Two sides slumped into the middle of the table in Group A of the Cymru Premier will clash this Tuesday night as Newtown welcome Penybont to Latham Park with both sides now eager to force themselves into second above Bala Town.
As of now, Bala currently sit on 40 points and ahead of both competing sides in this one, but with each of them also boasting a game in hand over the second-placed team, a win will put either of them into second with their superior goal difference.
Not long until we are back at Latham Park. Tuesday night we welcome @PenybontFC_ under the lights. Come and roar the Robins on. pic.twitter.com/HZ0ViKOYxR— Newtown AFC (@NewtownAFC) March 18, 2022
Not long until we are back at Latham Park. Tuesday night we welcome @PenybontFC_ under the lights. Come and roar the Robins on. pic.twitter.com/HZ0ViKOYxR
Both clubs were the closest thing to rivalling the New Saints in the first phase of the competition, as after 22 games, both Penybont and Newtown were separated by only a point with the former sitting in third and Penybont in second.
Now, in the second phase of the Cymru Premier, Newtown are narrowly ahead of their opponent's here by a mere point, and anything but a defeat will keep the club in third place.
On the other hand, with a similar goals record ratio of +14 for Newtown and +15 for Penybont, there really is very little that separates either side here.
The home team have started their second phase in topsy-turvy form, however, as they are coming off the back of beating Caernarfon Town 4-0 in a fantastic display.
A week prior, though, the club lost once more to Bala Town to further throw them away from the top two spots in the league, as they lost 2-0 at Latham Park that day.
It does now put Newtown on a record of 11 wins from 24 games so far in the league, having now lost eight times and drawn five, but by scoring an impressive 42 goals and conceding only 28, only the relentless New Saints at the top of the table can boast better form throughout the year than them.
As for Penybont, a win here is a must if they want to break into the top two of the Cymru Premier with them trailing Newtown by a point and Bala Town by three points.
Now, though, with a 3-3 draw away to the league leaders, New Saints, they are in a great position to move forward after a stunning loss to Caernarfon two weeks back.
Penybont also managed to beat Bala Town in the Welsh Cup semi-finals on penalties last time out, but this does mean they haven’t won a game in 90 minutes for over a month.
Forebet predicts a narrow win for the home side here as Newtown look to go second.