Ammanford CC v Pontarddulais CC

Ammanford Win a Thriller!

Ammanford and Pontarddulais put on an exciting game of cricket at Ammanford Park on Saturday. This 40 overs friendly fixture at times resembled an exciting T20 fixture. With the outfield having a spongy feel to it and the wicket offering some encouragement to the bowlers then perhaps it was no surprise that this wasn’t going to be a very high scoring affair.

Ammanford won the toss and decided to bat first. It wasn’t long before wickets began to tumble and Ammanford found themselves struggling to make a decent total to defend.

For latecomers coming into the park it must have warranted a second glance at the scoreboard. One person exclaimed Ammanford 61-7 ! in total disbelief.

However it was left to Ammanford’s Elis Richards to rally his team and despite seeing wickets tumbling around him made a creditable half century. He hit a few hefty blows to get his side into three figures and managed to get his team to a total 113 all out before being caught on the boundary.

Elis’s knock was appreciated not only by his own team and support but recognised as a fine battling performance by Pontarddulais.

Pontarddulais were well pleased with having to chase down 114 to win over 40 overs despite the wicket.
So as Ammanford took the field they knew that their bowling and fielding had to be spot on and taking wickets was key if they wanted to win.

Ammanford opened their attack through their Captain Alun Evans and the Pontarddulais openers made a steady start and initially looked as if 114 was proving a reasonable target to achieve.
But Ammanford’s bowlers and fielders had other ideas. It wasn’t long before the opponents were losing their wickets. Notable bowling performances from Callum Croft, Owen Davies and Mathew Fisher put pressure on the middle order and eventually the tail enders of Pontarddulais who themselves struggled to reach three figures. Some excellent catches at close range and in the deep plus a couple of excellent run outs turned this game on its head. The run out by Owen Davies’s fast throw and direct hit of the stumps was certainly a highlight of the afternoon. It became very tense affair towards the end with the simple equation of Ammanford needing to take the last wicket and Pontarddulais still needing 12 runs to win. The last Pontarddulais wicket fell with their total on 102. It fell as a result of a slip catch taken off the bowling of Mathew Fisher led to further leaps of joy and cheers from the home team.

It was smiles all round for the home team and an excellent game of cricket played out in a highly competitive but sportsmanlike spirit. For the neutral excellent entertainment with a nail biter of a finish. Captain Alun Evans must be particularly pleased with his young cricketers especially Owen Davies and Callum Croft who encouraged each other’s performances throughout the Pontarddulais innings.