The New Saints F.C. facts for kids
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| Full name | The New Saints of Oswestry Town & Llansantffraid Football Club | |||
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| Nickname(s) | The Saints, TNS | |||
| Short name | TNS | |||
| Founded | 1959 | |||
| Ground | Park Hall Oswestry, Shropshire, England |
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| Capacity | 3,000 (3,000 seated) | |||
| Chairman | Mike Harris | |||
| Manager | Craig Harrison | |||
| League | Cymru Premier | |||
| 2021–22 | Cymru Premier, 1st of 12 | |||
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The New Saints of Oswestry Town & Llansantffraid Football Club, often called The New Saints or TNS FC, is a professional football team. They play in the top Welsh football league, the Cymru Premier. Even though they play in the Welsh league, their home base is in Oswestry, England.
TNS is one of the most successful teams in Welsh football. They have won the league title 16 times! Since the 2001–02 season, they have almost always finished first or second in the league. In the 2024–25 season, TNS made history. They became the first team from the Welsh league to reach the main part of a European competition, the UEFA Conference League.
Contents
The History of The New Saints
Early Days as Llansantffraid F.C.
The club started in 1959 as Llansantffraid F.C. It represented a small village called Llansantffraid-ym-Mechain. The team played its first games in a local league, the Montgomeryshire Amateur Football League. They won this league seven times!
The team quickly moved up through the football ranks. In 1989–90, they joined the Central Wales League. The very next year, they were promoted to the Cymru Alliance. By 1992–93, Llansantffraid reached the top Welsh league, then called the League of Wales (now the Cymru Premier). They also won the Welsh Intermediate Cup that year.
Becoming Total Network Solutions
In 1996, Llansantffraid won the Welsh Cup. This win allowed them to play in a European competition for the first time, the European Cup Winners' Cup. Around this time, a computer company from Oswestry, Total Network Solutions, became their sponsor. The club's name changed to Total Network Solutions Llansantffraid.
In their first European match, they played against a Polish team, Ruch Chorzów. They drew 1–1 at home but lost the second game. Over the years, they played in European competitions many times. For these bigger games, they often played at larger stadiums like Newtown's or Wrexham's. In 2003, they even played against Manchester City at the huge Millennium Stadium in Cardiff. To follow rules for European games, the club was known simply as TNS.
In 1997, the club's name changed again to Total Network Solutions F.C.. This was the first time in the UK a football club was named only after its sponsor. TNS also became the only team in the Welsh Premier League with full-time players, meaning football was their main job.
Joining Forces with Oswestry Town
In 2003, TNS merged with a nearby club, Oswestry Town. Oswestry Town was also in the League of Wales but was having financial problems. The merger was approved, even though the two clubs were from different football associations (Wales and England).
The 2003–04 season was tough for TNS. They finished second in the league and lost in the Welsh Cup final, both to Rhyl. But the 2004–05 season was much better! TNS won both the league and the Welsh Cup.
A famous moment happened in 2005. TNS played against Liverpool, who had just won the UEFA Champions League. Liverpool won both games 3–0. Even though TNS lost, their young goalkeeper, Gerard Doherty, played so well that Liverpool's manager praised him.
The New Saints F.C. is Born
In 2006, the sponsor, Total Network Solutions, was bought by another company. This meant the sponsorship ended, and the club needed a new name. After looking for ideas, they chose "The New Saints." This name honored both original clubs: Llansantffraid was known as "The Saints," and Oswestry had ties to Saint Oswald. Plus, the club was already called TNS for short. A new club badge was also created, showing a dragon for Llansantffraid and a lion for Oswestry.
In 2010, The New Saints won the Welsh Premier League title. They then played in the Champions League. They beat an Irish team, Bohemians, 4–1 on total score. This was their first win in a European competition! They then faced a very strong Belgian team, Anderlecht, and later CSKA Sofia in the Europa League, but they were knocked out.
On December 30, 2016, The New Saints set a new record. They won their 27th game in a row, beating the previous European record of 26 wins set by Ajax in the 1970s.
In 2024, The New Saints made history again. They qualified for the main group stage of the 2024–25 UEFA Conference League. This was a first for any club from the Welsh league system. Because their home stadium, Park Hall, wasn't big enough for these European games, they played at Shrewsbury Town's stadium. On October 24, TNS became the first Welsh club to win a game in the group stage of a major European competition, beating FC Astana 2–0.
Futsal Team Success
The club also has a successful futsal team. Futsal is a type of indoor football played on a hard court. The New Saints futsal team won the first-ever FAW Futsal Cup in 2011.
Meet the Current Squad
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Players on Loan
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Coaching Staff
- Head coach –
Craig Harrison - Assistant manager – Christian Seargeant
- First Team coach –
Simon Spender - First Team coach – Simon Smith
- Fitness coach – Thomas Noon
- Sports Therapist – Phillip Davies
- Performance Analyst – Connor Hindley
The New Saints Women's Team
The New Saints F.C. also has a women's team. They play in the Adran Premier League, which is the highest level of women's football in Wales. Their home games are also played at Park Hall Stadium.
In the 2022–23 season, the women's team finished in 4th place. For the 2024–25 season, the team became semi-professional. This means some players are paid to play, which is a big step for the team.
Club Achievements
The New Saints have won many trophies over the years:
- Cymru Premier (Welsh League Champions)
- Winners (16 times): 1999–2000, 2004–05, 2005–06, 2006–07, 2009–10, 2011–12, 2012–13, 2013–14, 2014–15, 2015–16, 2016–17, 2017–18, 2018–19, 2021–22, 2022–23, 2023–24
- Welsh Cup
- Winners (9 times): 1995–96, 2004–05, 2011–12, 2013–14, 2014–15, 2015–16, 2018–19, 2021–22, 2022–23
- Welsh League Cup
- Winners (10 times): 1994–95, 2005–06, 2008–09, 2009–10, 2010–11, 2014–15, 2015–16, 2016–17, 2017–18, 2023–24
- FAW Premier Cup
- Winners (1 time): 2006–07
- Welsh Intermediate Cup
- Winners (1 time): 1992–93
- FAW Welsh Youth Cup
- Winners (2 times): 2021–22, 2022–23
- Cymru Alliance League
- Winners (1 time): 1992–93
- Shropshire Senior Cup
- Winners (1 time): 2011–12
Achievements as Llansantffraid
- Montgomeryshire Amateur Football League Division One
- Champions (6 times): 1968–69, 1969–70, 1982–83, 1986–87, 1991–92, 1992–93
- Montgomeryshire Amateur Football League Division Two
- Champions (2 times): 1970–71, 1980–81
Interesting Facts
- Highest number of fans at a game: 14,563 against Liverpool in 2005.
- First time winning a European match-up: 4–1 against Bohemians in 2010.
Biggest Wins and Losses
- Biggest win in the League of Wales: 12–0 against Airbus UK Broughton in November 2019.
- Biggest loss in the League of Wales: 0–10 against Barry Town in 1997.
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See also
In Spanish: The New Saints Football Club para niños
- Football in Shropshire
- List of association football clubs playing in the league of another country
