The New Saints squeezed into a second successive Nathaniel MG Cup final with a narrow 2-1 win away at Barry Town United on Sunday evening.
The Saints lifted the trophy at Jenner Park last season and they were firmly in control of this tie at half-time thanks to a brace from Declan McManus.
The opening goal came in the 22nd minute as Barry goalkeeper Luc Rees tipped Leo Smith’s strike onto the crossbar and then saved the rebound from Adam Wilson, but couldn’t stop McManus finishing from close range at the third time of asking.
The lead was doubled 14 minutes later when Josh Pask and Wilson exchanged a series of neat passes before the latter squared for McManus to calmly strike past Rees.
However, Barry came out firing after the break and halved the deficit on 55 minutes when Robbie Willmott played a delightful through ball to Kayne Mclaggon, who kept his cool to round Connor Roberts and tap into the empty net.
Teenager Ieuan Owen came off the bench for Barry on the hour mark and almost found an equaliser, seeing a strike hit the post before shooting goalwards on the rebound only for Pask to clear off the line. That proved crucial for the Saints, who saw out the win to book their spot in the final.
“I’m really pleased,” Craig Harrison said. “There’s a lot of lads there who haven’t played 90 minutes [for a while] that got 90 minutes today which is brilliant. It’s a fantastic shift and they’ve been really, really professional. We’ve got nine games in December and that’s one ticked off!”
The Saints will meet Aberystwyth Town in the final, which will be held at Latham Park in Newtown on Friday 28 February 2025 (KO 19:45).
