On a great summer’s day at Taunton, Midsomer Norton ended their winless run with what, in the end, turned out to be a fairly comfortable seven-wicket victory.
Taunton won the toss and chose to bat. Norton’s opening bowler, Andrew Cox (3–23), struck early to take the first two wickets and leave Taunton at 23–2. Andrew and brother, Martin Cox (3–24), ended with near identical figures and took the first five of the Taunton wickets to fall.
From 84–5, Taunton rallied and Hugh Kelly (33) was a real threat for the home team when he was run out by Norton’s Hashan Gunathilaka. That left Taunton at 133–6, and they batted out the fifty overs to end on 180–8, still something of a challenging target for a Norton side that has struggled for runs in recent weeks. Josh Sutton (1–41) was the other wicket taker for Norton.
Openers, Alex Lear (34) and Nick Cox (18) made steady progress until Lear’s dismissal at 48–1. Gunathilaka (62 not-out) then arrived at the crease and, supported by Nick Cox, Martin Cox (19) and Dan Nolan (21 not-out), saw Norton home to victory in 39 overs.
The result left Taunton rooted at the foot of the table, while Norton moved up one place, 23 points ahead of Taunton, but only sixteen points behind second-placed Ilminster.
This Saturday, at Withies Lane, Norton take on fourth-placed Weston-super-Mare. Weston are just ten points ahead of Norton in the League table. The game starts at 12.30 p.m. The Second XI visit Twyford House and the Third XI is at home to Bedminster.
Charlie Matthews