Barry Town United returned to winning ways in emphatic fashion on Friday night, securing a 4-1 victory over Llandudno at Jenner Park.
Goals from Elliott Dugan, Noah Daley, Daniel Barton and Ellis Williams secured all three points for The Town as they responded strongly to last weekend’s narrow defeat at The New Saints.
Barry made two changes to the starting XI, with James Lester and Jack Shaw coming into the side, while 15-year-old goalkeeper Charlie Jackson was named among the substitutes.
The Town almost made the perfect start inside the opening minute. Shaw produced some excellent work down the left before the ball eventually found Mikey George, whose first-time effort flashed narrowly past the post.
Moments later, George released Daley through on goal, but his first-time effort was kept out by the Llandudno goalkeeper.
Barry’s fast start was rewarded when Dugan was brought down by the goalkeeper inside the area, leaving the referee to point to the penalty spot.
Dugan stepped up and confidently converted from 12 yards in the sixth minute to give The Town an early 1-0 advantage.
Barry continued to control proceedings and doubled their advantage in the 14th minute through Noah Daley.
The striker showed excellent determination to prevent the ball from running out of play before driving towards goal. Daley took the ball into the area and got his shot away, with the effort eventually finding its way into the back of the net to make it 2-0 to The Town.
It was Daley’s first goal for Barry Town United, having joined the club from Penybont last month.
The visitors began to threaten as the half progressed, but Barry’s defence remained strong. Will Richards produced an excellent challenge inside the area to halt one attack, while George Ratcliffe comfortably dealt with a number of crosses into his box.
At the other end, Shaw continued to cause problems down the left, while Dugan and Daley combined effectively in attack.
Daley went close again after breaking into the area before finding Dugan, whose effort was deflected. The striker then attempted an overhead kick as the move continued, although an offside flag brought the attack to an end.
Barry almost added a third in the 37th minute. A superb left-footed pass from George released Williams, who drove into the area before seeing his effort tipped over the crossbar.
Two minutes later, Daley produced an excellent first touch to break through the Llandudno defence, but his shot rolled narrowly wide of the post.
The visitors enjoyed their best spell of the half shortly before the interval. Ratcliffe was called upon to make a save from the edge of the area before a free header inside the Barry box somehow missed the target.
Despite the late pressure, The Town headed into the break with a deserved two-goal advantage.
SECOND HALF
Barry continued to create chances after the restart, with Daley dragging an effort wide after being released by a long ball from Barton.
The third arrived shortly afterwards following some excellent combination play between George and Barton.
George found Barton on the right edge of the penalty area, and the midfielder produced a superb left-footed curling strike which found the net to make it 3-0.
Barton almost repeated the trick minutes later. After a short corner involving George, he attempted another curling effort from a similar position, but this time the Llandudno goalkeeper was able to punch the ball away.
The visitors were handed an opportunity to get themselves back into the contest midway through the second half when the referee was advised to review an incident at the VAR monitor.
Following the review, Llandudno were awarded a penalty and converted from the spot in the 67th minute to reduce Barry’s advantage to 3-1.
The goal gave the visitors renewed momentum, but Barry continued to create opportunities of their own.
Dugan raced through one-on-one in the 78th minute and attempted to lift the ball over the goalkeeper, only to see his effort drift narrowly wide.
Daley then came even closer two minutes later. The striker rounded the goalkeeper and fired towards an empty net, but a Llandudno defender produced a goal-line clearance to deny him a second of the evening.
Daley’s evening came to an end in the 82nd minute as Daniel Smith was introduced in his place.
The closing stages became increasingly heated. A challenge on George sparked a confrontation between the two sides before the referee showed a yellow card to the Llandudno player involved.
Deep into stoppage time, Smith raced through on goal before being brought down by Kieran Smith.
The referee initially produced a yellow card before being advised to review the incident at the pitchside monitor. Following the VAR review, the decision was upgraded to a red card, reducing Llandudno to ten men.
There was still time for Barry to put the finishing touch on an impressive evening.
In the eighth minute of stoppage time, Ellis Williams found the net to make it 4-1, sealing a convincing victory at Jenner Park.
The final whistle eventually brought an eventful evening to a close as The Town responded to their first defeat of the campaign with three points in front of the Jenner Park faithful.
FULL-TIME: Barry Town United 4-1 Llandudno
Barry Town United: Ratcliffe, George, Williams, Sainty, Daley, Barton, Wharton, Lester, Dugan, Shaw, Richards.
Substitutes: Jackson, Crosbie, Schwank, Smith, Bernard.
