One-Day Cup: Sam Northeast leads Glamorgan to final triumph over Somerset
Despite another appalling weather forecast, play got under way on time in a surreal atmosphere in front of a very sparse crowd – with the captains agreeing on the short format and putting up with the slippery conditions around the square.
With both sides sticking to the players not involved in The Hundred, a youthful Somerset had six missing from the team which contested the T20 Blast final, while Glamorgan did not select Mason Crane or Chris Cooke.
Alfie Ogborne struck twice in his first over, dismissing Kiran Carlson and Tom Bevan in consecutive balls to leave Glamorgan 8-2.
Will Smale swung the bat effectively to get the Glamorgan innings going, hitting five fours and a six to make 28 off 14 balls before falling to a brilliant diving catch from Sean Dickson haring backwards at mid-off, from the bowling of Kasey Aldridge.
Danger man Colin Ingram holed out at long-on off George Thomas for 11 as Glamorgan stuttered to 71-4 at halfway.
But Root got the momentum going with a pair of pulled sixes and Northeast had the experience not to panic at a slow start as he too started finding the boundaries, and the pair plundered 29 off an over from Aldridge.
Northeast’s mature 50 came up off just 39 balls and the stand was worth 78 by the time Root edged to James Rew off Thomas, who finished with a fine return of 2-23.
After a brief clatter of wickets, Timm van der Gugten swung effectively for 26 not out off nine balls to the delight of the remaining Welsh supporters, with 17 runs coming off the last over as Glamorgan finished with a very competitive-looking total.
In the Somerset reply, Thomas was just starting to get going when he was run out for 13 in a mix-up with Andy Umeed, who got after Ben Kellaway before the spinner kept his nerve to have Lewis Goldsworthy caught for 11.
The Scotland international went on to make a useful 45 but when he feathered a catch to Smale off Andy Gorvin, and James Rew skied one to the keeper off Kellaway, Somerset were under the cosh at 89-4 in 13 overs.
Dickson, who had surprisingly come in at six, set about dragging the game back towards his team in a furious assault on the Glamorgan bowling in partnership with teenager Archie Vaughan, as the required run-rate came down from 14.
But with Somerset hopes rising and Glamorgan nerves jangling, Dickson fell in the 18th over trying to reverse-sweep Gorvin and clothing a catch to short third man.
Vaughan (32 not out) was left with too much to do as Jamie McIlroy bowled a mean 19th over and Dan Douthwaite finished the job.
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