ANOTHER season at Aberystwyth Town Women is done and dusted, and it would be fair to say that we did not meet the targets we set ourselves at the start of the year.

Having clinched a Top 4 finish the previous season, naturally, the goal was to at least try and match, if not surpass that this season.

However, this was not to be, and in stark contrast, we found ourselves in a relegation battle fighting to remain in the Genero Adran Premier.

Having been with the club a few years now, I've come to realise that resilience, determination, and hard-work is at the very heart of Aber Town Women and boy did we need all of this plus more this year!

On reflection, we were perhaps a little naive with our expectations, especially considering we had a new manager coming in to settle the ship after last season's managerial upheaval.

Naturally, Chris had his own ideas and philosophy that he wanted to instil in the club, and coupled with a young squad and the ever-present challenges we face with recruiting players, we should have identified that this season would be one of transition and laying the foundations for things to come.

There's no getting away from the fact that our league performance has been disappointing, winning just four games and drawing two, ultimately finishing in seventh place.

However, there have been signs of progress and glimmers of hope that there is more to come from this squad.

Looking back, there are a number of games where we were close to getting more than what we did, but as we all know, football can be a funny old game and you certainly do not always get what you deserve.

The huge positive is that we found the strength of character to get the results we needed to stay in the league, winning three out of our six games in Phase 2.

This is an achievement that cannot be underestimated when considering the opposition we come up against and the budgets and resources that they have at their disposal.

We take pride in the fact that we can continue to provide local women and girls the opportunity to play at the top level of domestic football here in Wales.

The Adran Trophy and the Welsh Cup competitions offered us brief respite from the league, enjoying wins against a number of North Wales opposition including CPD Y Rhyl 1879, Llandudno, and NFA.

Disappointingly, we bowed out at the Quarter-Final stage of both cups to Briton Ferry, and Pontypridd United respectively.

Although on the surface this season may seem like we have underachieved, it is worth putting things into perspective and recognising that we have possibly overachieved for a small club in previous seasons.

For me, there's been enough positives to be optimistic for next season, and all the girls will tell you that my glass is rarely half full!

We've improved and developed both on an individual level and as a collective, made some brilliant additions to the squad, and have a conveyor belt of youth talent ready to make that transition from the U19s to senior football

I firmly believe that we have laid foundations to build on, from which we can hopefully push on to achieve the targets we set for ourselves for this coming season.

On a personal level, it's been a huge honour captaining this team, albeit as a stand-in for Amy J.

I'm incredibly proud of the resilience and character that we have shown in order to secure our survival in the league.

This group has talent, experience, and so much potential, and I am excited to see what we can go on to achieve together in the seasons to come.

On behalf of the whole squad, I'd like to extend our thanks and immense gratitude to all those who have supported us through what has been a difficult season - your backing really does make all the difference, and is appreciated by all of the girls and coaching staff.

Now it's time for a well-deserved break whilst mentally preparing myself for some of Kel Tom's pre-season sessions!

Report: ATFC