MATCH OF THE DAY – Ardal North West: Dramatic finish sees Trearddur Bay grab win at NFA

ARDAL NORTH WEST LEAGUE – SEPTEMBER 12, 2026

NFA 3 (Joyce 41, Bellis 53, Herbert 71)
Trearddur Bay 4 (Ainsworth 22, 32, Parry 78 pen, Hughes 87)

What a match! Trearddur Bay led 2-0, trailed 3-2, but came back late on to snatch the most dramatic of victories which returned them to the Ardal North West summit.
An 87th minute header from Iolo Hughes secured all three points for Bay at Rhyl, the Beach Boys overcoming a windy Ffordd Derwen to propel themselves back to the top of the league.
In blustery conditions, Bay’s unbeaten run looked under serious threat. However, a resilient performance saw the visitors fight back to edge a seven-goal encounter.
The hosts adapted to the elements straight away, seizing the early initiative on their home pitch. Straight out of the blocks in the very first minute, they forced an excellent save from Dan Williams in the Bay goal, and just two minutes later, they threatened again, but Williams was pleased to see a shot from distance go wide of the target.
It took Trearddur Bay 22 minutes to fully settle into the contest, and the first goal arrived when a late challenge by NFA defender Kai Wallis on Liam Morris earned the defender a yellow card. From the resulting free-kick, Jay Gibbs delivered a pinpoint cross into the area, where Ashley Ainsworth headed home to break the deadlock.
Ten minutes later, Bay doubled their advantage. Calm defensive work from Harri Jones at the back saw him feed Gibbs, whose deep, looping ball forced a misdirected clearance from the defender. Ainsworth was sharpest to react, picking up the loose ball, cutting inside onto his favoured left foot, and smashing home his second of the game.
Trearddur Bay looked to have control, but NFA found a lifeline just four minutes before the interval. Exploiting a momentary lapse in the Bay defence, Tyler Joyce struck to halve the deficit and send the teams into the break with the score at 2-1.

NFA carried that momentum into the second half and drew level seven minutes after the restart. A long throw from the left was flicked on at the near post, allowing Harrison Bellis to ghost in and head home the equaliser.
Bay had a golden opportunity to immediately retake the lead when Callum Parry played a clever pass into Ainsworth, but the striker scooped his effort over the crossbar. They were made to pay for that miss just four minutes later when Owen Herbert unleashed a fantastic strike to turn the game completely on its head and put the hosts 3-2 up.
With their unbeaten run hanging in the balance, Bay dug deep and threw bodies forward. The pressure paid off in the 78th minute. A powerful drive from Liam Morris was fumbled by Ben Williams in the NFA goal; Sean McCaffery reacted quickest to the rebound and was pulled down by the desperate keeper. The referee pointed to the spot, and Parry coolly stepped up to convert the penalty to bring the teams back level at 3-3.
With just five minutes remaining, NFA thought they had snatched a late winner with a fantastic strike from just inside the box. However, Dan Williams produced a sensational, flying one-handed save to keep the score even.
That save proved definitive, as just two minutes later, Bay won a corner. Morris floated the ball into the box and Iolo Hughes climbed highest, powering a header into the back of the net for his first goal for the club.
There was still time for injury-time drama, as Ainsworth came agonisingly close to claiming his hat-trick, only to see his strike rattle back off the crossbar.
A massive away performance in hard conditions against a very good NFA team—and most importantly, the three points see Trearddur Bay back at the peak.