FAW Premier Cup

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FAW Premier Cup
Founded1997
Abolished2008
Number of teams16
Last champions
Wrexham
(5 titles)

The FAW Premier Cup (until 1998 the FAW Invitation Cup) was a Welsh football cup competition, organised annually by the Football Association of Wales from 1997 to 2008. Since the FAW excluded clubs playing in English leagues (including six Welsh clubs) from playing in the Welsh Cup from 1996 onwards, the FAW needed another competition where the best Welsh teams could compete.

The original format incorporated the three Welsh clubs then playing in the

Welsh Premier League). Until the 2001–02 season, Merthyr Tydfil had a guaranteed place, as Newport County and Colwyn Bay
were not invited to take part. From then onwards, the highest placed of the three were invited. Colwyn Bay never subsequently qualified.

From the 2004–05 season, the competition was expanded to 16 clubs – the top 10 placed clubs from the

Welsh Premier League, joined by the two best-placed of the three teams: Newport County, Merthyr Tydfil and Colwyn Bay, the Welsh Cup
winners plus Cardiff City, Swansea City and Wrexham.

The competition offered a healthy prize fund. A share of the TV coverage money for live matches was also split between both clubs. The losing semi-final teams each received £25,000. The losing finalists received £50,000, with the winners receiving £100,000.[1][2]

The competition's most senior clubs were accused of taking the competition lightly. Cardiff City in particular, following the arrival of ambitious owner

Football League
but Cardiff City won the FAW Premier Cup just once, beating arch-rivals Swansea City in the 2002 final.

Wrexham appeared in all but three finals. The only

Llanelli
at Newport Stadium.

The FAW Premier Cup was broadcast on

BBC Wales. However, after BBC Wales withdrew their sponsorship of the competition in 2008, the competition was cancelled.[3]

In the 2011-12 season the FAW announced that the six exiled clubs would again be invited to play in the Welsh Cup.

Wrexham all accepted but Cardiff City, Colwyn Bay and Swansea City rejected the invitation. However, because UEFA refused to give any of these clubs entry into the Europa League
by this route, these clubs did not enter the Welsh Cup in the following season.

Results of finals

Year Winners Result Runners-up Venue Attendance
1997–98
Wrexham
 2–1 Cardiff City Racecourse Ground
1998–99
Barry Town
 2–1
Wrexham
 Racecourse Ground
1999–2000
Wrexham
 2–0 Cardiff City Racecourse Ground
2000–01
Wrexham
 2–0 Swansea City Vetch Field
2001–02
 Cardiff City 1–0 Swansea City Ninian Park 6,629
2002–03
Wrexham
 6–1
Newport County
 Racecourse Ground 4,014
2003–04
Wrexham
 4–1 Rhyl
Belle Vue
 2,800
2004–05
 Swansea City 2–1
Wrexham
 Vetch Field 9,000
2005–06
 Swansea City 2–1
Wrexham
 Racecourse Ground 3,032
2006–07
 The New Saints 1–0 Newport County Newport Stadium 1,809
2007–08
Newport County
 1–0
Llanelli
 Newport Stadium 1,889

Club-by-club record

Rank Club Appearances Winners Runners-up Winning year(s)
1
Wrexham
 11 5 3 1997–98, 1999–2000, 2000–01, 2002–03, 2003–04
2 Swansea City 11 2 2 2004–05, 2005–06
3 Cardiff City 11 1 2 2001–02
Newport County 7 1 2 2007–08
5
Barry Town
 7 1 – 1998–99
The New Saints 9 1 – 2006–07
7 Rhyl 8 – 1
Llanelli
 3 – 1

See also

References

  1. ^ "FAW Premier Cup 2007/8". welsh-premier.com. Welsh Premier Football. Archived from the original on 3 January 2010. Retrieved 12 March 2012.
  2. ^ "Cup crowns Wrexham season". bbc.co.uk. BBC. 8 May 2003. Retrieved 12 March 2012.
  3. ^ "Board Confirms No Premier Cup Next Season". low.org.uk. Welsh Premier Football League. 11 April 2008. Archived from the original on 29 April 2008. Retrieved 11 April 2008.

External links

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