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As the halfway point of the Ardal South East season approaches, how have the five sides from Caerphilly County Borough faired so far?

Made up of 16 teams, the Ardal South East is the third tier of Welsh football, one below the Cymru South, and two below the Cymru Premier.

Of the 16 sides, only one is guaranteed promotion each season – the winner – with the runner-up having to play a single play-off match against second place in the Ardal South West for a spot in the Cymru South.

It’s a bit more straightforward at the other end of the table, with three sides facing relegation each season.

There are five sides from Caerphilly in the league this season; Trethomas Bluebirds, Risca United, Aberbargoed Buds, Treowen Stars, and Abercarn United. Here’s how each are doing in order of league position.

Trethomas Bluebirds

Undefeated league leaders this season, Trethomas Bluebirds, sit five points clear of their nearest rivals, with two games in hand on 32 points.

The Bluebirds have had a superb start to their campaign. Having played 12 games, they have only drawn two and conceded just eight goals.

Trethomas fell just short of promotion last season, with a winning cup run in the FAW Amateur Trophy potentially to blame for them running out of steam.

Manager Mark Dunford and his men remain in the Amateur Trophy this season, after a recent 7-0 win over Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch FC, but have made it clear that their focus is 100% on league promotion.

Their next league game is on December 30 on the road to Treowen Stars.

Top scorer: Levi Rees (11)

Top assists: Ethan Edwards (5)

Risca United

Risca United fell just short of promotion last season after losing their playoff match 2-0 to Baglan Dragons, but once again will almost certainly be in the mix in a couple of months time.

The Cuckoos sit second in the league table on 27 points, five points behind their local rivals Trethomas Bluebirds, who they drew 2-2 with in their latest clash at their shared home, the Centre for Sporting Excellence.

After a relatively slow start, Risca remain undefeated in their last eight league games, and enter the festive period full of confidence.

Manager Simon Berry has stated previously that he would rather have points on the board than games in hand, and that’s exactly what they’ve got with two more games played than Trethomas in first and Newport City in third.

A recent 2-1 loss on the road to Llannefydd in the Amateur Trophy means the Cuckoos can turn their full attention to returning to the second tier.

Their next league game is away to Newport City on December 30.

Top scorer: Leon Thomas (6)

Top assists: Owen Cuddihy (8)

Aberbargoed Buds

It’s been a difficult season for the newly promoted Buds up until now, who released their manager Sean Wharton after only seven games in charge.

There was fighting talk out of the Buds before the season got underway, when Wharton described his side as the “team to beat”, before losing three of their first five league games.

Since Wharton’s departure however, the Buds have picked it up, and sit sixth in the league on 22 points, still some ten points off league leaders Trethomas – who they managed to steal a point from in a recent 2-2 draw.

Aberbargoed are currently searching for a manager, but could push for a promotion charge in the second half of the season if they can find some consistency.

The Buds did win their latest match 3-2 over local rivals Treowen Stars, and face Tredegar Town at home next on December 29.

Top scorer: Christopher Colvin (7)

Top assists: Daniel Macdonald (4)

Treowen Stars

The Stars have played two games less than their rivals Aberbargoed, but sit a few spots behind them in ninth with 17 points.

Treowen, who are led by manager Dean Randall, have struggled to build-up any momentum this season. After a disappointing start losing three of their first five, the Stars have played just three games since October 28, with four postponements.

Like the Buds, a charge up the table isn’t beyond question, but they’ll have to start picking it up soon, and hope to avoid more postponments.

They face another local derby in their next fixture, when they’ll host the Bluebirds on December 30.

Top scorer: Christian Davies (10)

Top assists: Christian Davies (6)

Abercarn United

Along with Chepstow, Abercarn have played the fewest league games of any side in the league, just 11.

They sit just inside the relegation zone in 14th on 14 points with a -12 goal difference.

Much like Aberbargoed, Abercarn have struggled to get games played, with three of their last five games called-off.

Despite that, Abercarn are not in bad form having won three of their last five, making it difficult to predict how they’re going to do with so many games to catch-up on.

Their next game is on the road against Lliswerry on December 30.

Top scorer: Daniel Suter (6)

Top assists: Daniel Suter (3)