The 2023/24 JD Cymru Premier season kicks off on Friday night and competition is expected to be as fierce as ever throughout the division.
Reigning champions The New Saints unsurprisingly find themselves as favourites to win the title again, having finished 22 points ahead of second-place Connah’s Quay Nomads last season. The Oswestry side lost just one league game throughout the campaign on the way to lifting the trophy for the 15th time.
Craig Harrison has not tinkered too much with his squad over the summer, making the signing of Dan Williams permanent after his successful loan spell from Swansea and bringing in Reece Thompson, Rory Holden and Jared Harlock from EFL clubs Shrewsbury Town, Port Vale and Blackburn Rovers – the latter on loan.
Holden has already shown his quality by scoring in the UEFA Europa Conference League tie against Swift Hesperange, while back-to-back JD Cymru Premier top scorer and player of the season Declan McManus scored three times in Europe as he aims for another prolific campaign.
Connah’s Quay Nomads have been busy in the transfer market over the summer in an attempt to close the gap on TNS, with Jordan Davies, Noah Edwards and Declan Poole all returning to the club.
Davies was the top-scoring Welshman in the league last season with Haverfordwest County, while at the other end of the pitch former Rangers shot-stopper Andy Firth was voted as the best goalkeeper in the division in 2022/23.
Neil Gibson’s have an early opportunity to test the champions as they visit Park Hall on the opening weekend, with the two clubs also meeting in the Nathaniel MG Cup last weekend in a tie which TNS came from behind to win 2-1.
A third-place finish for Penybont last season gave them a first taste of European football this summer and they will be keen to make that a regular occurrence going forward.
Rhys Griffiths was named as the JD Cymru Premier manager of the season for 2022/23 and he has established the club as a consistent presence in the top half.
The departure of Nathan Wood to Newport County is a blow, but veteran striker Chris Venables has arrived and already hit the back of the net in Europe against FC Santa Coloma. Kai Whitmore, Sam Snaith and Lewis Clutton have also exited, with Griffiths adding Henry Dan Griffiths and Gabriel Kircough.
Haverfordwest County’s UEFA Europa Conference League journey this summer – knocking out KF Shkëndija on penalties and taking B36 Torshavn to extra-time – captured the hearts of the Welsh football public and they will now hope to translate that into domestic success.
The Bluebirds are yet to finish in the JD Cymru Premier top half since promotion in 2020, but that must now be the aim for Tony Pennock who has been busy in bolstering his squad this summer.
Former Chelsea academy prospect Martell Taylor-Crossdale and ex-Penybont midfielder Kai Whitmore both made an impact in Europe, while supporters will be eagerly awaiting to see how defender Luke Tabone fares after he was called up to the Maltese national team in March.
Bala Town failed to qualify for Europe for just the third time in 10 season in 2022/23, so Colin Caton knows the challenge in front of him as he enter his 21st year at the club.
The Lakesiders did lift the Nathaniel MG Cup for the first time and also reached the JD Welsh Cup final last season, so the seeds of success still remain at Maes Tegid.
The squad has had a hefty shake up over the summer, with Dave Edwards, Lassana Mendes, Alex Ramsay and Anthony Kay among those to depart. Caton has looked to England for the majority of his new signings such as Iwan Roberts and Osebi Babarinde, but 10-time JD Cymru Premier title winner Aeron Edwards has arrived to replenish the team’s experience.
Newtown were beaten on penalties by Haverfordwest in the European play-off final last season, so are another side who will have their sights set on returning to continental competition.
Chris Hughes will celebrate 10 years as manager in November, having led the Robins to seven top-half finishes in the last decade.
Long-serving trio Dave Jones, Nick Rushton and Craig Williams have all departed Latham Park but prolific striker Jason Oswell has returned and already netted in the Nathaniel MG Cup, while his Telford team-mate Rob Evans has also arrived.
Cardiff Met’s fourth-place finish last season was their highest ever placing in the JD Cymru Premier and Ryan Jenkins is now back in charge as the Archers look to cement their position in the top half.
Recruitment has been a slow process at Cyncoed this summer, but Evan Cadwallader, Barney Soady and Tom Vincent have all arrived in the last 10 days just in time for the new campaign.
Club legend Chris Baker has hung up his boots, but stalwarts Emlyn Lewis, Eliot Evans and Kyle McCarthy remain to provide a reassuring continuity and plenty of experience in the capital.
Barry Town United are back in the top-flight after one season in the second tier in which they finished 16 points clear at the top of the JD Cymru South, losing just twice in the league all season.
The departure of manager Lee Kendall in late July was the not the smoothest of preparations for the campaign, but the club have acted quickly to appoint his successor – former Cymru international Steve Jenkins.
Jamie Veale has arrived at Jenner Park after qualifying for Europe with Haverfordwest County, while Sam Snaith is back at the club following a spell at Penybont. Ex-Cardiff Met forward Ollie Hulbert and former Cardiff City academy star Keenan Patten are also eye-catching signings.
Manager Steve Evans became a JD Cymru Premier legend as a player, winning multiple titles with The New Saints, and he has made an impressive start to his managerial career at the Four Crosses Construction Arena.
Although title-winning key cogs Kristian Platt and Craig Lindfield have departed for Airbus UK, the arrivals of Nick Rushton, Danny Holmes and Lloyd Marsh-Hughes add plenty of JD Cymru Premier knowhow.
The Seagulls begin the campaign on Sunday against Caernarfon Town, who will hope to steer clear of relegation worries this season after only confirming their survival in their penultimate game of 2022/23.
Richard Davies has been appointed as permanent manager after taking over from Huw Griffiths on an interim basis at the back end of the campaign and he has needed to add to a squad which has lost Lloyd Marsh-Hughes, Noah Edwards and Joe Faux.
Adam Davies has signed from Airbus UK and Ryan Austin from Wrexham, with both scoring in the Nathaniel MG Cup against Porthmadog last weekend. Marc Williams also bolsters the attack after netting 17 goals in the JD Cymru North for Llandudno last season.
Andrew Stokes will hope to build on that momentum in the new campaign and he has added TNS title-winner Keston Davies and Haverfordwest’s play-off hero Corey Shephard to his squad at USW Sports Park.
Only four players scored more in the JD Cymru Premier last season than Ben Ahmun (13) and he is now supported in attack by summer signing Jan Maertins who netted on 12 occasions for Taffs Well in the JD Cymru South in 2022/23.
Aberystwyth Town’s dramatic escape act on the final day of last season to maintain their status as ever-presents in the JD Cymru Premier was one of the most dramatic endings to a top flight campaign in recent memory.
Multiple heroes of that survival bid – Niall Flint, Harry Arnison and Jonathan Evans among them – have departed but Anthony Williams has been busy recruiting as he attempts to ensure the Seasiders are not troubled by relegation worries again.
Goalkeeper Dave Jones brings plenty of JD Cymru Premier experience following nine years at Newtown, while The New Saints loanee Billy Kirkman – who also spent the second half of last season at Park Avenue – has already made his mark with the winning goal against Barry Town United in the Nathaniel MG Cup last weekend.
