got a couple of my blogs done from my weekend away and also had a few drinks to prepare me for work the next day. The day had shown me the good side of people, with me having a lot of good chats. Of course, working in retail you see the worst of people and this Sunday was especially busy and unpleasant with the hot weather bringing out people in their droves. I got this blog done on Sunday evening, for once researching the club after I'd visited. They were really nice, messaging me to thank me for coming.

THE GROUND

THE YNYS PARK is a decent stadium for the level with a couple of stands, one seated and one standing, holding around 100 each. There is also a decent bar and tea hut which offer great value and in the case of the latter, great chips. But the best thing about the ground is the stunning backdrop for which pictures really cannot do it justice. There is a fair bit of parking and a train station five minutes away.