Barry Town United have announced the signing of former Wales under-21 international Lee Lucas from National League South outfit, Taunton Town.
The incoming 31-year-old adds a wealth of experience to the Town midfield, boasting appearances in the English football league.
The midfielder started his career with Swansea City where he gained caps at Wales under-17, 19 and 21 level before loan spells with League Two sides Burton Albion and Cheltenham Town.
After a season with Motherwell in the Scottish Premiership, Lucas eventually settled in his native country, making over 60 appearances for Merthyr Town before his most recent three-year spell with Taunton Town in the South-West of England where he has made 13 appearances this season.
Lucas is Steve Jenkins’ first signing of the January transfer window subject to international clearance.
Welcoming Lee to the club, Jenkins has said: “I’ve always been an admirer of Lee as a footballer, he’s hugely experienced with loads of quality and fits the profile of player we want at the club to take us forward.”
On his signing, Lee Lucas commented: “I’m delighted to have joined such a historic club in Welsh football. I’m excited to link up with Steve and to help the club push up the table as we step into Phase two of the campaign.”
The club would like to thank Taunton Town for their cooperation with the transfer.
Jenner Park, Barry / JD Welsh Cup Round 3 / Saturday 11 November 2023
Barry Town booked a place in the last sixteen of the Welsh Cup thanks to a 94th minute match-winner against Guilsfield from substitute Sam Snaith.
Breaking down the right, Kayne McLaggon’s cross saw Snaith get ahead of his marker to volley the ball home from close range.
Saturday’s match was the first ever meeting between the two sides, with Barry hosting the mid-Wales club, who are currently sixth in Cymru North, a division below the home side.
It was a stronger Barry side than recent weeks, with defenders Chris Hugh and Curtis McDonald returning from injury to start the game.
Hugh had the game’s first real chance, his seventeenth minute shot from the left cannoning back off the post.
At the other end, Guilsfield’s Andy Evans was proving a handful, heading one chance over the bar and forcing Barry ‘keeper Luc Rees into action with another effort.
Although dominating first half possession, Barry failed to find the net. The best chances before the break fell to Ollie Hulbert and Jamie Veale, but both were saved by visiting keeper, Robbie Williams.
In the second half, Barry’s first chance again came to Chris Hugh. Jordan Cotterill laid the ball back for Hugh to shoot, but his effort went over the bar.
Barry then hit the woodwork for a second time. From a corner, a Callum Sainty shot took a deflection and hit the bar. The attack continued until an acrobatic effort from McLaggon was saved by the ‘keeper.
Guilsfield also had their chances, with Evans again shooting from distance and Izaack Lambert seeing his header saved by Rees.
The visitors have won on penalties three times this season and, with time ticking away, they seemed to accept a goal-less draw and were preparing for spot kicks.
Then came McLaggon’s cross, and Snaith’s match-winning goal.
Barry travel to Caernarfon Town on Sunday for an away match at the fifth placed club in the Cymru Premier.
Jenner Park, Barry / JD Cymru Premier / Saturday 21 October 2023
Attendance: 340
The scoreline shows that Barry were well beaten by league leaders, The New Saints, but the match itself had a different feel.
After an hour, Barry had equalised to make it 1-1, but the professional side turned the screws and scored five in a second half similar to Barry’s 6-0 win over Porthcawl last week.
In a frenetic start, the first chance came to Barry after less than thirty seconds, Keenan Patten firing narrowly over the bar with a shot outside the box.
At the other end, goalkeeper Luc Rees pushed away an on target effort from Gary Brobbel.
Brobbel hit the post before Saints took a 20th minute lead. A Barry corner was cleared and Brad Young ran the length of the pitch before scoring past Rees. A frustrating goal to concede.
Rees was again on top form in saving from Young a few minutes later.
Just after an hour, Barry levelled. This time, TNS failed to clear a near post corner and it bounced across the box for Ollie Hulbert to head in.
Sadly, that scoreline lasted only five minutes as Brobbel’s free-kick was headed in unchallenged by Danny Davies at the near post.
Suddenly, the ball found itself within the Barry six yard box with uncomfortably frequency, the Saints scoring four goals in a 15 minute spell.
Brad Young scored the third and Josh Daniels the fourth, both goal poaching within the six yard box as Barry failed to clear their lines.
A cross from Adrian Cieslewicz was turned into his own net by Barry defender Troy Greening as he tried to clear, while Young scored his hat-trick with the sixth goal.
Barry gained some consolation, with Hulbert’s 93rd minute header crossing the line, from Harrison Bright’s cross.
Barry now face two crunch Cymru Premier matches, Colwyn Bay away next Saturday then Aberystwyth at home on Saturday, 4th November.
Jenner Park, Barry / JD Cymru Premier / Tuesday 17 October 2023
Attendance: 371
A dominant Barry performance saw them take revenge over the club of former boss, Lee Kendall.
The home side were in charge of the game from the start, with hometown boy, captain Kayne McLaggon, making his 200th appearance in a Barry shirt since signing in 2017.
McLaggon almost opened the scoring in the sixth minute, his blistering effort from the edge of the box being pushed onto the bar by Ponty ‘keeper, George Ratcliffe.
It was a busy night for Ratcliffe, probably the best ‘keeper in the Cymru Premier, who played on loan at Barry in 2019.
Barry opened the scoring in the 13th minute. McLaggon and Hulbert created space on the left for a low cross. Keenan Patten dummied the shot and then Harrison Bright steamed in at the far post to shoot low past Ratcliffe.
The second goal came on the half-hour. A corner from the Barry left was inexplicably handled by Jarrad Wright and immediately given as a penalty.
McLaggon’s penalty was saved by Ratcliffe as he dived to his left, but he could only parry, leaving Kayne to put the ball into an open net.
At the start of the second half, a low cross from Rhys Davies was almost met by Jamie Veale, but he couldn’t direct the shot towards goal, while Ratcliffe pulled off two saves from both Patten and McLaggon.
It could have been 3-0 in the 81st minute, with Mike George and Hulbert setting up McLaggon, but his final touch took the ball wide.
With eight minutes of second half injury time played, Barry boss Steve Jenkins was pleased when his side not just won the match, but kept a clean sheet with it.
Although out of the Cymru Premier relegation zone, Barry’s bounceback faces a tough challenge in leader leaders The New Saints on Saturday (2:30pm kick off). The clubs drew 2-2 at Oswestry earlier in the season.
Barry manager, Steve Jenkins, has appointed a new assistant manager in Jonathan Jones.
Jonathan brings plenty of experience to the club, previously being a goalkeeper for AFC Llywdcoed and Penrhiwceiber in the Welsh League, as well as working within a range of professional club academies in a variety of positions.
Those appointments included goalkeeping coach, analyst, and assistant head of coaching.
More recently, Jonathan was Manager of Pontypridd Town, who steered Ponty to Cymru South success in the 2021-22 season when the Dragons were promoted to the Cymru Premier.
Jonathan is a current UEFA/FAW Pro Licence candidate, and works as a lecturer in football coaching at the University of South Wales.
Jonathan is excited by his new role at the club, and told us:
“I’m delighted to be working with Steve Jenkins, who is a great person from a highly experienced playing and managerial background.
I’m also excited to have joined the Town, a club with great people, a long history of success and supported by a large, loyal fan-base.”
Jenner Park, Barry / JD Welsh Cup / Saturday 14 October 2023
Attendance: 306
Barry cruised to a place in Round Three of the JD Welsh Cup with a flurry of second half goals, sealing a 6-0 win over Porthcawl Town Athletic at Jenner Park.
After the expected domination in the opening half, Michael George’s 26th minute opener was long overdue but Town continued to be mostly frustrated by a resolute defence by the Seasiders.
An overlapping run combined with a pinpoint Ollie Hulbert pass allowed for the Town wing-back to fire his effort into the upright of the netting at Andrew Fisher’s near post.
Jordan Cotterill doubled the Town lead on 58 minutes when a silky through ball from substitute Troy Greening allowed Cotterill his first goal of the season with a composed one-on-one finish.
In similar fashion to Cotterill, Hulbert got in on the action when he penetrated a gaping hole in the backline, slotting past Fisher just past the hour mark.
It didn’t take long for Callum Huggins to leave his mark on the second half. A Harrison Bright cross from the left hand side was nodded in from close range by the 18-year-old for his second goal from the bench in as many matches.
Kayne McLaggon made it 5-0 in quick succession, with the captain following similar suite to earlier goals, Cotterill feeding a through ball for the captain to become the fifth name on the scoresheet.
McLaggon secured a brace late on with Cotterill recording a hat-trick of assists, squaring a simple ball to the Barry striker to rub further salt into the Porthcawl wound.
With a league fixture against Pontypridd United just three days after the Welsh Cup Second Round, the Town opted to force a guaranteed place in Round Three of the draw with an imbalance of quality against a midtable, fourth tier Porthcawl Town side.
An array of chances came for the hosts in the first half, Rhys Davies set the intentions within the first minute when he found his way into the Porthcawl box before firing over.
A rare chance came for the visitors after 42 minutes with Evan Press disputing a foul, Jonah Lewis and Jordan Marks were able to link up on the edge of the Barry box before the latter failed to trouble Luc Rees with the effort.
The Town were prolific in the second half with substitutes impressing and total professionalism of a Cymru Premier outfit being shown when everything they touched turned to gold for a five-goal second half.
Barry host Porthcawl tomorrow at Jenner Park at 2pm in a Welsh Cup 2nd Round fixture in what is the first ever meeting in any competition between the two clubs.
Barry have had some recent success in the Welsh Cup, being Semi Finalists in 2012-13, and again in 2018-19. We’re also 6 times winners of the competition, having won it in 1954-55, 1993-94, 1996-97, and a famous treble of wins in 2000-01, 2001-02 and 2002-03.
This season also marks the 30th anniversary of the fabulous 1993-94 Welsh Cup campaign which took us all the way to Cup Final glory at the National Stadium in Cardiff, beating much-fancied Cardiff City 2-1 in the process.
We’ve a long way to go to emulate that success, and Porthcawl Town will almost certainly prove stiff opposition for us tomorrow. It’s the magic of the Cup. Anything can happen!
Cyncoed Campus, Cardiff / JD Cymru Premier / Friday 6 October 2023
Attendance: 402
A first ever senior Barry Town goal for Callum Higgins gave fans hope for a late comeback, but Barry were beaten 2-1 by Cardiff Met at Cyncoed last Friday night.
Barry now face three home games in a week as they look to improve their season – at home to Porthcawl Town in the Welsh Cup, then Pontypridd on Tuesday 17th (7:45pm) and champions, TNS on Saturday, 21st (2:30pm).
Steve Jenkins’s injury list increased with midfielder Jamie Veale ruled out of last Friday’s game, one of six players missing from the starting line-up.
Barry keeper Luc Rees did well to turn Elliott Evans’s free-kick onto the post early in the game. There were chances at both ends after 15 minutes. Aiden Lewis’s low shot from the edge of the box forced a save from Met keeper Alex Lang, but Met broke quickly, and Rees was quick off his line to stop Tom Vincent from shooting.
Barry’s best chance of the first half came after 33 minutes, when Harrison Bright’s ball down the right saw Ollie Hulbert outpace his marker, but his shot went into the side netting.
Met took the lead at the start of the second half. Vincent headed down for Elliott Evans to ghost between two Barry defenders and his left footed shot from the edge of the box gave Rees no chance.
The hosts made it 2-0 after 55 minutes. Met’s Lewis Rees managed to slide his pass behind the Barry defence and a first time effort from Harry Owen hit the back of the net.
Barry pressed at the other end, with chances falling to Jordan Cotterrill and Keenan Patten.
They eventually made a breakthrough in injury time when Ben Blythe’s cross from the left was netted by substitute Huggins from close range, but it was too late to change the outcome.
Jenner Park, Barry / JD Cymru Premier / Saturday 30 September 2023
Attendance: 471
Barry will feel a little bruised and disappointed with themselves as a clinical Caernarfon Town brushed them aside at Jenner Park.
Playing their third tough Cymru Premier game in a week, Steve Jenkins had to shuffle his side again due to injury, with Luc Rees making a competitive debut replacing Mike Lewis in goal, and three first choice defenders missing.
Luc Rees marked his competitive debut for the Town.
Barry’s best chance of the match came after 20 minutes when the visitors struggled with clearing a corner and Harrison Bright’s cross across the face of goal was almost poked home by Kayne McLaggon.
The Caernarfon opener came out of the blue after 27 minutes. A long ball into the box wasn’t cleared and Zack Clarke teed himself up at the edge of the penalty area before lashing past Rees in the Barry goal.
Barry could have equalised when Caernarfon’s defenders misjudged their own free-kick, but despite the presence of McLaggon, Ollie Hulbert and Keenan Patten, they couldn’t punish the mistake.
Caernarfon doubled their lead just before half-time. Again the ball into the box should have been cleared but a slip by Mike George was costly, allowing Marc Williams time to advance and shoot past Rees.
The visitors nearly scored a third early in the second half, but Luc Rees made an excellent double save from Adam Davies, who won the header from a corner, and was again first to the ball when Rees parried it away.
Sadly the third goal came from a Barry mistake. With Barry taking a quick free-kick, it was Caernarfon’s Marc Williams who reacted first and headed towards goal, allowing him to square the ball for Davies to finish from close range and make it 3-0.
Barry travel to face Cardiff Met on Friday night (7:45pm kick off) and then host Porthcawl Town at Jenner Park in the Welsh Cup on Saturday, 14 October (2pm kick off).
SDM Glass Stadium, Bryntirion / JD Cymru Premier / Tuesday 26 September 2023
Attendance: 863
Barry fell to a 1-0 defeat to Penybont at SDM Glass Stadium following their opening win in the JD Cymru Premier on Saturday.
Despite a resilient effort from the Town, it was Chris Venables’ 20th minute acrobatic effort that separated the two sides in his Cymru Premier record 537th appearance.
After defeating Bala Town convincingly on Saturday, Curtis MacDonald and Evan Press were both absent from the squad against Penybont, requiring reinforcements at the back, including a first start for Ben Blythe.
Harrison Bright and Mike George both showed positive intent inside 10 minutes with efforts from range failing to challenge the keeper.
Penybont caught Mike Lewis on the edge of his box attempting to clear a long ball with a foul on Keyon Reffell, although the hosts couldn’t make the free-kick count.
Ollie Hulbert continued his arial threat with a header from a Davies corner, cleared off the line in the second half.
Harrison Bright and Kayne McLaggon shortly followed Hulbert’s chance, linking up down the right-hand side, the captain’s dangerous, low cross finding no one across the six-yard area.
Hulbert beat the offside trap looking for an equaliser, when he was eventually held up, he beat two defenders in the process of getting his shot underway, only for McLaggon to get in the way of his effort.
Rhys Davies also went close late on, with a floated in cross finding his feet before firing over.
