A poor pitch meant that the ball wasn't often played on the floor, but that didn't prevent it from being an entertaining match.
Barry's best opportunity came from a free-kick on the edge of the box. Missing free-kick specialist, Gary Lloyd, who was at the birth of his child, Gary Barnett took the free-kick, which smacked against the post in the middle of the first-half.
Newtown went close twice in the first half, with Barry 'keeper, Dave Wells, saving well.
As the game wore on, Newtown looked the better side, but never looked like breaking down a solid Barry defence, which included Gareth Shone and Darren Davies, who won the Carlsberg Man of the Match Award for the Barry team.
An suspected injury to Eifion Williams saw him leave the pitch to be replaced by Jody Jenkins, but neither he nor fellow substitute, Chris Pridham, who was on for Barnett, made a great impact.
Former Barry player, Dave O'Gorman, scored on his return to Connah's Quay Nomads. However, that wasn't enough to prevent Cwmbran from winning 2-1 and moving up to third place in the table.
Rhayader's match against Aberystwyth was postponed due to the state of the Weirglodd pitch.
Conwy won away at Haverfordwest, while the match between Total Network Solutions and Carmarthen ended as a 1-1 draw. Caersws won 1-0 at Afan Lido.
If Barry win, it will be their third consecutive Gilbert Cup final. The other game will be played at Caernarfon on Wednesday, 3rd, against Bangor City.
Barry will also be entertaining Merthyr Tydfil in the F.A.W Premier Cup quarter-final on 16th March, 1999. The match will kick-off at 7:15pm.
T.N.S hit the bar twice during the first half, once from a free-kick, and once from an overhead kick. They also had a great chance to score with a 25 yard drive, but Dave Wells in the Barry goal was equal to the shot.
Barry created little, with Eifion Williams creating the Dragons best chance of the first twenty minutes, beating two defenders before seeing his cross cleared.
It was therefore a surprise when Barry actually took the lead five minutes before half-time.
Darren Davies slid the ball back to Danny Carter, whose cross into the middle was met by a diving Lee Barrow, whose looping header just eluded TNS keeper, Andy Mulliner, who got a hand to the ball, but couldn't keep it out.
The second half was quieter by comparison. Despite little goalmouth action and Barry looking poor in the final third of the field, it was Barry who scored again.
A cross from Gary Lloyd created problems in the TNS defence, and Richard Jones overhead kick met Danny Carter and landed inbetween Eifion Williams and Andy Mulliner only for Mike Gallagher to hammer the ball into his own net.
Barry seemed content to stay at 2-0 ahead, but made two substitutions. An injured Eifion Williams was replaced by Jody Jenkins, while Chris Pridham took the place of Darren Davies.
Both players looked good in the final minutes, with Jenkins shot going wide of the post.
Elsewhere, Inter Cabletel upped their chances of Europe, with a 2-1 win away at Connah's Quay Nomads, having come from a goal behind.
Bangor City won 2-1 away at local rivals, Rhyl, while Caernarfon kept up their good home record with a 2-0 home win over Afan Lido.
Cwmbran, the side who can earn most points this season, other than Barry, won 4-2 at Conwy.
The two men and their entourage were at the game today, and enjoyed the match.
In the clubhouse, following the match, Phillips answered questions from Barry fans relating to the relative lack of coverage in his paper, and the Echo's continuing dispute with the the club.
Important for Barry fans was Phillips' suggestion that Barry Town coverage in the Barry edition of the Barry paper would be almost equal to that given to Cardiff City in their edition.
Caersws were 3-0 up within 10 minutes, and finished the job in the game's final ten.
In the night's other match, Rhayader drew away at Carmarthen, managed by their former boss, Tomi Morgan. Ironically, Morgan's only win as manager at Rhayader was against Carmarthen. The game ended 1-1, and Rhayader moved off the bottom of the table on goal difference. Holywell are now bottom of the LoW, and Rhayader still have 3 games in hand over the North Wales side.
However, Crewe, with whom Eifion had a trial while at Caernarfon, have ruled themselves out of purchasing him.
Inter will be away to Connah's Quay Nomads in the quarter-final.
Meanwhile, their opponents this Saturday, Rhyl, hold a meeting this evening to discuss the future of the club's ground, Belle Vue.
Rhyl do not own the ground, and have found continued rent a burden on the club's finances. They have also been unable to improve the ground's facilities, including reopening the clubhouse.
Options for Rhyl include continuing as they are, taking out a lease on the ground, or, most radically, moving to a new stadium.
The Nomads have signed former Barry player, Dave O'Gorman, from Swansea in order to back up their Welsh Cup campaign, and improve their League of Wales performance. O'Gorman spent three years with the Nomads and remains their top scorer in the League of Wales.
In the other matches, CC Sports second division side, Ammanford, are at home to Conwy United, while former winners, Total Network Solutions entertain Cwmbran Town. Carmarthen Town are at home to Port Talbot Athletic of the CC Sports first division.
Like Barry, Newtown were knocked out by Connah's Quay Nomads in the Welsh Cup.
The Nomads took the lead midway through the first half when a cross from Jamie Hughes eluded the Barry defence, and with some assistance squeaked across the line.
However, Hughes played little more part in the game, being sent off after half-an-hour for a second bookable offence, a late tackle on Barry 'keeper, Dave Wells.
Barry controlled the possession, but made little use of it, and the Nomads came close to increasing their lead when a Steve Futcher free-kick hit the bar.
In the second half, the introduction of Justin Perry added more steel to the Barry forward line, and it was Perry who put the ball into the net only to see it disallowed for an earlier obstruction on Nomads keeper, Phil Collister.
Barry controlled the game territorially, with more than 30 corners being forced in the second half, but no goals from the team in yellow. In the sixth minute of injury time, Eifion Williams received the ball in the six-yard box, with no defender near him. He headed it straight at Phil Collister. It kinda summed up Barry's day.
Cwmbran held out for a 2-1 win away at Llanelli, while Conwy romped to a 7-0 win over BP Llandarcy.
In the games between minor league sides, Port Talbot beat Flint 2-0 while Ammanford overcame Colwyn Bay YMCA 1-0.
The draw for the fifth round takes place tomorrow, Sunday, 14th February, and the draw will be on here mid afternoon.
Despite recent trials at Nottingham Forest and Portsmouth, the Welsh striker apparently wishes to play for a Welsh side in the English Football League.
It is, however, unlikely, that Cardiff could match Barry's asking fee of more that £100,000 (they've already turned down players of that fee this season), and that the South Wales Echo is attempting to continue its feud with Barry Town by undermining the club.
Cardiff City stuttered to a 3-2 win over bottom club, Rhyl, leaving Cardiff top and facing Group B runners-up, Swansea City.
Barry will be at home in the quarter-final, as they were when the two clubs met last season. On that occasion, a disputed sending-off of Barry goalkeeper, Mark Ovendale, saw Merthyr win 1-0 after extra time.
There is presently no set date for the match, which will probably be screened live on BBC Wales Two.
Estimations of his worth in the Welsh media have centred around a figure of £100,000, but it is expected that Barry would charge much more for a centre-forward who has scored 94 goals in the past eighteen months, including goals for Wales 'B' and against Dynamo Kyiv in the European Champions' League.
His recent trial at Portsmouth ended in disappointment, with the English club being unable to afford Eifion's services after going into receivership.
In recent days, Wales manager, Bobby Gould, has joined his assistant, Graham Williams, and Chester and Wales 'B' manager, Kevin Ratcliffe, in singing Eifion's praises.
Had he recovered from those injuries then 33-year old Dibble, now with English non-league side, Altrincham Town, would have joined up with former Everton boss, Howard Kendall.
Gary Lloyd began the game in the Wales defence at the match, but it took the introduction of Williams as substitute to spark some life into the Wales side.
In the 72nd minute, he latched onto a through ball from Carl Robinson and lashed it home without breaking his stride.
As with last season's match, the game pitted the top against bottom and for the second successive season, it ended all square, with a 2-2 result being fought out last season.
The mid-Walian village side are now managed by former Barry boss, John Lewis, and were looking to save their blushes after a 7-1 thrashing at Jenner Park last October.
Barry played for 70 minutes with only ten men on the pitch, after Justin Perry was dismissed for a two-footed tackle in the 20th minute. His fellow striker, Eifion Williams, failed to put away several chances - his mind perhaps being more focused upon his forthcoming Wales 'B' appearance on Tuesday at Wrexham.
However, Barry remain nine points clear at the top of the League of Wales table with two games in hand on their nearest challengers.
Cwmbran lost their first away match of the LoW season with a 2-1 defeat at Haverfordwest, the same result as last season at Bridge Meadow.
Sixth-placed Total Network Solutions weren't in action, allowing Caernarfon to move closer to them, as did Bangor, who beat Holywell 5-2, and Carmarthen, who won 2-1 at Caersws.
Connah's Quay, who come to Barry in the Welsh Cup next Saturday, won 3-1 away at Afan Lido.
League of Wales results and table
Barry centre-forward, Eifion Williams, has scored 36 goals this season, including 25 in the League of Wales. Remarkable in itself, as Barry have only played 19 LoW matches, Eifion has also been injured, and has failed to start competitive matches on more than six occasions this season.
Barry assistant-manager, Richard Jones, is fourth on the LoW list, with 10 goals being scored in the LoW this season, Jones's fifth with the club. Further down the list is Justin Perry, whose brace last Saturday took him to 8 goals in all competitions this season.
Barry are also the leaders of the Association of Football Badge Collectors Fair Play league, with the Dragons having received only 18 yellow cards this season in the LoW, and yet to have a player sent off.
Second placed, Aberystwyth Town, are the only other club to have kept eleven players on the pitch throughout the season, but have accumulated 30 yellow cards. Inter Cabletel, in fourth place, may improve their disciplinary record this season, with the transfer of Sean Wharton, who was sent off twice earlier this season.
Perry opened the scoring for Barry with a seventh minute goal, but the visitors' Hugh Clarke equalised two minutes later. Barry took the lead again when Barnett scored after 32 minutes, and went 3-1 clear when Eifion Williams found the net seven minutes into the second half.
It looked to be a tight finish when Sean Jehu took the score back to 3-2 after 76 minutes, but an 82nd minute goal from Jordi Perry and an injury time strike from Eifion Williams made it a comfortable 5-2 win for the Dragons.
Barry had Gary Lloyd, Eifion Williams and Gary Barnett booked by referee, Phil Southall.
Aberystwyth Town took the advantage, and are behind Inter on goal difference alon after they maintained their unbeaten home record with a 2-1 win over Connah's Quay Nomads.
Bangor City got back to winning ways with a comfortable 3-0 home win over Haverfordwest, while also three goal winners were Total Network Solutions, with Dr.Andy Cale leading his side to a 3-0 win away at former club, Rhyl.
In South Wales, Afan Lido lost out 1-0 to Conwy United, while Carmarthen Town drew 0-0 with Caernarfon Town. However, Carmarthen are at least able to celebrate saving their LoW future, after receiving planning permission to fully enclose their ground.
Elsewhere, Newtown kept up their European chase with a 3-0 win over struggling Holywell Town. Bottom club Rhayader had a free week, prior to Barry's visit to the Weirglodd next Saturday.
Ian fielded questions on a number of issues concerning both Welsh football and its representation in our sporting media.
Barry Town homepage
League of Wales results - Spring 99
Barry Town Matchday Magazine index
What the Papers Say index
News - January 99
This page edited by the Yellow Dragon, 1999.