For the second successive year, Glamorgan’s Men travelled to Wiltshire for their National County Showcase fixture against Wiltshire, but whereas 2024 saw a solitary 50 overs contest against the English team 2025 saw back-to-back 20 over matches involving both the Men’s and Women’s teams on what proved to be a historic evening for the Welsh county. (writes Andrew Hignell)
Both of the games were won by the Welsh county, but in very contrasting fashion, with the first seeing Lauren Parfitt’s team ease to victory by 77 runs with the captain scoring an unbeaten 72 whilst Bethan Gammon struck a forceful 85 with a dozen firmly-struck fours as the pair shared an unbroken stand of 153 in 18.3 overs for the second wicket to set up a comprehensive win. Whereas the Wiltshire attack had bowled with plenty of width and variable length, Glamorgan's spin-heavy attack gave little width and were supported by some smart fielding plus some shrewd field placing to prevent the Wiltshire batters from getting anywhere near their target.
At first, the Wiltshire Men took a leaf out of the Glamorgan Women’s book as their own spinners made a series of early inroads as the visiting top order made a frenetic start. Kiran Carlson was run out attempting a second run to the teenage fielder at third man in the second over, whilst a series of lofted drives and mis-hits from the middle-orderwere safely pouched by the Wiltshire fielders. Hayden Kerr, on his 1st XI debut, was stumped advancing down the pitch to debutant leg-spinner Charanveer Chahal, after Will Smale and Tom Bevan had each departed l.b.w.
At 96-8 in the 14th over, it looked like Wiltshire were well on top but Ned Leonard found a doughty ally in Andy Gorvin with the pair adding an unbeaten 69 from 39 overs balls which changed the course of the contest. Leonard opened his shoulders to plunder three huge sixes as the bowlers tired under his onslaught, ending up unbeaten on 47 from just 18 deliveries. Gorvin also scampered a series of singles, besides delicately placing a pair of fours to help give respectability to the Men’s final total of 165-8.
For a while though, it seemed as if Wiltshire would race to the target as Tom Cheater, the hard-hitting batter who has played for Hampshire 2nd XI and Oxford UCCE, struck a brace of sixes in the opening overs before dancing down the pitch to Mason Crane, only to be deftly stumped by Alex Horton. Jake Goodwin, the hard-hitting Swindon-born batter then looked like being the local hero yet again as he also bludgeoned some firm blows to reduce the equation to 21 from 14 balls. But Andy Gorvin in his follow-through, deflected yet another firmly struck blow from Wiltshire captain Ed Young back onto the stumps at the bowler’s end with Goodwin stranded well out of his out of his ground.
Two further run outs then occurred as the pressure seemed to get to the home batters. In contrast, the Glamorgan fielders held their nerve, leaving Wiltshire’s tail to make 12 from five balls from Kerr, but Chahal then struck a huge straight six from his first ball to dramatically change the equation. Alfie Johnson, who has also played for Gloucestershire 2nd XI then hit two through mid-off from the final ball to level the scores and take the game into a super-over – the first-ever in Glamorgan’s white-ball history.
Cheater and Goodwin duly made thirteen from the six balls bowled by Kerr with the Glamorgan bowler and the outfielders again holding their nerve to restrict the ambitions of the National County. batters. The evening was not yet over though for Kerr as shortly afterwards he made his way back out into the middle alongside Dan Douthwaite for the Glamorgan innings, but the Australian only had a watching brief as his burly partner hit a couple of two’s plus a pair of mighty sixes against the spin of Chahal as Glamorgan won with two balls remaining and to see the Welsh county to their first-ever double victory in back-to-back games involving the Men's and Women's teams.