Nodiadau Awst 2001 /
August 2002 Notes
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TOTAL NETWORK SOLUTIONS 18/08/01 A VERY good afternoon to you all and a welcome to a brand
new season. I hope that our visitors
today from the delightful rural area of North Powys will enjoy their European
adventure as much as we did here in Carmarthen last June. The visit to Stockholm was
indeed a memorable one as far as I’m concerned and an experience I will never
forget. I was one of the Club Officials in the Directors’ Box at the
magnificent Rasunda Stadium in Stockholm and sitting just in front of us was
the United Kingdom Ambassador to Sweden and his family whilst just behind was
the Swedish National Team Manager. Now, I’m not name-dropping but just
highlighting the fact that only six years ago it would have been
inconceivable that we would be in such illustrious surroundings. Also, In the marble halls of the Stadium
below the stands a progress chart of the World Cup finals in Sweden in 1958
caught the eye when Wales progressed so magnificently to the quarter finals
only to go down 1-0 to Brazil at that very Stadium without, unfortunately,
the presence of the great John Charles who was injured. When the two teams walked out
side by side and shook hands with each other in accordance with the UEFA fair
play policy, I did indeed feel very proud of the players especially as that
they had performed so well in the first leg which gave us a realistic chance
of producing a result at Stockholm. I
also felt pride for the Officers within the Club who by their industry and
vision over the last five years had given us the opportunity to play in such
a magnificent environment. As usual, the summer has proved
to be a hive of activity within the Club and as our Chairman so often
emphasises the preparatory work of the summer is often just as important as
that undertaken in season. In fact, he
has himself been extremely busy in piecing together sponsorship packages for
the forthcoming year. And just look
at the ground in front of you - after three summers of hard work, the
drainage has been completed. Since
April alone 120 tons of sand and 60 tons of loam have been laid, the turf has
been retreated and the Carmarthenshire County Council have re-seeded the
ground with seeds of the same kind that are used at Old Trafford. With also
the completion of the sand slitting you can imagine what the costs have been.
Looking at the paintwork on the outer walls of the dressing rooms and TV
studios etc., you can see that they are now in the colours of the RSU
Company, which of course are our Main Sponsors and which is indeed very
appropriate and the Club’s Operations Manager has asked me to refer to the
excellent work undertaken here by Willie Thomas and Jonathan Lewis. Finally, enjoy today’s game and
indeed for the rest of the season and, who knows, a top three position at the
end of the season and another European venture would indeed be something to
savour!. This afternoon heralds the start
of another season which I am sure is going to be an interesting one. Everyone is full of optimism at this time
of the year, including myself, but I am also a realist, and this coming
campaign is going to be no picnic. We
probably have the toughest start of all the clubs. Today we entertain TNS and then we travel to Newtown and Barry
and that’s just for starters!! Many people have been under the
impression that I would sign a host of new players for the coming season –
well, they couldn’t have been more wrong.
Dean Johnston has joined us from Afan Lido and he will be a valuable
addition to our squad. Jody Thomas is
a youngster who has shown some real promise along with Luke Fayers in our
pre-season friendlies, and will also be included in our squad for the
season. That is not to say that I
won’t be signing anyone in the coming weeks. Players have to have the right attitude and application
before I will entertain signing them
for this club and if they don’t offer something that we haven’t got at
present, then I won’t sign them. Last season’s efforts rewarded
us with a place in European football, an experience which I am sure everyone
would like to repeat. Not too many
supporters were able to make the awkward journey to Sweden, but the support
we had for our ‘home’ tie was absolutely fantastic. Over the two legs, I thought the players’ performances were
truly outstanding against AIK, a team with a
wealth of European
experience. The organisation for the
home tie and the travel arrangements for the away leg, plus a host of other
things, spoke volumes about how this club is run. One familiar face that will be
missing this afternoon is my trusted right-hand man, Ray Davies who,
unfortunately, hasn’t been well for the past few months. It’s a big blow to Ray, as he loves his
football, but the most important thing is that he makes a full recovery as I
know he will. However long that
takes, Ray won’t be replaced. He has
played a major part in how Carmarthen has evolved as a club and his presence,
experience and humour will be missed.
We all wish him a speedy recovery and hope he gets back as soon as
possible. |