Our History

The Club

Llwydcoed Welfare AFC has been in existence since 1931 and has always been at the heart of the village community life.

It was formed out of the mining community and has always played its full part in village life not only by encouraging and providing sporting opportunities but by organizing and supporting any event through raffles, jumble sales and excursions etc. We have always seen the need to provide and support any community activity to enhance people’s lives.

This approach has helped us become more successful than we could ever have imagined so much so that we are now at a stage where we have outgrown our facilities and desperately need to upgrade them. The Club was formed under the welfare name as was the ground we played in the Aberdare Valley League winning the championship on consecutive seasons 1953-1955.

Gradually we moved into the South Wales Amateur League and we remained in this league until 1991-1992 season. After many poor seasons the Club decided to move into the newly formed South Wales Senior League.

 

A new league, a new start, a new Secretary David Evans taking over then from Mr Ron James.

A tireless worker the new Secretary had no idea what he had let himself in for only his own outstanding initiative work, drive and commitment plus a small Committee and a fantastic loyal wife saw Llwydcoed build a Club developing the ground, junior section, and bringing in the right type of management saw Llwydcoed boom from a Club in dire straits to a Club full of potential winning the South Wales Senior League, the Intermediate Cup and the Welsh play offs.

In particular the 1998/1999 season was outstanding. The Welsh League arrived and Llwydcoed have driven themselves up the League thanks to the players, sponsors, supporters, committee and management. With the arrival of the FAW League restructure for the 2020/21season, the Club had
to find sponsors and grants worth £100,000.00 to meet the FAWs criteria just to stay
at the Tier 3 level they were already at. A lot of hard work and commitment saw the
Committee achieve these standards and were finally awarded with a place in the
newly created FAW Ardal South West Division for season 2020/21.

Club Achievements

  • Founder Members SWFA Senior League
  • AVFL Division 1 League & Cup Winners 1993/94
  • Coronation Cup Winners1994/95
  • NatWest Cup Winners 1994/95
  • SWFA Intermediate Cup Winners1990/91, 1998/99
  • SWSL Division Champions 1998/99
  • Play-off Winners 1998/99
  • AVFL Burton Cup Winners 1999/2000
  • Welsh Football League Division 3 Runners up 2000/01, 2012/13
  • Welsh Football League Division 3 Champions 2008/09

Our Sponsors

Dare Training Ltd

Club Sponsor

The Trade Center Wales

Club Sponsor

Posh Wash

Club Sponsor

G & L Auto Services

Club Sponsor

PETER LYNN & PARTNERS

Club Sponsor

APEX ESTATE AGENTS

Club Sponsor

WINDSOR JEWELLERS

Club Sponsor

PJ FEAR COMPUTASHACK

Club Sponsor

EVES UK LTD

Club Sponsor

D R BARRATT PLANT HIRE

Club Sponsor

FLOWERS BY JOY

Club Sponsor

RJ HARRIS GARAGE SERVICES

Club Sponsor

ABERDARE FORD

Club Sponsor

PETER LYNN & PARTNERS

Club Sponsor

FLOWERS BY JOY

Club Sponsor

RJ HARRIS GARAGE SERVICES

Club Sponsor

Commercial

Our sponsorship packages are in development

As we continue to look to improve all aspects of the Club we would be delighted to hear from any individuals or businesses who would like to become involved in Coed as a valued sponsor.
All of our sponsors will receive recognition on our website and where possible in our matchday programme for Welsh League Division 2 fixtures. Packages available include:
  • Match day sponsors (match and ball)
  • Player sponsors… your name will appear next to your chosen player on the appropriate squad pages of the site
  • Kit sponsorship…. see your name on the front or back of our kits
  • Training kit sponsorship
  • Tracksuits sponsorship
  • Programme Sponsor…. you could sponsor our programme on a matchday and receive an advert inside and recognition on the website

For more information why not get in touch by phoning Jon Amos or phone 07745097829

The Village

The village was initially developed in the Tregibbon area where, in 1801, workers’ housing was built by Thomas Shencin Gibbon of Fforchaman Farm.
Other early housing was built at Miner’s Row, Founder’s Row and Scales Houses. The names of these streets betray their early origins; the Scale family were among the founders of the works and remained partners until 1846.
Red Cow Pub
n the second half of the 19th century a new period of growth was instigated by the development of the coal industry in the area. Matthew Wayne Esq. of the Gadlys Ironworks opened the Dyllas Colliery in 1840 and in 1849 Ysguborwen Colliery was sunk by Samuel Thomas and Thomas Joseph. Among the houses built in this period were those at Moriah Place, Horeb Terrace and Grey’s Place. Exhibition Row was built in 1851 and was named Exhibition Row in honour of the Great Exhibition held at Crystal Palace that year.
Industry

The Aberdare Ironworks were established at Llwydcoed in the early nineteenth century and in 1823 were taken over by Rowland Fothergill. Owenrship later passed to his nephew, Richard.

Eight public houses were open in Llwydcoed at this time. They were The Earl Grey, Fox and Hounds, Red Cow, Corner House, The Mason’s, Miner’s Arms, the Dynevor Arms and the Croes Bychan.

At that time stop tap was midnight and a local essayist recounts the boisterous nature of the revelries. “It is said that more beer was lost (wasted) when the furnaces, coal mines and iron-ore undertakings were being worked, especially at the start of the month, and on pay Saturday night, than is being drunk now.” (Unknown Author. ‘A Glance at the History of Llwydcoed’ Translated by D Williams and D L Davies.)

Government
Llwydcoed was one for many years an electoral ward for elections to Glamorgan County Council from 1889 and Aberdare Urban District Council from 1894.
Transport

The Vale of Neath Railway mainline from Neath to Merthyr Tydfil arrived in 1853, opening Llwydcoed railway station in the same year. Taken over on grouping by the Great Western Railway in 1923, the line remained open until closure under the British Railways Beeching Axe in 1963.

Landmarks
  • Llwydcoed War Memorial is an obelisk-type war memorial located within the local park. It was unveiled in 1921.
  • St.James’ Church Llwydcoed is also known as the Red Church.
Notable people
  • Abraham Matthews, one of the founders of the Welsh settlement in Patagonia was a Minister in Horeb, Llwydcoed chapel before leaving for South America.
  • Stage and screen actor Ioan Gruffudd was born in Llwydcoed.
  • Griffith Rhys Jones aka Caradog worked at the Aberdare Ironworks within Llwydcoed village. There is a statue of Caradog in Victoria Square in the heart of Aberdare.
  • Roy Noble, radio presenter on BBC Radio Wales and BBC Radio Cymru, lives in Llwydcoed.
  • Stereophonics drummer Stuart Cable lived in Llwydcoed for a number of years up until his death in 2010.
Brass Band

For more details about the Llwydcoed Brass Band please click HERE

Ironworks
For more details about the Aberdare Ironworks please click HERE