METHODISTS 96 all-out WINTERBOURNE B 101-7
A sunny afternoon after a week of wet weather saw the Methodists hosting Winterbourne B, who were asked to bat first on a soft wicket.
Tight bowling early on from Daniel Shearn and David Baker ensured the visitors had no easy runs – the pair conceding a miserly twenty from the initial sixteen overs – but opener, Max Richards (22), and Aftab Hamid (19) then built on this platform, boosting the score to 54 before Richards was eventually dismissed in the 29th over.
Three quick wickets for spinner Craig Eyles (3-27) then saw Winterbourne reduced to 64-5, but some big hitting from James Labuschagne (23*) and Mason Lingard at the end of the innings saw the visitors post 101-7 at tea.
After the break, the Methodists got ahead of the required-rate early on, scoring 34-2 from their first ten overs. The loss of Mark Robinson (18) to Clive Blackwell was a telling blow, as he had looked assured in the middle, while Lingard removed James Green before he could do any damage.
Skipper, Stuart Green (30*), and the experienced Baker (15) had got the home team to 60 after twenty overs, but when the latter fell to Callum Oakes (2-9) and opener, Labuschagne (3-13), returned to pick up his third wicket, the visitors were back in the game.
With a home win just eight runs away, Joseph Hull (3-20) then blew away the Methodists’ tail with some great swing bowling – Winterbourne coming back to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat and win by 5 runs.
Daniel Shearn