Swardeston seal Norfolk T20 title with eight-wicket win

Report: Dave Reeder
Photos: Dale Clarke

Swardeston produced a commanding run chase to beat Ashmanhaugh and Barton Wanderers by eight wickets in the Coleman Opticians Norfolk T20 Final at Horsford Cricket Club on Friday evening.

After winning the toss and choosing to field, Wanderers were rocked immediately when their dangerman Zak Tribe was trapped lbw by Lewis Reeder without scoring from the fourth ball of the innings.

Jay Parmar then gave the innings impetus with an aggressive 37 from 22 balls, striking two fours and three sixes, while Kieran Spencer added 27 from 28 deliveries to help rebuild the innings.

**Tim Ward picked up the trophy for the most sixes hit in the whole competition**

Their work took the score to 57 before Parmar was caught off Adam Todd in the seventh over. Jayden Draper chipped in with 17, but two wickets in the 12th over, both falling to Matthew Taylor, checked Ashmanhaugh’s progress.

Jordan Everett ensured his side still reached a defendable total, making 31 from 25 balls before being stumped off Ben France late in the innings. France was the pick of the Swardeston attack, claiming three for 23 from his four overs, while Taylor returned two for 17 from three.

Set 145 to win, Swardeston’s reply was measured and ruthless. The chase gathered pace quickly and, despite losing two wickets, they remained well ahead of the required rate throughout.

Openers Tim Ward and Ben Chapman played aggressively from the start and had reached an impressive 72 runs from just 5 overs. Ward fell LBW for an entertaining innings of 46 from just 18 balls with 5 fours and 3 sixes.

Chapman hit 41 from 31 balls with 7 fours before being bowled by Tribe.

With the foundation set, captain Alfie Cooper (23no) and Jonah Wicks (28no) knocked off the remaining runs and reached the target from only 15.2 overs.

The eight-wicket win capped an impressive evening for Swardeston, whose bowlers laid the platform before the batting line-up finished the contest in emphatic fashion.

France was named man-of-the-match for his bowling spell and Tim Ward picked up the trophy for the most sixes hit in the whole competition.

Scorecard: https://swardeston.play-cricket.com/website/results/7716683

Watch livestream replay of the match: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BdH-S3yaQOA