Swans 0 Wrexham 2

Match Report from The Western Mail

Giovanni Savarese was sent off after eight minutes of last night’s FAW Premier Cup final at the Vetch Field as Swansea’s relegation season ended on a grim note.

Holyhead referee Brian Lawlor gave top scorer Savarese his marching orders for elbowing Wrexham defender Mark McGregor to cut short what may have been his last appearance for the club.

The Venezuelan international is one of 15 players whose contracts are about to expire and owners Ninth Floor plc yesterday revealed that the playing staff would be slashed from 31 to 22 and non-essential expenditure reduced, the club having lost around £500,000 during the season.

Savarese, who protested strongly, was the second Swansea player to be dismissed in five days. Frenchman Nicolas Fabiano received the red card in last Thursday’s semi-final for an alleged head-butt. Predictably, cup holders Wrexham went on to win the trophy with ease for the third time in four years.

They will add a £100,000 prize to the £60,000 they have already banked from this season’s competition. Swansea will receive £40,000. The visitors, who are considering changing their nickname from the Robins to the Dragons, kept 10-man Swansea on the defensive for long periods. Keeper Roger Freestone prevented them converting their control into goals with quality saves from Lee Trundle and Kevin Russell (twice) during an eventful first half.

A fan on the North Bank was taken from the ground to hospital on a stretcher after being taken ill and stewards prevented a man trying to reach one of the assistant referees on the touchline.

Police surveillance cameras showed he was a known troublemaker and he was later arrested. In a sometimes ill-tempered clash,Wrexham’s Darren Ferguson was booked for retaliating after a foul by Matthias Verschave and Swans’ defender Kris O’Leary was cautioned for a late tackle on dangerman Trundle.

Swansea momentarily broke Wrexham’s stranglehold when Jonathan Coates released Verschave through the middle, but McGregor sprinted back to make a splendid saving tackle. Wrexham underlined their second-half domination by scoring twice within nine minutes to end the game as a contest.

Both goals came from free headers. After 49 minutes Trundle converted a cross from the right by Carlos Edwards to claim his ninth goal since being snapped up from Rhyl for £50,000 last February.

Full-back McGregor was left unmarked to nod in Ferguson’s 58th-minute free-kick for his seventh goal of the campaign – his best goal tally for the club. In between those goals, Christopher Todd went close for the Swans with a looping header.

Jason Price made what he said would be his last appearance for the Swans when he replaced David Romo after 54 minutes. Craig Faulconbridge came on for Kevin Russell nine minutes later, but was unable to add to his six goals in the tournament leaving Llanelli’s Mark Dickeson (eight goals) to collect the £10,000 reward as the top scorer.

For some pictures of the match follow this link

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