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Ashley vs New Brighton Date: 30/08/2009 Venue: Ashley Toss won by: AshleyBatted First: Ashley |
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Two games to go, two games against New Brighton, two victories of 25 points needed. A perfect symmetry to it all. Initial selection problems with the loss of several key players were compounded by the late departure of skipper Burt, a victim of the numerous summer bugs that have been going around. Step up to the plate time for Griffiths Snr, drafted in at the last moment.
Ferris took over the captaincy – a hark back to the olden days – and had no choice to bat first upon winning as points meant prizes. Rumours on the circuit were that New Brighton are a handy bowling side. They weren’t wrong. Harrison swung the ball impressively and looked a class act at this level. Green at the other end was right up to the bat with a nice yard of pace. Wickets tumbled early on and some impressive repair work by Ferris, Jackson and McKie was gratefully welcomed. If truth be told, the rest of the New Brighton attack was pretty mediocre and a big total did not look out of the equation. Ferris had been batting brilliantly until the slow finger of death came his way when Harrison returned for his second spell. The tail fell quickly and it was hard to say whether 151 was a good total or not.
A welcome return to Sunday action for Rob McKie allowed the 2nd team new ball attack to re-unite. An interesting early exchange saw some impressive boundaries, the odd near miss and a couple of tough dropped chances. Blain eventually held Bennett in a controversial moment where the umpires decision was contested by the batsman. The opinionated McKeown at the other end had batted very well and was the key wicket should victory be accomplished. As the conditions worsened and batting becoming continually unfanciable, Harrison whipped out Harrison whilst Jackson removed the danger man McKeown following a rain delay for a well crafted 50. The subsequent dismissal of Geary left the game nicely poised with the Oldbury twins in partnership at either end and our Merseyside opponents looking to score quickly.
Then like most things, the final decision came from something beyond all our control. It rained. Continually. To the point that play was no longer possible and abandonment the only option. News filtered through of Tattenhall securing the full 25 points at whipping boys Northwich. Promotion was theirs and both ourselves along with New Brighton can dream of next year. Congratulations to Tattenhall, we’ll miss you as a day out.
It is easy to be down about the effective end of the season and a long campaign which just missed out on promotion. On reflection, the fact that this signals such a disappointment speaks volumes about the huge positive improvements made as individuals and as a team over the course of one year. For the younger players going through to hopefully become our first team of the future, playing in a team where winning positively and properly is the only goal can only be good for their own development. |
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FIRST INNINGS |
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SECOND INNINGS |
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Result: Match Abandoned |
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