South Wales Cricket Association T20 Cup
In complete contrast to their league form, Ammanford strode through the finals of the SWCA T20 cup at the Gnoll like a cricketing Colossus, batting with a glorious abandon that belied their disastrous league performances.
Ammanford faced Premier league leaders Mumbles in the opening semi-final. Mumbles batted first after winning the toss and the mood was set for Ammanford by a miraculous overhead catch from Matthew Fisher on the long-on boundary to dismiss Mumbles captain Darren Thomas.
Despite tight bowling from Fisher, Matthew Roberts and Alun Evans, Alex Griffiths shot an aggressive 61no which along with an unbeaten 22 from Matthew Shepherd, took Mumbles to a challenging total of 148 for six.
Rhydian Harris and Matthew Roberts gave Ammanford a blistering start with an opening stand of 61 in six overs before Roberts was out for 23.
Harris went on to make 36 but a steady fall of wickets left Ammanford needing 34 from the last 4 overs.
Jack Murphy (44no) and Hedd Jones (11no) were well up to the task and knocked off the runs with eight balls to spare.
In the second semi-final, Port Talbot beat Pontarddulais by an agonising two runs to seal their place in the final against Ammanford.
In the final, Port Talbot won the toss and batted. Tight bowling and excellent fielding restricted them to 97 for eight, mainly due to a master-class from Matthew Fisher which netted him three wickets on top of two catches and a signature run-out.
Once again, the opening pair of Roberts and Harris gave Ammanford a winning platform with 52 from seven overs.
When Harris was out for 28, Fisher joined Roberts and these two strolled nonchalantly to their target with six overs to spare, Fisher hitting the winning runs with a towering six into the rugby pitch.
Roberts was unbeaten on 30 whilst Fisher’s unbeaten 34 was the icing on a magnificent performance which deservedly netted him Player of the Tournament.
So Ammanford salvage one piece of silverware from summer 2013 in the shape of the South Wales Cricket Association Cup, which is a tad ironic since that is where they will be playing next season.
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