NWCFA Intermediate Cup farce drags on!

CPD Y Rhyl 1879 have been awarded the NWCFA Intermediate Cup by default – but the drama may not yet be over.

Gareth Thomas’ side were finally meant to meet Bangor 1876 in the 2021-22 final last night (Wednesday) – two months into the 2022-23 season at Belle Vue, Rhyl.

The final should have taken place last season, after Bodedern Athletic conceded their semi-final against 1876 on May 28. Rhyl 1879 had already cruised into the final the month before with a 4-0 win over Penmaenmawr.

However, competition organisers the North Wales Coast FA ran out of time to stage the final before the cut-off point at the end of May. The main problem was finding a suitable venue for an occasion expecting to attract a huge crowd.

The NWCFA originally cited two dates in July 2022 to stage the final, but neither materialised. A date of August 31 was decided upon, but last month Bangor 1876 announced their withdrawal from the final, stating it was one fixture too many in an already congested early-season list.

A senior North Wales Coast FA official confirmed today that the cup had been automatically awarded to Rhyl 1879, but added: “The competitions committee declared Rhyl winners by default, but Bangor have put in an appeal against this decision.”

Bangor 1876 were approached for a comment and a spokesman said: “We don’t want to make any more public comments about the Intermediate Cup situation at this stage.”

So what next? Why is something that should have been resolved a long time ago still lingering on?

Ironically, neither Rhyl 1879 or Bangor 1876 will enter this season’s Intermediate Cup as it is a Tier 4 competition and both clubs now compete in Tier 3.