Pontllanfraith A.F.C (Wales)
Founded
in the 1940’s, Pontllanfraith AFC entered the Welsh League Division 2 East in
the 1947-48 season in which they finished a respectable 5th place.
The next season proved to a much tougher one, with the club finishing a
disappointing 12th place. Over the next three seasons the club
started to compete for promotion, finishing in 3rd, 4th
and 7th before finally winning the Welsh League Division Two East in
the 1952-53 season.
It
meant they now competed in the top league in the South of Wales, the Welsh
League Division One. But for years, the club finished in the bottom end of the
table, never competing for the top prize, except for the 1955-56 season when
the club finished in their highest position so far in their history, finishing
4th place. That followed an 11th place finish the
following season, whilst an impressive 5th place finish came in the
1957-58 season.
But
they did not compete in the 1958-59 season, having left the league due to
unresolved issues and disputes with the Welsh FA. The disputes were quickly
resolved, and they were reinstated for the 1959-60 season. But the following
seasons were met with disappointing results on the pitch, and they were
eventually relegated in the 1962-63 when they finished 16th. It was
after this season that the club changed its name to South Wales Switchgear,
until 1969-70.
The
following season they gained promotion back to the top tier when they won the
Welsh Football League Division Two East, their second league title at that
level. It was surprisingly followed by 2nd place finish in the Welsh
Football League Division One, finishing below eventual champions, Ebbw Vale in
1964-65. But if you thought the club were to push on from that successful
season, you would be wrong, and after five mediocre seasons, the club left the
Welsh Football League once again in 1970-71.
This
time the hiatus lasted two years, but they were reinstated to the Welsh
Football League Division Two, which after a reconstruction of the Welsh
Football pyramid was now the Third tier, below the Welsh Football League
Division One and the Newly named Welsh Football League premier Division. The
club gained back-to-back promotions, winning the Welsh Second Division in
1972-73 season and then winning the Welsh First Division title in the 1973-74
season.
Now
the club were playing in the highest level, but they adapted quickly. It took
them only five seasons before they lifted the Welsh Football League Premier
Division title in the 1978-79 season. It would prove to be their only topflight
title, although they did come runners-up in the 1980-81 season behind
Haverfordwest County. After that, the results and performances declined and the
club remained in the topflight for another nine seasons before being relegated
in the 1989-90 season, after finishing 16th. (The League names were
changed once again during time and in the 1983-84 season the top tier was
renamed the Welsh Football League National Division)
The
club played a further two seasons in the Welsh Football League Division One,
but in 1992 it was decided that the club would merge with another football club
named Fields Park to form Fields Park Pontllanfraith, a club that dissolved
themselves in 2005. The other honours that the club won include the Welsh
Football League Cup in 1979-80 and again in the 1984-85 season.