As the dust settles following Clarbeston Road’s fairytale Senior Cup victory over Division One Champions Goodwick United, we switch our focus to the next Manderwood Pembrokeshire Cup Final to be played at the Ogi bridge Meadow Stadium, as Division Two League champions Monkton Swifts 2nds prepare to take on Johnston.

The game is taking place on Wednesday 1st May, kicking off at 7pm.

It is a match full of intrigue, filled with various sub-plots and questions much like the Senior Cup before it. Much like Goodwick, Monkton Swifts 2nds may be seen as favourites by many due to them having already sealed league silverware, but Johnston have proved their quality to reach the final having defeated the two promoted sides St Ishmaels and Herbrandston in the Quarter-Finals and Semi-Finals respectively.

Johnston FC

It has been a mixed campaign for the Tigers who until recently have struggled for consistency in the league because of a mixture of reasons; injuries, work commitments and so on. They currently sit 8th place in the league but have games in hand over the teams above them, partly due to their cup success (with decent runs in the West Wales Cup and Senior Cup too) and could actually finish as high as fourth place if they win their remaining fixtures.

Under the leadership of experienced defender Steven “Squashy” Allen, Johnston have shown that with a “full strength” side available that they are capable of taking on anyone and they will certainly be relishing the challenge ahead of them. Squashy is a serial winner, having enjoyed success at the likes of Hakin and West Dragons, and is supported by fellow player-manager and another Pembrokeshire League veteran renowned for his goalscoring exploits at the other end of the field, Scott Crawford.

Johnston will need to draw from this experience, bolstered by the likes of Craig Bendall and their Joey George in midfield, to produce a solid and disciplined performance but they also have a number of exciting young talents who have impressed on the field this year.

Alfie Crawford who is enjoying his first year in Senior football has scored 22 goals across all competitions (including 9 for the First Team) this season with 11 assists. Summer signing Kieran Blundell has shown his explosive qualities on the big occasions already with a number of key goals, also hitting double figures in his first season at the club. Another pacey winger who has also hit double figures is Josh Knapp, moving up after an impressive debut season for the Seconds last campaign to prove his quality at a high level. The young trio have certainly stepped up to supply the goals when Scott Crawford has been away with work commitments.

The cup has also seen a number of impressive performances from goalkeeper Anthony Bevans who temporarily left the club before returning with two outstanding games in the Quarter-Finals and Semi-Finals to show everyone his undoubted quality between the sticks. 

We spoke with Captain Joey George ahead of the game...

"We have had a decent season that could get even better, we’ve shown that when we have our full strength team together we can take on anyone in this division with recent victories over the two promoted sides and some good wins digging deep in the league. The lads are hungry for silverware and can’t wait for the challenge ahead to achieve that. We are all buzzing for the big occasion and I can't wait to walk out with my daughter onto the Bridge Meadow."

Monkton Swifts 2nds

It has been a fantastic campaign for Monkton Swifts 2nds who have been far and away the best team in Division Two having already been crowned league champions. During the pre-season with a number of quality players joining the club, there were a lot of spectators talking about how well they would be able to do this season and they have certainly met and exceeded the high expectations they would have set with the potential for a double.

Amongst those summer signings was Scottish forward Billy Davis, who came with the pedigree of scoring plenty of goals at the highest level with Hundleton in Division One. He has scored an incredible 33 goals this season for the Swifts, as well as hitting double figures for assists, showing his importance leading the line for the team.

Their talisman is undoubtedly their Captain Liam Butland who boasts equally impressive figures with 19 goals and 17 assists supporting Billy in attack. In fact, Montkon Swifts 2nds quarter of Josh Sture, Liam Butland, Jordan Kilby and William Davis occupy the top four spots in the league assists chart, showing that they have goals from around the team who’s attacking variety helps compliment each other.

Josh Sture’s 21 assists across league and cup are made even more impressive by his 17 goals, a fantastic player down the right hand side, with Jordan Kilby on 13 assists and 7 goals from midfield.

The Swifts are a relatively young team but with plenty of talent which has been on full display throughout this campaign. They also have the “trump card” of having one of Pembrokeshire’s finest players available for selection in Ben Steele, who was not cup tied playing for the First Team earlier in the season.

The ease in which they defeated Merlins Bridge 2nds in the last round epitomises the quality they have and they will rightly be going into the final with deserved confidence, but not complacency given their two encounters with Johnston in the season so far.

The Swifts are coached by the team of Cory Mair, Billy Everett and Liam Roberts who have been able to instil a fantastic team spirit within the group, playing football in a positive attacking style. 

We spoke with Captain Liam Butland ahead of the game...

"The boys are very excited and determined for wednesday. We all want redemption from losing last year's final as that still hurts to this day. We spoke about doing the double right back in pre-season and now were one game away from doing it. We know Johnston are a very good side and will definitely not be underdogs in this game. They have some very good players in their team and plenty of experience. You just have to look at our league meetings and it shows both games were very close. Everyone is saying we are the favourites in this game, which they are entitled to but we all know that there are no favourites in a final as anything can happen in that one game."

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