The Reserves will now meet Fields Park AFC in the final of the Bob Annett Cup on Friday night. They punched their ticket with a chance of silverware after a gruelling Monday night knock down-drag out against a challenging Ebbw Vale Town FC resulted in a 93rd minute goal to put the lads 0-1 up.

The game was a battle of attrition for most part, with the Reserves frustratingly missing several opportune chances to take the lead but an on-form Ebbw Vale ‘keeper kept the wolves from the door for a majority of the game. With the matchup looking to almost certainly into extra time and maybe even come down to penalties a fantastic ball in saw Gregg Meredith score the winner, with the opposition helpless to mount a comeback.

The Excelsiors finished their season in style with a convincing 1-4 win over New Inn midweek to round-out a rollercoaster season.

Beginning the game with definite intent to end their season on a high, the lads came out at full throttle and didn’t show signs of letting up. Jamie Laurent and Ewan Harty came out of the blocks early on in a conscious effort to gain ground, with Tyla Preece holding firm at the back.

Preece would round out a great season that has seen him gain praise from fans and foes of the club alike, drilling a goal into the net with cries of contest from the opposition that would have made Maradona look sheepish, putting the lads 0-1 up. This looked certain to be paired with a Ewan Harty effort after some lovely football saw the ball finding itself at the youngster’s feet but the referee called for offside.

A Lewis Jones ball in would meet the educated feet of Jamie Laurent and the midfield bulldog allowed the opposition goalkeeper the unenviable task of watching the ball pass him to put the Excelsiors to 0-2.

As New Inn began to trail, their vocal goalkeeper attempted to energise his team and direct traffic from the back, which saw the home side put themselves into overdrive in an attempt to overwhelm the Excelsiors midfield, but their efforts fell on rocky shores as the lads held firm despite some frantic passing across the width of the pitch. A third goal looked certain as Harty picked out captain Brett Morgan, but the wily pitch general couldn’t get enough on it and saw his effort negated as halftime drew to a close with the boys holding a very respectable two goal lead.

Much of the second half saw the boys sit back with an air of confidence that occasionally opened up potential for the hosts to capitalise, New Inn enduring any attacks at goal and stamping out the glimmer of further goals. Not to be denied however, Declan Bull expertly turned the opposition inside out and drove an effort into the bottom corner with finesse and ease to extend the lead to 0-3.

As the game wound down, it seemed a certainty that the lads would be in receipt of the win and a Jamie Laurent free kick may have failed to find its mark but the Declan Bull follow-up most definitely didn’t, making it 0-4, as New Inn could only hope for consolation at this point.

Unfortunately, that consolation goal would come soon after as Ioan Fisher’s clean sheet was swiped away as the young, gutsy keeper was finally beaten by New Inn despite giving a great account of himself throughout the game. With things at 1-4, crunch time came and went as New Inn realised their predicament and despite a few short flurries of potential upset late on, the home side was held at bay by a determined Excelsiors as the whistle signalled the end of the final 90 minutes for the 1st Team in the 2017/18 season.

They say ‘history is written by the victors’ but spare a thought for those on the losing side of the battle. An intense, sun-drenched 90 minute war told the story of the 1st Team’s season as they faced year-long rivals Ynysddu Welfare for the Gwent County Amateur Cup at Ty Isaf Parc in Risca yesterday.

As the Excelsiors looked to claim a huge scalp against their recently promoted foes, the pace was set with both sides going in thick and fast to try and leverage some advantage. Ynysddu began a push forward early on with their clear intentions of wrapping up early. Things looked to take a sour turn when in the opening 5 minutes goalkeeper Dan Parsons was taken off the pitch injured after falling awkwardly on the back of his head, being replaced by Kevin Roberts.

With the lads now reforming with a new man at the back, Ynysddu took an opportunity to further up the tempo and got a goal disallowed through an offside but definitely sending the warning shots to the Excelsiors defence.

Captain Brett Morgan held firm in the centre of the park, much as he has for the entire season, rallying the team and keeping control in an effort to progress into the opposition territory but the Ddu’s defences proved effective and any attacks were swiftly swatted away. A free-kick for Ynysddu was all the rivals needed, as a sublime effort payed dividends as it buried itself into the goal and made things 1-0 to take the wind out of the sails of the Excelsiors.

Despite the efforts of Ewan Harty and Jonny Morgan working in tandem to create opportunities in midfield, something just wasn’t clicking and the Welfare again found themselves quick to take possession. As the frenetic battle in the centre of the park dominated the proceedings, Lewis Jones showed some promise of breaking ground with a free kick but a fearless ‘keeper would not be beaten from distance, despite the finesse shown by Jones on the ball.

An Excelsiors rebound attempt put some hope back in the hearts of a capacity crowd on hand, when Dean Morgan was able to fire one of his profoundly precise strikes off but the effort went just wide of the mark whilst still showing the opposition that this was still a game of two teams. A barrage of free kicks and slow progression into enemy territory did well to unsettle Division 1’s newest acquisitions but as the clock wound down, the Ddu’s seemed comfortable with their slim single goal lead.

The second half should have been the time to readjust the settings and start straight out of the gate but it was Ynysddu who came out with the positive reinforcement, finding a second goal after a tussle in front of goal overpowered Kevin Roberts to make it 2-0.

The opposition, with their fans in full voice from the side, put their foot on the gas and looked for a quick third goal that would surely put the game to bed but the defensive prowess of Tyla Preece and Rhys Whiteman kept the wolves from the door. A great Lewis Jones corner kick seemed to be just what the doctor ordered as Declan Bull’s head connected with it but the Ynysddu goalkeeper once again got his gloves to it.

With the sun still beating down, the Excelsiors resolve was still as sturdy as ever, with Shaun Smith and Dafydd Phillips firing off attempts in an effort to unsettle the Ddu’s very own Man of Steel between the goalposts, as the desperation for a goal was palpable.

With 10 minutes left on the clock and a two goal lead, the 1st Team’s efforts became frantic and seemingly unstoppable with Declan Bull again have a chance at goal that went just wide. Despite the hard work of Tyla Preece, Rhys Whiteman and a standout performance from Callum Williams in defence to try and push forward from the back, Ynysddu were able to fend off the persistent attacks as the clock wound down.

As minutes turned to seconds, the stoic resolve of Brett Morgan showed real pride and passion, shared by the rest of his squad, as the captain valiantly attempted to at least nick a consolation goal and deny the opposition a clean sheet. However, not all fairytales come true and as the referee blew up, it was Ynysddu who could once again claim bragging rights as their season finished in grandiose style with promotion and silverware to match.

On behalf of everyone connected with the club we would like to extend our thanks for your unwavering support throughout the season, including all those who made the journey to Risca yesterday or sent well wishes to us. With one final league game commitment left on Tuesday night against New Inn, we have shown what is possible for future seasons and will strive to excel to new heights in the coming years.

A special congratulations also to Ynysddu Welfare, who have proved fierce rivals on the pitch and arguably a team with one of the biggest hearts off the pitch. Your contributions to the club in our darkest times are not forgotten and the mutual respect is most definitely there. We hope to see you soon.

In their second league game since the dramatic confrontation with Wattsville that saw the club’s promotion hopes dashed, the 1st Team went head to head against the team that delivered them their first loss of the season way-back-when.

Things kicked off at the Woodland with a message of clear intention by the lads, with Lewis Jones firing off a fantastic free kick early on, putting the pressure on Sudbrook CCFC. Zak Kelly was on fine form this afternoon, breaking through the visitor’s defence and making ground into the opposing territory, finding Rhys Jones in the box for a great opportunity that was cancelled out by the Sudbrook goalkeeper.

Sudbrook sought early on to take control of the game in the centre of the park, taking a gamble to stop Zak Kelly’s persistent pursuit of pushing forward but failing in a big tackle that saw the opposition player laid up on the side and eventually driven off to A&E, in the first of several all-or-nothing big hits.

However, unperturbed by their player being taken off in pain, the visitors fired up the pace and began a reinvigorated assault on the Excelsiors half, with ‘keeper Kevin Roberts having his work cut out and delivering some quality saves. No sooner had the opposing 11 men rallied to look certain to break the goalless deadlock, a huge corner kick for the 1st Team kept people on the edge of their seats as a small scuffle in the box looked certain to result in an Aber goal.

At the conclusion of the opening ’45 minutes it seemed that the Excelsiors had held firm for most of the encounter, with a barrage of chances that weren’t capitalised on and ultimately, were probably at 0-0 more through lack of conviction in scoring rather than no opportunity.

The second half promised to be a much different affair than the fairly uninspiring opening chunk of the game, with both teams wanting to prove why they battled it out at the top of the table for so much of the season. The lads indeed did find it hard to break free of the midfield dogfight that Sudbrook had committed them too, sucking in players left and right and attempting to overpower the boys in the middle. Sudbrook’s very vocal goalkeeper then decided to swap his gloves for the excitement of an outfield player, even stepping up to take a big free kick that proved no problem for Kevin Roberts, but Sudbrook’s effort would not be diminished.

The visitors threatened another goal soon after, but dependable defender Tyla Preece saw the attack off with a trademark header. With a rallying effort, the 1sts upped the ante and attacked Sudbrook with renewed intensity. Lewis Jones and Ewan Harty made significant progress against their rivals, with youngster Keane Edwards also giving a good account of himself during the Excelsiors desperate offensive flurry.

As Harty worked the wing and made several crosses in that resulted in near-chances, Sudbrook wrestled control from the hosts and went on a dominating run picking off Excelsiors players, resulting in the visitors scoring and going 0-1 up. A deflated home side shook off their frustrations with a vintage Rhys Whiteman header, as the former Abergavenny Town stalwart came in like a freight train to drive the ball past the goalkeeper and return things to an equal footing at 1-1.

The remainder of the game was the story of frantic and frenetic offence from both teams but the was the Excelsiors who stole the show, with a definitive and driven desire to score a second goal. Ewan Harty and Rhys Whiteman worked in tandem, offering up opportunities for some of the Excelsiors’ younger contingent, who showed some great promise when tasked with facing off against one of the league’s stronger teams. Despite a last-gasp effort from Whiteman, it wasn’t meant to be and the referee blew up with both sides disappointingly gaining a single point but the Excelsiors gaze now firmly set on Amateur Cup silverware when they face Ynysddu Welfare in Risca on Saturday, May 5th.