CRICKET TODAY (Saturday 2nd August 2014):
The An XI, face a stern test when Eastern Conference Division 3 leaders, Old Hymerians, visit the Middle Lane Cricket Ground.
Keiron Metcalfe (Capt’); Gary Chapman (w/k); Andrew Berry; Paul Brooks; Liam Colclough; Neil Colclough; Steve Crane; Craig Michael McFadyen; Ryan Oliver; Eddie Samphire; Tom Verity.
The pavilion bar at the Middle Lane Cricket Ground will be open from 2pm.
The 1st XI are off to the seaside to take on Hornsea 2nd XI (who are propping up Division 4 East of the Y&DSCL with 2 abandonments and 11 losses from their 13 games).
Rich Ingram (Capt’); Jamie Walkley (w/k); Glen Connelly; Lew Duell; Phillip Hill; Luke Ingram; Rob Johnson; Jack Riley; Richard Rosindale; Adam Towse; Stuart Towse.
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Report on last week’s cricket action – thanks once again to Keiron Metcalfe:
Last Saturday was a mixed sort of day for our senior teams.
At the Middle Lane Cricket Ground, the 1st XI were asked to bowl first by Brandesburton C.C. and did a fine job of restricting an historically good batting team to 163 for 9 from their 40 overs.
Stuart Towse (12-6-19-2) and Richard Rosindale (12-2-24-1) got rid of Brandesburton’s top-3 before Rob Johnson (11-38-4 on his return to South Holderness after over 4 years coming through the junior ranks at Humbleton C.C.) and Captain Rich Ingram (6-0-36-2) saw off the middle and lower-middle orders. For Brandesburton, Mike Sharp top-scored with 38 whilst Stuart Robinson made 28 and Sam Lakin made 24.
On a good Middle Lane wicket, 164 should’ve been a fairly routine target for South Holderness. However, with only 4 runs on the board, openers Ingram and Mike Oliver were back in the shed for scores of 0 and 4 respectively. Young Jack Riley tried to dig in, but he was dismissed for 1 off 13 balls – and, all of a sudden, South Holderness were in a right old two-and-eight at 15 for 3.
Then Richard Rosindale played a supporting role whilst, at the other end, number 5, Stuart Towse, blasted 22 off 17 balls. But, at 39 for 4, the 24-run partnership between Towse and Rosindale was not enough to extricate South Holderness from their dire predicament. But then Rosindale and Rob Johnson added 65 for the 5th wicket, moving the team on to 104 before Rosindale heaved across the line to a delivery from Craig Ford and was bowled for 44.
South Holderness now required only 60 runs – but they were running out of overs and batsmen. And, with the potentially dangerous Phillip Hill and Adam Towse being dismissed for 0 and 11 respectively and Jamie Walkley being stumped for just 5, it was up to number 10, Glen Connelly, to help Johnson get the required runs. But, when Connelly middled a delivery from Ford straight to wide long-on, it then fell to young Lee Darby to drop anchor and ensure the losing draw. And, indeed, Darby did what was required, facing 4 balls to finish unbeaten on 2 whilst Johnson carried his bat for 46, unlucky not to get his maiden half-century for South Holderness and get his team over the line after an excellent all-round performance.
So, closing on 146 for 9, South Holderness gained 11 points – although ONE more run would’ve seen them gain another 5 points! But, yet again, everything remains as was in Division 4 East of the Y&DSCL, with South Holderness in 5th, 22 points behind Hill Top in 4th, 5 points ahead of Brandesburton in 6th and 7 points ahead of Patrington 2nd XI in 7th (after they defeated Hill Top by just 11 runs).
So, as disappointing as it was that such a potentially strong batting line-up could not surpass their visitors score of 163, South Holderness will be hoping to bounce back in good style this week when they go on the road and take on Hornsea 2nd XI who, with 11 defeats and 2 abandonments from 13 games, are rooted to the bottom of the table, 68 points behind 9th-placed Driffield 4th XI and, more crucially, 102 points behind Kirk Ella C.C. in 8th.
Meanwhile, the An XI were lucky enough to be back at the Middle Lane Cricket Ground to see the final stages of the 1st XI’s game after they rolled over Skirlaugh C.C. fairly emphatically.
Having been asked to bat, Skirlaugh’s openers, Tom Havercroft and Sam Blank, rode their luck in getting to 30-odd without loss before Dave Gatti took a ‘caught and bowled’ chance to dismiss Havercroft for the innings’ second highest score of 19. Then, once Ryan Oliver took a catch at backward point to dismiss Blank for the top score of 22 and give Andrew Berry (10-2-25-1) a much-deserved wicket, it was, in all fairness, only a matter of time before the total dismissal of a Skirlaugh team considerably weaker than that which had defeated the An XI on the second week of the season.
And so it proved to be. 13-year-old Liam Colclough replaced Berry and produced an excellent 5-over spell of 3 for 7 (thanks, in part, to excellent catches from Berry and Pat Swift); then Gatti came back for a second spell and finished with figures of 11-2-24-5; and finally, with the first ball of his second spell, Danny Blood deservedly took the 10th Skirlaugh wicket to finish with figures of 4.1-2-9-1 as the home team was dismissed for just 71 inside 31 overs.
As was the case with the 1st XI, the South Holderness reply got off to a bad start, with Ryan Oliver (run out for 0) and Steve Crane (‘yorked’ for 1) both back in the shed in the first over. Matthew Mcivor and Paul Brooks steadied the ship somewhat, putting on 16 for the 3rd wicket before McIvor flirted with a wide delivery from Sam Blank and dragged the ball on to his stumps for 12. Gary Chapman and Captain Keiron Metcalfe came and went for 1 and 0 respectively before Dave Gatti got a grip, putting on an unbeaten 6th-wicket partnership of 46 with Brooks and winning the game with a 6 over mid-on, finishing unbeaten on 34 off 29 balls whilst Brooks finished not out with a more circumspect 26 off 57.
This was a funny old game that, due mainly to the first innings demolition of Skirlaugh never got going but which, at certain points in the run-chase, threatened disaster for South Holderness. But, as it is, a 5-wicket win sees South Holderness remain in 3rd place of the Eastern Conference Division 3 table, 7 points above Cottingham 2nd XI in 4th and 53 points behind this week’s guests at the Middle Lane Cricket Ground, Old Hymerians C.C. who now top the table after a convincing win over former long-term table-toppers, Foxtons C.C. So, with South Holderness taking on Old Hymerians this week, Cottingham 2nd XI next week, then, two weeks later, Foxtons C.C. before, another two weeks later, Old Hymerians again (in a game moved from the May 17th Cup Final day), a tough run-in starts now.
