SEAGULLS FLOCK TO MORE GLORY
EIGHTEEN months ago, the finally sun set on Colwyn Bay’s time in the English NonLeague system. For 35 years, the north Wales club had crossed the border every other weekend, embarking on a journey which at one point took them all the way to the National League North.
As they desperately pushed for a last-gasp equaliser against Leek Town at a packed Llanelian Road, the feeling of mixed emotions was palpable.Tears of sadness that the Seagulls’ historic English journey was coming to an end, excitement at the dawn of a new era but, most importantly, relief that the club’s future was now secure.
“My biggest regret is that we couldn’t go out on a high and win that final game,” said manager Craig Hogg, who took the job at the start of Colwyn Bay’s final season in the Northern Premier League.
“I felt we owed it to the club and the fans to end the story with a victory.”
By the 2018-19 campaign, an increasingly perilous financial situation saw a stark choice offered to shareholders of the then Step 4 club, remain in England and face the very real risk of extinction or return to the Welsh set-up.
“There was resistance to change, of course because over
30 years of support, dedication and manpower and been invested in competing in England. We had adopted it as our identity, it was the fabric of what the club had become,” added Hogg.
“But the context had evolved. I was told that the budget was being cut and the finances were not in a good place at all.
Baptism of fire
“For the final season in England, we ended up with a squad with an average age of less than 21. It was certainly a baptism of fire for me but was indicative of the position the club was in.
“Even though we knew we were moving to the Welsh league, it didn’t distract us in those final months, if anything it made us more determined to put on a show and demonstrate once and for all what the club was made of.”
Placed in the second tier of the Welsh pyramid, Cymru North, Hogg and his fellow coaches made their way through the rarely forayed logistical challenges involved in such a significant move.
A fresh squad was built, research on a raft of new opponents was frantically jotted down and a long-term blueprint for an assault on the Welsh Premier League was pieced together.
“A hell of a lot of work had to happen behind the scenes!” continued Hogg.
“For starters, we usually had a team made of predominantly English based players. We changed that philosophy and recruited almost entirely from the local area.
“This change in method seemed to spark something in the community. I guess people felt the team better represented the area and more and more fans started to come through the gates, it was really quite special to see.
“More Welsh started being spoken in the dressing room, the language is a huge source of pride in the north of Wales and this probably helped the locals identify more with the club.”
In their first season back home, the Seagulls began to hit form at just the right moment and were all set for a surprise tilt at promotion to the top tier before last Spring’s lockdown put a sudden halt on proceedings.
Ultimately, with the league decided on a points per-game basis, Colwyn Bay-agonisingly missed out on an instant promotion, kickstarting what has been a tortuous 11-month period.
Innovative
The continued lockdown restrictions in Wales have resulted in Hogg’s side taking to the field just once since last March, with the current campaign still yet to begin.
“We have had to stand still, it’s been awful,” the former Everton defender said.
“The worst bit is that things had just started to click into place, we were playing some brilliant stuff and I would have backed us to continue pushing towards those promotion places.
“I miss the atmosphere so
much. The club was having proper local derbies again and because we were the new kids on the block, other teams seemed to raise their game against us, it made for a cup final feel at every game.”
Thankfully, Hogg may not have to wait too much longer before getting back into the dugout.
Plans have been unveiled to play a shortened version of the Cymru North, over the space of just 10 weeks, beginning in mid-March.
For the Bay boss, the new plans represent an innovative, if potentially manic, idea.
“I love it actually, it’s exciting, like a mini tournament,” he said.
“We have a five-year plan to reach the top tier and we now have an opportunity to achieve it way ahead of schedule if we find form over this short spell.
“Once you get up to the next division the whole perimeters shift. When there is suddenly a chance of playing in Europe you start to feel like you are dreaming a little bit.
“This is a huge moment to really set out our intentions for the new era. We are determined to take it!”