PORTHMADOG	  0:2   RHYL

	Paul Roberts, who was the League's top scorer before his move from
Porthmadog to Wrexham last December, was in attendance in tonight's match
between Porthmadog and Rhyl. And, Porthmadog could have done with his
Goalscoring talent tonight, as they once again struggled to score.
	Porthmadog once again tonight started the most lively, but once again
their inability to take their chances proved to be their downfall. Mike
Davies had the first chance of the game after only one minute but his
header from close range was easily saved by Dave Edwards in the Rhyl Goal.
Porthmadog's domination of the proceedings continued for the first 15
minutes before Rhyl's first real chance which came after a good run into
the Porthmadog half by Mike Edwards. Jamie Fairhurst's long range shot went
over the bar after a corner.
	Rhyl then started to dominate and the ball didn't leave the Porthmadog
half for a period in the middle of the first half. Only a couple of saves
from Kenny Dixon in the Porthmadog Goal kept them in the game.
	Porthmadog's injury crisis deepened after Richard Hughes had to go off
because of hamstring troubles. But after this, Porthmadog came back into
the game, and Pugh should have scored when he came clear in the box after
28 minutes. 
	So the teams went in at half time on equal terms, and to be honest this
was a very fair scoreline, with both teams having wasted some good chances.
	Porhtmadog started well in the second half, once again setting the pace.
On 52 minutes Steven Pugh made a good run into the Rhyl half and really
should have done his move justice, but instead made a week effort on goal.
But, on 55 minutes Porthmadog were very lucky to be on level terms, when
Kenny Dixon had to clear the ball off his line.
	Minutes later Port had another chance when Jason Joyce, who hadn't done
much of an impact up to then, made a good run into the Rhyl half, but there
was nobody to help him. This lead to Rhyl's first Goal by Phil Davies on
the 63 minute, but there were protests from Porthmadog supporters that he
was leaning on a Porthmadog defender when he headed home. There was further
trouble for Porthmadog when Olly Hall limped off and had to be substituted
by Tony Merola.
	Porthmadog's best chance of the match came when Mike Foster's free kick
from outside the box went inches over the bar after 70 minutes. Shortly
afterwards Steven Pugh had another miss to crown a night of missed
opportunities.
	Rhyl's second was the best move of the match. A pass that split open the
Porthmadog defense came to Steve Jones who had no trouble converting to
give Rhyl the three points.
	Rhyl supporters at the end of the match felt that they had done well to
come through such a difficult match and collect the three points.
Porthmadog, meanwhile must start searching for another goalscorer and start
spending their money on the team instead of talking about a £1.6million
stadium.

				Iwan.

Haverfordwest 3:0 Porthmadog

It is getting more and more difficult to write these Match Reports with
Port having a very bad start to the season. I also have to look more
carefully at the opponents' starting line up as they seem to have half
their team on the score-sheet by the end of every game!
	Porthmadog dominated the early play in this lively encounter. They took
firm control of the first quarter of an hour or so. Again Porthmadog had
little to show for this early pressure, failing to convert their possession
into chances and shots on target. Debutante Lee Allen - brother of Malcom
and Gavin - had one of the early chances, but his shot from the left side
of the box was saved by Neil Fredrickson in goal.
	Later in the half Porthmadog had two chances from long-range. The first
from Andy Taylor went just over the bar and, just minutes later, Lee Allen
had an almost identical chance which pulled out a brilliant fingertip save
from Fredrickson.
	As the half progressed, Haverfordwest came into the game, having some
periods of pressure. Richard Gay created trouble in the Port defense with a
couple of blistering runs from his own half. If he'd had a bit more support
from his fellow attackers Haverfordwest could have capitalized from his
crosses. The best chance of the half for the home team came from a free
kick after 35 minutes when Paul Walker came close.
	The turning-point of the match came on the stroke of half time. Andy
Taylor over-reacted after tangling with a home defender - striking out
earned him a red card. It was ironic that this happened on FIFA Fair Play
Weekend!
	Haverfordwest capitalize immediately on their man advantage by scoring in
the first minute of the second half, sloppy defending from Porthmadog left
Richard Gay clear in the box to head home from a corner. Midway through the
half, one became two as Nigel French broke clear, leaving the defense
stranded and slotting the ball passed Kenny Dixon in the Porthmadog goal.
	Porthmadog's chances were scarce in the second half as they were over run
by the home team (it wasn't as bad as Caersws - but close enough!). Their
best chance came after a cross-field pass from Mike Foster found Steven
Pugh who made a run into the box, but Olly Hall`s shot was saved.
	Ten minutes from time, Phill Williams sealed the three points for
Haverfordwest, scoring direct from a free kick, which was curled around the
defensive wall into the bottom corner. It could have been even more as
Jamie Rickard had chances on goal.
	The good points for Porthmadog were the performances of Jason Joyce -
making his League debut for the club - and................. that's it. Bad
points include the failure to find a decent goal-scorer and conduct of Andy
Taylor. (he gave a penalty away last week)

PORTHMADOG:
K. Dixon, R. Hughes, C. Saynor, M. Foster (G. Roberts), J. Joyce, A. Taylor
(Red Card), A. Owen, C. Banks (T. Merola), N. Roberts, S. Pugh, L. Allen
(O. Hall)

CAERSWS 4-1 PORTHMADOG

	In a competitive first half, none of the teams showed their superiority.
This resulted in only a few chances for both teams. Chris Banks tried a
long range shot for Porthmadog but the shot gave Caersws goalie, Richard
Sims no trouble. Caersws also, only had one notable chance when the ball
scraped the bar.
	The second half was a different affair, with both teams having numerous
chances. Porthmadog started the brightest and took the lead after ten
minutes through Olly Hall. A ball from the Porthmadog Half caught the home
defense napping. While they were claiming that Steven Pugh was off-side,
Oliver Hall was left on his own to coolly slide the ball past Sims into the
Caersws net.
	Porthmadog`s superiority in the second half continued until a Caersws
striker was tripped from behind in the penalty box by Andy Taylor. The
referee gave a penalty which Mark Hughes converted - sending Kenny Dixon
the wrong way. 
	From that point onwards, Porthmadog crumbled and it was Caersws all the
way. On twenty-one minutes, after a period of sustained pressure, Rob Hamer
headed from a corner, only for Kenny Dixon to tip it over the bar. But, on
thirty-one minutes Caersws took the lead. A cross came in from the left
from Antony Griffiths, and substitute Graham Evans controlled well to blast
past Kenny Dixon.
	As Porthmadog pushed forward, trying to find their equalizer, they left
big holes in defense. On thirty-six minutes, only a double-save from Kenny
Dixon kept Port in the game. But, just two minutes later, the lack of
defense left Kenny Dixon stranded after a fine passing move from Caersws.
Again, it was Graham Evans who capitalized by placing a shot into the
bottom corner. The rout ended five minutes from time when Gary Jones got
his head to the ball with a diving header from a Caersws corner.
	This was a very poor performance from Porthmadog, and they will have to
improve from this if they want to play in the League of Wales next season.

PORTHMADOG: 
K. Dixon, R. Williams, M. Foster, C. Saynor, A. Taylor, N. Roberts, C.
Banks,    A. Owen, P. Whelan (K. Jones), S. Pugh, O. Hall (T. Merola).

PORTHMADOG 3-0 CONWY

Porthmadog dominated the play from the start, but once again had trouble
converting this into Goals. Conwy goalie Gerard McGuigan looked nervous,
gifting Porthmadog with two chances by dropping the ball from long distance
shots, which surely should have been converted. Mike Davies, Steven Pugh
and Paul Whelan were all guilty of missing easy scoring opportunities.
	Conwy's defense looked very shaky, and with Port playing quite well up to
the final third of the pitch, goals should have been scored. Ports best
chance probably fell to Steven Pugh midway through the half. He shot just
wide after a good run, and only had the goalie to beat.
	The truth was that, although Conwy were under the cosh for most of the
half, they could have snatched the lead with only a few seconds remaining.
??? had a good shot from long range, which hit the bar and bounced down on
the goal line. Had that gone in it would have been an injustice to
Porthmadog.
	The second half followed a similar pattern, with Port again squandering
many chances. After around 30 minutes of the half came the breakthrough
Port wanted. The ball was crossed in from the right, for Colin Saynor to
pounce and head towards goal. It seemed that McGuigan had it covered, but
the ball squirmed through his hands, and rolled tamely into the net.
	The goal seemed to be the spark that Port wanted.A couple of minutes later
they doubled their lead. A penalty was awarded when Steven Pugh was
blatantly pulled down in the box. Most of the Conwy team didn't even
complain! Aled Owen took the penalty, but McGuigan made up in part for his
earlier misses, by making a fine save. But it was all in vain as Paul
Whelan pounced to pop in the rebound.
	It was all over 5 minutes from the end when new comer Neil Roberts scored
a fine goal to seal it for Porthmadog. He hit a good volley from the edge
of the box when Conwy failed to clear properly from another Port attack.
	Debutante Andy Taylor ( a recent signing from Knowsley Utd.)had a solid
game in the center of the Port defense, and with Geraint Jones and Jason
Joyce due to make a comeback, the defense looks in good nick.

Emyr.

PORTHMADOG 0-2 EBBW VALE

After a lively start to the game, with both sides having chances at goal,
Ebbw Vale asserted their authority on the match. Vale opened their account
after eighteen minutes, with a sloppy goal by Paul Giles. Giles' cross,
come shot somehow found it`s way to the net,- the Port defenders and Kenny
Dixon in goal, looking at each other, as if they expected someone else to
intervene.
	As the half progressed, Vale's superiority continued. Paul Giles added his
second, with a long range shot from outside the box which left Kenny Dixon
without a snowflake's hope in hell (!).
	Porthmadog already have a major injury crisis, and things are worsening.
Veteran defender John Aspinall had to be stretcherd off after injuring his
ribs in a late challenge. He is due to go to hospital for an x-ray, but his
injury doesn't seem to be as bad as was first feared. 
	Porthmadog managed not to concede any more goals throughout the half and
even managed a scoring opportunity. Chris Banks chipped the Vale defense to
set Steven Pugh clear but his control let him down, and his shot went
tamely into Neil Thomas' hands.
	The second half was a dull affair, full of heated exchanges. Tempers were
frayed, and after twelve minutes, Neil Thomas in the Elbow Vale goal should
have been booked after kicking Steven Pugh who was already down.
	Porthmadog, who looked slightly better in the second half, had their best
chance after eight minutes of the half. Steven Pugh surged forward and made
an inch-perfect cross, and Richar Hughes should have done better.
	Ebbw vale could have gone three up after eighteen minutes, when Ray John's
shot from outside the box scraped the top of the bar. After this point
there were few clear-cut chances and the eight minutes of injury time was
proof of many rash challenges, and injuries.
	Porthmadog cant complain about this result. One of the only good point was
th emergence of Neil Roberts who came on as substitute for Aspinall. He
seemed comfortable on the ball and will surely make the right back position
his own.

PORTHMADOG TEAM:
K. Dixon, R. Barnes, M. Foster, C. Saynor, J. Aspinall (N. Roberts), R.
Hughes (O. Hall), C. Banks, P. Whelan, R. Williams (N. Smith), S. Pugh, M.
Davies.
                        Iwan.

 Aberystwyth 2:2 Porthmadog
 
 	The first half of this match was controlled by the home side. But
Aberystwyth failed to fully capitalize from their domination, only
managing
one goal from Gary Lewis. Kenny Dickson, in the Porthmadog Goal managed
to
keep his team in contention, making some fine saves. But Porthmadog could
well have been on equal terms on the interval. Steven Pugh should have
done
better after making a run into the Aberystwyth box, but his shot went
wide.
 	The second half was a very different matter, with Porthmadog dominating
from the outset. Steven Pugh made amends for his earlier miss, coolly
chipping Aber keeper, Stuart Kinninmoth, from outside the box. This came
after sustained early second half pressure from Porthmadog.
 	But after Porthmadog had dominated most of the proceedings in the second
half Aberystwyth scored against the run of play. Gavin Allen placed the
ball in the corner of the net after a fine cross from the left flank.
	With only ten minutes to go, it seemed all over for Port. But with only
minutes remaining, John Aspinall managed to convert after a goal-mouth
scramble in which Porthmadog hit the bar twice, and had the ball cleared
off the line.
	All in all, it was very good entertainment for the crowd of over 400.
Aberystwyth will be slightly disappointed to drop two points at home
after
their good start to the season. On the other hand Porthmadog, in the
middle
of an injury crisis, will be happy with the way they fought back twice to
get a well earned draw.

Iwan.