South Wales Premier League Cricket

AMMANFORD got the better of a draw in a thrilling finale against Bridgend at the Park on Saturday.

In a match reduced by rain to 30 overs, Ammanford lost a significant toss and were put in to bat.

They lost opener Rhys Culley with just 11 runs on the board.

Alun Evans joined Jack Murphy and these two put on 45 runs before Evans was out for 24. Murphy (29) soon followed and the home team were 72 for three after 18 overs.

Wickets fell regularly as the players tried to push the score forward in the remaining dozen overs, and only Andrew Salter managed to make any impression with 34.

Ammanford closed on 138 for nine. Bridgend’s main wicket takers were their spinners Bradley Wadlan (4-25) and Thom - as Dalton (2-31).

Ammanford opening bowler Matthew Donoghue made early inroads into the Bridgend order when he removed two batsmen in successive balls in his second over.

However, a stand of 78 between Tom Baker, run out by Tom Maynard for 43, and Thomas Dalton (38) took the visitors to 112 for five.

With four overs to go, 26 runs to get and five wickets in hand, Brid - gend looked favourites to take the spoils, but come the final over, they had lost a further wicket and still needed 14.

Gareth Slade took a sharp stumping from the first ball of Matthew Roberts’ final over, and Alun Evans snapped up a catch off the third.

Bridgend still needed 14 off the last three balls, before Roberts inexplicably bowled two wides which reduced the target to 12 – a boundary per ball for victory. Gareth Slade then took his sec - ond stumping of the over, and a further dot ball put the match beyond Bridgend’s reach. Their num - ber 11 managed however to hit a boundary off the last ball which took Bridgend to within 10 runs of Ammanford and gave them a further two points.

Ammanford remain just one place above Swansea at the bottom of the table. Next week sees a real basement dogfight when Swansea visit the Park.