Has the Cup magic gone from Wales?
Friday 04 December 2009
Nev Powell by Dave Jones, Daily Post
HAS the magic of the cups died in Welsh football? Does winning the Welsh Cup mean as much now as it did pre-1995 when the Football League clubs were still allowed to enter?
Many feel Wales’ premier knockout competition has been devalued since the expulsion of Cardiff City, Swansea City and Wrexham in the mid-90s.
Certainly the cup has lost some glamour with smaller clubs nowadays denied a chance of a dream draw against the big boys, but it is still our national trophy and the one everyone wants to win.
The introduction of the Invitation Cup – later to become the FAW Premier Cup – in 1997/98 somewhat softened the blow as it gave the more successful Welsh Premier sides an opportunity to lock horns with Cardiff, Swansea and Wrexham again, as well as exiled clubs Merthyr Tydfil, Newport County and Colwyn Bay.
This competition received good TV coverage and although dominated by the bigger names, WPL clubs did enjoy some success with Barry Town lifting the trophy in 1999 and TNS in 2007.
However, to the disappointment of many, the Premier Cup ceased in 2008 when the BBC withdrew its sponsorship.
Nonetheless, it could only be seen as an attractive replacement for the old-style Welsh Cup by some as while it gave Welsh Premier clubs a chance to test themselves against higher calibre opposition, lower-tier competitions like the Cymru Alliance and Welsh League never got a look in.
So is the Welsh Cup still a precious commodity or a faded force?
One of the oldest cup competitions in the world, the first winners, Wrexham, were crowned in 1878.
Over the years the competition attracted entries from clubs outside of Wales, including the likes of Chester, Shrewsbury and Hereford, but since 1995/96 it has been restricted to full member clubs of the FAW and excludes Cardiff, Swansea and Wrexham, as well as the aforementioned exiled non-league teams.
The present day Welsh Cup remains a pretty lucrative asset with £25,000 on offer to the winners as well as a money-spinning entry into the new Europa League.
But is the winning of it tarnished by the absence of the elite?
Bangor City certainly do not see it like that. Winners of the trophy for the last two years under Neville Powell, City have lifted the cup seven times in their history and the competition always captures the imagination of the club’s loyal fans.
Manager Powell has experience of competing in the cup’s halcyon days as part of the Bangor side which lost 5-1 on aggregate to Shrewsbury Town in the 1985 final. With the Shrews being an English club, City went on to compete in the European Cup Winners’ Cup.
“I don’t think the Welsh Cup has lost its magic,” insisted Powell.
“It was nice in the early days to draw a big club; I remember in the 1984/85 semi-final beating Newport County, who were in the Third Division at the time, over two legs and there being 3,000 or 4,000 at Farrar Road. That win got us into Europe and yes, you do miss the glamour ties, but winning the cup still means as much as ever.
“Everyone at Bangor City gets excited over the Welsh Cup, it brings the fans out and winning it over the past two years has brought £200,000 into the club, putting us on a sound financial footing. It’s like the FA Cup in that when the draw is made, everyone is buzzing to see who they’ve got.
“The Welsh Cup is top of the pile for me and winning it for the last two years as a manager have to be the highlights of my career.
“The final against Llanelli (in 2008 which City won 4-2 after extra time) has to rank as one of the best ever, I doubt there’s ever been a final as exciting as that one. Then there was last season, beating Rhyl (in the fourth round) with 10 men and winning on penalties, so many cherished memories.
“The cup may have lost a bit of glamour, but it will never lose it’s magic.”
While the Welsh Cup may have lost some prestige in recent years, its romance is still very much alive as nowadays it offers smaller clubs a much better chance of glory than it used to.
And the name alone will mean it is always something very special to win.
[This article appeared in the Daily Post, 4 December 2009].
Photo: Bangor boss Nev Powell is still a big fan of the Welsh Cup.