Alec Colley Cup semi final: Llangwm (112-8) lost to Neyland (114-2) by 8 wickets

Neyland marched into a final tussle against Cresselly in the Alec Colley Cup as they beat Llangwm by 8 wickets thanks to good all-round bowling and fielding which limited the opposition to 112 for 8 before Nathan Banner showed his influence,

He played a superb innings of 74 which saw his side win with eight wickets and eight overs still in hand.

Put in to bat first, Llangwm lost skipper Martin Thomas early as Rod Murphy took the catch off Banner’s bowling before Andrew Harries recalled days of yesteryear with three nice boundaries in his 17 before he was bowled by Patrick Hannon, with 40 runs on the board.

Disappointing spell for Llangwm:

It was the start of a disappointing spell for Llangwm as James Lewis was caught by Hannon off Paul Miller’s slow stuff and Huw Brock was adjudged lbw to Banner – and after Sean Weller (12) and James Lewis (9) advanced the score it then slumped 63 for 7 as Huw Brock, Dan Morgan (who cracked a mighty six over square leg) and Mike Williams all departed quickly.

Brock leads Llangwm resistance:

Andrew Brock played well during this time but when he reached 26 after belting Paul Miller for a six and a four, the slow bowler gained revenge from a juggled catch by Lewis Page at long on, to complete an excellent 4-35 analysis.

There were late runs from Sean Thomas (16 not out) and David Lewis (12 not out, including a massive six into the adjoining field from the final ball, but those around the boundary at Hook felt that it wasn’t enough to really challenge Neyland’s strong batting line-up.

Neyland make a rapid response via Banner and Page:

And that is the way things turned out as Neyland opened with Banner’s experience alongside Page’s youthful talent, this pair setting such a pace that their 50 came in six overs – and Banner achieved a personal half century two overs later with a string of boundaries.

Page also played some cracking shots as he had four fours and a six in his 30 out of 102-0 in the tenth over before he was bowled by the experienced ‘Ackie’ Harries.

One wicket quickly became two as Steve Murray was adjudged lbw for a duck from his second ball, giving Harries an unlikely double maiden in the circumstances.

But Banner blitzed successive boundaries off Callum Jenkins to take Neyland to victory, with 11 fours and a six in his unbeaten 74 as his side can now prepare for the final at Pembroke against Cresselly 2nds on Sunday, 18th August.

Scorecard:

Llangwm Batting:

Martin Thomas ct Rod Murphy b Nathan Banner 3

Andrew Harries b Patrick Hannon 17

Sean Weller b Patrick Hannon 12

James Lewis ct Patrick Hannon b Paul Miller 9

Huw Brock lbw b Nathan Banner 0

Andrew Brock ct Lewis Page b Paul Miller 26

Daniel Morgan b Paul Miller 8

Mike Williams b Paul Miller 0

Sean Thomas not out 16

David Lewis not out 12

Extras 9

Total (8 wickets) 112.

Bowling: Jamie Smith 2-0-13-0; Nathan Banner 5-1-21-2; Patrick Hannon 5-0-25-2; Paul Miller 5-0-35-4; Gary Lloyd 3-0-17-0.

Neyland Batting:

Nathan Banner 74 not out

Lewis Page b Andrew Harries 30

Steve Murray lbw b Andrew Harries 0

Luke Ryan not out 0

Extras 10

Total (2 wickets) 114.

Bowling: Mike Williams 2-0-15-0; Andrew Harries 5-1-32-2; James Lewis 1-0-17-0; Sean Thomas 2-0-27-0; Callum Jenkins 2-0-18-0.

Umpires: Dave Bonner and Mervyn John.

Scorers: Janice Brick and Jenny Seaton.