Dial M for Merthyr

Should we leave and play at Penydarren Boys Club  with our current ground mothballed until we reach the National League? The basic  premise for this extreme solution to a problem that probably only exists inside my  paranoid mind is that our ground is too nice, comfortable, welcoming and it inspires our  opposition. It’s also a burden on our finances but more on that later.   One of the attractions for me growing up following the Martyrs was visiting other  Southern League grounds and experiencing a big match atmosphere, mostly without  any of that 80s and 90s terrace nonsense that seemed to haunt the professional game.  It wasn’t always peaceful of course, no police presence meant that if there was trouble  it would escalate quickly, but the grounds were full of atmosphere and you could sense  the shared terrace history of clubs like Worcester City, Kidderminster Harriers,  Cheltenham Town, Bromsgrove Rovers and Bath City.   Things have changed, as they must of course, but now away da

I’m hoping this article will provide a cathartic release from the whole Farnborough debacle, from the home club’s pathetic response to the attacks (there were notable exceptions of course), the initial reaction by the media, the ineffectual investigation by the Hampshire Police and the realization that justice on this septic isle is out of the reach of the working classes. I also want to put the record straight for those if you who choose to read this. What really happened on December 4th 2021. The annual “Christmas Jumper” trip was one of the highlights for Martyrs fans in any season; a chance to be silly, wear daft festive fashions, meet exiled fans and lately raise money for local charities. Some of the toys donated by Merthyr fans at Harrow in 2020 In 2020 hundreds of Merthyr fans donated toys for the fans on the Christmas Jumper to take to Harrow Borough to distribute to children affected by the Grenfell Tower disaster. As usual the people of Merthyr Tydfil rose to the occasio

This is how a matchday at PP looked after the businessmen who owned our club ran it into the ground back 2008.

 

 

 

It’s the 30 th April 1924 and Merthyr Town are in the Welsh Cup Final for the first time.   A 2-1 semi-final victory at Penydarren Park in front of 10,000 fans over local rivals and fellow Football League members Aberdare Athletic means that the Red & Greens faced Wales’s oldest club and the Welsh Cup’s perennial winners Wrexham AFC in the Final tie to be played at Taff Vale Park near Pontypridd.   Taff Vale Park was the home of Pontypridd FC at that time and had hosted a previous Welsh Cup Final two years earlier when Cardiff City had hoisted the famous trophy after a 2-0 win over Ton Pentre. Pontypridd FC were members of the Southern League from 1911 until their demise in 1926 (their first game at Taff Vale Park had been for the visit of Queen’s Park Rangers). The venue though had been a multi-sports arena from the 1890s when it was built for Pontypridd RFC. Sports such as athletics, greyhound racing, speedway, cycling, rugby league, boxing contests and even baseball would