BALA Town secured a hard-fought 1–0 victory over Llanelli Town on Saturday, climbing into the top half of the JD Cymru Premier table.

In blustery conditions at Stebonheath Park, it was Hussein Mehasseb who made the difference, netting the lone goal early in the first half.

The decisive moment came after just nine minutes.

A throw-in on the left wing by Ross White found Jacob Tarasenko.

He beat his marker and whipped a low cross into the box.

Liam Higgins' first-time shot ricocheted off the foot of the post, but the ball fell perfectly for Mehasseb to slot home from close range.

Llanelli nearly responded moments later when Alex Bonthron latched onto a through ball, but his low-driven shot was a routine save for Bala keeper Joel Torrance.

Both teams struggled to find their rhythm in the wind and rain, though Bala continued to look dangerous.

Higgins teed up Mehasseb for a second goal on the quarter-hour mark, but his side-footed effort lacked power and was easily palmed away by Llanelli keeper Michael Lewis.

The rest of the first half saw a few half-chances for both sides, with Tarasenko seeing a header cleared off the line.

As the conditions worsened in the second half, clear-cut opportunities became even rarer.

Bonthron tested Torrance from distance with a shot that was gathered comfortably, while Bala's Nathan Burke saw a curling effort deflected just wide of the post.

As the clock wound down, Llanelli had their best chance to level the score.

Trystan Jenkins found space on the left to deliver a cross, but it sailed harmlessly across the face of goal, evading both attackers and defenders and Bala took the points back to Maes Tegid.

Bala head coach Ryan Valentine praised his team's resilience after the final whistle: “Delighted with how we dealt with the conditions and delighted with the three points.

“Probably the most pleasing point was how we dug in during thesecond half.

“I think first half in patches we played some good football, created two or three opportunities and the keeper’s pulled off one or two saves.

“So first half I think we were better in possession. I think second half the conditions didn’t help and they made a lot of changes and threw a lot of men forward.

“So the most pleasing thing in the second half was how we dug in as a side.

“We had to bring players on ourselves off the bench in unfamiliar positions just to stem the flow and help us keep them at bay and keep a clean sheet.

“Overall with the conditions and them putting on a lot of pressure we’re delighted.”