Treowen Stars - Bush Park

Treowen Stars FC 

Bush Park

Uplands

Newbridge

Newport 

NP11 3RH

Official Website

Twitter

Ground Number: 1560

Saturday 27th June 2026

Treowen Stars 5-0 Taffs Well

Friendly

TREOWEN STARS FC - A BRIEF HISTORY

Treowen Stars were formed in 1926 in the village of Treowen, Newbridge, in the Welsh Valleys. They played most of their early football in the Abertillery & District and West Monmouthshire Leagues. They were able to build up their facilities in the 1970s. The Monmouthshire League merged into the Gwent League in 1980, and by 1985, Treowen Stars were Division 3 champions. They then won Division 2 and Division 1 in consecutive seasons from 1990 until 1992.

After some ground improvements, they joined the Welsh League Division 3. It was a third successive title in 1993 and a fourth successive promotion in 1994 as they finished as runners-up to Taffs Well in Division 2. The club finished as high as 4th in 1997 & 1998, but gradually, results declined. They suffered consecutive relegations in 2001 & 2002 and dropped out of the league altogether in 2006. After four seasons in the Gwent League, they won the Division 1 title in 2010 to return to the Welsh League. They remained in the bottom tier until 2020, when all football was stopped due to the pandemic. When they finally got back, they found themselves in the newly established Ardal South East, at tier 3 of the Welsh football system. They won this division in 2025 and last season finished 9th in the Cymru South.

Treowen Stars have reached the last 32 of the Welsh Cup on four occasions. They reached the Welsh League Cup Final in 1994, losing to Barry Town. They put that right in 1998, with a 4–3 victory after extra time over BP Llandarcy, at Coychurch Road in Bridgend. Newbridge (Welsh: Trecelyn) is a town y in the county borough of Caerphilly. It lies within the historic boundaries of the county of Monmouthshire and has a population of around 6,500. Newbridge, as its name implies, was the name of land around the "new bridge" built across the Ebbw River towards the end of the 18th century. Newbridge was then a predominantly Welsh agrarian community of rural farms and sheep pasture with a low population.

Towards the end of the 18th century, Newbridge was established as a farming community around a new bridge across the Ebbw River. Like many towns in the area, it underwent a population explosion and socio-economic change with the arrival of coal mining in the 19th century. The mines attracted workers from the English West Country and West Midlands, Cornwall, Scotland, Mid Wales and further afield. The Celynen Collieries Workingmen's Institute and Memorial Hall together became, like many miners' institutes, the communal heart of the town. The local collieries enjoyed a reputation for highly skilled miners, a productive workforce and non-radical politics, and the community had thriving shops, churches, chapels and sports teams. Mining eventually ceased in the mid-1980s, after surviving the 1926 general strike, the 1930s Depression and post-war nationalisation, but became unsustainable following the UK miners' strike (1984-1985). The Institute became a drinking club.

Since the end of coal mining, new leisure facilities have been constructed in Newbridge. Residents have also reported the return to the area of birds such as herons, buzzards and kestrels. After some delays, the Ebbw Valley Railway, originally running from Ebbw Vale Parkway (as of 17 May 2015 extended to Ebbw Vale Town) to Cardiff Central railway station, opened in February 2008. Newbridge is one of 8 stations on the line. A bridge linking the main town of Newbridge with the school and leisure centre over the Ebbw River was completed at a cost of over £3 million and was opened by boxer Joe Calzaghe and his father, Enzo Calzaghe, in November 2009. Other famous people to have grown up in the town include Steve Strange, frontman of the New Romantic band Visage.

MY VISIT

Originally, I was planning on having another week off and starting my season in July. Colin was busy visiting family, and it might have been nice to start the season on Futbology terms for once, as you are unable to alter from July 1st, making the statistics disjointed. However, I was glad when Essex-based Richard offered Treowen Stars v Taffs Well. It probably would have cost over £50 on my own, but depending on passengers, it was either £33 or £22 with Richard. We also had Jake coming with us for sure, whilst Mick, Dan and some others were off on a long trip to Queen Of The South. A trip I'd have liked to have been on, but the car was full. I wasn't envying the early start that Dan would have on Sunday, with limited sleep. I assume that the others have jobs that allow them the luxury of a Sunday off.

My first Saturday off from football in two years saw me make a long-wanted trip to St Albans. The first bus to Hemel Hempstead was slightly late and a bumpy ride, but it was only £3. We passed through the pleasant village of Bovingdon, which I'll consider revisiting against Holmer Green if the date falls well. The second bus was late again and untracked. 90% of the people on their got freebies courtesy of their bus pass, again it was a reasonable £3 for the 45-minute journey, which was more like an hour with delays. Both St Albans pubs were disappointing due to a lack of quality control in the ciders. Award-winning The Mermaid had a pint of Hecks Dabinett for £5.30, whilst The Robin Hood had a pint of Celtic Marches Alice for £5.60. The former was the better, but both pubs deserved visiting for the effort. I was peckish, so I made my way to Hatfield via the 301 bus to get to Wetherspoons, The Harpfield Hall. This was an excellent Spoons. I had a pint of Black Dragon with a hot honey chicken bowl. A bus back to Hemel saw me revisit their Spoons before getting a bus home. A couple more drinks were had in the evening, and a walk was taken to Penn and back, where I bumped into an old mate. I was pretty bladdered by the time I got to bed at around 10.

 

Work-wise, it was the usual low reward for hard work, but I didn't mind that as the days flew by. The government does very little for low-paid workers, and Sundays can be absolutely horrible, but I like the people I work with as a rule, and I am guaranteed Saturdays off. After a marathon of World Cup games, either side of the excellent England 4-2 Croatia game, I'd mainly been just looking at the results as all the games I fancied were on at tricky times. Most delightful were Cape Verde, who had managed draws against Spain and Uruguay on their World Cup debut. The second game against Ghana was as dull as ditchwater, and there wasn't much else to write home about, with the results sadly predictable. The big event of the week was the release of the Wycombe fixtures, with the season slowly starting to cough into life, my planning accelerated. A last-minute European and UK trip was mooted for my birthday week, but it very much hinged on my getting time off. I was glad when Friday afternoon rolled around, and it was a pleasant walk down Wycombe for a couple of pints and a good portion of fish and chips for £11.49. I came back and had a few more, meaning that I got a good night's sleep despite the heat.

I woke around 5.30 and watched TV for a bit. After getting up and having some breakfast, I left just before 9. Richard had said he'd be there between 9 and 9.15, but I could see from Jake's tracking that he was running behind. He arrived at 9.30 and, like me, used the toilet before we set off. It was a bargain £22 for the journey, thanks to a full car, and Richard was amenable to my suggested Wetherspoons stop. The journey was pleasant, although there was a bit of a delay when we got near Newport on a part of the M4 that always seems stuffed. We parked in Asda and made our way to the Sirhowy Wetherspoons in Blackwood. There I had a Korean burger, wings, chips and a bottle of Aspalls for £10.52. A £2.74 pint of Strongbow saw me nice and relaxed, though it was disappointing not to see any Welsh cider on the menu. It was 10 minutes to the ground, street parking was fiddly due to the narrow roads, but it was a beautiful area as Wales always seems to be. It was a hell of a walk up the steps to the ground, it was a good job PuffPuff didn't attend, as I think it would have taken him a week to walk up to the pitch.

No admission fee was charged; this was a clash between Treowen Stars, who finished 9th in the Cymru South last season and Taffs Well, sporting a very nice shirt, who finished 14th in the Ardal South West. In lieu of the free entry, I purchased a well-presented programme for £2. It was a lethargic start, but Treowen took the lead on 28 minutes with a low shot into the bottom right-hand corner from just inside the area. They doubled the lead on 32 minutes through a penalty. The half-time break only lasted ten minutes before we were back underway. It was all one way traffic by now and Treowen blasted home a beauty into the top right corner from 20 yards on 57 minutes to make it 3-0. On 68 minutes, a low strike from the edge of the area made it four. On 71 minutes, a cross was swung in from the left and the ball was headed home from ten yards out, 5-0. That was it for goals, another wonderful day in Wales, just as it was at the beautiful Taffs Well in 2015. We were back in the car by 4, heading home to the bubonic plague that is an English Sunday, but not before a few drinks back home.

 

THE GROUND 

BUSH PARK is a decent venue. Like many Welsh grounds, there are no floodlights. There are two stands, one an old-fashioned proper stand along the side, which has an area at the side that looks like an old dugout and would suit wheelchairs if they could make it up the steps. There is a more modern metal stand behind the goal; this does at least have the club badge in it. All in all, around 150 seats are available. There are basic refreshments available in the ground. Down a considerable flight of steps, or up them to get into the ground is a bar and dressing rooms. There is a small car park, plus street parking. Public transport links are reasonable, with Newbridge station being around 20 minutes walk away. 

2025/26 END OF SEASON STATS & AWARDS

STATISTICS

GOALS: HOME 411 AWAY 312 TOTAL 723

ATTENDANCES
TOTAL: 184,476
HIGHEST: 50,837 - Everton v Roma (Friendly, 09/08/25)
LOWEST: 4 - Bromlians v Otford United (Kent County D1 West, 11/04/26)
AVERAGE: 971 (closest to this was Darwen v Colne, NWCFL D1 North - 895)

COSTS

TICKETS: £991
TRAVEL & ACCOMODATION: £3500
EXTRAS (FOOD/DRINK): £591
TOTAL: £5083 (£26.75 per game)

CHEAPEST: Two Games £0
AVERAGE: Three Games £27 (all with Colin & I splitting car costs)
PRICIEST: Racing Union FC Luxembourg 0-2 US Mondorf £161
PRICIEST UK: Bamber Bridge 1-3 Hednesford Town £95

With take-home pay of £9.29 (shocking, I know, but I think I pay extra tax due to interest on savings - ironically never happened under the Blue Tories), I had to work 547 hours and 9 minutes to pay for my hopping. When you factor in the expense of owning a car to get to work, union membership/job insurance fees, the fact that you can get a jobseeker's allowance of £95 a week and unpaid breaks and commuting time, the low paid are getting a terrible deal under the most traitorous and most dishonest government in my lifetime. Red Tories in every sense of the word. I might just work out the real-life per-hour figure sometime.

TRAVEL

MILES DRIVEN: 11,481
LIFTS GIVEN: 84 (83 to Colin)
LIFTS RECEIVED: 2
DRIVEN ON OWN: 21
PUBLIC TRANSPORT: 58
WALKED: 28

AWARDS

BEST NEW GROUND - Tow Law Town
This classic is a must-visit for any groundhopper. A classic old school ground and every bit as good as people make it out to be. The murals were a particular highlight. 

BEST REVISIT - Gresley

I often appreciate a ground more the second time around. A decade had elapsed since my first visit, and I think the camaraderie of the hop even and a pint with my breakfast in the local Spoons made it better, along with the fact that I was more experienced.

BEST GAME - Cheshunt Dev 5-4 Allenburys

A goalfest in the Hertfordshire League.

FRIENDLIEST CLUB - Hurlford United

This was by far the lowest-ranked team that I saw on my Scottish weekend, but by far my favourite. We lucked out when we chose this by virtue of it being a twenty-minute walk from our hotel. A lovely ground, friendly fans, and they invited Colin & me into the boardroom for a drink. Maybe they thought we were both serial freebie blaggers like PuffPuff, but the small gesture was much appreciated.

BEST TEA BAR / FOOD - Dalton United

The hops often produce something special, and many clubs pulled out the stops to make hoppers open their wallets. My favourite, though, was Dalton United. Burgers with chilli con carne and an excellent cake stall. Although the latter was not as good as the one at St Day, cake stalls are a baffling omission from most clubs when they work so well.

BEST BAR - Kenilworth Sporting

A lovely bar, sports TV and a good range of ciders, including some local ones.

BEST TOWN - Llandudno

Quite a difficult one to decide on as both & Aberystwyth & Llandudno were fantastic places to visit. Although Aber was the better ground, Llandudno had a superior Spoons, and I didn't have to edge past a punter fighting with a bouncer to get in. Both are lovely seaside towns.

BEST TAKEAWAY - Romanian Food Stall, High Wycombe Market

I always like to try new foods, and the Romanian food stall was excellent. A huge mixed grill for around £12, very filling and delicious. It was better the first time with thicker chips than the fries served on the second occasion, though.

BEST PUB - Roberto's, Halesowen

One of many superb pubs I have visited, recency bias wins it for me. A great range of ciders I'd not had, good prices, a nice atmosphere and a friendly owner. No food, but we need more Micropubs in this country.

BEST & WORST SPOONS
All of the following scored 9 out of 10. The Palladium in Llandudno for being a stunning building, and the Clothiers Arms in Yeadon for having a great range of cider, The Walnut Tree In Leytonstone for the range and service, which also applied to the Electrical Wizard in Morpeth. Many more scored 8.

At the other end of the scale, slow service and sending the wrong order got the Red Anchor in Stockton a 3. The Manor House in Royston was disappointing with a 4. The Forty Foot in Dun Laoghaire had service as slow as the Irish Public Transport and also got a 4.

 
BEST WYCOMBE GAME - 3-0 v Huddersfield Town, Saturday 25th October
I was actually quite lucky in the twelve games that I saw with Wycombe in the league, with just a couple of defeats and mainly wins. I hope to go to far more next season, but it depends on when the fixtures fall with regard to the organised hops. In any case, this comprehensive win against high-flying Huddersfield was a complete performance against Michael Duff's former club. After wanting him out earlier in the year, the Huddersfield fans suddenly started to miss him. Huddersfield's loss is definitely Wycombe's gain in that respect.

WORST WYCOMBE GAME - 0-1 v Exeter City, Tuesday 19th August
I saw Wycombe lose in the league twice, ironically, both times to Exeter City. Neither was a terrible performance, but this was a typically apathetic performance during the Dodds era. Exeter won with their only shot on target, an own goal from our captain, Jack Grimmer. A very similar 1-0 loss to Plymouth Argyle was just as miserable, but at least they competed better. I also saw a 2-1 loss to former rivals Colchester United.

Ysceifiog - The Print Place Stadium

Ysceifiog FC

The Print Place Stadium

Dolfechlas Road

Rhydymwyn

Mold 

Flintshire

CH7 5HL

Ysceifiog Facebook

Summer League Website

Ground Number: 1559

Monday 15th June 2026

Ysceifiog 0-3 Caerwys

Llandyrnog & District Summer League

YSCEIFIOG FC & THE  LLANDRYNOG SUMMER LEAGUE

Ysceifiog joined the league in 1976, also taking players from the adjacent village of Lixwm. The parish of Nannerch was added in 2010 to give it a wider area to draw players from. Having one of the smaller catchment areas, they took until 2008 to win the league, but they also won two Knockout Shields around this time. They have had some notable players in their ranks, such as Tony Evans (Welsh schoolboy cap) and the Fenton Twins, who went on to play in the Football League. Nick Fenton was the most famous of these, and after captaining Wales U15, he made 15 appearances for Manchester City and was part of the team that came back from the dead in the Division 2 playoffs in 1999. He also played for Notts County, Bournemouth, Doncaster Rovers, Grimsby Town, Morecambe and Alfreton Town. The club had a hiatus from the league in 2014, due to a lack of available players, but soon rejoined.

 

The club plays at Rhydymwyn, a village in the Alyn valley about a few miles upstream from Mold. Rhydymwyn FC was founded in 1911 and played in the local Halkyn and Clwyd Leagues. They remained in those leagues until they moved up to the Welsh Alliance League in 1990. In 1994, they won the Welsh Alliance League and gained promotion to the Cymru Alliance. However, they were unable to afford the costs of playing at the higher level and took voluntary relegation.  A single season back in the Cymru Alliance came in 2010; this time, results on the field meant a short stay at the higher level. The club was Welsh National League (Wrexham Area) runner-up in 2012, and they spent three years at the Cymru Alliance before taking a season out of football. They rejoined the Welsh National League (Wrexham Area) Division 1 in 2016, winning promotion to the Premier in 2019. Football stopped in Wales for 18 months due to the pandemic. When football returned in 2021, Rhydymwyn were placed in the Ardal North West. They spent one full season here before resigning from the league in September 2022. The following season, they reformed and joined the North East Wales Football League in the Tier 5 Championship Division. They've subsequently been promoted to tier 4 in the North East Wales Division 1.

The Llandyrnog & District Village Clubs Summer Football League is a football league in Wales, mostly covering rural areas in the Vale of Clwyd. The league is not part of the Welsh football league system and is not affiliated with the FAW. Teams in the league also compete for the Bridson and Evans Memorial Shield. The league was founded in early 1927 to allow farm workers to play football on summer evenings. Their long hours, including work on weekends, meant they could not play in other leagues. Its five founding members were Bodfari, Llandyrnog, Llanrhaeadr, Trefnant, and Tremeirchion. Other teams have joined the league since then, such as Bodelwyddan, Cefn Meiriadog, Henllan, Llanfair DC and Rhewl. Llandyrnog and Llanrhaeadr are the only teams to have played in every season of the league since it was founded. The league rules allow a maximum of 14 clubs, which can only have players from an area around where the club is based.

MY VISIT

The second of three days of the year that I need to see a game on was the 15th of June. With it falling on a Monday, this would normally be tricky. However, the Llandyrnog & District Summer League came up trumps. It was a long, long way, being based in the Wrexham area, but there were some lovely scenic grounds. After careful consideration, I opted for Ysceifiog v Caerwys as it was being played at a ground used in the North Wales Coast League, namely Rhydymwyn FC. The league website was absolutely superb, and their Twitter was not half bad either. I was disappointed that the league did not answer my email enquiry about a handbook. I would have been happy with a PDF copy, but if it were print-only, they would only have had to spend a few seconds replying. I didn't hold it against them, though. The only spanner in the works could be the weather, madness for June, but we'd had a fair bit of rain lately. Happily, though, it was nice and dry in the few days before the game, according to the forecast. That said, Ysceifog's game on Thursday was switched to the away ground, but the communication was clear, giving me faith in the league and the club.

Further research was conducted on Thursday evening with a Google My Maps created to the best of my knowledge. The league website was more old-fashioned, giving concise instructions for directions, rather than actual Google Maps addresses. Either way, I worked out that Cefn (or Cefnmeiriadog to use their full name) v Llanrhaeadr at the Llannefydd Football Pitch was the best backup and another decent ground. From our game at Shrewton, I drove Colin & I home, dropping him back at the bus stop. I had a couple of bottles of cider whilst typing my blog before I went out for a walk. This was a pleasant way to listen to the first part of the Switzerland v Qatar game. I came home, had a pizza and a cider before going to bed during the second half of the game. I got up for work whilst watching the end of the game between Scotland and Haiti with the Tartan Army scraping through 1-0. After driving to work, I listened to the Australia v Turkey game, the first match I'd stayed awake for the entirety of. Earphones were banned, so I got around it by using a Bluetooth Music Hat, one of my favourite Ali Express purchases. It was a real grueller of a Sunday, the place was packed, and I was glad to get out at 1. Welcome news came that afternoon as Colin agreed to come, halving the travel costs.

There was a glorious moment in the World Cup on Sunday evening as Curaçao equalised against Germany. Sadly, they ended up losing 7-1, putting them on par with Brazil, I guess. I was asleep by 9 and up before 4, in time to watch the second half of Sweden's 5-1 win over Tunisia. It was a calmer day at work, but I was still asked to stay on for an hour due to the volume of orders. I let Colin know, and he was fine with it. I also saw confirmation of tonight's fixture and backup game. Before I left work, my manager spoke to me about starting an hour early in the future. I said that was OK if I could have Friday & Saturday off. If I pull it off, it'll be the first time in 27 years that I've had a regular two-day weekend. Colin was there waiting for me. Not the sharpest tool in the box, he had come in full England attire. We had a good journey up, despite the M6 being knackered. The diversion took us past a petrol station where the petrol was 145.9, 10p a litre cheaper than the one I'd planned in Chester. Colin slept for the second half of the journey and was in a stoned state due to his epilepsy drugs when we arrived. He was even unable to use the Wetherspoons app, so I had to order for him. The Central Hotel in Shotton was a decent Spoons, we had three plates - wings, strips and halloumi fries between us, just £10 on Monday. I also had a lime cordial to keep costs down. Food service was excellent, drinks less so. I'd finished my dinner by the time my drink came. It was a 15-minute drive to the next Wetherspoons, The Gold Cape in Mold. I was planning on half a Black Dragon to toast the end of the season. They didn't have it, so a 40p glass of Blackcurrant cordial had to do. One nice aspect of both towns was free parking after 3 pm. The drinks service was nice and quick at the second Spoons.

 

We called in at Lidl for drinks and snacks and were at the ground 40 minutes before kickoff. The mobile signal was hopeless in terms of data, so sorting my blog would have to wait until home. The Empire biscuit from Lidl was excellent. Cape Verde claimed a goalless draw against Spain, a remarkable result.  Both sides were in the bottom half of the table. Ysceifiog (apparently pronounced 'uh-skay-vee-og) were in 9th place and had won six, drawn one and lost eleven. In their last game, they thumped Rhewl 6-2 in a game that was switched to the opponents' ground due to a waterlogged pitch. Caerwys (kai-ruhs) were 11th and had won three, drawn four and lost eleven. In their last game, they had lost 6-2 at Llanrhaeadr. The game was being played at Rhydymwyn (hreed-uh-moin). It was a good competitive game, played in the right spirit despite a few niggles. Caerwys took the lead, heading home a right-sided cross on 24 minutes. The visitors were well on top, surprising given recent results. Ysceifiog had a fair bit of possession in the second half, without many clear-cut chances. Caerwys got their second on 73 minutes, a great through ball and a finish into the bottom left-hand corner. On 87 minutes, it was 3-0, quite a scrappy goal, but persistence paid off. The goals were scored by Finn Williams & Lewis Hodson x2.

We had seen BuckieLugger from the non-league forum at the game. It was a good attendance of 85 enthusiastic folk, mainly supporting the two teams. I'd really liked the league, and there's a chance I'll come again next year. We left at 9, listening to the second half of Belgium v Egypt. I was supporting the Africans as I'd drawn them in the Holyport FC sweepstake, and they gained a credible 1-1 draw, having led. It was slow getting out of Wales thanks to their 20mph blanket limits. It was well meant, but poorly thought out on roads with no residences. At 10, it was Andy Crane with the Top Ten at Ten, 1993 was the year, but Colin's talking made it hard to take part. I then put on Saudi Arabia v Uruguay, another 1-1 draw. There was a closure on the M40, which meant ten minutes were added to the journey. I was back at Colin's by 12:45 but had to spend fifteen minutes helping him out of the car and up to his flat, so I was glad I wasn't at work in the morning. It was a challenge to get into his flat as he must have had at least twenty keys on his bunch; it was like a rubbish version of the Crystal Maze. He was able to walk and find his way and seemed happy to doze on his sofa, but I messaged his Dad just in case it was something more serious and medical folk had access to his flat as he leaves it unlocked. I was back at 1.15 and after all that palaver and to toast the end of the season, I had a couple of drinks. I planned to watch the 2 am World Cup game as I was still wide awake and would be staying up around the clock. My sleep pattern would be wrecked, but it had been a mighty fine season.

THE GROUND

DOLFECHLAS ROAD is an excellent setup for the level, probably equivalent to step 5 in England. There's a seated stand, holding around 70. The rest of the ground is fully railed and floodlit. There's plenty of parking and public transport available. The club do both food and drink, but it was not fully open for my small-scale game. All in all, well worth a visit.