Rhyl 1879 3 Porthmadog 1 – MATCH ANALYSIS

MATCH ANALYSIS

CPD Y Rhyl 1879 3 (Foulkes 20, D Proctor 37 & 59)
Porthmadog 1 (Littlemore 22)

The pressure was on Rhyl 1879 yesterday after successive home defeats had dented their title hopes – and the Lilywhites certainly delivered.

The visit of second-place Porthmadog, a team which had beaten 1879 twice already this season, was certainly going to be a test of the home side’s championship credentials.

Despite the setback of conceding so soon after taking the lead, Rhyl grabbed the game by the scruff of the neck and went on to be deserved winners.

Sometimes it takes luck to win a six-pointer, on other occasions an heroic piece of defending or a touch of genius can make all the difference.

On Saturday, Rhyl had both of the latter.

With the score at 2-1 early in the second half, Port looked a cert to score an equaliser when John Littlemore drove a tantalising ball into the six-yard box, but from nowhere Chris Bennett produced a phenomenal clearance – the sort of last-ditch defending that wins you games.

Had the visitors levelled at that point, who knows?

The genius was supplied at the double by potentially the Ardal North West player of the season.

Dylan Proctor produced two fantastic strikes to win the day, taking him to a magical 30 goals in 25 appearances this season.

While Proctor made himself a strong man of the match candidate for those two top class pieces of finishing, the Lilywhites defence was awesome.

Having looked uncharacteristically suspect in the recent losses to Holyhead Hotspur and Trearddur Bay, the back-line was rock solid with Tom Kemp and Reece Fairhurst proving themselves again to be one of the best central defensive partnerships in the league.

Bennett and Billy Holmes were outstanding as wing-backs and while keeper Adam Reid had hardly a serious save to make, he was efficient in everything he did.

While Rhyl had been off the pace against Trearddur Bay and dropped their guard versus Holyhead, on Saturday the whole team was 100% focused for 90 minutes plus.

The passing was sharper, the tackling intense and the work-rate commendable.

Josh Lawrenson and Sam Reynolds had possibly their best games for the team so far in midfield, where opening goalscorer Jason Foulkes was superb.

Paul Fleming was an absolute warrior in attack, winning so many balls and harassing the Port defence, while skillster Jonny Bravo put in a brilliant shift.

Proctor was the difference – the magical match-winner all successful teams need.

Credit, too, to Paul Moore and Ronnie Green in the Rhyl dugout, Vocal and encouraging throughout, keeping the lads on their toes and delivering sound advice.

Rhyl’s fans created a magnificent atmosphere inside the ground and the celebration scenes at the end were heartwarming.

As for Porthmadog, their group of fans were as ever a credit to the club. Some players may not have had their best days, but the visitors never gave in and deserve to be where they are in the table.

Regarding the title, 1879 are nearly there now, but there is still work to do.

I’m confident Holyhead Hotspur can win their last three games, so the Lilywhites still need two draws or a single win from their remaining pair of matches.

They have surely come too far to let it slip now.