Stars Show Their Strength to Secure An Important 3 Points
We produced a disciplined and determined away performance to secure an excellent 2-0 victory over Llanelli Town at Stebonheath Park on Friday evening.
Goals from Steffan Roberts and Christian Davies secured all three points on a night when the strength and character of the squad was tested to its limits.
We travelled to Llanelli without 10 first-team players, while three of the starting XI were themselves playing through injuries. Five youth-team players made the trip as part of the matchday squad, before further injuries to Jaidan Foxwell and Joe Evans added to our problems during the game.
Despite those circumstances, we delivered a mature away performance and a deserved clean sheet.
First Half
We began the game brightly and were rewarded after just seven minutes. Tom Hillman found space in midfield and picked out Lloyd Oliver with an excellent ball over the top.
Oliver showed his strength to get the better of the defender before the ball fell for Steffan Roberts, who finished smartly to put us 1-0 ahead.
Llanelli responded almost immediately with what would prove to be their best opportunity of the evening. A good move down the hosts’ right resulted in a dangerous cut-back into the penalty area, but the Llanelli striker could only produce a weak finish which was comfortably gathered by Shaun Gardiner.
From there, the first half followed a frustratingly familiar pattern.
Much like our defeat at Caerau Ely four days earlier, we created more than enough opportunities to put the game beyond our opponents but failed to turn those chances into goals. There were numerous openings to extend the lead and we could easily have gone into the interval three or four goals ahead.
Llanelli remained lively when they were able to counter-attack, but too often their final pass lacked the quality needed to seriously trouble our defence.
We therefore went into half-time with a deserved advantage, although once again disappointed that the scoreline did not better reflect the chances we had created.
HT: Llanelli Town 0-1 Treowen Stars
Second Half
Our injury problems worsened during the interval as Jaidan Foxwell was unable to continue, forcing us into a change at half-time.
Despite the disruption, we took control of the opening 20 minutes of the second half and continued to look the more threatening side.
The second goal eventually arrived from the penalty spot. Another good attacking move saw Isaac Powell drive into the area and draw a foul from the Llanelli defender.
Christian Davies stepped up and confidently converted the resulting penalty to double our advantage.
At 2-0, we were firmly in control.
Another setback followed when Joe Evans was forced off through injury so From that point, the priority was to manage the game intelligently.
Llanelli began to enjoy more possession as they pushed for a route back into the contest, while we were happy to remain organised and look to exploit the spaces they left on the counter-attack.
Despite seeing plenty of the ball, the hosts struggled to create anything clear-cut. Our defensive shape remained strong, Gardiner was well protected in goal and we dealt comfortably with the pressure Llanelli attempted to build.
There were also opportunities for us to add to the scoreline on the break, and with better execution the winning margin could have been greater.
However, there was to be no late drama as we professionally saw out the remaining minutes to secure a deserved victory and clean sheet.
FT: Llanelli Town 0-2 Treowen Stars
Travelling away from home with 10 first-team players unavailable would have been a significant challenge in itself.
To then have three players starting despite carrying injuries, five youth-team players involved in the squad and another two players forced off during the game made the performance even more impressive.
The young players who travelled played their part in a squad effort that demonstrated the depth of the squad
There will again be some frustration that we did not convert more of the opportunities we created, particularly during a dominant first half But after the disappointment of Monday’s defeat at Caerau Ely, the response could hardly have been better.
Man of the Match – Christian Davies.
Superb performance in the middle of the park that was capped off with a goal
