The Chairman who came for Three (points)

A lot had been said going into this weekend. Whatever the chatter, nothing beats the excitement of going to your local football team’s ground, having a few pints and trying out the latest local food vendor that we have pitch side this week! Today it was Feast Pembrokeshire, whom you can usually find by the Cresselly Arms every weekend, offering the best smoked meats and craft barbecues. On the menu for us was: -

Low and slow oak smoked pulled pork buns with coleslaw, apple jam, and feast pickles for £12

Loaded Pembrokeshire potatoes with mustard BBQ, smokey onions, and Caerphilly cheese for £8.50

For those who wanted a less “instagrammable” lunch, the jumbo sausage and chips for a fiver always hits the spot from the hole in the wall (The Food Hut).

Focussing on the game, Kyle McCarthy now was the only player really missing from our starting 11 so this game would be a great indicator of where we actually are.

It was wonderful to catch up with Chairman Rob Edwards who we will always back to the hilt. We had a good chat about what his thoughts have been this year and what his plans are. His open letter that went public after the game was basically what he told us. You can read his letter here: https://haverfordwestcountyafc.com/2025/10/an-open-letter-from-chairman-rob-edwards/ He emphasised his love of the club and how proud he is of everyone here. His sentiments are shared by us too!

The part of the East Stand we usually go to has had damage from Storm Amy so we returned to our original spot. Personally not a fan of the view here but I was grateful that the game had gone ahead. Storm Amy was a fierce one and most of the flags hadn’t gone up as they would have ended up somewhere in Dublin, knowing my luck!

We were comfortably well fed and watered as the game kicked off. The Bluebirds came out of the blocks well. With Greg back in midfield we were able to dominate and be more competitive in the middle of the park.

At times it was a really open game, both teams having shots on target but both keepers seemed comfortable, especially from outside of the box, until…

In the 33rd minute, the Bluebirds were awarded a free kick just to the left of the D of the box. Both Elliot Scotcher and Rhys Abbruzzese stood over it; and from this angle either man would take a great shot from here. In a flash, Abu had struck the ball, curling around the wall, flying past Jack Flint between the sticks hitting the back of the net! What a strike! What a goooooall!!

Half time and we were 1 goal to the good. We’re good for our lead but sometimes half time comes at the wrong side of momentum. It was important that we approached the second half in the same fashion as the first.

Scotch and Dave celebrate. Pic belongs to Lewis Mitchell.

5 minutes after the break we start a lovely passing move which Abu and Fawcett were able to link up, with the latter finding Corey Shephard on the right hand side of the attacking box. He seems to be going nowhere then all of a sudden takes two defenders out who were on him with a beautiful back heel to Dan Hawkins who shoots with a beautiful right footed curling shot which was going away from the keeper and into the inside of the net. Wych! Bendigedig! To quote AngryGinge “How can I describe that? Voluptuous? Juicy? Sexy? All of the above my angry little Mancunian friend.

2-0 up with two goal of the month contenders already, the Bluebirds were flying!

Until the 61st minute where a nice passing Flint move, spearheaded by star man, 6 foot 5, South Korean giant Isaac Lee found Flint Town United's number 7 Jake Phillips on the right wing. A David Beckham-esque cross ended up floating over everybody in the box, looped over Ifan Knott in the yellow goalkeeping shirt of Haverfordwest, deflected off the inside of the post and went in. He will surely say he meant to do that but it doesn’t matter how you score, they all count the same.

Game on.

From here it became a battle. Fair play to Lee Fowler and his coaching staff at Flint. They have become a very solid team since coming back into the Cymru Prem in 2024 and not just the relegation favourites they used to be.

Haverfordwest did really well here. When the going got tough, every single player dug in and defended their one goal lead well.

Another solid outing for Ifan Knott here. Collecting and deflecting any shots that came his way. Quite a few shots from the visitors today did soar over the bar, but Knott is slowly making that number 1 jersey his own. Zac who?

In the 83rd minute, Tony Pennock made 2 changes which baffled most of us, but shows why he’s the manager and not us… Both Ben's up top were taken off for Owain Jones and Iori Humphrey’s. The latter ready to make an impact on the game…

One minute to go before the 4th official raised the electronic board indicating how long for added time, the Bluebirds got a corner. A swift one two between both goal scorers so far, ended up with a delightful and dangerous cross into the 6 yard area. A brief game of head tennis found Iori Humphrey’s head who powered it home to make it 3-1.

Elation.

Iori really deserved that.

The final whistle goes and we celebrate. For all the “fans” who spread all the negativity (most of who weren’t there, not helping the low attendance today), can crawl back into their holes. This game was a great performance against a good side.

Back to winning ways and still a game in hand over Flint but away at the Essity Stadium. The rearranged game will take place on December 20th.

However all eyes are on our next game vs Penybont, 7 October 19:45 at the DragonBet Stadium.

#UTFB 🐦

Full-time, Haverfordwest 3-1 Flint Town United. Attendance, 372