CARDIFF
15th August 2026 2.30pm Kick Off
D R AC O N I A N S Welcome to Orange Llama Stadium
VS
Pontypridd United
MATCHDAY GROUND ENTRY £6 PROGRAMME £1.50
Managers’ Message Firstly, I would like to welcome everyone to the Orange Llama Stadium for our first home game of the season. I would also like to extend a warm welcome to everyone connected with Pontypridd United. Their players, staff and supporters, as well as their manager and my good friend, Matthew Driscoll. We hope you all enjoy your visit to the club. It has been a tough and challenging pre-season for us. Several players have moved on, while a lot of new boys have come into the squad. Whenever there is that much change, it naturally takes time for everything to come together. Players need time to understand each other’s games, build relationships on and off the pitch and adapt to the standards and expectations we have at this football club.
Despite the changes, I believe we have made some very good signings. The new players have settled in well, worked extremely hard and shown a real desire to represent Cardiff Draconians. There is a lot of quality within the squad, and I am confident that, as the season progresses, people will begin to see what this group is capable of achieving. I know many people have already written us off, especially as we have not won either of our last two games. However, results do not always tell the full story. The performances have been good, and there have been plenty of encouraging signs for us to build on. We know we are not the finished article and that there is still plenty of work to do, but the effort, attitude and commitment from the players have been excellent. We will continue to work hard, learn from every game and improve together. Away from the pitch, the volunteers at this club are doing absolute wonders. They give up so much of their time to help move Cardiff Draconians forward and their work is bringing the community together while creating an environment that will benefit us all for many years to come.
A lot of what they do happens behind the scenes and can easily go unnoticed, but this football club would not be able to progress without them. On behalf of the players and management team, I would like to thank every one of them. I would also like to welcome all our new youth teams to Cardiff Draconians for the coming season. This is another huge and exciting step forward for the club and something we should all be extremely proud of. Some of our junior players will be walking out alongside the first team today and I hope it will be a special experience that they remember for a long time. They are the future of this football club and it is fantastic to officially welcome them into the Dracs family. Turning our attention to today’s game, we know exactly how difficult the challenge will be. Pontypridd have made some exceptional signings and it is clear that they will be right up there as one of the main title challengers this season. They come into today’s match with a 100% record, which shows the quality and confidence they currently have within their squad. If we are going to bring that record to an end, we know we will need to be at our very best. We must compete for everything, remain disciplined and show quality and bravery when we have the ball. These are the games we want to be involved in and the type of challenge our players should look forward to. Finally, thank you to everyone who has come along to support us today. Your backing makes a massive difference to the players, so please get behind the boys from the first whistle until the last. I hope you all enjoy the game. Diolch yn fawr,
Nana Baah
What a difference a year makes! With the 25/26 season over in April we find ourselves in our second season in Tier 2 of Welsh Football of the Cymru South! With a respectable 7th place finish for last we season we start again with a goal of consolidation. We have seen players move on with the success of promotion to the prem, retirement and changes in careers and we wish the all well. Nana Baah has added to his squad with a mix of youth and experience over the closed seaso. Players, Rhys McCarthy and Miles Corson return, with new additions to the Dracs of Cam Egan, Carlos Indjai, Josh Stephens, Dec Roswell, Tom McCallum and Amani Babah. A good core of last seasons squad have been retained. We still have a lot more travelling this season with our furthest opponents are still Aberystwyth Town, Carmarthen Town down west and over to the East with Newport City. With the movement of teams from promotion and relegation we have Llanelli, Caerphilly, Pure Swansea and Pontardawe joining us. There will still be the local derby with our old rivals Caerau Ely to look forward to. It will be an exciting but tough season with some quality clubs in the Cymru South. Enjoy the football and the challenge of a new season.
Interview with Sam Sam Cawley says Cardiff Draconians are looking forward to returning to action at the Orange Llama Stadium, as they welcome Pontypridd United this afternoon. It will be the Dracs first home game of the season after beginning the campaign with away matches against Ynyshir Albions (0-1) and Caerphilly Athletic (0-0). Ponty arrive in the Welsh capital unbeaten after back-to-back 3-2 wins from their opening two games with Treowen Stars and Pontardawe Town. And Cawley shares with media officer Joshua Thomas his thoughts of picking up a hard-earned point at The A’s and facing Ponty. JT: How pleased were you with the response shown by the side after our opening day defeat away at Ynyshir Albions to pick up a draw with Caerphilly Athletic? SC: A lot more fight shown from the boys after the opening game, a much better response, but we would’ve loved to get three points. We take the point and move onto the next game. JT: How pleased were you with the way the team played after going down to 10-men? SC: I am very happy with the commitment and work rate from everyone on the team, we made it hard to beat and earned a point away from home out of it. It’s never easy going down to 10 men, and even harder when it’s for over a half, but the boys dug in and got a result from it.
JT: It’s been a busy transfer window with players coming and going, how pleased are you with the signings you have made and what can they bring to the team? SC: They’re starting to show why they’re here and what they can bring to the table. I am Really happy with how they’re settling in and making the squad as competitive as it is! JT: When you look back on what was achieved last season, finishing seventh in the Cymru South, how much of a great achievement was that for you and the side, and can you go one better this season? SC: Last season was a superb season for us, and probably as competitive as it has been in recent times with the three spots for promotion being available. We will have to wait and see what the season brings, but we will enjoy it no matter what. The boys love a challenge.
JT: On a personal level what are your aims and objectives for the season ahead? SC: I want to reach the same levels I got to last year and look to build from there, hopefully chip in with a few more goals for myself, but mostly I just want us to win as many as we can.
JT: Being captain in place of Luke Bridgeman, as Luke recovers from injury, how do you find the role and what have you learned from it? SC: It’s definitely different and requires myself and others to step up more. Bridgey was such a massive voice for us on the pitch and we need to pull together to replicate that again. Hopefully we will see him on the pitch again at some point this season, as he is an unbelievable player. JT: Up next is Pontypridd United on Saturday, what are your thoughts on it? SC: A very tough test for us, we will need to be at our best and be as solid as we can be. They’ve got talent all over the pitch and on the bench, it’s a challenge but one we’ll look forward to and not shy away from.
JT: Going back to last season our match with Pontypridd United last August was the first time we had ever won at the Cymru South, what are your memories of that day? And what did it mean to you and the team to come away with a historic triumph? SC: I remember it was a very tough game and even tougher when we went down to nine men. We dug in deep that day and will need a similar performance and determination going into this game. It was a massive, massive day for the club, as it was our first points in the league, made even better that it was three. And, although, we went down to nine, I don’t think we would change it as it represents what this club is about and doesn’t know when it’s up against it.
JT: This season sees us looking for our first win of the season as we come against Ponty, who have won their opening two games. How great would it be to start the season at home with a victory? SC: It would be great to start the season at home with a win, we will prepare right and make it tough, but we know how good Ponty are, and that’s shown in their two opening fixtures. JT: How much are you looking forward to playing at home again? What is it like to play in front of the home supporters and how important is it to make the Orange Llama stadium a fortress and make it a tough place for opponents to come and play? SC: It feels like it’s been ages since we’ve played at home, we can’t wait to get back on home turf again. We want to make it as hard as possible for teams to come here and get something, that starts from the support and goes down to the players on the day to make it a great watch for all.
Match Officials Referee 1st Assistant Referee 2nd Assistant Referee
Kris Hames Lewys Theo Wyn Evans Jamie Griffin
Harry Johnson (GK)
Dylan Amin
Luke Davies Luke Bridgeman Jacob Benford Efu Kazadi Callum Nippers
Miles Corson Dan Bowen Luke Evans Dec Roswell Rhys McCarthy
Jamal Roberts Carlos Indjai Josh Stephens Amani Babah Sam Cawley (C)
Tom McCallum Cole Mace Haben Samson Tom Harley
Manager Assistant Manager Coach 1st Aider Goalkeeping Coach
Nana Baah Paul Smith Darren Buttle Olin Ashton Gareth Hicks
Pontypridd Squad Edward King (GK)
Evan Cadwallader
Richard John Noyes Gwion Pugh-Jones James William Saddler Liam Paul Angel Clayton Farrah
Lewis Mouland (GK) Jake Day Owain Beacham Jac Louis Thomas Ethan Edwards
Taylor Marsh Jamie Laurence Veale Elijah Paul Phipps Kofi Rowe Jack Jones
Michael Alexander Lewis (GK) Gareth Tedstone Joshua Stephens Ethan Wynne James Bloom
Omar Touray
Manager Goalkeeping Coach 1st Aider Kit & Equipment
M Driscoll B Banks C Noble M Pearce
Q&A with Sam! Age? 28 Position? Winger Favourite Football team? Arsenal Favourite meal? Nandos Favourite car? Range Rover If you could have any three dinner guests who would they be? Thierry Henry, Micah Richards and Ian Wright Go to Karaoke Song? Take Me Home, Country Roads by John Denver What is your best footballing attribute? Dribbling Previous clubs? Treharris, Cwmbran Celtic, STM Sports and Caerau Ely How long have you been with the club? 3 years Tell me one fact about you: I don’t like cheese or pasta! Best player you have ever played with? Luke Bridgeman Best player you have ever played against? Luke Bridgeman
Best piece of advice you would give upcoming footballers: Get as fit as possible
Feeling lucky? Then join in with our club fundraisers of the Lucky 24 Tote and the 100 club! For £1 a tote ticket there is a weekly chance of winning our current jackpot of £3850. Join the 100 club for £10 a month and be part of the monthly draw to win a prize of either £100, £75, £50 or £25. 100 club draw takes place the end of every month! See a club member in the shop to find out more or buy a ticket, or message us online. Thanks to everyone who supports us in this and good luck in the next draws.
Email: Cardiffdraconians@aol.com Twitter: @CDraconians Facebook: @CardiffDraconiansFC
Fixtures
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