Sport
Pembrokeshire football fans encouraged to give blood
THE Welsh Blood Service has partnered with the FAW’s JD Cymru Leagues and Orchard Welsh Premier Women’s League to launch a brand-new campaign to encourage Haverfordwest County fans to donate blood this season and to help save lives in the local community.
Through its ‘Blood, Sweat and Cheers’ campaign, clubs are being encouraged by the Welsh Blood Service to engage with their supporters and local communities to promote the importance of giving blood and signing up football fans to save thousands of lives.
The campaign has received support from former Wales midfielder Owain Tudur Jones and Wales forward Natasha Harding.
Every single day the Welsh Blood Service needs to collect 350 blood donations to supply hospitals with enough blood for patients.
Blood and its by-products play a vital role in saving lives each day, with donations helping accident victims, patients having a kidney, liver or an organ transplant, pregnant women, leukaemia and cancer patients, someone about to undergo open heart surgery and premature babies who cannot survive without a blood transfusion.
The Welsh Blood Service collects 100,000 blood donations each year from roughly 70,000 volunteer donors. In its new role as the official community partner of the FAW’s Cymru Leagues and Welsh Premier Women’s League*, the Welsh Blood Service is hoping the ‘Blood, Sweat and Cheers’ campaign will help the organisation with its goal of signing 11,000 new blood donors in 2021.
Although the pandemic has temporarily stopped football fans from attending games, clubs are asking supporters to cheer their team on by making a potentially lifesaving blood donation instead. Giving blood is considered an essential service, and donation sessions have continued across Wales throughout the pandemic with additional safety measures introduced to meet Welsh Government guidance for donors attending.
Stephen Williams, Chairman of the National Leagues Board, said: “The Welsh Blood Service is our first community partner for the JD Cymru Leagues and Orchard Welsh Premier Women’s League and we’re delighted to have made such an important signing. In each and every community across Wales there are people whose lives have been supported by blood donation and we’re calling on football fans to get involved and be lifesaving champions.
“We know football clubs across all levels of the game are often at the heart of their communities and during what continues to be a difficult time for all, we are grateful to provide clubs and fans an opportunity to play an important role for their club when many clubs aren’t currently playing.”
With around 1,600 donation sessions at 400 different venues across Wales every year, there are plenty of opportunities for fans to find their nearest session and make a difference.
Anyone aged between 17 and 66 can enrol online and become a donor. From start to finish, the process of donating takes just less than one hour, with the actual blood donation lasting only five to ten minutes.
The Welsh Blood Service has introduced a new function on its website which will allow fans from clubs across Wales to click on their club’s emblem and view a list of upcoming donation centres local to them.
To learn more about those sessions or donating blood, visit wbs.wales/football and enter your postcode to find all donation sessions in your area.
Sport
South-West Wales Athletes Aiming to Shine at the Summer Olympics
Two of the finest athletes in south-west Wales are dreaming about bringing home medals from the 2024 Summer Olympic Games in Paris.
Track cyclist Emma Finucane and sailing star Micky Beckett will head to France in a buoyant mood after enjoying a successful build-up to their respective events.
Welsh athletes collected a record-equalling 11 medals at the Tokyo 2020 Games and hopes are high that the tally could be beaten this year.
The Carmarthen-born rider cemented her rapid rise up the sprint ranks by winning a gold medal at the 2023 UCI Track Cycling World Championships in Glasgow.
She became Great Britain’s first women’s sprint world champion since Becky James in 2013 and is now on track to chase more medals at the Olympics across three events.
The 21-year-old has yearned to compete at the Summer Games since watching Team GB sparkle at London 2012 and she is eager to make her mark this summer.
“It’s a massive dream of mine and it’s pretty cool that I’m kind of living my dream,” Finucane said. “I’m just trying to enjoy the journey and hopefully I’ll get selected and compete for my country.
“And it’s exciting because as the Team GB women’s sprint. I feel like we’re in a really good place to do well at the Olympics, not just compete as Olympians.”
Pembrokeshire-born sailor Beckett will also head to Paris with his sights firmly set on winning gold in the hugely competitive ILCA 7 class.
He will renew rivalries with Australian Matt Wearn, who controversially claimed the World Championship title ahead of Hermann Tomasgaard and Beckett earlier this year.
Online bookmakers rate Wearn as the favourite to emerge victorious this summer, but Beckett’s recent form gives him every chance of turning the tables.
Several new sports betting sites in Australia cut the Welsh sailor’s Olympic odds after he completed a trio of World Cup successes at a recent event in Palma.
Beckett believes the hard work he has done over the past few months gives him every chance of toppling Wearn when the action gets underway this summer.
“There is still plenty of work to do and managing form is probably the most important thing of any athlete’s job,” Beckett said. “There is no point being the best in the world unless you are the best in the world when it counts.
Sport
Kilgetty and Carew Share Spoils in End-of-Season Showdown
In the picturesque setting of Kilgetty, under the soft glow of the evening sun, local football fans were treated to an enticing clash between Kilgetty and Carew in the Pembrokeshire League Division 1. With the season winding down, both sides took to the pitch amidst numerous squad rotations, following a hectic week of multiple fixtures.
The match kicked off in a leisurely pace, resembling more of an end-of-season friendly than a fierce competition. Kilgetty seized the early initiative, with the trio of Josh Bevan, Richard Tebbut, and Richard Cope causing headaches for the Carew defense, skillfully led by Gareth Lewis. It was Jac Waters who broke the deadlock for the home side, putting Kilgetty ahead 1-0 as the first half came to a close.
However, Carew emerged revitalised after the break, with Jonty Bennett, James Hinchcliffe, and Zac Rowell putting in the hard yards to level the score. The introduction of Harvey Drummond for the ineffective Sam Christopher added further depth to Carew’s attacking prowess, culminating in an equaliser courtesy of the excellent Hinchcliffe.
As tensions rose, the game took on a newfound intensity, marked by needless bookings, after a clearly offside goal and a few heated moments on the field. Despite the fatigue evident from their recent fixture congestion, both teams showcased their competitive spirit, treating the fans to an entertaining second half.
In the end, neither side could break the deadlock, with Kilgetty and Carew having to settle for a well-fought 1-1 draw. While neither team was at their absolute best, the match provided a fitting conclusion to their respective seasons.
Sport
The stage is set – Senior Cup Final
It’s the time of the year again, Saturday see’s Bridge Meadow host the senior cup final. The sun has been shining and both teams will be dying to get on the pitch. This year the final will be contested by Goodwick United and Clarbeston Road.
League champions Goodwick will go into the final as favourites, and most around the county expect a Goodwick win. It has been an outstanding season for Goodwick however cup success has evaded them so far. Clarbeston Road have impressed everyone this season and really deserve their place in this years final.
Neill Crawshaw will referee the game, with Tudor Walters and Stefan Jenkins running the line.
There will be a unique contest on the pitch as brothers Will Haworth and Laurie Haworth come face to face on opposing teams. Adrian their father was a great player in the county, and played in many cup finals himself.
The stage is set, Clarby will feel less pressure than Goodwick and will be a threat with Haworth, John and Davies in attack. Meanwhile Goodwick are also blessed with quality players in every department, there is no weak link in O’Sullivans team. Cup football and finals in particular never go as people predict. On paper Goodwick are firm favourites, Clarbeston Road will be happy the game will be played on grass though and not paper, anything can happen! Hopefully it’ll be a good crowd down at the Meadow for the show piece of Pembrokeshire football.
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