Glamorgan v Essex Eagles
Royal London Cup Semi-Final
Sophia Gardens
Monday 16 August
11am start
Essex Eagles are now one match away from competing in their first List A Final for more than a decade after they beat Yorkshire Vikings by 129 runs to set up a Semi-Final clash with Glamorgan at Sophia Gardens on Monday.
It was back in 2008 when the Eagles last played in a 50-over Final and on that occasion, they beat Kent Spitfires at Lord’s, and now Tom Westley’s side are on the cusp of another Final after their comfortable victory over the Vikings on Saturday.
Rising star Josh Rymell earned the plaudits with 121 out of the Eagles 317-7 before spin trio Tom Westley, Simon Harmer and Aron Nijjar claimed 7 wickets between them to support paceman Jack Plom’s List A career-best figures of 3/34 as Yorkshire Vikings were bowled out for 188 in 38.4 overs.
Now the Welsh County stand between the Eagles and a place in the Final at Trent Bridge on Thursday. Glamorgan have won 2 of the last 3 List A matches between the teams in Cardiff with victories in 2015 by 146 runs and then a nail-biting 1-run success 2 years later. But it was the Eagles who were triumphant on the last occasion that the teams clashed winning by 180 runs in 2019.
Squad:
Rymell’s View:
Up and coming 20-year-old young batsman Josh Rymell produced a mature performance in a quality innings of 121 that belied his youthful years.
He struck 16 boundaries and was eventually dismissed in the 47th over, but by then he had underpinned a substantial total that was to prove beyond the remit of the Yorkshire outfit.
Speaking immediately after collecting the Player of the Game award, he said: “To be honest, I don’t think it has really sunk in yet. Of course, I’m really happy about it personally but also that it helped us get the win to take us into the Semi-Final.
“We were happy with the total that we posted because the pitch was little bit stoppy at first but then it got easier as the innings went on and I was able to accelerate. I was a bit nervous when I was in the 90s but relieved when I got I the century.
“It’s still incredible to walk out to open the innings with Alastair Cook, it’s amazing when he deals with things so easily and I’m struggling down the other end.
“I haven’t batted as opener too often so far and hopefully, there are a lot more to come.
“Plommy (Jack Plom) and Benny (Allison) then bowled really well at the start of the Yorkshire innings and then in their middle overs, the spinners took wickets and bowled superbly.
“I’m really looking forward to the Semi-Final but we have to take each game as it comes and we can’t afford to rest on our laurels.
“Hopefully we can take the momentum from this victory into Monday’ s game and go on and reach the Final.”
The Opposition:
Glamorgan earned their home Semi-Final by finishing top of Group 2 despite their defeat by Yorkshire Vikings at Sophia Gardens last Thursday.
Head Coach David Harrison said: “The lads have been great throughout the tournament and we are happy to have earned a home Semi-Final, but disappointed with the result against Yorkshire.
“We’ve got a tight group and the application has been great. They have played for each other and that has shown in their results and in us being top of the group.
“It is a bonus in having 3 days to rest and prepare and not having to play a Quarter-Final.
“We’ve won 4 games in this competition and the games we’ve lost have been by very small margins. We are pretty confident and we will re-group and come back strong on Monday.”
How to Watch:
There will be a Live Stream service from Sophia Gardens. This will be available via the Essex Cricket Matchzone from 11am.
Access via the Essex Cricket Matchzone is available here.
