NATHANIEL CARS WELSH LEAGUE DIVISION ONE
MONMOUTH TOWN ..... 4 TON PENTRE ................. 1
A DISAPPOINTING result in what was built as a crunch tie ahead of the match saw Monmouth Town leapfrog Ton Pentre in the Division One table, sending the Bulldogs into the relegation zone in the process.
Ton Pentre were forced into playing the majority of this game with 10 men after captain Tom Davies was questionably sent off for serious foul play on 23 minutes.
Monmouth, however, were already 2-0 up at this stage after scoring their first goal of the match in the ninth minute. The Kingfishers bundled the ball over the line following a heavy challenge on Bulldogs goalkeeper Joe Massaro, who had the ball in his hands. With no protection for the goalkeeper provided by the referee, Monmouth were allowed to take a precious lead through Sam Palmer.
Monmouth added a second goal in the 21st minute when they found a way through the Ton Pentre defence down the left. Kazeem Kareem went one-on-one with Massaro and made no mistake with his goal-scoring opportunity.
Although being a man light, the Bulldogs enjoyed much possession and were consistently putting the Monmouth defence under pressure. The Bulldogs finally made this pressure count when Leon Jacka crossed into the box for Aaron Jewell to make it 2-1 before halftime.
Any realistic chance of a comeback was ended in the 50th minute when Ashley Ford scored to restore Monmouth’s twogoal advantage by making it 3-1.
It was Monmouth who looked like they were the team down to 10 men in the second half though as they sat back to soak up the pressure. However, the Bulldogs are lacking confidence in front of goal and they failed to capitalise when in advanced positions.
Despite this, Ton Pentre should have been awarded a penalty in the 72nd minute as Corey Shephard cleverly played himself through two defenders and into the box. He was bundled over as he attempted to run onto the ball but Ton Pentre’s appeals were waved away by the referee.
Monmouth added a fourth goal during the third minute of added time with Robbie Atkinson striking the ball into the back of the net for 4-1 and securing a vital three points for the Kingfishers.
The Bulldogs have now lost their last five league matches and conceded 21 goals since they last won on October 8.
Ton Pentre are without a match on Saturday due to Haverfordwest County’s involvement in the Nathaniel Cars League Cup. Therefore, the Bulldogs’ next match is against Afan Lido on Saturday, January 21 at Ynys Park (KO 2pm).