A WELSH Cup winners' medal from the 19th century has finally returned home.

Newtown White Stars won the Welsh Cup in 1879, beating Wrexham 1-0 in Oswestry, to bring the national cup to Powys for the first time.

White Stars were one of several clubs in the town during the 1870s and like Newtown, were formed in 1875.

White Stars won the 1878–79 Welsh Cup and in the aftermath an attempt was made to merge the clubs under the name Newtown Excelsior.

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The famous Newtown White Stars team which won the cup in 1879. (Image: Archive.) The Newtown club folded into the Excelsior but White Stars continued, and absorbed Excelsior in 1880.

After losing the 1880–81 Welsh Cup final, the White Stars disbanded but a meeting at the Lion Hotel on July 23rd, 1884 re-established a Newtown club, featuring many of the players and officials who had been involved with the White Stars.

As such the histories of the two clubs have been closely intertwined ahead of Newtown Football Club's 150th season which will be further celebrated with the inclusion of the rare winners' medal.

Club spokesman Barry Gardner said: "I was contacted by a local collector called Aled Roberts via Facebook who saw the medal online I contacted the owner and explained about the club, its history and we will be 150 years next year and agreed a price so we can bring it back to Latham Park.

"Newtown Textile Museum has the original certificate from 1879 and now we have the medal to go with it."