PHOTOS:
Winners Haverfordwest CC
Paul Webb present trophy to Kieran O'Connor
Umpires Neil Croucher  and Allan Hansen 
Gorseinon CC
Pentyrch CC
Pics: by Bill Carne

 

Welsh Indoor Cricket Finals:

 
Venue: Tenby Leisure Centre
Umpires: Neil Croucher and Allan Hansen
Scorer: Simon Williams
Organisers: Peter Davies, assisted by Martin Jones
Trophy presenter: Paul Webb (Chairman, Pembroke County Cricket Club)
 
Haverfordwest Cricket Club are the newly-crowned holders of the Welsh Indoor Cricket Cup after battling their way through tense matches against Gorseinon (Swansea area champions) and Pentyrch (winners in Cardiff).

All three games were fiercely competitive but played in an excellent spirit as umpires Neil Croucher and Allan Hansen used their depth of experience in this form of cricket to good effect as all three games went right down to the wire before everyone enjoyed an excellent buffet supplied by Neyland Ladies and county club chairman Paul Webb welcomed and thanked everyone before presenting the silverware to Haverfordwest skipper O’Connor as the youngest-ever captain to receive the silverware.


 

Match One: Haverfordwest (87 for 5) beat Gorseinon (86 for 4)

 
The Town, captained by Kieran O’Connor took on Gorseinon in the opening tussle and after their young skipper had asked the opposition to bat first it was Town all-rounder Simon Holliday who made a considerable early impact buy removing key Gorseinon batsmen Dan Allen and Chris Morgan for ducks.

He also took a good catch to dismiss Josh Simmonds, one of Danny Potter’s two wickets in his equally excellent spell as they shared four wickets whilst conceding only33 runs but Gorseinon opener Greg Fisher showed his class with a boundary laden 46 that saw nine fours in his unbeaten 46 out of 86 for 4.

Only Tom Clarke managed double figures alongside 21 from ‘Mr Extras’ but The Town players were soon to find it was a challenging target with the ball swinging so much in the air.

Holliday was unlucky to be caught of the safety net from a good shot and only Ben Field (15) and Nigel Delaney (22) looked settled but falling in behind the run rate so that 38 were still needed off the last three overs.
But Huw Scriven hit a late 11 not out and Gorseinon bowled a series of wides under pressure and The Town had that ‘get out of jail’ feeling as they reached their target in the last few balls of their allotted 12 overs.
 
Gorseinon Batting:
Greg Fisher not out 46 (8 fours)
 Dan Allen lbw b Simon Holliday 0
Chris Morgan b Simon Holliday 0
Josh Simmonds ct Simon Holliday b Danny Potter 5
Tom Clarke not out 14
Joe Baker b Danny Potter 0
Extras 21
Total (4 wickets) 86
 
Haverfordwest Bowling:
Simon Holliday 3-0-12-2; Kieran O'Connor 3-0-25-0; Nigel Delaney 3-0-19-0; Danny Potter 3-0-21-2
 
Haverfordwest Batting:
Simon Holliday ct Josh Simonds b Dan Allen 8
Ben Field lbw b Tom Clarke 15
Nigel Delaney lbw b Josh Simmonds 22
Danny Potter b Tom Clarke 5
Kieran O'Connor run out 6
Huw Scriven not out 11
Extras 20
Total (5) 87
 
Gorseinon Bowling:
Josh Simmonds 3-0-24-1; Chris Morgan 3-0-17-0; Dan Allen 2-0-21-1; Tom Clarke 3-0-11-2; Joe Baker 1-0-6-0

Match Two: Gorseinon (149 for 3) beat Pentyrch (135 for 5) by 14 runs

 
Gorseinon started like trains as they showed their real batting power on their way to a massive 149 for 3 thanks to Gregg Fisher (29), Dan Allen (39 not out), Chris Morgan (31 not out) and Josh Simmonds (27 not out) from their 12 overs, with 10 sixes and nine fours as they cut loose from the outset.

For Pentyrch, the pick of their bowlers were Steve Hood (1 for 14) and Sam Ewan from his three-over stint.
Chasing such a mammoth tally Pentyrch were under pressure from the outset but openers Jack Lewis (run out 33)  and Dom Grossit (43 not out) took them to 51 in six overs before both had to retire with the score just beyond 50.

But they lost Jack Budd, James Hassell and Sam Ewan cheaply so that they needed 60 in five overs and 34 off the last over and inevitably fell short of their target on 135 for 5 as  Joe Baker was the pick of the Gorseinon bowlers on 1 for 13.            .

Match Three: Haverfordwest (148 for 2) beat Pentyrch (147 all out) by four wickets

 
Haverfordwest knew they had to win or tie with Gorseinon if they took all Pentyrch’s wickets and perhaps the debate over who would go through in certain circumstances unsettled The Town when Pentyrch elected to bat.

They dropped two catches and missed a run out as the opposition sped off the mark and passed 50 in fewer than five overs via Jack Lewis and Jack Budd – and compounded the issue by conceding 32 extras as Sam Ewan contributed a few sixes in his 35 before he was run out and Steve Hood rapped the back wall for two sixes in his speedy 18 runs that left Haverfordwest needing a challenging 148 for victory and the silverware.

It is to their credit that they played good cricket to reach their target with an over to spare despite striking just three fours and only two sixes but with an amazing 30 threes as proof of their splendid running between the wickets.

Simon Holliday, Ben Field and Nigel Delaney all retired when they passed 25 and although Danny Potter was run out for a duck there was support from O’Connor and Scriven before Holliday returned to the crease and smacked a six to haul his team level and finish on 50 not out to set the seal on success..
 

 
Pentyrch Batting: (missed catches and a clear run out)
Jack Lewis run out 27
Jack Budd b Danny Potter 24
Dom Grossit ct Simon Holliday 11
Sam Ewan run out 35
Steve Hood b Simon Holliday 18
Garrit Bantjes run out 0
Extras 32
Total (all out) 147
 
Haverfordwest Bowling:
Simon Holliday 3-0-20-1; Kieran O'Connor 3-0-36-0; Nigel Delaney 3-0-50-50-1;  Danny Potter 3-0-37-1
 
Haverfordwest Batting:
Simon Holliday not out 50
Ben Field retired 27
Nigel Delaney retired 27
Danny Potter run out 0
Kieran O’Connor lbw b Sam Ewan 19
Huw Scriven not out 19
Extras 6
Total (two wickets) 148
 
Pentyrch Bowling:
Dom Grossit 1-0-16-0; Sam Ewan 3-0-41-1; Steve Hood 3-0-38-0; Jack Lewis 1-0-16-0; Garret Bantjes 3-0-35-0