Clwb Cymric - Ocean Park

Clwb Cymric FC

Ocean Park Arena

Beignon Close

Ocean Way

Cardiff 

CF24 5HF

Official Website

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Ground Number: 1202

Saturday 15th July 2023

Clwb Cymric 1-2 Y Felinheli

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CLWB CYMRIC FC - A BRIEF HISTORY

Clwb Cyric was formed in 1969 by a group of friends, who were regulars at the New Ely pub in the Cathays area of Cardiff. For the first 40 years of their history, they were content to play local football, their first big achievement coming in 2006 when they were Cardiff & District League champions. That year they also won the City Supporters Cup. In 2010, they won the South Wales Intermediate Cup, after which they left their Pontcanna Fields,  a basic facility on the edge of the River Taff, to share grounds with Caerau (Ely). Despite winning the first 12 games of the 2010/11 season, their form fell away badly in the second half and they could only finish as runners-up. The following season, they put things right, lifting the title again, dropping just four points all season.

This success took Cymric into the end-of-season play-offs where 4-1 and 2-1 victories against AFC Abercynon and Cornelly United saw the club secure their place in the South Wales Amateur League. Starting in Division 2, a 4th place finish in 2015 was good enough for promotion to Division 1. They remain there to this day, their best finish being 4th which they have achieved twice. The league sits at the 5th tier of Welsh football. In 2020, they moved to the newly built Ocean Park Arena on the edge of Cardiff City Centre.

MY VISIT

When I booked my trip to Barry, I hoped for a decent game in and around Cardiff on Saturday. However, options were minimal and in the end, I was thinking of having to settle for Caldicot Town. It was a decent enough ground and club, but the area was not brilliant for pubs. But saviours came in the form of Richard and Dan who were also going to the Barry game and staying in Bridgend. They were originally heading back East and doing a double around Wiltshire. However, Melksham Town changed the hopper-friendly time of their game and thus their double with Corsham was out of the window. Instead, they opted for a ground we had all wanted to visit for ages in Garw. It was a really picturesque ground but tricky to do unless you have a car. They were willing to give me a lift back home for £20 which although would mean wasting my £8 coach ticket would save money on train fares at the other end. I would also get back a lot earlier.

The only potential spanner in the works was the weather. It had seemed to forget that it was July and was set to present rain and storms. Hopefully not match-affecting, but not pleasant all the same. As it turned out, the game was pulled on Friday afternoon, but a suitable replacement was found on the 3G at Cwmbran Town. It was then changed to a potential double in Cardiff which was far easier to get to. The morning of the game came and thanks to a boozy night and 2am bedtime, I slept through until my alarm at 8. It took me a while to get going but a hot shower woke me up. I got my stuff together and left at 9, walking the half hour to Wetherspoons 260, The Samuel Romiley. I had planned to start early on the drink but wasn't in the mood. Instead, I had a Monster Mango Loco and a breakfast muffin. It was then to the train station where I had just over 10 minutes to wait for a typically slow train to Cardiff Queen Street. It was 10 minutes walk to Wetherspoons 261, The Ernest Willows. A pint of Black Dragon for £3.49 was consumed before the 20-minute walk to the ground. On the way, a brief storm ensued, hammering it down and winds that blew my headphones off before returning to normal after a couple of minutes. I was at the ground 15 minutes before the potential kick-off, meeting Richard on the way and Dan in the ground.

In the end, the game kicked off at the original time of 12.15. Clwb Cymric were at step 5 - the South Wales Alliance Division 1. Visitors Y Felinheli were at step 3, the Ardal North West. The hosts in green were the better side but it was the visitors in red that took the lead after half an hour, a close-range finish from a cross. The second half kicked off at 1.07 after a quick turnaround. Felinheli were the better side at the start of the second half whilst Clwb Cymric had a couple of chances later on. The visitors had a forced substitution due to a bad tackle, common sense from the referee. Felinheli made it 2-0 on 76, a header after the ball was only partially cleared. On 83 minutes, the deficit was halved, a decent strike from just outside the area.

THE GROUND

The Ocean Park Arena is a smart and tidy venue on the edge of Cardiff. It is not far from the centre, being 20 minutes from Cardiff Queen Street station. There is also ample parking for those driving. The ground itself is pretty decent for a 3G cage with three sides available to fans. There are two standard metal type stands and these hold around 150 in total. Outside is a smart bar that does a reasonable range of food and drinks at fair prices.