Kinmel Bay delighted about venue switch offer from Colwyn Bay for huge Welsh Cup tie

Welsh Cup giant-killers Kinmel Bay have delightedly accepted Colwyn Bay FC’s offer to switch the second round tie between the teams next month to the Cymru Premier club’s stadium.

Tier 4 North Wales Coast East Premier Division side Kinmel Bay were pulled out of the bag as the home team for the last 64 clash in last night’s draw.

Colwyn Bay today offered their opponents a swap of venues with all gate receipts to go to Kinmel Bay.

The fourth-tier club have gratefully accepted the generous gesture.

Kinmel Bay joint-manager Leon Field was especially touched by the kind act as he is a former Colwyn Bay player.

“For a club like Kinmel Bay this is massive and will help us become sustainable and help with rising costs – FA Wales this is what football’s about, classy from a class club,” said Leon, who runs the first team alongside Andy Thomas and Alex Craig.

“We’ve never faced any Welsh Premier clubs in our history, so this will be a very special occasion for everyone at Kinmel Bay.”

With there being a relatively short distance between Kinmel Bay and Colwyn Bay, and the fact the Cymru Premier club are the best supported in North Wales apart from Wrexham, there should be a bumper crowd at the Blue Turtle Arena on the weekend of October 17-19.

Leon added: “Coming up against my old club Colwyn Bay, who are now in the Welsh Premier is a very special. They’re a high-level side, superbly managed by Michael Wilde and Danny Harrison – two exceptional players in their own right.

“The squad they’ve built is next level, and with players like Lewis Sirrell and Jordan Davies in their ranks, we know we’ll be up against it from the first whistle to the last.

“That said, I want to give a special mention to Andy (Thomas) and our lads. For two years running now, they’ve pushed themselves to the very limit to get us into Round Two. The effort, commitment, and consistency they’ve shown to reach this stage is something we’re all immensely proud of.

“We’ll approach this game like we do every other – with a clear game plan and full respect for our opponents. Our aim is to go out there, give everything, and see if we can topple Goliath.

“I’d also like to thank Mr & Mrs Johnson, Brian Madden, and my old teammate Danny McGoona for their incredible generosity in allowing us to switch the game and keep the gate money. Though after such kindness, I suppose we’ll have to take it a little easier on them… but only a little!”