The Methodists travelled to Bath to play Stothert & Pitt at the Newton Memorial Ground.
Before the match, a moment’s silence was observed by both teams in memory of long-time Methodist player, Richard Wilkins, who had suddenly passed away recently. A fitting tribute to a much-missed team-mate.
Stothert and Pitt batted first, and initially struggled to break the shackles of the visitors’ accurate bowling, scoring only 27 runs from the first ten overs for the loss of both openers. By the innings’ mid-point, Barker (46) and Smith (38*) had upped the run-rate and moved along to 71 – the pair eventually adding an even fifty in twelve overs – and the total was looking much healthier. But a late collapse saw the home side slump from 149–5 to 152 all-out in the final two overs, with James Sackett (4–21) finishing things off with a triple-wicket maiden.
After tea, Alex Nash and Mark Robinson got the Methodists’ chase off to a handy start, with 48 runs from the first ten overs – a platform which was then rapidly built on by the in-form Nash. Coming off the back of a measured 117 the previous week, he really let fly with a brutal flurry of boundaries as the score quickly snowballed. Robinson was run-out with the total on 92, but Nash (118*) was now really motoring and, joined by Jason Stotesbury, smashed his way past S&P’s target, finishing the game with two mighty sixes in just the eighteenth over. This week’s game is home to Dyrham and Hinton.
D. Shearn