Cardiff City woke up today as history makers, as they claimed the treble yesterday, the club’s first.
The team and management made no bones about it at the start of the season that they were looking to win all three trophies available to them, something that eluded them last campaign. For manager Iain Darbyshire, the win at Rodney Parade was the culmination of an excellent season.
Wrexham 0-2 Cardiff City
Bute Energy Welsh Cup final
“It’s a bit surreal. We set out to win everything this season, and the girls had to really dig deep today. Wrexham were really good today, and I have got a lot of praise for them. They set themselves up really well, caused us problems, but the players deserve this for all their hard work this season.”
The Bluebirds certainly didn’t have everything going their way. For large parts they were pinned back by Wrexham. City had won their previous five games against the Red Dragons, scoring 20 and conceding three in the process, but Sunday was the sternest test they had faced. Wing-back Mikayla Cook was full of praise for Steve Dale’s side come the final whistle.
“Wrexham came out really strong, and I don’t think we were expecting them to do so the way that they did. But full credit to them, they’ve had an incredible campaign when you think they came up from the Adran North last season to finishing in the top four in the Adran Premier. It was harder for us being in a position of being pinned back, we’re not used to it, but we got over the line.”
In big games, you need your big players to shine, and Cardiff can certainly say their players rose to the occasion. Rhianne Oakley got the ball rolling in the first half by scoring her 14th goal of the season, and her captain Siobhan Walsh believes there is more to come from the flying winger.
“Rhi is a great player. We train with her every week, and we know just what kind of threat that she brings. She’s an excellent player and someone who has certainly got a great future ahead of her.”
The game will ultimately be remembered for Emma Beynon’s stoppage time heroics, as she put the game beyond doubt with a howitzer from 30-yards out. Beynon has been a cornerstone of this City side, and Darbyshire is delighted he gets to work with a player like her day in and day out.
“She scores goals like that all the time in training! She’s come so close in so many matches to scoring one like that, but Emma is just unbelievable. Performances like that show why she won Players’ Player of the Season. She works her socks off every week, and we’re so grateful to have her.”
There are stars all across this City team, one of them being Cook herself. The youngster has had a superb first full season with the club and has made the left wing-back spot her own. She knows herself how much she’s grown this season and believes now she can kick on and get even better.
“This is a really hard team to get into. Every player is incredible, and there’s competition in each position. For me, I do feel this season has been my breakout season. I feel like I’m gelling really well with all the girls, and I’m really implementing things in my game that I’ve been working hard on in training. It’s been a great season.”
Overall, this is a Cardiff team that has a great blend of youth and experience. This season it has all come together, and they’ve ultimately reached the lofty targets they set themselves. Captain Walsh has been at the club for over a decade, has seen all the highs and the lows. Sunday will be a moment that will stick with her forever, and credits her team for all the hard work they’ve put in.
“I’ve been a part of this club for a long time now. I’ve been part of some really young squads, been part of some older ones where there hasn’t been that youth, but at the moment, we’ve got a really nice blend of both here. It’s obviously worked really well this season because we’ve won all three trophies. We all work hard for each other at the end of the day, and that allows us to win games and win trophies.”
