Lido Ground
Princess Margaret Way
Port Talbot
Neath Port Talbot
SA12 6QW
Ground Number: 1573
Friday 21st August 2026
Afan Lido - Pontardawe Town
Cymru South
AFAN LIDO FC - A BRIEF HISTORY
The club was established in 1967 and was named after the recently opened Afan Lido Sports Centre in Aberavon, where they are still based to this day. They played for four years in the Port Talbot & District League before joining the Welsh League in 1971. They started in Division 2, which was the third tier in South Wales at the time. In 1974, Afan Lido were promoted as runners-up behind Caerau Athletic. Two years later, they finished third behind Cardiff College and Cwmbran Town to gain promotion to the Premier Division. A third-place finish in their first season was a great start, but they went back down in 1980. Another effective relegation came in 1983 due to league reorganisation. The club was promoted back to the second tier in 1985 as runners-up to Taffs Well. A third-place finish in 1990, this time behind Sully & Ferndale Athletic, saw them return to the top tier, now called the National Division, for the first time in a decade. They had won the Premier Division in the two seasons before that, but were not promoted due to ground grading criteria.
These were times of change for Welsh Football as UEFA and FIFA had threatened to remove Wales from international competition unless a bona fide national division was established. Despite the National Division's name, it was based largely in South Wales, as it had been for many years, with the Cymru Alliance covering the north of the country. Therefore, in 1992, the League of Wales (now called the Cymru Premier) was established. In 1995, Afan Lido recorded their highest ever finish in the Welsh Pyramid when they finished as runners-up to Bangor City in the League of Wales. Their joy was short-lived though, as the following season, they were relegated. Two seasons were spent in the Welsh League Division 1 before they finished as runners-up to Ton Pentre in 1998 to go back up. Seven seasons were spent back in the top tier, with a high of 5th in 2002. Relegation came again in 2005, but the club went back up in 2011 as runners-up to Bryntirion Athletic. They struggled for three years in Welsh Premier before relegation in 2014. They've been in the second tier ever since, with the Welsh League D1 effectively being renamed the Cymru Premier in 2019, the same season they had their best finish since relegation of 4th. Latter seasons have seen them finish lower down the table, with them ranking 12th out of 16 teams last season.
Afan Lido made their only European excursion to date in 1995. They faced RAF Jelgava of Latvia at home, with the game being played at the local rugby ground. They lost the first leg 2-1 in Wales but managed a 0-0 draw in Latvia in the second leg. They had their best Welsh Cup run during the 2006/07 season. After beating Penrhiwceiber Rangers, Barry Town, Boderddern and Ely Rangers, they narrowly won a tight local derby 1-0 at Port Talbot Town. They progressed on penalties against Welshpool Town in the semis before losing 3-2 to Carmarthen Town in the final at Llanelli. They won the Welsh League Cup in 2011, beating Newtown on penalties in the final, their third win in that competition. They also reached the FAW Premier Cup quarter-final in 2003 before losing 4-0 at Wrexham. Afan Lido's main rivals are Port Talbot Town, who are based less than half a mile away from Afan Lido's ground. However, over recent years, with Port Talbot Town dropping out of the league, a strong rivalry has formed with 3 other Port Talbot-based teams playing in the JD Cymru South. Baglan Dragons, Trefelin and Goytre United have all filled the rivalry gap left by Port Talbot Town in recent years.
Afan Lido play at the Lido Ground, their home since formation. The first Wales women's international match under the auspices of the Football Association of Wales was played here on 6 September, 1993, against Iceland. Wales lost 1-0. The club is based in Aberavon. The town derived its name from being near the mouth of the river Afan, which also gave its name to a medieval lordship. Today it is essentially a district of Port Talbot, covering the central and south-western part of the town. Aberavon is also the name of the nearby Blue Flag beach and the parish covering the same area. Little is known about Aberavon before Norman times. Bronze Age remains have been found in the hills behind the town. Roman artefacts have been found near the sea, including during the construction of the docks in the 19th century. There are three rugby grounds in the town. Aberavon RFC are the most well-known, playing in the top tier of Welsh Rugby. Their 8,000-capacity Talbot Athletic Ground is also home to the Welsh Women's Rugby team. The stadium has also hosted continental football matches. Afan Lido FC played the home leg of their UEFA Cup 1995/96 preliminary round, 1st leg tie against RAF Jelgava at the ground.
MY VISIT
This game was decided well in advance for several reasons. Firstly, as I've stated many times, I love a bit of Friday night football. Secondly, I want to complete the top three levels in Wales and this certainly qualified. Thirdly, there was a Wetherspoons that I needed in the town. I had been to Port Talbot in 2013, entered the pub but didn't bother staying as they had no Welsh cider. Therefore, I needed to go back and do a proper visit. Looking back on my blog, Port Talbot was the first Welsh League ground that I went to in 2013 when they were challenging for a European place. It was a great introduction to Welsh football, and I'd stopped at Afan Lido pictures. I knew I wanted to visit for a game, but wasn't expecting to wait thirteen years to do so. Colin was initially keen to come, but said he might have to pull out for a family meal. I decided that I'd go regardless, despite the costs. I like to unwind on a Friday, be it with a few drinks or football as a reward for hard work. As I've been doing more of the former than is good for me lately, football was an appealing prospect.
My excessively delayed game at AFC Turnford meant I was a bus behind. That bus itself had plenty of delays, so it was touch and go whether I'd have a half-hour wait at the end of my £3 ride. Thankfully, I got off one side of the abandoned roadworks by the evil Thames Water and made the train on time. I got the Weaver Line to Hackney Downs and walked 15 minutes to the Cock Tavern, a pub with a decent selection of cider. I had a pint of Little Pomona Burrels Meadow whilst I uploaded my blog. It was then an offy for some French cider to go before I got a bus to Aldgate. Or more accurately, buses, as the one I was on cut short its trip. I did make it in the end, getting through the door at 10.30 and having a final drink before bed. It had been another boozy day, and I really should cut down, but it was my last weekend before I had to start an hour early on Sunday. As it is, the 3.50 am alarm is unwelcome. I was up fairly easily, though after four hours of sleep. It was a standard Sunday, with it being unpleasantly busy despite no one acting out of turn. I was glad when it was 1, and I could leave. I went home before heading out around half an hour later after some lunch. I forgot how irritating the journey to Harefield was on tiny roads, but I was there in good time. It cost me £8 to get into Eagles Land Benfica v Virginia Water in the FA Vase.
Despite Eagles Land finishing 8th in the Middlesex County Premier last season, they merged or took over the Portuguese diaspora club SL Benfica over the summer. They are an Albanian side themselves, and it was pretty much an audacious workaround to earn promotion without doing it on the field, as there was little evidence of Benfica's involvement in the club. It showed on the field too as they've lost all three of their games so far in the Combined Counties D1. Virginia Water were in the league above, sitting in mid-table. They dominated the first half, helped when Eagles Land had a player sent off for throwing a punch. The hosts still managed to have a couple of chances on the break, having the best chance before half-time when they hit the post. Virginia Water finally took the lead on 68 minutes; a scrappy bouncing ball found its way into the net. Eagles Land gave it a good go and had chances, but they were generally wasteful with the ones they got. They were a very combative side, which the Virginia Water manager spent all afternoon moaning to the referee about. The keeper played very well and had they got to penalties, it would have been written in the stars for him to become the hero. Monday was fine at work, and in the evening, I finally booked my second week in September off, with flights to Paris & Malta. The previous week had been frustrating, and I'd spent double-digit hours trying to find something that worked, without success.
It was my day off on Tuesday with my usual walk to town and back, followed by another fruitless search for something I fancied for the first weekend in September, a frustration repeated on Wednesday after a decent day at work. In between, I made my 46th visit up to Watchet Lane to watch my local team play Spelthorne Sports. Holmer Green used to be a bit meh in terms of a warm welcome. But lately, they've been fantastic, getting families involved, getting extra support and making the matchday experience much better. They took a while to get going, but in the end won 2-0 in the last 15 minutes on a dry pitch. I took my tablet up there, watched Wycombe's Football League Trophy game at Reading before and during half-time whilst having the penalties on in the background in the second half. Thursday saw us get rain for the first time in about two months, a far cry from the start of the year when it rained pretty much every single day. Friday was a very busy day at work as it always is, but at least I had football to look forward to.
I finished just after 1, got changed and met Colin outside at 1.15. I was hoping to take it easy and save fuel, but there were lots of delays. The worst of it was at the M4/M5 interchange, never usually an issue but today it added 35 minutes to the journey. It meant we hit Wales at the start of the rush hour. As usual, the ICC building in Newport, which I like to refer to as the cricket place, despite it having nothing to do with the International Cricket Council, was slow around it. There were the usual rubber-necking noncecaskets looking at an accident on the other side near Cardiff, which slowed us further. We were at Afan Lido FC at 5.20, after an hour's delay. We walked the 40 minutes into town, going to my 551st Wetherspoons, The Lord Caradoc. It was drizzly at times, but it was a bracing walk past the wonderful Port Talbot Town FC and across the river Afan, which gave the club its name. We were there at 6.05, and I ordered Shawarma Chips and a bottle of Gywynt Y Ddraig Old Crow cider. Both were excellent and came quickly. Colin had his grubby little fingers in my dinner without asking, so I was glad when his nachos came. We left at 6.30, the rain now stopped. There was more drizzle on the way, but nothing too bad. We were there at 7.15, meeting Shaun the Boston fan who will be joining us on the West Lancs Hop next week. £6 was good value for entry; I also got a bacon burger for £4.50, which was solid but unspectacular.
A healthy crowd of 191 was in attendance with several hoppers and local football fans. Afan Lido sat 10th in the table. So far they had beaten bottom team Llantwit Major 5-0 but lost 3-1 at Carmarthen Town and 5-2 to Aberystwyth Town. Pontardawe were a place lower in 11th and had beaten Caerphilly Athletic 3-0 on opening day but had lost 3-2 at Pontypridd United and 4-0 to Newport City. The visitors dominated the opening 15 minutes. They were awarded a penalty, but Afan Lido keeper Exauce Dimonekene made a great stop. It inspired the hosts to have their first attack as they broke and headed over the bar from a cross. Not the greatest game; it drifted into a lull. Chances were few and far between, so I was glad when Jack Pascoe popped up with the winner on 64 minutes, volleying into the bottom corner. That was it for goals. We left around 9.20 and stopped at Tesco for petrol and supplies on the way. The first bit was a success but the latter a disappointment as it was a crappy little store with me unable to stock up on the Welsh cider I liked for next week. Either way, I got a drink for the way home. I dropped Colin off at 0.45 and got home myself at 1, going straight to bed.
THE GROUND
The Lido Ground is a tidy setup for the level, but is showing its age. There is a nice-sized stand holding 600; this would have looked great at the start, but had part of the roof missing. Opposite is a small standing area with the camera gantry above, and there is additional cover near the bar. Talking of the bar, it looks great with tons of club-related stuff on the walls. There is sports TV, and the range of drinks looked decent - Strongbow, Thatchers Gold and Dark Fruits on tap for cider drinkers; sadly no Welsh stuff though. There was a good range at the tea car too, not gourmet but solid enough to fill a hole. There are a few places nearby, or Port Talbot is 40 minutes walk away. There is a decent amount of parking and buses run nearby.
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