THE manager of Bala Town Football Club celebrated a special milestone over the weekend - his 50th birthday.

Colin Caton has been at the helm for The Lakesiders for the last 18 years.

During his time with the club, he's taken them into playing in the UEFA Europa League qualifying rounds and winning the Welsh Cup when they beat the formidable TNS 2-1 in 2017.

On Saturday, Bala led the tributes to their gaffer as he reached the big five-o.

A club spokesperson said: "Huge congratulations to our longstanding Manager Colin Caton on reaching the significant milestone of 50 years of age today.

"Colin has spent the last 18 years as Manager of Bala Town and everyone involved with the club would like to pass on their very best wishes to Colin as he embarks on his sixth European campaign whilst celebrating this special birthday. Penblwydd Hapus Iawn".

During Caton's tenure, Bala Town have risen through the leagues and gone on to finish as high as runners-up in the Cymru Premier, on two occasions (2013/14 and 2014/15).

As well as that, the club has also gone on to play against teams from San Marino, Estonia, Luxembourg, Liechtenstein and Sweden in the UEFA Europe League.

The Lakesiders are now set to take on Valletta in Malta in their UEFA Europa League first round qualifying match on Thursday.

Traditionally, matches would be played over two legs. However, due to the coronavirus pandemic, the ties are now one-legged, somewhat adding to the excitement of the competition.

The fixture between Valletta and Bala Town will be a 7pm kick-off and will take place at the Ta-Qali Stadium, Malta.