CARMARTHEN Town were never destined to lift the Welsh Cup, let alone qualify for Europe for the first time in their 51-year history.

It is one of the injustices of the season.

Having seen the European goalposts moved by Uefa, Carmarthen were within six minutes of European football only to see their passports ripped up by a heart-breaking equaliser and a superb penalty save by a goalkeeper playing on appeal.

It really was gut-wrenching stuff for the Richmond Park outfit who had the better of a totally dire affair which only sprang to life in the second period of extra-time before peaking with a tense penalty shoot-out.

‘‘I feel sorry for Carmarthen,’’ admitted Inter manager George Wood. ‘‘It’s a harsh game and they didn’t deserve to lose on penalties.

‘‘I thought Carmarthen deserved to win it over the 90 minutes.’’

The less said about the opening 90 minutes though the better as the BBC were left to rue the decision to screen the Penydarren Park affair live to the nation. It was probably the worst Welsh Cup final on record.

Inter were their usual direct self, delivering long, quick balls to their front two of Paul Evans and Simon Dyer.

While it’s a style which, while not pretty, is usually effective and taken Inter into second place in the League of Wales and Europe, this time they found a Carmarthen defence in resolute mood as Matthew Cable, David Barnhouse and Wyn Thomas, in particular, dominated.

At least Carmarthen, to their credit, tried to play. In fact, they created the only real chance of the half as a neat move involving Steve Williams, Tony Rees and Nigel Nicholas set up Swansea University student Siôn Meredith for a shot which Gary Wager did well to push wide.

The fact that the first real chance of the game came two minutes before the interval summed up the final encounter.

It did open up a bit in the second-half as Paul Evans turned well inside the area to force Carmarthen’s Robert Fitzgerald into a fine 56th minute save.

The rest of the game belonged to Carmarthen as Meredith fired a 20-yard shot against Wager’s far post before the former Merthyr ’keeper pushed a Ryan Nicholls free-kick over the bar. Quality football remained in short supply, however, as the first period of extra-time dwindled away. But, at least the second period produced some excitement.

With 113 minutes on the clock, a Cable flick found substitute Paul Burrows. And, when Burrows picked out Meredith in space, the 21-year-old chipped a neat finish over Wager to break the stalemate and send Carmarthen’s large following into a frenzy.

But no sooner had they started to plan their European excursion, two minutes to be precise, Darren Poretta picked up a Samir Misbah flick to lob the ball over the helpless Fitzgerald. From joy to sorrow in one fell swoop.

Carmarthen even had their noses in-front in the penalty shoot out after Steve Mardenborough saw his opening spot kick saved by Fitzgerald.

Ryan Nicholls and Matthew Cable converted their penalties for Carmarthen to counter those of John Wile and Chris Williams, only for Inter to find themselves back on level terms when Wager saved Burrows’s effort.

Substitute Simon Tyler put Inter in the driving seat for the first time when Wyn Thomas saw his effort tipped over superbly by Wager. The fact that Wager was only allowed to play after winning an FAW appeal over a recent sending-off, made it harder to stomach. It left Misbah, the semi-final hero, to strike the crucial blow for Inter as he squeezed the ball past Fitzgerald for victory.

Carmarthen, who had been informed by the FAW before their semi-final success against Conwy that they would be guaranteed a place in Europe just by reaching the final, were left with nothing after an Uefa ruling gave league standing the preference.

Manager Tomi Morgan, who had won the Welsh Cup with Llansantffraid on penalties three seasons ago, was left to taste the bitterness of defeat. ‘‘It is a cruel way to end it,’’ explained Morgan. ‘‘I thought we did enough in the second-half and extra-time to win it.’’

Wood had to agree: ‘‘When they took the lead I thought it was all over. But we dogged it out and it’s not surprising that Gary Wager has won our player of the year award by a mile.’’

The least the game’s governing body can do now is guarantee Carmarthen a place in the FAW Premier Cup next season!

TOMI MORGAN is just 90 minutes away from getting his hands on the Welsh Cup for the second time in three years.

The Carmarthen Town supremo lifted the famous trophy in 1996 as skipper and star striker of Mid Walians Llansantffraid.

Now player-manager Morgan, who is cup-tied on Sunday, will lead from the sideline when his charges take on cup favourites Inter Cable-Tel at Merthyr’s Penydarren Park on Sunday (2.30).

But the man who has made such a huge impact at Richmond Park since arriving in West Wales from Rhayader in January, is hoping his winning experience will help his players’ cause.

‘‘I know what it is like to lift the trophy, and I can tell you it is a wonderful feeling,’’ said Morgan. ‘‘The cup run has really kept the season alight. Carmarthen have never been beyond the fourth round before.

‘‘Now we stand on the verge of winning the trophy and qualifying for the UEFA Cup.

‘‘We are underdogs. We finished ninth in the League of Wales while Inter have ended up second, which says a lot, but as the old cliché says, the cup has a certain magic about it, and we have not got this far just to be satisfied with a nice day out.’’

Morgan estimates around 1,500 Town fans will make the 50-mile trip to Merthyr.

‘‘There is tremendous interest in the final and I can only ask the players to give it their all against Inter. They have some good players. Their two front-runners, Simon Dyer and Paul Evans are a handful, and Gary Wager in goal is among the best in Wales.

‘‘Having said that, we will be concentrating on taking advantage of one or two areas of play.’’

Morgan’s hopes of a cup final triumph have been boosted by the news that, bar late problems, he will have a fully fit squad to pick from. We left out the likes of Tony Rees, Ryan Nicholls and Nigel Nicholas for our league game last week with Newtown because we have had quite a few matches in quick succession.

‘‘Hopefully, the rest will have done them good. I don’t think they will need any motivating, at least I hope not.’’

Morgan also dismissed fears that confusion over whether or not Carmarthen had qualified for Europe by reaching the final would distract his side from the task in hand.

‘‘People think we have been having a go at the FAW over this issue, but all we are asking for is a clear picture to start with,’’ added Morgan.

‘‘When we played against Conwy in the semi-final we were under the impression that because Inter were going to qualify for the UEFA Cup by finishing second in the league, we would be guaranteed the place in the competition allocated to the Welsh Cup by reaching the final.

‘‘That has happened in England with Newcastle, so I have no idea at all why Wales should be different. In the end we have had a little moan in the press, but we are not going to change a thing.

‘‘At the end of the day we desperately want to win the cup and the place in Europe for the winners is a huge added incentive.

‘‘It would be a dream for football in West Wales if we were in the UEFA Cup. It’s the biggest prize in this club’s history and we are raring to go.’’

CARMARTHEN TOWN may not have quite as large a budget as Manchester United, but their European dreams are just as big. While the Red Devils prepare to take on Bayern Munich in Spain, the RSU Windows sponsored Richmond Park outfit are hoping to become Welsh Cup kings, thereby securing a chance for European glory for the first time in their history.

Football in Carmarthen has seen a lot of changes since Thomas Trumper formed the first ever Carmarthen Town Association Football Club shortly after the First World War. Never though, has a team reached the heights of the current twinkle toed wonders.

Beating Caernarfon Town against all the odds last month has catapulted them into the final of the Welsh Cup against Inter Cable Tel at Merthyr Penydarren Park on Sunday May 9.

And a victory there would mean not only a place in the BBC's FAW Premier Cup, playing the likes of Wrexham and Cardiff, but also a UEFA Cup berth. Reaching the final is a new milestone in a six-year period which has seen a massive upturn in fortunes for the club, as spelled out by the Chairman Jeff Thomas.

Along with the sponsorship of RSU Windows and others, Jeff feels that much of the club's success is due to its appeal to all ages and sexes through its many teams: "The advancement of senior football is not our only concern. "Our contribution to junior football (six teams) and women's football is significant." He also recognised the efforts of the people who keep things over: "As Chairman I'm indebted to a loyal band of volunteers who tirelessly for the good of the community it serves."

He added: "It's a club with a heart."

Carmarthen Town will have to win Sunday's Welsh Cup final if they want to play in Europe next season.

And Town manager Tomi Morgan yesterday accused the Football Association of Wales of moving the goalposts in the club's battle for a place in Europe.

The FAW had told the club that if their cup final opponents Inter CableTel finished second in the League of Wales, Carmarthen would be guaranteed a place in the UEFA Cup.

The club have now been told, however, that they have to beat favourites Inter in the final for a European berth.

"Before our semi-final against Conwy, we were led to believe that if Inter were runners-up in the League of Wales and won the Welsh Cup, the losers would play in the UEFA Cup." said a livid Tomi Morgan.

"But the goalposts have been moved. Although Inter have finished second to Barry Town in the league, we have now been told by the FAW that we must win the cup to join them in Europe."

Officials at the club have urged local people to turn up in force for Sunday's final at Merthyr's Penydarren Park.

One said: "The support in the semi-final was unbelievable and we'll need the same again. We'd like to see everyone in town make the trip on Sunday and get behind the team."

TOWN MANAGER Tomi Morgan has proved to he the spark that has ignited the potential of side full of quality and verve. His appointment in December has borne fruit and in 24 games since, the side has suffered four defeats.

Chairman Jeff Thomas, a big influence in the decision to bring Tomi to Richmond Park, said: "His track record with Rhayader was superb. He was approached and jumped at the opportunity, recognising the potential within the club.

"We've still got the same nucleus of players we had under John Mahoney which shows his wisdom in bringing in the right players. They needed a bit of time to gel and Tomi certainly had the right ingredients.

His great strengths of dedication, discipline' communication and determination have rubbed off on the players to an extent that we've climbed from the foot of the table to our best ever position in the League."

The fact that Tomi has recently been appointed as the coach of the Welsh semi-professional side for a clash with England is an indication of his ability. He has already won the Welsh Cup coaching Llansantffraid and Malcolm Williams, operations manager at the club feels that he is the final cog in the mechanism.

"There's a lot of heart gone into this," he said of the club reaching the Welsh Cup Final. "Things are very professional and the icing on the cake has been Tomi joining us in December. He's completed the Jigsaw."

The manager himself will not he drawn on the possibility of playing in the UEFA Cup, which will become a reality if his team win the Cup. He stays fully focused on the final itself against Cardiff side Inter Cable Tel in Merthyr on Sunday. He said about Europe: "Let's get there first I don't want to give anything away but I've got a game plan which we'll be working on and I'm sure that Inter will have one to try to beat us. "Obviously Inter are the favourites because their league position is much better than ours and league positions don't lie. "But in a cup final it's all down to the day, and I think we've proved that we can beat anyone on our day."