Oliver Hides Welsh Premier columnist

Congratulations to everyone at Rhyl on winning their first league chamionship.

Rhyl crowned champions

It was a pleasure to be able to pass on those wishes in person on Saturday evening when Rhyl chairman Dave Simmons joined us on Radio Wales' Sportstime programme.

To hear him on the verge of tears showed exactly what it means to everyone at the club.

In these days of multi-millionaire players, the rise of the plc and four-figure season tickets, it's a relief to speak to a chairman who is moved by football rather than just money.

As the rift grows ever greater between the Premiership and its Welsh equivalent, it's becoming clear that the two leagues could play different sports for all they have in common.

But it's the Welsh version that retains more of the values that made football as popular as it is.

For the most part in the Welsh Premier, football comes first. Sure, finance is important and Rhyl - like every other club in the league - faces the constant challenge of setting and staying within budgets.

The new champions are also fortunate to have some wealthy backers, but they haven't won the league with an expenditure of Abramovich proportions.

Their success is based on a sensible approach, a solid boardroom and an exceptional manager.

Let's just hope that Rhyl's title triumph puts an end to any talk of their leaving the league. The Welsh Premier is better for their involvement and they have played a key part in what has been the most important season that the competition has seen.

The financial difficulties and subsequent relegation of Barry Town should stand as a fair warning

Credit must also go to TNS for their part in an extremely successful season. As they pushed Rhyl hard, the title race ensured some high profile television dates for the league - from the live showdown on Easter Sunday to Wales on Saturday at Y Traeth on the final Saturday.

Let's not forget the Premier Cup as well. First TNS came so close to beating Wrexham and then Rhyl actually did it, sending Swansea out of the competition live on BBC Television.

It's impossible to overestimate the benefits of these television appearances and the role they have in winning over the unbelievers, and I'm certain that the league won a great deal of valuable respect from these games.

It's not all good news though. The standard of pitches around the grounds has been as poor as ever.

It's understandable given the clubs' reliance on volunteers and committee men to look after and prepare the playing surfaces, but they must improve if the league is to go forward in footballing terms.

In this respect clubs must stop pointing the finger and take responsibility for their own facilities. The first effect of a better pitch at any club is an improvement in their own standard; after all, the home club get to play on their pitch 17 times, visitors only once.

Rhyl claim second trophy

On the subject of pitches, the best one in the league has gone. The financial difficulties and subsequent relegation of Barry Town should stand as a fair warning to all clubs in the league of the perils of over-expenditure.

Like Leeds United in the Premiership, Barry's misfortunes are a direct result of previous owners over-extending the club financially and it's imperative that every club must operate within their means.

If this means adjusted objectives and more local players taking the places of the handful of professionals who lope from club to club, then so be it.

The local element is exactly what makes the Welsh Premier so special in the first place and, while Rhyl's title triumph might owe more than a little to Merseyside, there's no need for every club to go by the same route.

For some clubs a top-half finish with a side assembled largely locally and within budget should be seen as an equivalent success to a top-six place with a team of expensively recruited incomers.

The Welsh Premier must guard what already makes it so special and aspire to improvement in the right areas. Football must always come first.