AMMANFORD somehow managed to lose their second successive Premier 1 match when they went down by 50 runs to newly promoted Ynystawe at the Park.
Winning the toss, Ynystawe showed confidence by deciding to take first knock. It didn’t seem to pay off as wickets fell regularly with Ammanford’s bowlers in the driving seat.
There seemed little doubt that Ynystawe were there for the taking, but two late order partnerships of 47 and 51 – number 7 batsman Matthew Blake (48) being the lynchpin of both – boosted their innings to the bounds of respectability.
Three dropped catches did not help the cause of Ammanford’s bowlers who did a sterling job. Owen Davies took 3 for 33, Saihaj Jaspal 2 for 34 and Dan Roberts 2 for 37.
When Ynystawe’s final wicket fell in the last over, their total of 175 felt well within reach of Ammanford’s batsmen. Or at least it would have done had they been able to find some form.
Wickets fell, as they had last week against Newport, with monotonous and ominous regularity. The only partnership of note came from Saihaj Jaspal (28) and Daniel Roberts (43), who put on 46 for the third wicket in addition to their bowling feats.
Ammanford were all out for an embarrassing 125 with 18 of their overs still remaining. They will need to find their batting form in something of a hurry if they are not to become embroiled in another survival battle.
The unexpected victory enabled Ynystawe to leapfrog Ammanford in to sixth position.
Next Saturday Ammanford make the short journey to neighbours Pontarddulais for what will undoubtedly be another stiff test.
Ammanford Seconds lose close match
Ammanford seconds lost a close match by just 26 runs at Gorseinon.
Batting first, the home team racked up a solid total of 224 for 6 in their 45 overs.
Several of their batsmen made significant contributions in a consistent performance but top scorers were Rhys Barlow (43no) Chris Richards (36).
Benjamin Thomas was Ammanford’s best bowler with 3 for 57.
Ammanford began their reply solidly with a 36 run opening stand between skipper Carl Griffiths (25) and Martyn Cleveland (24).
Further contributions from Hadleigh Luff (24) and Jacob Williams (24) were insufficient to keep Ammanford up with the required rate, and the visitors were all out for 198 with two overs to spare.
Centurions see off Ammanford thirds
It is rare when two clubs who share the same town and the same ground meet in a competitive league match, but this is what happened when Ammanford thirds played the grandly named Wildboar Centurions at the Rec. in what felt almost like a family affair.
Batting first, Ammanford were all out for 178 in 35 overs, thanks mainly to a 93 run partnership between Paul Hicks (52) and Josh Davies (42).
The Centurions, among whose number were some familiar names from Ammanford team sheets of yesteryear, made short work of their reply, and passed Ammanford’s total inside 25 overs with 6 wickets to spare.
David Harries (38), Geraint Rees (36), Paul Griffiths (48no) and skipper Jason Rosser (26no) were the main contributors to this famous victory.
