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2011 Match Reports

Centurions Well Beaten at Mumbles

Sully Centurions 1^st XI travelled to Premier League new boys Mumbles CC on Saturday and came away well beaten.  Batting first, Mumbles were in a bit of trouble early on when the in-form David Eskins removed Hemp and Lewis-Williams to leave the home side on 34 for 2.   Glamorgan’s David Brown, who was dropped early on, hung in and began peppering the boundary.   However, two more wickets – Holden caught by Eskins off Liam Woolls for 17 and Smith (caught by Gareth Davies off Lloyd Smith for 7) left Mumbles on 93 for 4.  But this was the last breakthrough for Sully, as Brown continued to play his shots, ably supported by Centurions old boy Morgan Hodges, and the pair made hay as Centurions wilted in the field.  Brown ended up with a magnificent 150 not out, including seventeen 4s and two 6s, and Hodges, who had also survived an early dropped catch, reached an unbeaten 63.  Mumbles ended on 267 for 4 after the 50 overs.

Centurions’ innings began well, with Ryan Sylvester and Mike O’Shea taking the score along to 70 before Ryan was out for 31.  But with Mike O’Shea going for 37 and none of the other big guns firing at the top of the order, the situation was rapidly worsening. Things looked bleaker when the normally dependable Jamie Sylvester was out for a duck (caught behind off the bowling of Griffiths) leaving Centurions on 106 for 5.  A spirited 19 from Tom Evison and a 9^th wicket stand of 40 between David Eskins (20) and Julian Griffiths (21) gave Sully a little hope, but the innings closed on 188 all out, way short of the target. The champions were left ruing missed chances and dropped catches.  A big pick-me-up is now required; perhaps this may come next week when Centurions face Downend in the 2^nd Round of the ECB National Knockout at Burnham Avenue.

Mumbles 267/4  Centurions 188 all out

The 1st XI were beaten at Cardiff on a day when the 2nd, 3rd and 4th XI matches were rained off. However, the weekend ended on a much more positive note with an 8 wicket Welsh Cup victory on Sunday.

Centurions' up and down season continued at Cardiff, where the current league leaders proved too strong for a Sully side missing some regular faces, due to unavailability and injury.

Batting first in a game reduced to 39 overs each due to the wet conditions, Centurions began losing wickets with regularity. Jamie Sylvester, Chris Thorne and Julian Griffiths all went cheaply, but opener Ryan Sylvester kept Centurions' hopes alive with a fine innings.

However, when he was out for a deserved century, there were only 160 runs on the board for the loss of 6 wickets.

Gareth Sullivan, who was run out for 27, and David Eskins 19 were the only other batsmen to reach double figures as Centurions finished the allotted overs on 190 for 9.

The hosts' innings started badly when Buttigeig and Kirtley found themselves back in the pavilion with only 18 runs on the board, with David Eskins and Ryan Sylvester taking the wickets.

But then a magnificent 3rd wicket stand of 171 between Thomas and Norman completely took the game away from Sully.

Lloyd Bruce finally bowled Thomas for 101, but this just brought in ex Glamorgan man Matthew Maynard to hit the winning runs in the 32nd over.

Cardiff 191-3; Sully 190-9.

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CENTURIONS hosted Malpas in the 2nd Round of the Gwalia sponsored Welsh Cup and ran out convincing winners by 8 wickets on a cold and blustery Sunday afternoon at Burnham Avenue.

The visitors won the toss and opted to bat but were soon in trouble when Lloyd Smith had Collins caught behind by Gareth Davies for 5. Lloyd next had Poyner trapped lbw for a duck, with the score on 31.

Martin and Griffiths added another 23 before two wickets were lost in quick succession, courtesy of Julian Griffiths and Jamie Sylvester. But a spirited fight back gave Malpas some hope, with opener Martin and number 8 batsman Morgan putting on 60 before Martin fell to a Jamie Sylvester catch off the bowling of Lloyd Smith for an excellent 91.

Morgan remained unbeaten at the end for a well deserved 50 as the innings closed on 195 for 7.

After tea Jamie Sylvester and Chris Thorne wasted little time in chasing the target, with both batsmen hitting the boundary on several occasions. The pair put on 156 for the first wicket - which was that of Chris Thorne, who was caught off the bowling of Poyner in the 22nd over. He hit 12 fours and a six in his innings of 74.

Jamie, who hit 14 fours in his innings, was out two overs later, also for 74 and again off the bowling of Poyner, with the score on 169.

Lloyd Smith joined in the fun with a quickfire 25 not out, which included three sixes - and not to be left out, with the scores level, Gareth Sullivan hit Poyner for a big six to see Centurions home with 20 overs still remaining. Centurions will face Usk in the next round

Sully 201-2; Malpas 195-7.

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The1st XI travelled to Premier League new boys Mumbles CC and came away well beaten.

Batting first, Mumbles were in a bit of trouble early on when the in-form David Eskins removed Hemp and Lewis-Williams to leave the home side on 34 for 2. Glamorgan’s David Brown, who was dropped early on, hung in and began peppering the boundary. However, two more wickets - Holden caught by Eskins off Liam Woolls for 17 and Smith (caught by Gareth Davies off Lloyd Smith for 7) - left Mumbles on 93 for 4. But this was the last breakthrough for Sully, as Brown continued to play his shots, ably supported by Sully old boy Morgan Hodges, and the pair made hay as Centurions wilted in the field. Brown ended up with a magnificent 150 not out, including seventeen 4s and two 6s, and Hodges, who had also survived an early dropped catch, reached an unbeaten 63. Mumbles ended on 267 for 4 after the 50 overs.

Centurions’ innings began well, with Ryan Sylvester and Mike O’Shea taking the score along to 70 before Ryan was out for 31. But with Mike O’Shea going for 37 and none of the other big guns firing at the top of the order, the situation was rapidly worsening.

Things looked bleaker when the normally dependable Jamie Sylvester was out for a duck (caught behind off the bowling of Griffiths) leaving Centurions on 106 for 5. A spirited 19 from Tom Evison and a 9th wicket stand of 40 between David Eskins (20) and Julian Griffiths (21) gave Sully a little hope, but the innings closed on 188 all out, way short of the target.

The champions were left ruing missed chances and dropped catches. A big pick-me-up is now required; perhaps this may come this weekend when Centurions face Downend in the 2nd round of the ECB National Knockout at Burnham Avenue.

Mumbles 267-4; Centurions 188 all out.

The 1st XI travelled to Pontarddulais in overcast conditions and when skipper Ryan Sylvester won the toss he had no hesitation in putting the home side in to bat. This proved a good decision, as the wickets began to fall early. David Eskins, opening the bowling, returned figures of 4 for 37 off 12 overs as Pontarddulais were left reeling. Ryan Sylvester and brother Jamie picked up 2 wickets each, with one apiece for Julian Griffiths and Tom Evison. The innings came to a close after 39 overs, with the West Wales side all out for just 119.

The Centurions victory was never in doubt, as Ryan Sylvester and Will Bragg put on 108 for the first wicket. Ryan was out caught for 51 which left Lloyd Smith (7 not out) and Will Bragg, who carried his bat for 56, to see Centurions home in less than 16 overs.

Pontarddulais 119 all out; Sully 121-1.

AFTER last week's defeat league champions Sully Centurions 1st XI played host to Ynysygerwn and ran out winners by a margin of 138 runs.

Ryan Sylvester led the charge with a great century, sharing an opening stand of 88 with Mike O'Shea, who departed for 41, and then adding another 160 with Lloyd Smith, who hit a sweet 53 before being caught by Haswell off the bowling of Ynysygerwn skipper Maggs. One run later Ryan's great innings of 124 came to an end, which left Centurions on 248 for 3. Jamie Sylvester hit an unbeaten 33 and Gareth Sullivan continued the run-fest with a fine 77 not out to take Centurions to a total of 361 for 3 at the end of their 50 overs.

The visitors were not disgraced, as they put in a creditable performance in reply, but, with an initial required run rate of 7.2 runs an over, they were always chasing the game. David Eskins, continuing his recent run of form with the ball, picked up 2 for 29, with Mike O'Shea (2 for 26) and Jamie Sylvester (2 for 12) being the pick of the Centurions attack.

Lloyd Smith, Tom Evison and Liam Woolls, with one wicket each, and a run out courtesy of Julian Griffiths completed the wicket taking, as the West Wales side were all out for 223 in the 43rd over. Steve Inward, with 50, was the top scorer for the visitors

 Sully 361 for 3; Ynysygerwn 223 all out.

Centurions came down to earth with a bump on the first day of the season when newly promoted Bridgend won at Burnham Avenue, thanks mainly to a 5 wicket haul for Alex Jones.

Jones, who opened with former Centurion Andrew Davies, did the damage at the top of the order by removing Ryan Sylvester, Lloyd Smith, Mike O'Shea, Gareth Sullivan and Daniel Rowe to leave the home side reeling at 35 for 5.

Then, after Jamie Sylvester helped steady the ship with a 34 run partnership with Roger Clitheroe, Sully began to lose wickets with regularity again and when David Eskins 7 was caught by Mike Powell off the bowling of Nick Davies, the Centurion innings had come to an end for just 121, with 9 overs still remaining.

After tea another former Sully player, David Goodway, opened the Bridgend innings along with Grant Humphries - and when Humphries was caught by Sullivan off the bowling of Ryan Sylvester with the score on 19, it looked as though Sully might make a fight of it.

Goodway had hit 14 when he was bowled by Daniel Rowe to leave the visitors on 38 for 2 and when Baker was dismissed with the score on 53 things looked interesting. But this just brought together Powell and Wadlan, who weathered the storm with some sensible batting to bring Bridgend close to the finish line.

Wadlan was caught by O'Shea off Liam Wools for 32, with the score on 110 and Mike Powell completed his half century, accompanied by man of the match Jones, to see the visitors home in the 38th over.

After the match the Centurions players were able to reflect on the lessons learned back at the home of this season's new sponsors, The Seashore Grill, Sully, who provided the usual hospitality.

This result has served as a warning that champions are there to be knocked off their thrones and Centurions will no doubt have taken heed of this lesson.

Sully Centurions 121 all out; Bridgend Town 122-4