Archive Classics: Rhyl denied fifth trophy of the season by a strong Wrexham outfit (2003-04)

Having covered North Wales football for close on 40 years. I’ve attended and reported on hundreds if not thousands of games across the pyramid.
Here’s another in a series of classics from the archives

2003-04 FAW PREMIER CUP FINAL

RHYL 1 (Moran 85)
WREXHAM 4 (Carey 31, Barrett 49, Sam 54, 63)

MAY 12, 2004

Wrexham lifted the FAW Premier Cup – and with it the winners’ cheque for £100,000 – for the sixth time in eight years.
Their 4-1 victory denied Welsh Premier champions Rhyl their dream of a fifth major honour to add to their league title, the Welsh Cup, League of Wales Cup and NWCFA Challenge Cup, and it also marked their first home defeat of the season.
But there was no disgrace in defeat for the Lilywhites who were playing their fourth match in 10 days, because they made Wrexham work tremendously hard.
As was to be expected, both sides kept it very tight in the opening stagesand neither goalkeeper was over-worked as the battle was fought in midfield and defence.
Rhyl, sticking to the system which has served them so well this season, were always looking to get the ball quickly forward to front men Andy Moran and Chris McGinn, while their full-time opponents preferred to try to play their way into the opposing penalty area.
Rhyl broke quickly from defence in the 10th minute but Gareth Wilson’s shot from 25 yards was always rising, and when Dennis Lawrence went forward to meet a Darren Ferguson free-kick, Jamie Brewerton was quick to prevent Hector Sam from taking advantage.
Marc Limbert showed Lawrence a clean pair of heels down the right, but the big defender recovered to block his shot. Both sides were looking strong defensively and when the visitors did have the ball, Rhyl put of men behind it to limit the space available.
Wrexham finally made the breakthrough in the 31st minute, Brian Carey putting them ahead with a close-range header after a wayward effort from team-mate Steve Roberts appeared to be going wide of the goal.
And the home side were almost caught out by another set piece five minutes later when Carey again was forward to meet a Ferguson corner with a glancing header but steered the ball well wide.
Wrexham would have been happier with a second goal, as the Welsh Premier champions continued to compete fiercely for every ball. Carlos Edwards failed to crown a superb 40-yard dribble when his rasping finish rattled the window of a building behind the goal.
Moran, who had been closely shadowed throughout, found the merest of gaps a minute before the break, but the ever dependable Carey quickly closed down the space and hooked the ball behind for a corner.

HALF TIME: Rhyl 0 Wrexham 1

Rhyl may well have believed they were unfortunate to concede the first goal but they were definitely out of luck when they went 2-0 down four minutes into the second half.
Brewerton was first to a Steve Thomas cross, but his clearance cannoned off Chris Llewellyn and Paul Barrett hooked the rebound into the net.
Two minutes later, Sam ran at the home defence, leaving three defenders in his wake, but Paul Smith went down bravely at the striker’s feet to save.
It was a temporary reprieve however, as Trinidad international Hector Sam made no mistake in the 54th minute with an emphatic finish after good interplay by Carlos Edwards and Llewellyn stretched the home defence.
It was tough on Rhyl who were struggling to cope with the pace and variety of Wrexham’s movements and only a superb one-handed save in the 57th minute by Paul Smith denied Sam his second goal.
But the goal-keeper only delayed the inevitable a couple of minutes and Hector Sam made it 4-0 in the 63rd minute when he latched on to a Thomas pass, outpaced Timmy Edwards, and clipped the ball past Smith.
The home side were in danger of being overrun and manager John Hulse did his best to change things with the introduction of two substitutes in Michael Jackson and Chris Adamson.
Wrexham though, were dominating possession and giving their opponents no respite when they did not have the ball.
Llewellyn sensed the opportunity to pile on the agony but his strong run was not matched by his shot which was confidently dealt with by Smith.
So it came against the run of play when Rhyl pulled one back.
Much to the delight of the predominantly partisan crowd, Andy Moran hammered his 47th goal of the season – admittedly nothing more than a consolation – when McGinn and Lawrence challenged for a high ball in the penalty area. Wrexham’s response was to give their substitutes, Chris Armstrong, Shaun Holmes and Lee Jones, a taste of the action, as the Dragons closed down the game before celebrating their sixth Premier Cup final victory.

RHYL: Paul Smith; James Brewerton, Mark Powell (Michael Jackson 69), Lee Atherton, Timmy Edwards, Chris McGinn, Gareth Wilson, Marc Limbert, Andy Moran, Gary Powell (Craig Hogg 84), Stuart Graves (Chris Adamson 69). Subs: Walsh, Billingsley.

WREXHAM: Michael Ingham; Stephen Roberts, Brian Carey, Dennis Lawrence, Carlos Edwards, Darren Ferguson, Chris Llewellyn (Chris Armstrong 76), Paul Barrett, Paul Edwards (Shaun Holmes 89), Steve Thomas, Hector Sam (Lee Jones 87). Subs: Paul Whitfield, Simon Spender.

REFEREE: Ceri Richards ATT: 2,800