Knighton Town 0 Radnor Valley 1

STEVE Morgan etched his name into Radnor Valley folklore as the Goats overcame local rivals Knighton Town to be crowned Aspidistra Radnorshire Cup winners for the first time in their history.

A solitary goal proved the difference as the villagers lifted the silverware in front of a bumper crowd in Presteigne on Sunday

Manager Paul Morgan praised his his history makers, saying: “Words can’t describe how proud I am of every Radnor player. They deserve this cup and the celebration.

“We defended well all game as a team with Knighton putting us under pressure especially in the final 10 minutes with their set pieces.”

“I could bang on how good every player was on the day but a special mention has to go Ieuan Price who marked his return from long term injury with a high level performance.

“Elliot Morris and Ieuan have been with Radnor since they played in the Mid Wales South and were true leaders for Radnor.”

Ten time champions Knighton started the game as favourites against a Valley side which made its last of two final appearances in 1972.

An evenly contested final yielded few clear openings with Knighton’s Connor Bird and Shaun Prince both seeing efforts blocked while Declan Beddoes headed wide on the stroke of half-time.

However Valley enjoyed a dream start to the second-half with Callum Matthews cutting inside and crossing for Morgan to head beyond goalkeeper Joe Prosser and send the travelling New Radnor support into rapture.

Player-manager Adam Worton fired just over with a 20 yard free-kick as Knighton probed for an equaliser.

The remainder of the final saw Valley threaten to double their advantage with ex-Robin Dewi Allen heading over against his former side.

Knighton continued to threaten at the other end with Dan Farmer steering just wide while Bird forced a smart save from Valley goalkeeper Will Fowden.

Both sides had late chances with Sam Williams firing over the bar with a 20 yard free-kick with seven minutes remaining while Valley substitute Matt Croose could have settled the contest at the death only to fire straight at Prosser.

However seconds later the final whistle was sounded by referee Mick Pugh to spark a night of never to be forgotten celebrations for Valley players, management, officials and supporters.