AFC Porth is a Welsh

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

team based in the village of

Porth Porth ( cy, Y Porth) is a town and a community in the county borough of Rhondda Cynon Taf, within the historic county boundaries of Glamorgan, Wales. Lying in the Rhondda Valley, it is regarded as the gateway connecting the Rhondda Fawr and Rh ...

in the Rhondda Valley. The club plays in the

South Wales Alliance League The South Wales Alliance League is a football league structure in South Wales, currently known for sponsorship reasons as ''The Highadmit Projects South Wales Alliance League''. The top tier of the league, the Premier Division is at the fourth ...

Championship Division, which is the fifth tier of Welsh football. The club plays its home matches at Dinas Park. The club was originally founded in 1950 as Beatus United before changing its name to Porth in 1986. Porth won the Second Division of the Welsh Football League in 1993 and spent several years in the First Division. The club changed its name to A.F.C. Rhondda in 1996 but reverted to Porth in 2004.

History

The town of

in the

Rhondda Valley Rhondda , or the Rhondda Valley ( cy, Cwm Rhondda ), is a former coalmining area in South Wales, historically in the county of Glamorgan. It takes its name from the River Rhondda, and embraces two valleys – the larger Rhondda Fawr valley ...

had been represented by several football teams, including Porth, Porth United and Porth Welfare prior to 1950. The same year, a new club was formed under the guise of Beatus United which represented a local factory. The club competed under the name for 34 years in the Rhondda League and later the

South Wales Amateur League The South Wales Amateur League was a former football league in South Wales. The league consisted of two divisions, named Divisions One and Two. Division One was a feeder to the Welsh Football League Division Three, and sat at level 5 of the Wel ...

, before it was renamed as A.F.C. Porth in 1984. The side won the Second Division of the Welsh Football League in the 1991–92 season. When the Welsh football league system was restructured the ahead of the following campaign with the foundation of the

League of Wales The Cymru Premier, known as the JD Cymru Premier for sponsorship reasons, is the national football league of Wales. It has both professional and semi-professional status clubs and is at the top of the Welsh football league system. Prior to 200 ...

, Porth remained in the Second Division, although it had effectively been promoted due to the restructure. The side finished as winners of the Second Division for the second consecutive season and won promotion to the First Division of the Welsh Football League. In 1996, the club was renamed as A.F.C. Rhondda in the hope of increasing the club's profile. The newly renamed club initially enjoyed improved results, finishing in the top three of the First Division twice between 1997 and 1999. However, having finished in the top eight for five consecutive season, the club was relegated after finishing bottom of the division during the 2001–02 season. A second straight relegation in the following season led the team to the Third Division. The club reverted to its previous name, A.F.C. Porth in 2004. In 2007, Porth was relegated from the Welsh Football League to the South Wales Amateur League. However, the club won promotion back to the Welsh Football League in its first season, becoming the first team to achieve a direct return to the Welsh Football League. The club entered a swift rise, winning two promotions in the following three seasons to return to the First Division. Manager Scott Young, who led the club back to the First Division, left the club in 2012 to take up a position with

Port Talbot Town Port Talbot Town Football Club ( cy, Clwb Pêl Droed Port Talbot) is a Welsh association football, football club from Port Talbot. It was founded in 1901 as Port Talbot Athletic, one of the first clubs in the country. The club plays in the Arda ...

. Porth was relegated back to the Second Division during the 2015–16 season.

Ground

The club plays its home matches at Dinas Park which features a single stand for spectators. In 2015, a new stand was constructed, to replace the original structure which had been built in the 1990s, along with other improvements, following a grant from the Welsh Football Trust and fundraising efforts.

References

External links

Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Porth Football clubs in Wales Welsh Football League clubs Works association football teams in Wales Ardal Leagues clubs Association football clubs established in 1950 1950 establishments in Wales South Wales Senior League clubs South Wales Alliance League clubs