CHAMPIONS Aberaeron made the short journey to face Aberystwyth at the Geufron on Sunday and it was a thriller.

Winning the toss, visiting skipper Hywel Rees elected to field first.

Aberystwyth’s response was cautious, with the unlikely opening pair of Nigel Salmon and Rhys Jones facing the tight opening attack of Stefan Rees and Josh Roper.

Scoring was slow — but deliberately so.

Given Aberystwyth’s lack of batting depth, this was their strategy: preserve wickets, soak up deliveries, and build a foundation.

Salmon was the first to fall, trapped LBW by the ever-accurate Roper, bringing skipper Peter Loxdale to the crease.

His stay was brief, but the introduction of debutant Dan Ponting marked a turning point.

He joined Jones in a composed and mature partnership that helped stabilise the innings.

Under challenging conditions, Rhys Jones brought up his maiden 50 for the club, batting with patience and intelligence.

Ponting also impressed, striking a well-constructed 38 before being deceived by a clever delivery from Hywel Rees.

A middle-order collapse followed, with four wickets falling cheaply.

Three further debutants at the tail were unable to make much impact, and Aberystwyth were eventually bowled out for 129 — a modest but potentially competitive total, given the pitch conditions.

Aberaeron’s reply began with confidence as Ollie Evans and Jacob Jenkinson made early inroads toward the target.

Both looked set before Saunders removed the dangerous Evans and Ponting accounted for Jenkinson.

When Aberaeron reached 46–2, they were still in a commanding position — but Aberystwyth weren’t done.

A sharp bowling change by captain Loxdale brought Nigel Salmon and Dan Ponting into the attack.

The momentum shifted rapidly.

Salmon delivered two superb yorkers to dismiss Pitchford and Stefan Rees.

At that point, Aberystwyth’s bowlers began to sense opportunity.

Jamie Davies and Hywel Rees began a rebuilding job for the visitors, restoring some calm.

But just as the balance began to tip back Aberaeron’s way, Ponting bowled Rees with a brilliant delivery.

In Salmon’s final over, he produced a textbook away-swinger to remove the dangerous Davies, thanks to a sharp catch from Ben Willis in the field — and suddenly Aberystwyth were daring to dream.

Further wickets from Emlyn Manwaring (removing Hutton) and Saunders (accounting for Llewellyn) left Aberaeron struggling at 126–9, just four runs short of the target.

But it wasn’t to be. Liam Regan, with calm assurance, flicked a delivery off his legs to the boundary, sealing a dramatic one-wicket win for the champions.

This was arguably one of the tightest and most dramatic finishes ever witnessed at the Geufron Ground. Aberystwyth, with a youthful side and several debutants, pushed the reigning champions to the absolute limit.