The sight of dependable defender Chris Marriott on JD Welsh Cup final day is becoming almost as much of a tradition as the event itself.
The 35-year-old, now donning the colours of Connah’s Quay Nomads, has appeared in nine of the last 10 finals, winning the Cup on seven occasions with The New Saints.
Sunday’s JD Welsh Cup final sees Marriott aiming to secure his first silverware with the Nomads, against his former club, after ending a 15-year association with the Saints last summer.
2025 JD Welsh Cup Final
Marriott’s move to Connah’s Quay hasn’t worked out as well as he would’ve hoped so far, following a difficult campaign in the JD Cymru Premier that saw the club finish outside the top-six in eighth-place.
However, with European qualification still within grasp, the Nomads have the opportunity to retain the JD Welsh Cup and salvage their season in style.
“It’s been a disappointing season for us in the league. For a club like Connah’s Quay and the players we’ve got, we were hoping to finish a lot higher and that’s been obvious for everyone to see,” Marriott admitted to FAW.cymru this week.
“But the one thing we’re still in is the Welsh Cup final and that gives us a really good chance of achieving European football which is what Connah’s Quay strive for.”
Although well-accustomed to being on the successful side on JD Welsh Cup final day, Marriott insists he’s lost none of his desire to lift the famous trophy and marks his success in the competition amongst the finest moments of his career.
“It’s very important – even if we’d finished second or had already achieved Europe, it would be massive regardless.
“I think the Welsh Cup is a prestigious cup. I always said at TNS, that the Welsh Cup was just as good, if not better than winning the league.
“Obviously, the league is amazing to win due to achieving Champions League qualification, but I think the Welsh Cup has got so much history and it’s a one-off game to make it even more interesting and anything can happen.
“I’ve got some good experience in finals and hopefully I can put that to good use in the week.”
Whilst Connah’s Quay have their sights on winning the JD Welsh Cup for the second year in a row, The New Saints are bidding to clinch the domestic treble for the third time in their history.
So, how does a player so acquainted with The New Saints feel about now trying to deter the side he served with for so long?
“I had 15 happy years at TNS. I’ll be honest, I found it a bit strange and a bit weird playing against them the first time but that’s out of the way now and it’s business as usual for myself, in terms of wanting do the best I can for Connah’s Quay and for myself personally, whether that’s against TNS or anyone else.
“It goes out of the window for me now. I’ve got that awkward stage out of the way and I’m focused on doing the best I can for the club and myself and hopefully the rest will take care of itself,” Marriott said, whilst admitting contact with his former Saints team-mates has cooled as friendships get put aside while the JD Welsh Cup is on the line.
“I’m still in contact with a few of the lads but football does move on quickly”, he explained.
“It’s gone pretty quiet this week, everyone’s professional – I want to do a job on them and they want to do a job on me. It’s serious, it’s personal.
“We all want to win, we’re all winners and we’ll see what happens on Sunday.”
