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Ashley’s aiming high at Neyland
When Neyland took on Cresselly in this season’s Harrison-Allen Bowl Final the youngest player on the pitch was Ashley Sutton, who not only played well for Neyland in the middle of their batting line-up but is also the sole Pembrokeshire representative in the Welsh under 16 team as reward for his general performances with both bat and ball.
On the club front, Ashley has been in the Neyland first team all this campaign and scored 44 against Haverfordwest to effectively save the game and when he was bowling at Llangwm claimed the vital early wicket of top home batsman Will Beresford as Neyland secured a comfortable victory. He also picked up 4 for 24 against Lawrenny in the DR Morris Cup and showed his ability to withstand pressure in the Bowl Final as he compiled a neat 21 in the second innings which included a sweetly struck six.
Family double and a proud moment
His Bowl appearance completed something of a unique family double because his dad Phil was the youngest Neyland player in the club’s previous final in 1983 at the age of 15, but although Phil was a year younger he didn’t manage to score as many runs as Ashley! Ask Ashley about proud moments and the Harrison-Allen Final would feature highly, but not quite as high as the time when he and dad batted together for Neyland 2nds against Narberth and contributed 30 runs – and was able to walk up the wicket and shake hands with dad after Phil had reached a century.
Welsh recognition
Ashley has been part of the Welsh set-up since under 12 level, when he received his cap from former Glamorgan star Alan Jones at Sophia Gardens for playing against Scotland but there have been no full internationals since then. He was also part of the Welsh under 14 team which reached the semi-finals of the English Cricket Board Cup before losing out to a very strong Lancashire side which went on the win the tournament, and was second-top scorer from his No 7 spot with 26 runs.
His Welsh selection for this campaign came after some testing trials and Ashley has already made his impact with the bat since he scored 20 runs against Hampshire and a splendid 74 against Oxfordshire – and he has so far claimed seven wickets in his all-rounder capacity to confirm the selectors’ faith in him and he will receive his cap for this campaign at the end of the season.
He was also due to play a two-day match against Cheshire, followed by a 20/20 day/nighter but bad weather saw both cancelled, which enabled Ashley to get back home in time to play for Neyland in their semi-final success over Carew that earned them their place in the Bowl final.
Family matters
Playing for Wales inevitably means a great deal of travel, especially to the regular training sessions held at Neath, Newport and Cardiff, but he says that he is very lucky that dad Phil and mum Wendy are great taking him everywhere, whilst younger brother Nathan is also a useful sports player already and looks likely to follow in the Sutton family tradition.
Phil was a classy sporting all-rounder because he not only played cricket for Neyland and Haverfordwest but was one of the best rugby players to come out of the county as he played for Neyland, Bridgend, Aberavon and Tenby United in a distinguished career. Ashley is certainly following in his footsteps because he received his West Wales cap against East Wales at Stradey Park at under 11 level in the oval ball game, has played rugby for Haverfordwest and football for Johnston.
Early talent and growing skills
Ashley showed his growing talent first at Haverfordwest when dad was playing there and Sutton Jnr used to play with the other young lads there. He was included in the county under 10 team when he was eight years old and has played for them at every level since. He is now very much part of the Neyland first team set-up under Andrew Miller, who has been keen to utilise Ashley’s skills with both bat and ball, and says that he just wants to carry on developing his all-round play and reach the highest level he can.
Whatever that level might be there is no doubt that Ashley Sutton’s success has come not only from being a natural at the game of cricket but also being prepared to work very hard at all he does. Above all else he is a modest and polite young man, which one would expect from the Sutton family, and PembrokeshireSport.co.uk is delighted to give our little word of congratulation to Ashley Sutton of Neyland.
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