Louis Holbrook
15 Mar 2023
After a phenomenal win against Caernarfon Town last week, Pontypridd United head to the Essity Stadium to face Flint Town United, hoping to continue their run of good form.
From the start of Phase 2, Ponty have been successful in their fixtures, winning three and drawing one. Flint on the other hand have won two, drawn one and lost one.
In the two previous meetings this season, Flint have come away victorious over Ponty having beaten them 0-1 and 4-1. With Ponty’s current form, they will be hoping to change the tide against Flint and get what would be another impressive win for the Dragons.
Flint currently sits one place above the Dragons with 31 points compared to Ponty’s 30. All is to play for this weekend, with both sides looking to challenge for the European playoff spot and to get further away from the relegation zone.
One player that is showing real talent is George Ratcliffe. Pontypridd’s new goalkeeper has only had two outings, but he has already proven his quality. During Ponty’s win last week against Caernarfon, Ratcliffe made a crucial reflex save at an important time of the match where the opposition had a grip on the game and looked likely to score. Ratcliffe is definitely going to help Ponty going forward and with his quality behind a strong back three, Flint are going to find it hard to score.
Elsewhere on the pitch, Ben Margetson has once again been providing solid performances for the Dragons. Margetson scored the only goal of the match last week and has been an all-round performer since joining the club in January.
Fellow defender Jordan Knott and midfielder and captain Clayton Green also provided outstanding performances against Caernarfon. Both did their jobs excellently and were both deserving of the Player of the Match Award, which was later given to the former. If both perform as they did last week, Flint are going to find it very difficult to build up any attacks.
The Silkmen also have some dangermen within their ranks. 20-year-old Zach Clarke has scored six goals in his five games for Flint and scored a hat-trick on his debut vs Pontypridd earlier this season. Another player to look out for is Jean-Louis Akpa-Akpro, who is the joint top goal scorer for Flint this season with 8 goals.
Both teams will be looking to prove their supremacy this weekend and with both sides on good form, it will look to be an exciting contest for the important three points.
Head-to-Head:
Pontypridd United:
• Last 5 matches: LWDWW
• League Position: 4th
• Total Points: 30
• Top Goalscorer: Ben Ahmun (10)
• Last Meeting: Flint Town United 4-1 Pontypridd United
Flint Town United:
• Last 5 Matches: WLDWW
• League Position: 3rd
• Total Points: 31
• Top Goalscorer: Jean-Louis Akpa-Akpro (8)
• Last Meeting: Flint Town United 4-1 Pontypridd United