Match Reports
1st XI | 2nd XI | 3rd XI |Sat 25th August
Fourths finish strongly to beat Llantwit
Bridgend 184-9
Llantwit 129
Captain Marvell's fourth XI travelled to Llantwit Major on Saturday knowing that a victory over their neighbours would see them finish in fourth place in Division 3.
With the summer weather finally arriving Bridgend chose to bat first in what looked like ideal conditions. But they soon found themselves in a familiar position as the two early wickets of Dai Morris and Rob Pearce both fell with the score still in single figures.
Thankfully Alex Frew (51) who looked in imperious form and Jonny Ling (27) added 80 for the third wicket in double quick time before Ling fell caught behind - the first of 5 wickets for the impressive 14 year old Sam Pickford
A mini collapse followed leaving Bridgend on 103-6 but they needn't have worried as their skipper and talisman Andy Marvell (10 from 16 overs) developed a vital partnership with Chris Thomas before finding himself on teas for suicidely running the latter out.
Richard Tucker (9) looked in good touch before his innings was rudely interrupted by a stunning catch which almost took the fielder responsible for four. This left veterans Paul Minchington (14*) and Howard Ling (17*) to bat out the remaining 12 overs and guide the Bridgend total to a more than respectable 184-9 with an unbeaten last wicket partnership of 39.
With a fast outfield and a strong Llantwit batting line-up thanks to the inclusion of several first team players, the Town total maybe looked the wrong side of 200. They needn't have worried as a superb bowling and fielding performance never allowed the home batsmen to settle.
Howard Ling (2-25) got Bridgend off to the best possible start when he removed former Town player and dangerman Mark Coldwell in the second over.
Some aggressive hitting carried the score along but the introduction of Chris Thomas and Paul Minchington left Llantwit's reply in tatters. Thomas bowled an excellent line and length throughout, taking career best figures of 5-28, while at the other end, Minch (3-39) bowled his usual mixture of hostile deliveries to keep the batsmen in check.
Some great fielding by Town including two top catches in the field by Huw Roberts, one a full length diving effort, combined with the bowling to dismiss Llantwit for 129 and end the fourth XI season on a high note.
Sat 11th August
Bridgend lose out at Monkswood
Bridgend 224
Monkswood 225-6
The fourth XI travelled to table toppers Monkswood hoping for another victory, after defeating them at home earlier in the season.
After arriving at the picturesque ground, skipper Marvell had no hesitation in batting first after winning the toss, thanks to a pitch that looked every bit as good to bat on as some of the best grounds in South Wales.
Alex Frew (24) and Alan Bunston got Bridgend off to a good start, making use of the pitch and lightening fast outfield to race to the 40 mark in seven overs. Monkswood used a chnage of tact, bringing on slower bowlers and this immediately accounted for Frew who was bowled after playing to early.
This brought Ian Henry (46) to the crease and after seeing out his first couple of overs began to punish the Monkswood attack with some blistering hitting. But both he and Bunston (25) fell in quick succession leaving Jonny Ling and Chris Brett to continue the good work. However things did not go to plan as Ling was caught on the boundary for 9 and Brett soon followed.
Alan Jenkins hit a quick 17, but it was left to captain Marvell (24), Paul Minchington and Howard Ling to see out the remaining overs and leave Bridgend with a respectable total of 224.
Monkswood also got off to a rapid start before Alex Frew got the breakthrough wicket of Watkins for 36, with Alan Jenkins taking an excellent catch on the boundary.
Bridgend found wickets hard to come by and the scoreboard continued to edge closer to the target. Marvell and Jenkins took two further catches off the bowling of Minchington but Monkswood with the help of a capacity crowd at the neighbouring pub got home with two overs to spare.
Sat 28th July
Bridgend are Marvellous again as they run Lisvane into a spot of bother
Bridgend 155-9
Lisvane 139
The Fourth XI found themselves in yet another close finish, beating Lisvane at Newbridge Fields by just 16 runs.
Batting first on a somewhat bowler friendly surface, Bridgend got off to a terrible start losing their first 5 wickets for 53 runs before Captain Marvell and Richard Tucker (17) halted the collapse. Marvell was then joined by Paul Minchington, promoted to the number nine spot after several recent displays of top class strokeplay.
The pair added 61 for the 8th wicket, only twelve short of the fourth XI record, before Minchington fell for a fine 19, with the score on 151. With Captain looking in good touch, Town were on course for 175 and maximum batting points. However events took a turn for the worst when Captain was felled by a beamer to the head. With a deep cut just above the eye, he was forced to retire hurt unbeaten on 36 and was quickly ferried to Hospital, receiving three stitches and a decent black eye.
The innings closed without further incident on 155-9 with 60 extras the top scorer by a long shot.
With rain forecast, Bridgend were looking for quick wickets, but despite an early run out, which was incrdibly going to be the first of five, Lisvane moved onto 50-1.
With Dan Boyle coming on as a substitute for the injured Marvell, Alex Frew was brought into the attack after keeping wicket for the first 15 overs. Alex once again bowled with excellent control claiming a wicket in his first over and finishing with figures of 8-12-1.
As the rain began to fall, Bridgend stepped up a gear in the field and made Lisvane pay for some kamikaze running between the wickets. Another four run-outs ensued bringing Town back into the match. With 30 required from the last 10 overs, Huw Roberts bowled superbly taking two vital wickets and conceding just 7 runs in 5 overs.
At the other end stand-in Captain Howard Ling (4.4-8-1) finished off the Lisvane resistance giving Bridgend a 16 run win, dedicated to the hospitalised Captain Marvell.
Sat 14th July
Luck runs out for Bridgend
Barry 142-8
Bridgend 141-9
After losing by 97 runs to Barry earlier in the season, Bridgend were out for revenge on a rare warm and sunny day at Newbridge Fields.
After yet another week of heavy rain, the fixture was one of the few to go ahead across South Wales on the weekend. With the track looking and feeling more than a little damp, Captain Marvell won a vital toss and had no hesitation in asking Wanderers to bat.
Rhodri Hopes and Liam Weller (1-19 from 8 overs) opened up the Bridgend attack and with his first ball of the day Weller produced a cracker to clean bowl the Barry opener and get Town off to a great start. With both bowlers bowling tight opening spells, Barry found the going tough and had trouble hitting the ball off the square.
Never-the-less they continued past 50 without losing another wicket until Specialist Jonny Ling produced another fine run out to make it two down. But once again Barry refused to buckle and gained some momentum, with opener Whiting passing the 50 mark.
Captain Marvell soon turned to his strike bowlers in the form of Howard Ling and Paul Minchington, but despite regularly beating the bat they were unable to break the deadlock.
The key moment for Bridgend proved to be the introduction of Alex Frew into the attack. He proceeded to bamboozle the Barry batsmen who were unable lay bat, pad or anything else on the ball and a quick procession of glum faces headed back to the pavillion as Alex picked up a well deserved 3 wickets for 18 runs in 8 overs.
With Hopes (2-23 from 9 overs) bowling a good second spell from the Town end, Bridgend restricted Barry to 142-8 from their 45 overs.
Despite a relatively low target to reach, Bridgend have not exactly been scoring runs for fun recently and their task was made even harder by the numerous ball marks in the soft pitch.
One of these accounted for Iwan Bunston in the third over, who found himself getting bowled by a ball that failed to make it past his ankles.
At the other end Alex Frew looked to be progressing nicely before his patience ran out, skying a ball to mid-on for 20. Jonny Ling (11) and Ozzy Osbourne (6) followed in similar fashion several overs later, both playing careless shots to veteran spinner Mike Ashton (3-23 from 12 overs).
Luckily for Bridgend Captain Marvell was in no mood to give his wicket away and led the Town recovery, despatching some vintage shots to all areas of the ground.
With 30 needed from the last 6 overs, Bridgend looked liked they might claim yet another narrow victory following two recent 1 wicket wins. But their luck ran out as Barry promptly stuck nine men on the boundary and forced sprinters Minchington and Marvell into runnning some risky twos. With nine needed from the last over, and three from the last ball Bridgend's luck finally came to an end as Minchington (10) was run out attempting a second run to leave Town 1 short and Marvell's classy 62 not out proving to be in vain.
Sat 7th July
Minch joins the 100 club but Bridgend lose at Blaengarw
Blaengarw 157
Bridgend 109
After a couple of narrow victories in recent weeks, the Fourth XI travelled to Blaengarw just two places away from the two promotion slots.
After winning the toss, Bridgend decided to bowl first. Youngster Rhodri Hopes opened up and bowled with maturity taking 3-24 in 10 overs while leading wicket taker Howard Ling took 2-24, also from 10 overs.
As Blaengarw progressed wickets continued to fall, but the total could have been much lower thanks to several dropped catches, with skipper Marvell's buckets continuing to sprout holes as the season progresses.
Paul Minchington (2-38) passed another notable milestone in his long and distinguished career by claiming is 100th wicket for the club and Rob Thomas bowled an interesting mixture of deliveries to take 2-17 from 5 overs. This left Bridgend chasing a 157 from their 45 overs and with a short boundary and some big hitters looking good for another victory.
Despite some good starts none of the Town batsmen really got going with Andrew Osbourne and Richard Lewis both falling on 24. Unfortunately the middle order collapsed for the third week running before tail ender Minchington capped a memorable day by producing another score of 24 to leave Town a disappointing 109 all out.
Sat 23rd June
Deja vu for Town as they beat Pentwyn
Pentwyn 142
Bridgend 143-9
At Newbridge Fields on Saturday, the Fourth XI came close to throwing away a match that was theirs for the taking.
The match finished in a similar fashion to the previous weeks', as Bridgend scrambled across the finish line to defeat Pentwyn by 1 wicket.
After winning the toss, Bridgend inserted Pentywn on a damp and soft wicket. This didn't seem to trouble the Pentwyn batsmen who got off to a flyer, scoring just over 80 in the first 15 overs.
Paul Minchington got the breakthrough Bridgend needed, with Alex Frew taking a legside catch behind the stumps that Dickie Morgan would have been proud of to remove dangerman Saunders for 44.
This allowed Bridgend to get back in the game and some tight bowling and fielding soon brought the run rate crashing back down.
As the overs began to run out the Pentwyn batsmen went looking for runs and the Bridgend bowlers Minchington (4-30) and Tim Bushell (4-12) took full advantage, dismissing the visitors for 142 in the 43rd over.
Bridgend got off to a slow start with opener Ian Henry (3) being removed early on to a smart catch at gully. But veterans Alan Bunston (23) and Carl Moruzzi (28) steadied the ship guiding Town to 60-1 before the wickets began to tumble.
Thankfully Jonny Ling (30 not out) continued his form from last week, guiding Town home to safety with 1 wicket remaining and a full over to spare.
Sat 16th June
Ling sees Bridgend home in thriller
Monkswood 194-9
Bridgend 195-9
Following some heavy rain and what looked like an under-prepared pitch, Bridgend won the toss and promptly inserted visitors Monkswood in the hope that the track would offer plenty to the bowlers.
This theory proved to be spot on, but Bridgend failed to take advantage, putting down numerous chances in the field and allowing Monkswood several lucky escapes.
Despite this, veteran pacemen Howard Ling (3-32) and Paul Minchington (3-30) plugged away and still did plenty of damage with the ball, leaving Monkswood on 194-9 from their 45 overs.
With a strong batting line-up Bridgend had every chance of reaching this total. Despite losing Alex Frew early on, Bridgend got off to a good start with Alan Bunston (36) and Carl Moruzzi (26) reaching a 50 partnership for the second wicket.
Moruzzi then departed leaving in-form Jonny Ling to join Bunston at the crease. As Bridgend set about knocking off the remaining runs, wickets continued to fall at regular intervals. Some defensive field placings from Monkswood restricted Ling to singles and the required run rate began to spiral, leaving Bridgend with 30 runs required from the last 4 overs.
After Minchington departed with 3 overs to spare, Jonny was joined by father Howard complete with a runner in the form of Iwan Bunston after sustaining an injury during the first half of the match.
With the pressure mounting and the crowd becoming increasingly anxious, Ling and Bunston were forced into some risky running between the wickets. But the gamble paid off as Ling hit the winning runs with four balls to spare, finishing on 58 not out and leading Bridgend to a hard fought 1 wicket victory.
Sat 2nd June
Lisvane 160
Bridgend 161-6
The 4th XI produced their third win in a row as Captain Marvell’s men marched on in the Thomas, Carroll Welsh Club Conference Division Three Second XI competition at the expense of Lisvane IV.
Jeremy Teague scored 46 and Peter Allen 32 in the Lisvane innings of 160 all out, with Paul Minchington taking 4-33 for Bridgend Fourths and James Townley 3-6.
As Bridgend chased down the runs Dai Perry took 2-23 for Lisvane and Ian Hudson 2-45. But with a strong batting line-up Bridgend always looked favourites for the win and Alex Frew (36) and Alun Jenkins (28) did not disappoint, knocking off the runs in their usual quick scoring manner.
Sat 26th May
Fourths victorious in local derby
Pencoed 198-9
Bridgend 202-5
The 4th XI claimed their second victory of the season with a five wicket victory over local rivals Pencoed.
Pencoed batted first with Alex Gregory making 63 and Alistair Waterhouse, 45, but they were restricted to 198-9 thanks mainly to a vintage performance from seamer Howard 'Harry Lime' Ling who took 5-43.
Pencoed's total proved to low as Bridgend knocked the runs off with ease. Andrew 'Ozzy' Osborne hitting 54 and Richard Lewis continuing his fine form, top scoring with 94*, guiding Bridgend to 202-5 and victory.
Sat 19th May
Wanderers too strong for understrength Town
Barry 170-7
Bridgend 73
After getting a great start to the season beating Great Western, the 4th XI travelled to Barry Wanderers looking for a second successive victory.
Wanderers batted first and progressed at a steady rate. Simon Swinford was again the pick of the Town bowlers claiming 3-28 from his 12 overs and was ably supported by Adam Davies (2-44) and Lewis Smith (2-40).
Barry finished with a total of 170-7 from their 45 overs. Bridgend's reply got off to a bad after losing Captain Andy Marvell early on. And bad went to worse as wickets continued to tumble. Only Rhys Clayton offered any resistance with a solid 15.
Bridgend lurched to 48-9 before a last wicket partnership of 25 between Adam Davies (11*) and Simon Swinford 12 carried them to 73 and a 97 run defeat.
Sat 5th May
Town make great start to new season
Bridgend 153
Great Western 98
After gaining promotion last season, Captain Marvell's 4th could have been expecting to find things tough in a higher division, but they got off to a winning start with a 55 run victory over Great Western.
Bridgend batted first and thanks mainly to Richard Lewis (62) accumulated 153 before being bowled out.
They needn't have undoubtedly one of the most experienced pace attacks in league cricket. Veterans Howard Ling (3-20) and Paul Minchington (2-11) put paid to any chances of Great Western reaching Bridgend's total with a fine display of bowling. This left debutant Simon Swinford to take 4-16 and leave Great Western 55 runs short with 98.