Whitland beat Llechryd in Ormond Youth Plate final

A knock of 53 not out from opener Harry Fuller set up a win for Whitland as they proved too strong for Llechryd in the Ormond Youth Plate final last night (Friday).

Fuller shared a stand of 61 with captain Harri Jones and then continued to be the backbone of his side’s innings as they posted 119-2, and although Llechryd remained in the contest for much of their reply their innings petered out in the closing overs as they ended on 86-7.

Weather warnings cast aside:

Many had assumed the game would be in doubt after a week of inclement weather but sterling work by the ground staff at Lawrenny, as well as strong winds which whilst making playing conditions difficult also dried out the surface, meant things started on time.

The final was also brought forward to 5pm to avoid issues with light but still, it was perhaps this factor that encouraged Jones to bat first upon winning the toss.

Whitland start well:

It was Fuller who announced his intentions early as he wrapped a boundary off Jo Dow’s first over, which ended up going for 13 runs (seven in wides) as the bowler struggled to find rhythm in the swirling gales.

Dow soon settled though and along with Dafydd Davies, restricted Whitland to 33-0 in the first six overs before a bowling change nearly brought the first wicket – Olivia North coming close to dismissing Jones as twice his mistimed shots landed inches short of the close fielders.

He and Fuller continued to build steadily though and it wasn’t until the 12th over, with the score on 66, that the first wicket came as the skipper was caught by John Griffiths off Tomos Lewis for 19 (three fours).

Jacob Owen ensured no momentum was lost though as he and Fuller put on another 51, the latter reaching his half century in the 18th over with a knock that contained six boundaries.

Owen also found the fence twice in his 16 before he was bowled late on by Dow, and late runs by Shay Norcross (4 not out) and the bonus of 27 runs in extras helped Whitland to a solid total of 119-2 in 20 overs.

Llechryd left with too much to do:

Llechryd’s opening pair of Ifan Dow and Tomos Lewis set off meaning business, Dow cracking three fours off the second over from Luc Owen to take the score to 18-0.

But after that the rate slowed and then in the 11th over, just as Dow seemed to be upping matters again with successive fours off Jones, he holed out to Cai Lewis for 37 (seven fours) to make it 47-1.

Jones then had his second wicket when he bowled Ben Mansfield cheaply which left the Cardiganshire side 59-2 - and needing 61 off seven overs for victory.

It was always going to be a big ask in the conditions and from there, and Whitland put the pressure on as Charlie Bujega ended the cameo of Dafydd Davies, who cracked two fours in making 10 off 11 balls, and then opener Lewis finally fell for 16 as he was stumped by Jacob Owen off the same bowler.

From there things stalled for Llechryd as the talented Bujega went on to finish with 2-24, and Jones 3-19, while two late wickets for Luc Owen saw the score finish on 86-7 – ensuring Whitland captured the Plate for the third time.

A socially distanced celebration:

The night also saw the first trophy presentation of the Pembrokeshire cricket season, with things somewhat different to normal as County Chairman Richard Merriman thanked sponsors Phil Lloyd and family, hosts Lawrenny CC, the two scorers and umpires Jo Kiff and Glyn Cole.

Officials were then invited to come and collect their own medals, and then Llechryd skipper Davies picked up the runners up mementoes on behalf of his side.

Jones did the same with the winning medals and then it was umpire Kiff who unsurprisingly announced Fuller as the man of the match.

It rounded off a successful first final of the campaign, with the Ormond Youth Cup final itself now taking place on Sunday when Cresselly play Hook – with a 12pm start at Carew.

Whitland innings:

Harri Jones ct John Griffiths b Tomos Lewis 19

Harry Fuller 53 not out

Jacob Owen 16

Shay Norcross 4 not out

Extras: 27.

Total: 119 for 2 in 20 overs.

Bowling: 4-0-1-31; Dafydd Davies 3-0-0-10; Olivia North 4-0-0-23; Tomos Lewis 4-0-1-23; Tomos Cartwright 2-0-0-20; Ifan Dow 3-0-0-13.

Did not bat: Luc Owen, Charlie Bujega, Ethan Ryan, Dafydd James, Cai Lewis, Ollie Bujega, Jai Hogben.

Llechryd innings:

Ifan Dow ct Cai Lewis b Harri Jones 37

Tomos Lewis st Jacob Owen b Charlie Bujega 16

Ben Mansfield b Harri Jones 1

Dafydd Davies b Charlie Bujega 10

Tomos Tomkinson b Jacob Owen 5

John Griffiths ct and b Harri Jones 0

Tyler Boston-Williams not out 1

Jo Dow lbw Jacob Owen 0

Matthew Cockwell not out 0

Extras: 7.

Total: 86 for 7 in 20 overs.

Bowling: Shay Norcross 4-1-0-8; Luc Owen 4-0-0-18; Harri Jones 4-0-3-19; Charlie Bujega 4-0-2-24; Jacob Owen 4-0-2-13.

Did not bat: Tomos Cartwright, Olivia North.

Umpires: Glyn Cole and Jo Kiff.

Scorers: Rob Benjamin and Graham Keen.