It's the season to be Welsh.

The old "You should be in the Welsh League's" phrase was turned completely on it's head this season as the Welsh top four all had excellent seasons in their respective Leagues. Swansea City, Cardiff City, Newport County and Wrexham have all had cracking seasons and have had everybody talking about them. All four have picked up a Trophy this season, two of them for achieving promotion. Three of the four will be playing in the Football-League next season, and one will be playing in a European competition. A fantastic achievement for all, and Wales as a whole. 

I'll go from top to bottom so we'll start off with Swansea. Never has the phrase "year of the Underdog" been more appropriate, as they looked to build on an impressive 11th place finish in last season's Premier League. It started so brilliantly for the Swans as they recorded 5-0 and 3-0 victories in their first two matches against Queens Park Rangers and West Ham. Although Brendan Rodgers had left for pastures new, Michael Laudrup came in to his first management job in the UK and City continued to play the football that has got them recognised by many. City have had a steady season and had they not gone on a recent run of five losses in seven, they could be looking at finishing in the Europa League places. Of course, it doesn't matter where the Swans finish as they'll be hosting European Football at the Liberty Stadium next season anyway! With three games still to play, they sit comfortably in ninth position in the Premier League. A Club who was on the brink of relegation out of the Football League just ten years ago are now inside the top ten Clubs in the Country... Phenomenal. Swansea produced a magnificent result earlier in the season as they beat Arsenal 2-0 away from home, and the have picked up some valuable results at the Liberty Stadium including draws with Manchester United, Manchester City and Chelsea. The Jacks have a lot to thank Michu for. The summer signing cost just £2million from Spanish side Rayo Vallecano and hit 17 Premier League goals this term. They'll certainly be hoping he stays for longer than just this season!

February 24, 2013; A fantastic day for all involved with Swansea City Football Club. Getting to the League Cup final is an achievement in itself but going that one step further and gaining entry to the Europa League is something special. After beating Barnsley and Crawley Town in Round Two and Three, things became tougher for South Wales' number one side as they were faced with a trip to Liverpool who are managed by Rodgers. An excellent 3-1 victory saw them face Championship outfit Middlesbrough. It took an 81st minute own goal to see off Boro. Swansea had made it to the semi-final and many thought this was where it would end as they were put against European Cup holders Chelsea. Swansea took the lead six minutes before half-time through top scorer Michu, and Danny Graham capitalised on a defensive error in the last minute of the game to give the Swans a two goal advantage to take back home for the second leg. Swansea fans were dreaming of Wembley and possibly a first major cup win in England, but first there was the small matter of seeing out the semi-final. Swansea held out for a goalless draw and had made it to their first major final. Unfortunately, the match was marred by Chelsea's Eden Hazard kicking a ball boy and receiving a red card. A fabulous achievement for Swansea though, and victory in the final was well within their reach. Their opponents were League Two Bradford City who had produced their own Underdog story. The Yorkshiremen beat three premiership teams on route to the final, including a fantastic penalty victory over Arsenal in the quarter final. Unfortunately for the Bantams, Swansea only had one thing in mind and that was a comfortable victory, and they got exactly that as they ran out 5-0 winners. Braces from Nathan Dyer and Jonathan De Guzman along with a goal from Michu allowed Swansea to record the biggest League Cup final winning margin in History. The Jacks dominated the match and could have scored more than five. Although Swansea have been in European competition before, Liberty Stadium will be hosting European football for the first time since Swansea moved there in 2005. 

Swansea's fine season is made even more amazing as the Club are in the centenary season. There aren't many better ways to celebrate your Club's 100th year. Despite the Club being Welsh, they will be representing England in the Europa League next season, although I don't think that will matter to their fans. As mentioned before, Swansea were on the brink of relegation to the Conference Premier just ten years ago but a 4-2 victory over Hull City saved them. I suppose you could say they've never looked back since then, and the Club should be proud of their fine achievements. 

Joining the Jacks in the Premier League next season will be Cardiff, their nearby rivals. Formed in 1899 as Riverside A.F.C, they have a rich History in the English pyramid and this season will be considered as their best. Last season, the Bluebirds lost 5-0 in the play-off semi-final to West Ham United and made it to the League Cup final, eventually losing on penalties to Liverpool. Anthony Gerrard (cousin of Liverpool skipper Steven) missed the final penalty to give Liverpool the 3-2 victory after a 2-2 draw after extra time. 

Old and new badge.

Cardiff were involved in one of the Championship matches of the season away at Charlton in November. After going two goals up, the visitors sat back and allowed the hosts into the game and they took full advantage, making it 2-2 before half-time and racing into a 5-2 lead in the second half. As the game came close to it's end, there was still time for Cardiff to impact the score as they scored two goals in the last minute of the match to make it 5-4. The visitors could also have snatched a draw but Craig Noone's effort went just over the bar. 

After being there, or thereabouts for most of the season, City finally secured promotion to the Premier League on Tuesday 16 April as they drew 0-0 at home to Charlton. The Championship title was won the very next game as Cardiff drew 1-1 away at Burnley. The Bluebirds finished eight points poins ahead of their nearest rivals and after their recent play-off heartbreak, it must have been an amazing feeling for their fans to tie the league up early and not have to go through the drama of the play-offs. Cardiff fans can now look forward to seeing their heroes play sides such as Manchester United and Liverpool in League competition, as well as regaining their derby matches with Swansea. 

Some will say Cardiff have sold their soul as they have switched from their traditional Blue to Red, although I don't think it matters to their fans. As long as they get to see their Club competing in the Premier League, I don't think it matters what colour they play in! 

Going back to the 1997-98 season. The Football League Division Three (now League Two) - Swansea and Cardiff finished the season in 20th and 21st, so it's pretty incredible to see just how far both Clubs have come since! 

Newport County won promotion to the Football-League this season after a tense play-off final victory against fellow Welsh Club Wrexham. 

The Exiles had been out of the Football League since 1988 (25 years) and even went out of business a year later! The Club reformed soon after and had to start way down the Leagues in the Hellenic League. The Club avoided being kicked out of the English League's by the Football Association of Wales (FAW) and moved 'back home' to Newport in 1994 after spending a few seasons playing in Gloucester. Since their reformation, the Club's main aim was to progress back to the Football-League. 

County were promoted to the Conference Premier in 2009-10. This was the League they were playing in before they went bankrupt. The Exiles' promotion from the Conference South was astonishing as they picked up a record 103 points, finishing 28 points clear of nearest contenders Dover Athletic. Their first season in the Conference they finished a respectable 9th, but they were in a relegation battle the next season. Manager Anthony Hudson was sacked in September as they were second from bottom. Former Rushden and Diamonds manager Justin Edinburgh was appointed and he lead them to a 19th place finish, thus ensuring safety, and took them to the FA Trophy final where they lost 2-0 to York City. 

Euro Millions Lottery winner Les Scadding became Newport chairman in August 2012. With a millionaire on board, fans of other Clubs were fearing that County would be the next side to "do a Crawley" and buy their way to success, however this wasn't the case. County's money has been spent wisely this season and Edinburgh built up an excellent side who were in the top five for the majority of the season. 

County were helped by a run of five wins from five in the first month of the season and remained steady throughout the season. Fans of other Clubs were expecting Newport to drop off, but they battled hard all season and deservedly finished in the play-offs. 

The play-offs came around and they were the underdog again. Fans didn't really give them a chance, but they come up trumps once again. The first leg of their semi-final was away at Grimsby and it remained goalless until the last five minutes of the match when ever present Ismail Yakubu fired in a header which took a deflection off Mariners defender Ian Miller. An impressive 6,000+ crowd turned up at Rodney Parade for the second leg and they went home delighted after Christian Jolley's first half strike was enough to send the Exiles to Wembley. 

A low crowd of 16, 346 turned out at Wembley for the final, but that was to be expected. Both sides [Wrexham and Newport] were a fair distance from London, and the semi final's were only the week before. The tickets were £40 too, which had a big effect. Newport had around 6,000 at Wembley but for those who turned up, it was easily the best day supporting their Club since they reformed in 1989. 

The final was a very tense affair and I guess you could say Wrexham created the better of the chances, but just couldn't finish them off. They were certainly missing top scorer Danny Wright. As the game wore on, players became tired and it looked certain to be heading into extra-time. That is until Jolley popped up four minutes from time to send the Newport fans wild. Wrexham pushed on looking for the equaliser, but it wasn't to be. Newport's place back in the Football League was secure in the last minute of the match when top scorer Aaron O'Connor blasted home from inside the area. 

Just eight years ago, Newport were playing teams like Margate and Redbridge but next season they can look forward to trips to Portsmouth and Plymouth Argyle. An excellent season ending in promotion back to the League was something the County fans could only dream about ten years ago. Now it's a reality, and fully deserved it was! A magnificent team effort, but big credit has to go to Jolley and O'Connor. 15 and 19 goals respectively helped the Exiles to where they are now. 

The Exiles will be looking to consolidate next season as they look to become a force in the Football-League. With the money behind them, this could just be the beginning for them. 

Wrexham FC had never been to the Wembley until this season, but now they've been twice!

Wrexham were relegated to the Conference in 2008 and after a could of seasons of mid-table mediocrity, they became a force in the Conference. 

The Dragons' first visit to Wembley Stadium came in March of this year when they played Grimsby Town in the final of the FA Trophy. They can count themselves pretty lucky in the fact that their route to Wembley was relatively straight forward as they recorded victories against Rushall Olympic (5-0), Solihull Moors (3-2), Sutton United (5-0) and Southport (3-1) before meeting Conference North outfit Gainsborough Trinity in the semi-final. The Dragons got through a nervy second leg away at Gainsborough as they ran out 4-3 aggregate winners. Wembley was in sight, and the Mariners were their opponents after they overcame Dartford in the other semi-final. 

The final was built up pretty well as over the season, Wrexham and Grimsby were two of the best sides in the Division. Unfortunately, it was quite a dull affair from a neutral point of view. There weren't many clear chances in the first half. The second half was slightly better, and Wrexham produced the better chances but were denied by an in-form James McKeown. Despite their chances, the Dragons couldn't take advantage and Grimsby made them pay. Andy Cook was set up by Joe Colbeck and although his initial effort was well saved by Chris Maxwell, he made no mistakes second time round as he put the Mariners a goal up. Wrexham did get back into the game though when captain Dean Keates was tripped in the area. Kevin Thornton stepped up to send the keeper the wrong way and take the game into an extra thirty minutes. 

McKeown produced some of the best saves he'll ever make in extra-time as he denied Adrian Cieslwicz three times and produced an excellent stop to deny Danny Wright towards the end of extra-time. 

That was it. The sides couldn't be separated after 120 minutes and the most cruel way to end the game was the only way it could end. Wrexham's penalties were spot on as they scored four from four to win 4-1. Richard Brodie is quite disliked around the Non-League so it was a pleasure to see him sky his penalty. 

Wrexham looked a good bet for the title until around March, when they dropped off massively. Genuine title contenders, but they ended up finishing fifteen points from top place. 

Wrexham turned on the style in the play-off semi-final as they ran out 5-2 aggregate winners against the much fancied Kidderminster Harriers. The Harriers, after a dreadful start to the season, were the side everyone wanted to avoid in the play-offs. At one stage they were on a mammoth run of 15 wins from 17 games, but they couldn't bring their A game to the play-offs.

Wrexham would have been a Football-League side by now if their finishing was a little better, unfortunately for them Newport were deadly in front of goal.

After finishing last season with 98 points and not going up, and now this, you have to wonder whether Wrexham will be able to get up and go again. This season's play-offs were the third play-off campaign in a row where they have failed to go up. With a relatively old side, and not as much money as other sides in the League, you have to fear for Wrexham going into next season. Instead of having trips to Bristol Rovers and Cheltenham, they face a trip to Welling United and a derby match with the newly reformed Chester FC. This summer as massive for the North Wales outfit. 

Still, it was a great season for Wrexham and that shouldn't be taken away from them. 

It was an excellent year for all four of the Welsh Clubs, and it will be interesting to see how they fare next season. One thing is for sure though, and that is that all four deserve to be in the English pyramid and have shown that time and time again. 

Thanks for reading, I hope you enjoyed it. 

Now that the season is over, I will be trying to do blogs on various topics throughout the Summer. I will be looking to get a 'Fleet fan file' up each week too. Keep your eyes peeled. In the meantime, you can follow me on Twitter at @JoeGlidewell.