Neath FC 4-0 West End FC – Welsh Cup third round – 4^th December 2011

The Eagles stormed into round four of the cup with a 4-0 win over Division 1 side West End at the Gnoll on Sunday.

West End clearly set out to frustrate the attacking powers of Neath with a compact and strong formation. This however did restrict the actions of inspirational skipper Neil Phillips who did seem rather secluded in the more attacking role without any real support behind him. The formation though seemed to work as the Eagles did struggle to make any real chances in the first half hour.

Arguably the best chance of the first half hour fell to the away side. Kai Edwards with a rare mistake, the defender slipped 25 yards from goal and Neil Phillips played in Ashley Curtis, the young forward showing a quick turn of pace and ran into the Neath box only to fire over under pressure from Matthew Rees. A good chance though, and one that West End would come to rue later in the game.

After a rather frustrating first half for both teams it was the Eagles that managed to sneak ahead in first half stoppage time. The ball played out wide left to Garyn Preen, the speedy winger then cut inside on his right foot and shot. His initial attempt was blocked by Kieran O’Brien, however luck was on Preens side as the ball returned straight to his feet and he took his second chance superbly firing home from 10 yards. 

HALF TIME: NEATH FC 1-0 WEST END FC

O’Leary’s men came out from half time with Matthew Collins introduced in place of Adie Harris, both players recently returning from ankle injuries. They began with clear determination and within 2 minutes of the restart the lead was doubled, Garyn Preen again the goal scorer. The young forward combined superbly with Toby Jones, Preen passing to Jones only for his pass to be returned on the edge of the West End penalty area, Preen then flicked the ball up with his right foot and smashed the ball home from just inside the area. A great finish by the speedy young player and a great sign for the Eagles future with both Preen and Toby Jones looking a real threat going forward.

The away side never really got a chance to get going in the second half before the lead was doubled and things looked even worse for them on 53 minutes as the home side grabbed a third goal. Neath were awarded a free kick on the edge of the West End penalty area, usual free kick taker Lee Trundle stepped aside and gave the returning Matthew Collins a chance from 20 yards. A chance that he took superbly, taking one step forward he then curled a shot superbly into the top left hand corner giving Evans no chance in the West End goal.

The home side could have been 4-0 up on 56 minutes. Preen playing the ball into the penalty area from the left and after Trundle dummied the ball, Luke Bowen smashed a shot against the cross bar. A huge let off for the away side.

A commanding performance in the second half with the Eagles really looking like the only side who were going to score, Bowen fired over from a good position after a nice pass from Matthew Collins. Neath could also have felt quite aggrieved not to have received a penalty, the referee waving play on after it appeared Garyn Preen was tripped from behind.

The game was finished off with a superb fourth goal for the Eagles. Matthew Collins had a fantastic 45 minutes of football for the home side and floated a fantastic ball over the West End defence and onto Craig Hughes; the experienced forward brought the ball down superbly then fired a left footed drive from the left side of the area that flew past Evans into the right hand corner. A superb flowing move and a fantastic way to finish off the match.

FULL TIME: NEATH FC 4-0 WEST END FC

A great performance by Neath as the attacking forces shone through. Full credit to Anthony Wright’s West End side that came to the Gnoll and gave the game a real shot and showed why they are having such a successful season in Division 1. Overall the quality within the home side shone through with youngsters Toby Jones and Garyn Preen looking very composed and attacking all throughout the game. Neath’s next game is at the Gnoll next Sunday against local side Port Talbot Town. Kickoff is at 14:30.

Star Man for the day would be Garyn Preen. The young forward took full advantage of only his 3^rd start of the season with 2 well taken goals either side of half time. He looked a threat to the West End defence whether challenging from either side of the pitch of bursting through the middle making a real nuisance of himself. A great performance by Preen who may just give Kristian O’Leary a potential selection headache ahead of next week’s game against Port Talbot.

Neath FC: Kerry Nicholas, Jack Lewis, Kai Edwards, Matthew Rees, Luke Cummings (Matthew Whatley, 67), Sam Gwynne, Garyn Preen, Toby Jones, Lee Trundle, Luke Bowen (Craig Hughes, 79), Adie Harris (Matthew Collins, 45).

Subs Not Used: Chris Jones, Paul Fowler.

Goal Scorers: Garyn Preen (45) (47) Matthew Collins (53) Craig Hughes (88)

Yellow Cards: None

Red Cards: None

West End FC: Richard Evans, Chris J Hole (Ashley Curtis, 27), Kieran O’Brien, Danny Kavanagh, Josh Medwin, Jordan Davies, Sam Brown, Christopher Hole (Ricky Hayden, 80), Kieran Cullen, Neil Phillips (Lee Morgan, 62), Alex Chrysanthou.

Subs Not Used: Carl Smitham, Rory Smitham.

Goal Scorers: None

Yellow Cards: None

Red Cards: None

Attendance: 164

Referee: Dean John