Match Report

There was double delight for the firsts and seconds on Saturday as both sides moved into the top three with convincing wins.

At Manchester Road, in the absence of the usual ice cream van, it was Westleigh that provided the 99 as, with skipper Liam on 1st XI wicketkeeping duty, Rob Meredith’s young side restricted the visitors to under 100 with, remarkably, every one of the six bowlers taking at least one wicket. As a result, there was no ‘pick of the bowlers’ although Owen Hogben’s 2-9 off 6 overs is worthy of mention. As 25-0 became 28-4, the prospect of a repeat of last week’s three o’clock finish was on the cards, but some resistance on an easy paced wicket allowed the visitors to close on 99. The reply was punishing, despite the early loss of Ethan Kite, as Steve McManus (pictured) and Dan Jones took the score to 80-1 before Steve was out to a jug avoiding* 49. Dan (35no) and Sam Winstanley saw out the victory, achieved in just 20 overs, to move the side into second spot with games in hand over some of their rivals. 

*For the uninitiated, the term ’jug avoidance’ refers to the days when a batsman’s half century resulted in a cap being passed around the spectators who would chuck in their loose change in appreciation. The recipient was then expected to buy a jug of ale for his team mates, but frequently, the contents of the cap did not meet the cost of the jug and the player had to make up the difference. Hence the term ‘jug avoidance’ for a player getting out on 49. The tradition seems to have died out due to covid, the move away from ‘loose change’ in the pocket and the greater number of under 18 players in teams.