The 2021–22 Cymru Premier (Welsh: Uwch Gynghrair Cymru 2021–22) (known as the JD Cymru Premier for sponsorship reasons) was the 30th season of the Cymru Premier (formally known as the Welsh Premier League), the highest football league within Wales since its establishment in 1992. Connah's Quay Nomads were the defending champions. Teams played each other twice on a home and away basis, before the league split into two groups after phase 1 matches were completed. Due to Wales losing a European place, the format of the play-offs changed, with the prize now being a place in the Scottish Challenge Cup.
| Season | 2021–22 |
|---|---|
| Dates | 13 August 2021 - 14 May 2022 |
| Champions | The New Saints |
| Relegated | Cefn Druids Barry Town United |
| Champions League | The New Saints |
| Europa Conference League | Bala Town Newtown |
| Matches played | 192 |
| Goals scored | 562 (2.93 per match) |
| Top goalscorer | Declan McManus (21 goals) |
| Biggest home win | Bala Town 11-0 Penybont 24 April 2022) |
| Biggest away win | Aberystwyth Town 0–6 Haverfordwest County (15 March 2022) |
| Highest scoring | Bala Town 11-0 Penybont 24 April 2022) |
| Longest winning run | The New Saints (8 games) |
| Longest unbeaten run | The New Saints (14 games) |
| Longest winless run | Cefn Druids (25 games) |
| Longest losing run | Cefn Druids (7 games) |
| Highest attendance | 1,248 - Barry Town vs Connah's Quay Nomads (11 September 2021) |
| Lowest attendance | 65 - Cardiff Met vs Cefn Druids (2 October 2021) |
| Average attendance | 335 |
← 2020–21 2022–23 →
All statistics correct as of 15 May. | |
Teams
editTwelve teams competed in the league – the same twelve teams as the previous season. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Cymru North and Cymru South leagues were unable to be played the previous season, therefore no teams were able to be promoted. As every team already in the premier league had been granted a Tier 1 license, there was no need for any team to be relegated.[1]
Stadia and locations
edit
Locations of the 2021–22 Cymru Premier teams
| Team | Location | Stadium | Capacity |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aberystwyth Town | Aberystwyth | Park Avenue | 5,000 |
| Bala Town | Bala | Maes Tegid | 3,000 |
| Barry Town United | Barry | Jenner Park Stadium | 3,500 |
| Caernarfon Town | Caernarfon | The Oval | 3,000 |
| Cardiff Metropolitan University | Cyncoed | Cyncoed Campus | 1,620 |
| Cefn Druids | Rhosymedre | The Rock | 3,000 |
| Connah's Quay Nomads | Connah's Quay | Deeside Stadium | 1,500 |
| Flint Town United | Flint | Cae-y-Castell | 1,000 |
| Haverfordwest County | Haverfordwest | Bridge Meadow Stadium | 2,100 |
| Newtown | Newtown | Latham Park | 5,000 |
| Penybont | Bridgend | Bryntirion Park | 3,000 |
| The New Saints |  Oswestry
|
Park Hall | 2,034 |
Personnel and kits
edit| Team | Head coach | Captain | Kit manufacturer | Front shirt sponsor |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aberystwyth Town | Antonio Corbisiero
|
Jack Thorn
|
Acerbis | Aberystwyth University |
| Bala Town | Colin Caton
|
 Chris Venables
|
Macron | Aykroyd's |
| Barry Town United | Gavin Chesterfield
|
Kayne McLaggon
|
Macron | RIM Motors |
| Caernarfon Town | Huw Griffiths
|
Dion Donohue
|
Errea | Gofal Bro Cyf |
| Cardiff Metropolitan University | Christian Edwards
|
Chris Baker
|
Errea | Cardiff Metropolitan University |
| Cefn Druids |  Andy Turner
|
Michael Jones
|
Errea | Wrexham Lager |
| Connah's Quay Nomads | Craig Harrison
|
George Horan
|
Nike | Educate Group[2] |
| Flint Town United | Neil Gibson
|
Alex Jones
|
Macron | Essity |
| Haverfordwest County |  Nicky Hayen
|
Dylan Rees
|
Joma | West Wales Properties |
| Newtown | Chris Hughes
|
Craig T. Williams
|
Errea | Control Techniques |
| Penybont | Rhys Griffiths
|
Kane Owen
|
Macron | Nathaniel House of Cars |
| The New Saints |  Anthony Limbrick
|
Chris Marriott
|
Legea | SiFi Networks |
Managerial changes
edit| Team | Outgoing manager | Manner of departure | Date of vacancy | Position in table | Incoming manager | Date of appointment |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cefn Druids | Jayson Starkey
|
End of caretaker spell | 27 May 2021 | Pre-season | Niall McGuinness[3]
|
27 May 2021 |
| Aberystwyth Town | Gavin Allen
|
Resigned | 2 June 2021 | Antonio Corbisiero[4]
|
2 June 2021 | |
| Cefn Druids | Niall McGuinness[5]
|
24 September 2021 | 12th | Andy Turner (caretaker)
|
24 September 2021 | |
| Connah's Quay Nomads |  Andy Morrison[6]
|
28 September 2021 | 6th | Craig Harrison[7]
|
29 September 2021 | |
| Haverfordwest County | Wayne Jones[8]
|
5 December 2021 | 10th | Nicky Hayen
|
31 December 2021 |
League table
edit| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification[a] |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | The New Saints (C) | 32 | 25 | 5 | 2 | 86 | 26 | +60 | 80 | Qualification for the Champions League first qualifying round |
| 2 | Bala Town | 32 | 16 | 11 | 5 | 67 | 37 | +30 | 59 | Qualification for the Europa Conference League first qualifying round |
| 3 | Newtown | 32 | 15 | 6 | 11 | 50 | 35 | +15 | 51 | |
| 4 | Caernarfon Town (O) | 32 | 13 | 4 | 15 | 46 | 53 | −7 | 43 | Qualification to Scottish Challenge Cup play-offs |
| 5 | Flint Town United | 32 | 12 | 6 | 14 | 51 | 53 | −2 | 42 | |
| 6 | Penybont | 32 | 10 | 10 | 12 | 49 | 57 | −8 | 40 | |
| 7 | Cardiff Metropolitan University | 32 | 10 | 12 | 10 | 35 | 38 | −3 | 42 | Qualification to Scottish Challenge Cup play-offs |
| 8 | Aberystwyth Town | 32 | 11 | 7 | 14 | 38 | 45 | −7 | 40 | |
| 9 | Connah's Quay Nomads | 32 | 15 | 11 | 6 | 44 | 18 | +26 | 38[b] | |
| 10 | Haverfordwest County | 32 | 10 | 8 | 14 | 45 | 46 | −1 | 38 | |
| 11 | Barry Town United (R) | 32 | 8 | 7 | 17 | 31 | 47 | −16 | 31 | Relegation to Cymru North or Cymru South |
| 12 | Cefn Druids (R) | 32 | 2 | 3 | 27 | 22 | 109 | −87 | 9 |
Source: Cymru Premier table
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal difference; 3) Head-to-head points; 4) Goals scored; 5) Matches won.
(C) Champions; (O) Play-off winners; (R) Relegated
Notes:
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal difference; 3) Head-to-head points; 4) Goals scored; 5) Matches won.
(C) Champions; (O) Play-off winners; (R) Relegated
Notes:
Results
edit13 August 2021 – 26 February 2022
Matches 1–22
editMatches 23–32
editScottish Challenge Cup play-offs
editSemi-finals
edit| 7 May 2022 | Flint Town United | 1–1 (3–1 p) | Penybont | The Essity Stadium |
| 14:30 BST (UTC+01) |
| 7 May 2022 | Caernarfon Town | 1–0 | Cardiff Metropolitan University | The Oval, Caernarfon |
| 17:15 BST (UTC+01) |
Final
edit| 14 May 2022 | Caernarfon Town | 2–1 (a.e.t.) | Flint Town United | The Oval, Caernarfon |
| 14:00 BST (UTC+01) |
Season statistics
editTop scorers
edit| Rank | Player | Club | Goals[10] |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Declan McManus
|
The New Saints | 24 |
| 2 | Aaron Williams
|
Newtown | 17 |
| 3 | Jordan Williams
|
The New Saints | 15 |
| 4 | Michael Wilde
|
Flint Town United | 14 |
| Kayne McLaggon
|
Barry Town United |
Hat-tricks
edit| Player | For | Against | Result | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Michael Wilde
|
Flint Town United | Cefn Druids | 4–0 (H) | 21 August 2021 |
| Aaron Williams
|
Newtown | Barry Town United | 0–3 (A) | 2 October 2021 |
| Declan McManus
|
The New Saints | Haverfordwest | 6–0 (H) | 6 November 2021 |
| Nicky Rushton
|
Newtown | Aberystwyth | 2–4 (A) | 10 December 2021 |
| Ben Ahmun
|
Penybont | Aberystwyth | 4–0 (H) | 21 January 2022 |
 Mello
|
Connah's Quay | Cefn Druids | 5–0 (H) | 15 March 2022 |
 Alhagi Touray Sisay
|
Haverfordwest | Aberystwyth | 0–6 (A) | 15 March 2022 |
| Will Evans
|
Bala | Penybont | 0–5 (A) | 2 April 2022 |
| Jazz Richards
|
Haverfordwest | Cefn Druids | 1–6 (A) | 9 April 2022 |
| Jordan Williams
|
The New Saints | Flint Town | 7–0 (H) | 15 April 2022 |
- Notes
(H) – Home team
(A) – Away team
Monthly awards
edit| Month | Manager of the Month | Player of the Month | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Manager | Club | Player | Club | |
| August | Anthony Limbrick | The New Saints | Clayton Green | Barry Town |
| September | Colin Caton | Bala Town | David Edwards | Bala Town |
| October | Chris Hughes | Newtown | Kayne McLaggon | Barry Town |
| November | Antonio Corbisiero | Aberystwyth Town | John Owen | Aberystwyth Town |
| December | Chris Hughes | Newtown | Jordan Williams | The New Saints |
| January | Anthony Limbrick | The New Saints | Harry Franklin | Aberystwyth Town |
| February | Craig Harrison | Connah's Quay | Mike Hayes | Caernarfon Town |
| March | Nicky Hayen | Haverfordwest County | Chris Venables | Bala Town |
Annual awards
edit| Award | Winner | Club |
|---|---|---|
| Manager of the Season | Anthony Limbrick
|
The New Saints |
| Player of the Season | Declan McManus
|
The New Saints |
| Young Player of the Season | Mael Davies
|
Penybont |
| Goal of the Season | Kyle McCarthy
|
Cardiff Met University |
| Team of the Season | |||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Goalkeeper | Oliver Byrne (Connah's Quay Nomads)
| ||||||||||||||
| Defenders | Mael Davies (Penybont)
|
Danny Davies (The New Saints)
|
Nathan Peate (Bala Town)
|
Dion Donohue (Caernarfon)
|
Kane Owen (Penybont)
| ||||||||||
| Midfielders | Daniel Redmond (The New Saints)
|
Ryan Brobbel (The New Saints)
| |||||||||||||
| Forwards | Lifumpa Mwandwe (Newtown)
|
Declan McManus (The New Saints)
|
Will Evans (Bala Town)
| ||||||||||||
Fair Play award
editThe winner for each respective division's FAW Fair Play Table was to be given £1,000 prize money and the FAW Fair Play Trophy.
The winners of the Nationwide Building Society Fair Play Award for the 2021-2022 Cymru Premier season are Connah's Quay Nomads[11]
References
edit- ^ "Cymru Premier scraps relegation and promotion for current season". BBC Sport. 12 April 2021.
- ^ "Champion Nomads announce new Club Sponsor". Connah's Quay Nomads. 9 June 2021.
- ^ "Niall McGuinness: Former Flint and Rhyl boss named new Cefn Druids manager". BBC Sport. 27 May 2021. Retrieved 1 October 2021.
- ^ Jordan Jones (2 June 2021). "Antonio Corbisiero succeeds Gavin Allen as manager of Aberystwyth". Y Clwb Pêl-Droed. Retrieved 1 October 2021.
- ^ Harrison Jones (24 September 2020). "Cefn Druids part company with first-team manager Niall McGuiness". Y Clwb Pêl-Droed. Retrieved 1 October 2021.
- ^ "Andy Morrison: Connah's Quay Nomads manager steps down". BBC Sport. 28 September 2020. Retrieved 1 October 2021.
- ^ "Harrison appointed Nomads' new Head Coach". Connah's Quay Nomads F.C. 29 September 2020. Retrieved 1 October 2021.
- ^ "Club Statement: Wayne Jones". Haverfordwest County F.C. 5 December 2021. Retrieved 5 December 2021.
- ^ "Caernarfon Town replace Connah's Quay Nomads in JD Cymru Premier Championship Conference". www.cymrufootball.wales.
- ^ "Top Scorers - Welsh Premier League - Football". BBC Sport. Retrieved 24 December 2019.
- ^ FAW (29 June 2022). "NATIONWIDE BUILDING SOCIETY FAIR PLAY AWARD WINNERS 2021/22". FAW. Retrieved 29 June 2022.