Indoor Cricket Finals

 

 
Participating teams: Neyland, Pentyrch and Ynystawe
Venue: Neyland Community Hub
Umpires: Chris Stapleton & Allan Hansen
Scorer: Kacey Arran
Social media provider: Tom Pritchard
 

Match One - Neyland get off to a winning start without losing a wicket

 

Ynystawe (65 for 6) lost to Neyland (66 for 0)

 
Neyland got their defence of the title to a flying start as they put a strong Ynystawe side in to bat, shot them out for only 65 and then reached their target without losing a wicket and with nine balls in hand.
 
With the ball swinging more than usual at The Hub’s splendid sports hall, Neyland soon had the opposition in dire trouble as skipper Sean Hannon and 18 year old Jack John shared six overs and restricted Ynystawe to only 32 runs and with wickets tumbling.
 
They were superbly supported by their team’s ground fielding as Hannon trapped key run-maker Morgan Hodges (6), John bowled Ceri Durke (7) and Will Cox was run out for a duck thanks to good work by Ashley Sutton.
 

Hannon and John set the agenda for Neyland . . .

 
Hannon’s three overs before he took over the keeper’s gloves from George Evans, included nine ‘dot balls; 7 singles and only two threes as he finished with a miserly 1 for 13 – and John showed what an asset he has been all season with an equally impressive 1 for 19 spell, plus a good run out of Lee Hicks (15) and an excellent catch to get rid of Ben Northey (6) off Patrick Bellerby’s bowling..
 
Later, the ubiquitous Hannon stumped Ynystawe’s top scorer Rhys Palmer (26) off Bellerby, who ended up with 2 for 6 in 2.3 overs, and Patrick Hannon was the fourth member of a bowling quartet that gave little away.
 

Before Sutton and Bellerby apply the coup de grace

 
Neyland openers Ashley Sutton and Bellerby sensibly looked for a sensible start as Palmer and Durke bowled well and Hicks swung the ball a lot in his three overs where he conceded only ten runs.
 
But this experienced pair included two fours, a six and 10 threes to keep the scoreboard ticking nicely away and when Sutton retired for a classy 25 the game was all but one.
 
Bellerby completed a good all-round performance with 24 not out and Patrick Hannon chipped in with an unbeaten 11 to see Neyland off to a flying start.
 
SCORECARDS:
 
Ynystawe Batting:
Morgan Hodges lbw b Sean Hannon 6
Ceri Durke b Jack John 7
Luke Garthwaite run out 0
Rhys Palmer st Sean Hannon b Patrick Bellerby 26
Lee Hicks run out 15
Ben Northey ct Jack John b Patrick Bellerby 6
Extras 5
Total (all out) 65
 
Neyland Bowling:
Sean Hannon 3-0-13-1; Jack John 3-0-19-1; Patrick Hannon 3-0-27-0; Patrick Bellerby 2.3-0-6-1
 
Neyland Batting:
Ashley Sutton retired 25
Patrick Bellerby not out 24
Patrick Hannon not out 11
Extras 6
Total (0 wickets) 66
 
Ynystawe Bowling:
Ceri Durke 3-0-19-0; Rhys Palmer 2.3.0-13-0; Lee Hicks 3-0-10-0; Luke Garthwaite 2-0-19-0
 

Match Two - Neyland slam Pentyrch after skipper Hannon and teenager John rescue their batting

 

Neyland (95 for 5) beat Pentyrch (39 all out)

 
Neyland sealed their 8^th success with victory over Pentyrch by a massive 56 runs but not before they recovered from a serious set-back after being asked to bat first and struggled - and then were terrific in the field as the opposition were unable to cope with their outstanding bowling, catching and ground work.
 
And after skipper Sean Hannon and talented teenager Jack John had featured with the ball in the first game it was their batting that helped them to a challenging 96 for 5 after being 40 for 4 at one stage.
 

Hood causes mayhem but Neyland’s last pair battle back

 
Opening bowler Simon Hood caused early mayhem as he removed Sutton (11), Bellerby (7) and Evans (0) – and to make things worse Patrick Hannon was run out for a duck!
 
Things looked ominous for Neyland as they had only mustered 38 at the half-way stage of their innings before Sean Hannon and John  took charge by punishing the odd stray delivery and sprinting well between the wickets to turn singles into much-needed threes - so the run rate increased dramatically and they amassed 58 runs in their second six overs!
 
By the time John departed for an excellent 19 it left Sean Hannon with time to increase his tally to 37 not out and there were 17 extras to tag on so that their final tally was impressive after such a bad start.
 

Pentyrch collapse under fantastic Neyland pressure

 
Then Neyland applied early pressure as Jack John grabbed 1 for 10 in his three overs and although Sean Hannon was more expensive Pentyrch lost wickets trying to maintain a difficult run rate and three of their batsmen w3ere run out, two to Sutton and one to Sean Hannon.
 
Only Hood (12) and Cox (14) barely managed double figures and such was their disarray that they were hot out in only 7.5 overs as Patrick Hannon picked up 1 for 1 in his only over and Bellerby wrapped things up by bowling only three deliveries before tail-ender Much was the third run-out victim!
 
SCORECARDS:
 
Neyland Batting
Ashley Sutton ct Will Cox b Simon Hood 11
Patrick Bellerby ct & b Simon Hood 7
Patrick Hannon run out 5
George Evans lbw b Simon Hood 0
Sean Hannon not out 37
Jack John ct & b Paul Mudge 19
Extras 17
Total (5 wickets) 96
 
Pentyrch Bowling:
Matthew Gossett 3-0-15-0; Simon Hood 3-0-19-3; Will Cox 3-0-17-0; Paul Mudge 3-0-10-1.
 
Pentyrch Batting:
Simon Hood ct Patrick Hannon b Jack John 12
David Gossett ct George Evans b Patrick Hannon 3
Will Cox run out 14
Barry Hole run out 0
Matthew Gossett ct Ashley Sutton b Sean Hannon 2
Paul Mudge run out 3
Extras 5
Total (all out) 39
 
Neyland Bowling:
Sean Hannon 3-0-23-1; Jack John 3-0-10-1; Patrick Hannon 1-0-1-1; Patrick Bellerby 0.5-0-3-0.
 
 

Match Three – Ynystawe win the battle for second spot

 

Ynystawe (102 for 5) beat Pentyrch (74 all out)

 
With Neyland already assured of the title the final game was something of an anti-climax although both teams gave total commitment before Ynystawe eased through to the runners-up spot with a 28-run win.
 
Put in to bat, Ynystawe’s top scorer was Morgan Hodges, with an excellent 37 not out, supported by Rhys Palmer (run out for 27) and ‘Mr Extras’ 18 after they had struggled to score only 28 runs at the half-way stage but managed another 64 runs from their second six overs  as bowlers Mudge (1 for 35) and Cox (0 for 39) were unable to build on the good start from Matthew Gossett (0 for 11) and Simon Hood (1 for 16)
 
Will Cox batted really well for Pentyrch with 32 and there were double figures for Hood, David and Matthew Gossett but they were always behind the asking run rate and were all out in 10.5 overs.
 
For Ynystawe there were miserly spells by Rhys Palmer (1 for 9 in three overs) and Ceri Durke (2 for 19) as Lee Hicks (1 for 18) and Luke Garthwaite (1 for 27) gave solid support.
 

Post-match awards and comments

 
High praise from CEO Leshia
 
The Welsh Indoor Cricket Trophy was presented to Sean Hannon by Leshia Hawkins, the chief executive officer of Cricket Wales, who said later on social media:
 
“It was a privilege to present the Indoor Final Trophy to Neyland Cricket Club and getting the tour of the stunning Neyland Community Hub by Martin Jones.
 
“Good luck to Neyland in the next round and commiserations to Pentyrch and Ynystawe.”
 
Sean Hannon (Neyland Cricket Club Captain:
 
“I am very proud of the way we played today against very strong opposition from ‘up the line’ and a tribute to our strength in depth can be gauged by the fact that we were without Nick Koomen and Ross Hardy, two of the best indoor cricketers I have seen.
 
“But Jack John maintained his magnificent form and George Evans, our B team skipper, came in and gave 100%, as usual alongside our other regulars in Ashley Sutton, Patrick Bellerby and my brother Patrick.
 
If there had been an award for the player of the tournament I think Jack (John) would have been a worthy winner.”
 
 
Martin Jones (Neyland CC chairman and Cricket Development Officer for Pembrokeshire):
 
“It was a cracking day of indoor cricket and I would like to thank umpires Chris Stapleton and Allan Hansen, plus scorer Kacey Arran and media man Tom Pritchard.
 
“It was great to play in our own town at the fantastic community hub and the buffet supplied afterwards was the icing on the cake.
 
“We are delighted to be drawn home in the next round against a team from Herefordshire, at a date to be arranged.”
 
Peter Davies (Recently retired organiser and Neyland CC team manager):
 
“I am delighted that all went well and it was a nice retirement treat for me – and I congratulate all three clubs for the sporting way in which the games were played, which were a credit to Welsh Indoor Cricket.
 
“Neyland are a great indoor team and I’m proud that they fly the Pembrokeshire Flag with distinction.”