The New Saints took a significant step towards reaching the league stage of the UEFA Conference League with a 3-0 away win over FK Panevėžys in the first leg of their play-off tie in Lithuania.
All three goals arrived in the second half following an even first period in which Rory Holden came closest as he forced a diving save from Panevezys goalkeeper Vytautas Cerniauskas.
The deadlock was broken seven minutes after the break when Holden’s corner from the right was flicked on by Adrian Cieślewicz, with Danny Davies arriving at the back post to head the ball home.
TNS were left furious four minutes later when a reckless two-footed challenge from Nicolás Gorobsov on Jack Bodenham only resulted in a yellow card for the Panevezys midfielder, even after a VAR check from the referee.
The lunge did not get any better upon multiple viewings and Gorobsov could certainly count himself very lucky to still be on the pitch.
Not that it mattered to the JD Cymru Premier champions, who doubled their lead on 64 minutes. The goal was a piece of magic from Dan Williams, who received the ball from Leo Smith, escaped from two Panevezys players in one neat turn, drove into the box and placed a perfect strike into the far bottom corner.
The third goal arrived in the first minute of stoppage time as substitutes Josh Pask and Ben Clark combined for the latter to find the net. Pask found space on the left hand side and crossed for Clark who finished from close range to wrap up the win.
TNS are now firmly in control of the tie ahead of the second leg at Park Hall next Thursday (KO 18:30), with the chance to become the first Welsh side to reach the league stage of a major European competition well within their grasp.
“I’m very proud, very happy,” Craig Harrison said. “It’s a great scoreline, great away performance, some great goals and everyone contributed massively. But it’s only half-time. We’ve got to make sure our emotions are in check and we don’t take anything for granted.
“From a football point of view, we have to make sure we do the right things between now and next week, which is possibly one of the biggest weeks in the club’s history.”
