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Trethomas Bluebirds extended their unbeaten league run to 17 games with a 4-1 win over Treharris Athletic Western at the Centre for Sporting Excellence.

It was a very comfortable game in Ystrad Mynach for the Bluebirds, who were up against a side just one from bottom of the Ardal South East.

Ethan Edwards grabbed an early opener to settle any nerves, before Jack Jones doubled the hosts’ lead after 25 minutes.

James Young then made it three to start the second-half, before Treharris finally answered back through Ibraim Sani. It didn’t make much of a difference however, and Jones got his brace with a late goal.

The win puts the Bluebirds four points clear of rivals Risca United, who have played four more games than Trethomas.

Kick-off:

With a few players missing, the Bluebirds lined-up with a makeshift back four, and it wouldn’t have been a total surprise to see them take a bit of time to settle.

Credit to Mark Dunford and his coaching staff however, it was clear from the outset that the system in place hadn’t changed, and the players who had stepped-in were well drilled.

There was more stability further up the pitch however. The only swap was for the injured Levi Rees, who made way for Jack Jones, and had instant impact within the opening ten minutes of the game.

A ball played wide to Jones in space gave the winger room to break into the box before cutting a ball back to Ethan Edwards at the near post.

Edwards got enough contact on his effort, and the ball trickled in at the back post to give Trethomas an early lead.

The goal settled the hosts down further, they were happy enough keeping the ball at the back and in midfield, despite absentees.

Ryan Bolter – who usually plays as a fullback – started at centre back. He still stepped into midfield when the ball was wide to both create space and offer an extra body in possession, something that was confusing the Treharris midfield who didn’t always know who was marking who.

To make things doubly confusing, sometimes captain James Saddler would step back into the defensive line from midfield, pulling Treharris players out of position and creating yet more space.

Space that Jones was continuously exploiting. He had another decent effort down the right, his curling effort was just wide of the far post however.

The visitors hadn’t offered much going forward in the opening 15 minutes, but an unlikely opportunity from a throw-in caused a real problem for the Bluebirds.

Defender Gavin Robins had ball in hand and threw it as far as the penalty spot. Goalkeeper Harry Irving came to collect but missed it. The ball was bobbling around, but fortunately for the hosts, referee Joseph Gibson blew-up for a foul on Irving.

Other than that, the Bluebirds were well on top inside the opening 25 minutes, and a second goal looked inevitable.

Once again it was Edwards causing problems for Treharris. With his blistering pace, he skipped past his man before firing a low firm ball towards Gareth Tedstone in the middle.

Tedstone appeared to get a toe on the cross which was enough to send it towards goal. Jones made sure at the back post however, prodding into an empty net.

Trethomas dropped down a gear after the goal and coasted for the rest of the half. It was still a good watch, with players rotating seamlessly to create opportunities for each other, but no clear chances came and the first 45 finished 2-0.

Second-half:

Credit to Treharris, they were still trying to play good football to start the second-half. But it cost them after a poor pass from Nicholas Simcock at the back.

Midfielder James Young was there to pick up the pieces. He came charging in from midfield and hammered the ball high into the net past the keeper to make it 3-0.

Treharris desperately needed a response, and like the first-half, their best moment of the second came from a throw-in.

Another gigantic throw from Robins was put right on top of Irving, and amongst the chaos, Portuguese forward Ibraim Sani managed to somehow get the ball over the line. 3-1 out of nothing, and Treharris had netted just their 15th league goal of the season.

A double substitution was made by the visitors following the goal, in the hopes that some momentum could be built.

That never transpired however. Trethomas were still more than comfortable in possession, and kept the ball well with crisp passing.

Tedstone nearly grabbed his goal with 20 minutes to play. He held it up well before turning and firing narrowly wide.

Bolter too had a chance to kill the game. His header was glanced just over.

Edwards had the best opportunity since the goal for the Bluebirds however. A superb reverse ball through by Sadler set the winger on his way, but he couldn’t quite get it out from under his feet and pulled his shot wide.

It didn’t matter for long though, as Jones capped the performance off with a great finish from the edge of the area.

Picking the ball up on the right, he set himself before curling a lovely finish into the far corner, Portuguese goalkeeper Elisangelo Queni was rooted to the spot.

Full-time, 4-1 to the Bluebirds. That’s eight wins in a row in all competitions for Trethomas, who are still unbeaten in the league having drawn just twice.

That win pushes them further clear of rivals Risca United and Newport City in second and third.

Reaction

After the game, Caerphilly Observer asked Bluebirds manager Mark Dunford what he thought of his side’s performance. He said: “We had a few missing for various reasons and I think that performance highlights the depth and quality of our squad. It shows that we can keep those levels up no matter who comes in.”

Asked about how he sets his side up going into each game, Dunford replied: “We said from the outset this season that we’d select our side based on the opposition.

“We shuffled our back four a bit today but that was because we thought they were the right personnel for this game.”

The league leaders will now face Blaenavon Blues in back-to-back league matches. Asked about their next game, Dunford added: “They’re a very tough team who have established themselves in the league. We’re happy to be playing at home next so we can guarantee a fixture.”