Two weeks after the visitors had won a close JD Welsh Cup tie the sides met again in the Dragon Signs Amateur Trophy on a dry but breezy afternoon with Caerphilly eventually running out 4- 2 winners. Aberdare fielded the same starting eleven and 4 of the substitutes from the previous week with Elliott Hewings also on the bench after an earlier injury in pre-season. An early away attack was cleared for a fruitless corner while Aber, attacking the Town end, wasted a similar opportunity. Macauley Morgan saw an effort saved before on the quarter- hour a Kieran Rodway free kick on the right saw Jack Salmon's shot parried by the Caerphilly 'keeper. On 17 minutes a home attack was not cleared with Cai Mackenzie involved as Morgan rifled Aber into a 1-0 lead. Sadly, on the half-hour, Lee Hartshorn sustained an injury that required a lengthy stoppage. The visitors equallized on 35 minutes with a 20 yard drive into the corner of Dylan Pearce's net. Although returning to the pitch, Hartshorn was unable to prevent an away foray which resulted in a close tap in for a 2- 1 advantage on 38 minutes after Aber had missed a good chance to go ahead through Cai Mckenzie. Liam John replaced the injured Hartshorn with Cam Sage also having to be replaced by Kai Davies before the break as well. A rejigged defensive pattern from the hosts saw their visitors shoot past the post straight at the start of the second half while a 50th minute shot hit the home crossbar. A decisive 3-1 score-line followed on 57 minutes with a close range header. Manager Kevin Davies emptied his bench and Player of the Match Rodway and his colleagues continued to thwart the Ardal South East League leaders until a 25 yard free kick in the 83rd minute evaded Pearce for a 4-1 lead. Undaunted, the home contingent battled to the end and, into time added on, Will De Sousa beat the calls for offside and netted from a tight angle for the final 2-4 result. A creditable performance appreciated by the Aber faithful. Another home fixture on Saturday 13th September sees a Hugh James Cup Tie with K&H Forever Young F.C. with a 2.00 p.m. start. Team: Dylan Pearce, Callum Tandy, Kellan Webb (Elliot Hewings), Kieran Rodway, Lee Hartshorn (Liam John), Jack Salmon (Jacob Blake), Oscar Din, Cai Mackenzie (Hadley Taylor), Macauley Morgan, Will de Sousa, Cam Sage (Kai Davies) Subs not used: - Player of the Match: Kieran Rodway

Report by Ray Pearce Published 6 September 2025