The utterly dominant TNS

In Scotland, Celtic have been the subject of "can they go the season unbeaten" questions with the title secured. The Celts are, at the time of writing, fourteen points clear with two games in hand on arch-rivals Rangers. They have won all, bar a last minute slip up in Inverness, their league games but this doesn't actually make them the most dominant team in their domestic league in Europe.

We are going to Wales, well the Welsh league but the team in question are actually based in Oswestry, England. TNS, The New Saints to give them their full name are well, well clear in the league. They are twenty-one points clear of distant second placed Connah's Quay having won EVERY league game this season. That's nineteen wins to date with no slip up at all. They stand to become the earliest league champions in Wales ever. Such is their lead, they could lose seven on the bounce and still be top, thanks to the healthy goal difference built up.

TNS will be lifting their sixth successive league title in the new year giving them another shot at the champions league qualifiers. Their last defeat in all competitions was away at APOEL Nicosia back in July. They are chasing a European record held by Ajax which is twenty-six consecutive league wins. TNS have twenty-five ahead of their game against Cefn Druids on St Stephen's day.

The dominance has bought the 'how can it be good for the league' questions. In truth it can't. There is dominance then there is this where no one is even taking points off TNS. Some of this can be down to the fact that TNS are the only full-time professional club in the league. Training full-time does make a massive difference. However TNS are also getting players in that the rest simply can't afford.
Their 3-0 win over third-tier Scottish side Livingston showed how far they have come in recent years. Their annual champions league campaigns bring in fortunes that dwarf what the Welsh Europa league entrants get. So you have TNS maintaining a dominance that won't be broken unless they go down the road of the previous dominant force in Wales, Barry Town, which was financial implosion chasing progress in Europe.

On a European scale no team has gone a league season with a 100% win record. Can they do it?. No matter how dominant it would be some feat, no question. I've jinked them now with this post, haven't I.

On the subject of records, they also stand to break the largest league winning margin. Already standing at twenty-one points clear the record, which I blogged about earlier this year, is the twenty-nine point margin Celtic won by in the SPL in 2013-14.