If you think The New Saints are bored of appearing in so finals and winning trophies, think again.
The feeling of having a chance at silverware still burns deep inside the players and manager Craig Harrison, who is looking to win his fifth Nathaniel MG Cup crown as a manager.
“That excitement doesn’t go, and its part and parcel of my makeup,” Harrison says. “It’s really important that we get to these finals and win trophies, it’s what you go into football for.
“When you look back on your time in football, you should enjoy the finals, but you’ve also got to make sure you’re there to compete and win them. As a football club, that’s what we’re there for.
“I’ve been very fortunate to win this trophy four times as a manager, three times with TNS and once with Connah’s Quay.
“It’s certainly something that you look forward to, trying to win a trophy early on in the season, because it keeps everyone on their toes and it’s a feel-good factor leading into the rest of the season.”
The Saints have taken a rather different journey to get to the final. Their campaign started with a home tie to Connah’s Quay, an opponent they know all too well.
Josh Daniels was always aware that the Nomads would be a difficult opponent but knew that the strength and unity of the squad would see them through.
“We back ourselves 95% of the time, and there’s very few teams that come to our place and turn us over, and that’s the way it’s been this year.
“We went behind early on, but we knew we had the character to come back into it, and that’s testament to the lads and the way we’re set up.
“We just go out and play the next game, and the one after that; whether it’s the cup or the league.”
After edging past a fellow Cymru Premier side, TNS embarked on a run of games against JD Cymru North opposition; Porthmadog FC, Gresford Athletic, and Guilsfield.
The games were certainly a good change to the system, according to Harrison, as he explained how playing different teams exposed the Saints to new trials and challenges.
“We played at Guilsfield last week and it was really tricky. The pitch was a tough one to play on, and probably, a lot of our lads haven’t played on a pitch like that before, so that was character building for us as well.
“It’s been nice to play some different teams, different styles, different grounds. We all know in the Cymru Premier, we will play Connah’s Quay five times at least this season, and that’s if we don’t get them in cup competitions.
“It is a lot, it’s a bit overbearing sometimes, so it has been nice to play different teams and go to different places you don’t go every week.”
Now all roads lead to Jenner Park but standing in their way is yet another new opponent in Swansea City.
Daniels admits that him and his teammates are heading into the unknown on Saturday evening, but he’s looking forward to the test Swansea will pose them.
“It’s quite an unknown for us. Academy teams are usually very good on the ball and are very technical, and I think it’s a good matchup. It is a nice challenge for us.
“Having come out of the Newtown game, this game could be the compete opposite to that, but it’ll certainly be a good thing to test ourselves.”
Having defeated Cardiff Met in the semi-finals, Anthony Wright’s side have shown that they can mix it with the country’s top sides.
Harrison is expecting the Swans to play their infamous style of football and is relishing the challenge that it will bring.
“From our perspective, we’ll prepare as we would for any opponent. We’ve been fortunate to get some footage of them and saw them play against Cardiff Met, so we’ve got a little bit of an idea of how they play.
“They are a technical team, a typical academy team who are going to try and play and build-up through the thirds. It’s going to be a bit of a matchup in regard to the way we play as well.
“We played Hibernian B in the Challenge Cup, and that was very similar, so we’ve got a good idea of what style they’re going to play.
“Swansea are also synonymous with a style of football, going back to Roberto Martinez, Brendan Rodgers, Garry Monk, they’ve always wanted to play passing football.”
Regardless of the opponent, the MG Cup has eluded the grasp of TNS since 2018, and Daniels is eager to tick the trophy off the list.
“Swansea are a massive club, but for me, it’s another cup final and it’s one we haven’t won since 2018. It’s one I didn’t tick off last year, so this is the one I want this year as well.
“But it doesn’t really matter who’s in the final. Yes, they are a big club, but we have to look after ourselves and go and do what we do.”
Purchase your tickets for the final HERE or buy on the gate on matchday.
