The Methodists journeyed to Colston School on a hot afternoon to play Stapleton Thirds, who, on winning the toss, elected to bat first on their large, fast playing surface.

The Methodists' rather 'experienced' team made a good start - despite being two players short for the first forty minutes - with both opening batsmen dismissed cheaply in the initial few overs, but the home side then started to find the large gaps in the field. A third wicket fell to Daniel Shearn (2-33) to make the score 33-3 from thirteen overs, but Stapleton's skipper, Mike Birkinshaw and young Ed Chidgey then set about exploiting the fielding sides limited mobility. Finding the boundaries regularly, the pair amassed 111 for the fourth wicket until Chidgey (44) was finally removed by the inspirational Iain Locke. Birkinshaw would then add another sixty seven runs with Ken Gainsford (33) and twenty nine with Harrison Giles (21), before he was eventually trapped by his opposite number, Alex Nash (3-57), for an excellent one hundred and nineteen. From 240-6, the hosts then quickly lost their remaining four wickets - three to run-outs - finally posting 262 from their forty overs.

After the break, the Methodists’ began the run-chase well but were then hampered by the loss of Nash (24) in the fifth over, which slowed their momentum somewhat.

Matt Kerr joined Mark Robinson in the middle at this point, and the pair then added seventy six runs in seventeen overs for the second wicket. Robinson (38) eventually fell to Max Ashton (2-33) which precipitated a mini-collapse to 141-5 in the twenty eighth over.

With another one hundred and twenty two runs needed for victory, Kerr (80*) and MNCC's Steve Green (21*) put on a solid sixty-run stand, but could not match the youthful sprinting between the wickets of the much younger opposition batsmen! Their terrific effort saw the Methodists to 201-5 and maximum batting points, but Stapleton ran out the winners by a comfortable sixty one runs.

Methodists' next game - Bradley Stoke 3rds (home), 16.7.22

Daniel Shearn