Carmarthen Town’s Welsh Premier League fate could be decided tonight as the Old Gold face Aberystwyth in a must-win game at Park Avenue.
Carmarthen have not been relegated since gaining their top-flight status in 1996 and know only three points will be good enough.
Neil Smothers’ side are unbeaten against Aberystwyth in the league this season, but currently occupy the league’s second relegation spot and are five points off 10th-placed Aber with just two games remaining.
Anything less than a victory would demote Carmarthen and guarantee Aberystwyth safety, who require a single point from their final two games.
An away victory for Carmarthen would close that gap to just two points going into the final round of the season, where Aberystwyth host Newtown and Carmarthen travel to Barry Town.
Interim manager Neil Smother’s has overseen a turnaround of fortunes since taking over in February.
Carmarthen have rallied to three successive wins to keep their hopes of remaining in the league alive.
“I really see now characters and leaders putting in performances,” said Smothers, reflecting on his team’s recent performances.
“It’s nice to still be in the situation where we’re able to go there and still be competitive. We’ll go there with a game plan and hopefully it’ll work,” he added.
Aberystwyth have also stabilised their form in recent weeks, booking themselves a Welsh Cup final appearance in the process.
Assistant manager Wayne Jones says that their forthcoming Cup final experience has been put firmly to the back of their minds as they look to ensure their WPL status.
“To be fair, Neil has done a great job over the last five or six weeks with them and credit to them. But we’ve said from the off, it’s always in our hands. That hasn’t changed, we’ve got another two tough games to go,” he told Sgorio after Aberystwyth won at Prestatyn last week.
“We’re not even thinking about the [Welsh] Cup at the moment – get an extra point from the next two games, it’s all we need and we’re mathematically safe then.”
If Carmarthen Town are consigned to a relegation place, then they will be watching the outcome of Llanelli’s FAW Domestic Licence appeal hearing with more than a passing interest.
Carmarthen could yet still remain in the Welsh Premier League if Welsh League Division One Champions Llanelli fail to gain an FAW Domestic License next week.
Llanelli’s application was initially rejected but Stebonheath officials are hopeful of having the initial decision overturned with the FAW expected to announce their final decision next Thursday.
European hopefuls Connah’s Quay and Bangor City will also be nervously awaiting the outcome of their respective appeal hearings and a negative decision for either club would have major implications on the rest of the league on the eve of the final round of fixtures.
Not the first time in the Welsh Premier League, the most important results could be decided off the pitch rather than on it.
JD Welsh Premier League weekend fixtures
Aberystwyth Town vs Carmarthen Town (Fri); The New Saints vs Connah’s Quay (Fri); Cardiff Met vs Bala Town (Sat); Llandudno vs Barry Town (Sat) Newtown vs Prestatyn (Sat); Bangor City vs Cefn Druids (Sun).
| Pos. | Team | P | W | D | L | F | A | GD | Pts |
| 1 | The New Saints | 30 | 22 | 4 | 4 | 77 | 28 | 49 | 70 |
| 2 | Connahs Quay Nomads | 30 | 17 | 6 | 7 | 45 | 24 | 21 | 57 |
| 3 | Bangor City | 30 | 17 | 3 | 10 | 46 | 31 | 15 | 54 |
| 4 | Bala Town | 30 | 15 | 4 | 11 | 33 | 42 | -9 | 49 |
| 5 | Cefn Druids | 30 | 11 | 8 | 11 | 36 | 40 | -4 | 41 |
| 6 | Cardiff Metropolitan University | 30 | 11 | 6 | 13 | 39 | 35 | 4 | 39 |
| 7 | Barry Town United FC | 29 | 14 | 4 | 11 | 35 | 29 | 6 | 46 |
| 8 | Newtown | 30 | 11 | 4 | 15 | 46 | 50 | -4 | 37 |
| 9 | Llandudno FC | 30 | 9 | 8 | 13 | 37 | 41 | -4 | 35 |
| 10 | Aberystwyth Town | 30 | 9 | 6 | 15 | 41 | 52 | -11 | 33 |
| 11 | Carmarthen Town AFC | 30 | 8 | 4 | 18 | 34 | 60 | -26 | 28 |
| 12 | Prestatyn Town | 29 | 4 | 5 | 20 | 27 | 64 | -37 | 17 |
