'Llanelli A.F.C.' are a
Welsh football team that play in the
League of Wales. Their home ground is
Stebonheath Park,
Llanelli. It has a
capacity of 3,700 - 700 of which may be seated. The current manager is
Peter Nicholas. The club is run by the JESCO Group. Former
Celtic and
Scotland international manager
Jock Stein played there briefly in the
1950 season.
In February 1998, the club's 40-year-old player-manager
Robbie James (a former Wales international who also played more than 800 English league games between 1973 and 1994) collapsed and died during a Welsh Football League First Division fixture against Porthcawl.
The club is owned by
Catherine Zeta-Jones' uncle Robert Jones.
History
The club were founder members of the
League of Wales, but were relegated during the 1995/6 season. Three years later however they achieved promotion back to the top division, achieving their best finish of fifth in the 1999/2000 season. They were lucky to survive the following season, staying up because no team in the Welsh League Division One met the promotion criteria. They eventually suffered the drop two years later, but bounced back immediately to take their place in the top tier for the 2004/5 season.
During the summer of 2005, "Tinopolis" announced ambitious plans to become a full-time side. This move led to unprecedented success in the league, culminating in their best-ever finish of second, behind fellow full-timers
The New Saints. Finishing second in the league also qualified the club for the 2006/7
UEFA Cup.
Recent Performances
Intertoto Cup - 2007/08
Llanelli A.F.C. qualified for the
Intertoto Cup after finishing third in the Welsh Premier League behind
The New Saints and
Rhyl F.C.The Reds travelled to the
Lithuanian capital
Vilnius for the first leg of the first round against
FK VÄ—tra where they lost 3-1. A 5-3 win in the 2nd leg was not quiet enough as they went out of the tournament on away goals.
UEFA Cup - 2006/07 Season
Llanelli A.F.C. won their first qualifying round draw against the
Swedish team
Gefle IF (2-1) on aggregate. They then went on to play the
Danish side
Odense BK in the second qualifying round.
Because of
UEFA regulations on stadia, the club played their home leg of the first qualifying round at Llanelli's
Stradey Park, home of the
Llanelli Scarlets rugby union region, and played the second round home leg at
Swansea's Liberty Stadium. However, they suffered a substantial loss during the home leg and were ejected from the
UEFA cup tournament (1-6) on aggregate.
Current squad
See also
★
UEFA Cup 2006-07
★
League of Wales
External links
★
Club Official Website
★
UEFA Official Website