The wheels fell off the Juggernauts on Saturday as the Bat first safety policy failed miserably. The superstar batting line up that had been constructed suffered from a lively pitch, and playing some loose shots. Rob Morris (41) Jamie Bonner (25) and Steve Henshaw (14) were the only batsmen to reach double figures. A total of 119 was far too few, and also 1 run short of the minimum 3 points needed to keep the league in our hands.

After tea the only concern was taking three wickets giving us the point we required to remain on top of the league going into the final two weeks.

We did not start well, and there was not the usual swagger and attacking fields. Bonner found his line after a couple of overs and bowled a spell that exerted pressure on the Timperley batsman. Shan struggled to find his usual line and length, but struck first finishing with 8-1-27-2. Bonner continued, and got his reward with two wickets including the third that granted us the required bonus point. There was an element to relief to the celebrations and the taking of taking the next 7 to get the win became the focus. Rawson (5 -0 -12-0) and Harvey (4-1-13-1) bowled excellent spells showing control when it was most needed, with Harvey getting a well-deserved victim trapped lbw. Bonner was finally given a rest after his spell (14-5-40-2) and replaced by Laurie Peat (4-0-26-1) We did bowl very well considering the limited runs to defend, and with a run out to Henshaw (when they tried to take on the little fat kid at cover) we got them 6 down. Just another 30 runs on the board and we could have had a real chance of winning.

The league is still on our hands, even though we did our best to throw it away with our batting performance, but we again dragged ourselves back into the game. Credit must go to Timperley who have beaten us twice out of three games (and drawn the other) and still play the game in the right spirit even though they are our rivals for promotion.

4XI - Haslington (H)

A depleted Haslington won the toss, and elected to field with a very young looking side. The 4th’s got off to a solid start with Joey Desormeux and Adam Roberts securing a Hundred partnership. This effort was not without incident however as the sturdy opener Roberts was felled by the perhaps the smallest, youngest, and most fragile opening bowler in senior cricket. It would not be beyond the realms of possibility that Adam could eat something that size, yet the miniature medium pacer did bring the big man to his knees to a ball that came back, much to the amusement of everyone watching.

Soon after reaching the 100 partnership both Roberts (51) and Desormeux (55) left the stage, bringing in Sentil (12) and Matt Williams (42 Not out) Williams played some great shots and guided the team towards 223 in 40 overs with the help of the fast running Shan (16) the slow ambling Henshaw (8) and the ever dependable Millington (9 Not out)

After a hearty feed an attacking field was set and Littler’s 2nd ball brought a catch at third slip for Joey Desormeux. Cue the now trademark 4th team celebrations, and with it the banter gathered momentum. Littler bowled well (from the end he should only ever consider bowling from) and finished with 5 -45 from 10. At the other end Jamie Bonner bowled perhaps the best spell he may ever bowl without taking a wicket. He created chances and endured perhaps the most criminal ‘not out / refusing to walk’ decision of the season where the noise from the edge was so loud in nearly burst the eardrums of the slips. Littler, sticking up for his new ball partner (it actually was a new ball) gave the batsman some serious grief and called the batsman all sorts as his innings progressed. He was the only batsman that put up any resistance falling eventually to Peet. Laurie bowled his usual mix bag finishing with 2 for 18 from 6, and could have had more as he caught and bowled his 2nd wicket after Williams had dropped him the ball before and Bonner the ball before that. The final wickets went to Shan who polished off the tail in effective fashion. (6.3 – 0 – 28 -3) Credit must also go to Ali Hoyle who kept brilliantly, conceding no byes compared to 13 to the oppositions 3 keepers.

Another solid team performance in which everyone contributed winning by 95 runs. and allowing the Juggernaut to edge one step closer to winning the league.

4XI - Sale 3 (H)

This was the week the 4th team Juggernaut started gathering some real momentum, and the majority of the conversations in the bar were focused around the ‘quest’ to win the league as we managed to beat a solid Sale 3rd XI without the need to break for Tea.

The Sale skipper voiced his surprise when being asked to bat, and when the dangerous Soans Praveen and their young wicketkeeper got off to a flying start, scoring at nearly 9 an over for the first 5 overs, there were questions of what he knew that we didn’t. However there was no panic. No drastic changes to the field and we trusted the bowlers to find their line. Shan found it first taking the older opener caught well by Joey Des at Cover, and he proceed to nag away with his off stump line. It was a spell we really needed as Sale were looking to play shots. Wickets were falling but the score board was ticking along. He finished with a Man of the match performance, taking 5-56 off 12. At the other end Jamie Littler struggled to replicate his form of the previous week, however good Bowlers take wickets when they are not bowling at their best, and he Finished with 10-0-52-2. The most notable element of the game was the fielding. After the shaky first couple of overs the fielding became outstanding and some superb catches were held and we ‘fielded’ ourselves into a winning position. It would be wrong not to mention at this point the two field placing moments of the day, (because the rotund keeper/captain will probably tell this story a thousand times in the bar over then next few years.) After seeing a young batsman defend a few balls Joey Des was asked to stand at silly point. . . the very next ball came quickly in his direction and was well taken. Soon after the teams best pair of hands was moved from 1st slip to Short leg, with square leg taking his place at slip for the last ball of an over . . . sure enough a ball flew in the direction of Robbie Williams who took a brilliant one handed catch to his right. Both caused to huge celebrations and it is such moments of luck /genius that have helped foster the team spirit in the 4’s. Rawson replaced Littler and bowled a tidy spell 4-0-15-0 whilst Mani (with new hair cut and beard combination that makes him look like a doorman you would not answer back to) took 3 wickets in 11 balls including their well set batsman first ball to polish off the tail. Sale finished on 135 which considering their start was a tremendous team effort.

Tea was postponed and Joey and Myles Grant set about chasing down the total. Both should have finshed not out, but Joey fell for 63 with the task nearly complete and Myles should have scored his 50, falling two short; however the pair had done the job. The final few were knocked off by Senthil (14 not out) and Mani (5 not out.)

There is a very positive feeling in the 4ths and a great camaraderie. Wickets are celebrated in some style, there is a feeling of momentum and that winning is a strong possibility as we pull 23 points clear at the top.

4XI - Warrington 4 (H)

Success brings its own problems, and the popularity of the 4th team Juggernaut caused selection issues right up to moments before the toss where the final XI was not inked in until a few moments to 1pm. Eventually the chosen 11 took the field having won the toss and elected to bowl.

The game as a contest was pretty much over within the first hour as the two opening bowlers destroyed the top over and limited the scoring to a point where a defendable total was beyond unlikely. Jamie Bonner bowled an outstanding off stump line with huge away swing limiting the Warrington batsmen to 9 runs off his nine over’s including 5 maidens. At the other end Jamie Littler took his first 5 wicket haul since he was at school finishing with figures of 10-1-29-5 It was an excellent spell that Warrington found virtually unplayable. (For the record his Economy rate was 2.9 an over in case your readying Joey.) The pick of the wickets was an outstanding take at third slip by Shan, millimetres from the floor and travelling at a great pace. This also allowed the skipper to try and take credit again for something he had absolutely nothing to do with. Shan replaced Bonner from the Pavilion End and his identical action, and shape away from the right hander proved almost as Economical finishing with 1 – 15 from his 9 overs. The slips spent the majority of his spell deciding what nickname Shan should have. This weighty dilemma remains unsolved. Peat replaced littler and took two wickets. One was a fantastic delivery that was excellently held by the Millington the cat, the other a trademark ‘Peat Pie’ that batsmen feel the urge to slap in the air in the direction of a fielder. This one was held by Williams. Laurie most important contribution was of the day was his LBW appeal late in his spell. It was the most polite and yet unrealistic appeal ever asked for, in any game of cricket . . . ever! And the resulting pint of Guinness as Dick of the day was well deserved. (Peat 7-1-22-2). Matt Rawson bowled a solid spell at the death (5-12-5-0) whilst Mani bowled his express ‘leg cutters’ at the other end (4-0-11-0) and despite a rather expensive Williams over at the end a low total of 138 was set.

The batting Started at a furious pace from Chester as they knew the rain was due. Warrington did what they could by equal measure to slow the game down but the total was reached in double quick time. Thistlewood 16, Joey Des 31, Mani 38, Williams 18 Not out, Henshaw 12 Not out. The rain did not come in the end, but it was still good to get finished and into the bar for 6pm.

Click here for the 4XI averages at the half way stage.

4XI - Timperley (H)

It was a Saturday like any other. Joey and Jamie shared an early morning intense session. (In the nets on this occasion) And we lost the toss and were put into bat when we would have preferred to chase.

A new opening batting partnership flourished with Joey Desormeaux rediscovering his swagger putting on 51 and Ian Thistlewood (promoted to the mighty 4th’s) making an impressive 53 against a decent opening attack. After Ian ran himself, Ian Millington played some nice shots for his 11 before getting stumped. Robbie Williams scored 20 (including 4 boundaries) and Henshaw attempted his ugly pull shot to everything finishing on 24 not out. However new recruit Shan was the star of the batting performance scoring a very quick 47 not out including an impressive flat 6 over cover and as many boundaries as a field with 7 men on the rope would allow. A solid total of 218 was set in the 45 overs. Would it be enough? They did chase down 248 against us a couple of weeks back.

Littler and Shan shared the new ball. Littler made the breakthough with an edge to the keeper and then bowled Timperly’s dangerman for 28. Kate Coppack replaced Shan who bowled an immaculate spell of 15 overs and was the pick of the bowlers. She finished with 2 for 38, however deserved far more for her persistence and accuracy. Peet replaced Littler who took 2 for 35 off his 6. One caught by ’The Cat’ Millington, the other a spectacular catch by Steve Coppack at short mid-on. (Steve’s fielding proved an enigma all day. Close to the bat, his reactions and athleticism made him look like he would be the type of guy you would bring in as goal keeper to save penalties in a world cup shoot out. In the deep field he wandered round in a style of someone looking for his keys in a meadow.) The returning Martin Huber bowled a short spell taking 1 for 13 off three, before it was decided to bring back the 4th team Premier quick bowler in an attempt to push for the win. Littler, the Bearded Bellicose paceman took the ball with intent. It was a very very average over! The desperate housewives behind the wicket (Desormeaux, Henshaw and Williams) did what they did best and bitched about it at great length. His next two overs were excellent and he took another wicket giving us the outside chance of the win. (Littler 14-1-58-3)However Timperley held out with 8 down reaching 184.

Another excellent performance and the winning draw takes us above Timperley to go the top of the league. Credit must also go to the opposition, who did try and push for the win until the last two overs and certainly deserve to be towards the top at the end of the season with the way they approach the game.

4XI - Irby 4 (H)

The 4th Team captaincy merry-go-round continued with the rotund wicketkeeper being listed as the 7th different captain this summer. (Something to do with him crying like a little girl to director of cricket that “It was his turn”) Needless to say he lost a toss that the team had decided we needed to win in order to prevent the predictable Irby Draw.

We were put into bat, and after a reshuffle of the order due to Mani being fashionably late, Adam Roberts and emergency opener Rob Morris put on 205 for the first wicket. Adam played some fantastic shots for his well-deserved 75 and I personally feel him being described as a lava lamp by a team mate when he turned to run for a 2nd was harsh(ish). At the other end Rob blocked the decent balls and dispatched the rest to all parts of Cheshire, for a very impressive 140something not out. The total included some huge 6’s; one of which ruined the windscreen of a parent of one of the Irby players. He took it in good spirit. (Well actually he didn’t and he is still waiting for an apology from Rob, the Club and his local MP.) As the total grew the rest of the side looked on aided by a ‘Batting jug’ to maintain moral and keep the Town Drunk and number three batsman in ‘peak’ condition ready for his introduction to the fray. When called upon Robbie did score a quick 19 including an all run 4 which considering the state he arrived at the ground is nothing short of a miracle. With one eye on the Brazil game a declaration was taken at 35 overs with the score on 255. Surely 55 would be enough overs to bowl them out!

After tea it was not long until the game took a predicable turn and Irby looked to bat out the overs. The two Jamie’s toiled for little reward. Littler looked to have the opener out three times, but he did not fancy the walk despite much persuasion from Williams at first slip. Eventually Bonner got an edge and the other batsman did the decent thing and took himself back to the pavilion. Maddocks took two wickets in his 9 overs but was taken off because he was bowling too tightly and Irby refused to play any shot against him. Mani looked dangerous from the other end and wickets were falling slowly. As the overs ticked down the fielding positions went from aggressive to the ridicules, and by the time Rawson came on to bowl there were 4 slips in the cordon and everyone else in catching positions close to the bat. Matt bowled exceptionally well and finished with 1 for 5 from his five overs. Laurie Peat bowled a tight spell, wickets were falling but overs were running out. There was only thing for it. Curvy all-rounder Adam Roberts was called for and he did not disappoint. His Loopy leggies took the captain with a ball Shane Warne would have been proud of that turned a mile teasing the bail from the off stump. He took another leaving him with figures of 2 for 6 from 6 overs! The end was close and Bonner and Mani were brought back into the attack bowling to 5 slips to try and prise out the last couple of wickets. Bonner achieved the breakthroughs; one held brilliantly by Mani at short cover, and the final wicket giving Henshaw his catch behind the wicket of the day in the in the 54th over granting Chester the win with 11 balls to spare. (Bonner 11.1 Overs, 4 for 16).

Another great team performance characterised by of top quality fielding and entertaining banter. Ian ‘The cat’ Millington’s ground fielding was exceptional again, Jamie Littler’s running juggling catch was something to behold and I don’t think anyone has ever stood as close at point as Laurie did to towards the end.

Attacking Cricket won the day and the 4th team Juggernaut roll on!

4XI - Irby (A)

There was something life re-affirming for anyone involved with the fourths on Saturday.

Having arrived at a hot and dusty Irby, on pitch captain for the day, Joey, quickly informed the troops that we would be fielding.There ensued a sweaty afternoon for the lads (and lass), their sustained powers of concentration amply demonstrated by late catches and sharp fielding towards the end of Irby’s innings. From an advantageous first quarter of the game, the home team lost momentum and were 185 for 5 at the break. Kate and the Jamies Littler and Bonner impressed all who were present in the searing heat with their stamina in sharing 30 overs. The youth element of the team showed admirable control at the end with ball in hand. Joe Maddocks displayed a lot of promise. Peet, L took a very smooth caught and bowled. Proceedings were enlivened around the 30 over mark when the team captain commenced a topless sunbathing session on the midwicket boundary, shortly after having ‘lost his bearings’ at mid off. The sight of Phill’s moobs was undoubtedly the champagne moment of the day.

An enjoyable tea was taken in the friendly surroundings of the Irby clubhouse. Laurie Peet ate his own body weight in egg sandwiches. Probably even Steve Henshaw’s body weight in egg sandwiches. I spent a couple of minutes watching the amazingly efficient work of the Irby tea ladies and was struck as I often am by how much cricket clubs seems to attract lovely, hard-working volunteers.

Our reply started badly. 186 seemed attainable on a lightning outfield but Irby’s opening bowlers were useful. Joey and Steve went cheaply in the face of some excellent bowling. Enter Rob Morris. He just looked to have so much time. Always the sign of class. The defining partnership of the game ensued. With Rob smashing the change bowling to all parts and James Cotterill defending intelligently and switching the strike, victory became a formality. When Morris was out for 76, Cotterill took on the responsibility of guiding the visitors home to victory. It was fitting that with a well-timed push through the leg-side, it was he who finished the game unbeaten on 33, aided at the death by Jamie Littler who deserted his beloved scorebook to affect a few useful left-handed swipes. Hands were shaken, Makka opened another can of Strongbow and whilst Joey’s superbly neat handwriting completed the official documentation, we had a celebratory pint on the decking outside Irby’s pavilion. The world rejoiced at a great end to a sun-kissed day. We had won by six wickets.

4XI - Timperley (A)

No Report submitted.

4XI - Sale 4 (A)

Caretaker captain Adam Robert's first job was to win the toss, mainly because wicket keeper A Hoyle was still on the M 56, he promptly lost it and Sale elected to bat. After much time wasting play started and Sale reached 90 for 2 at a slow pace. Ian Millington then took a fantastic low catch at square leg for their 3rd wicket and this proved to be a key breakthrough. Rob Williams, on a rare occasion that he couldn't find an excuse to avoid Saturday cricket, and Laurie Pete with some accurate and tricky left arm spin, now swung the momentum firmly in our favour with 3 wickets each. Sale struggled on to 144 all out from 42 overs leaving a buoyant away dressing room full of confidence.

To be fair to Sale, it had looked tough to bat on a slow pitch which also kept low and now the so far unbeaten B Hall 4ths were about to make it look even tougher. Mani Perriyaswami (approximate spelling), went early playing his trademark square cut to a full, straight delivery. At the other end stand in skipper Adam Roberts was putting in a batting display somewhat reminiscent of snooker's Cliff (the Grinder) Thorburn circa 1983. Rob Morris was more successful but fell to a frustrated airborne drive that was caught at cover, our best bat gone for 25. Rob Williams was next to struggle but looked like he might see us over the line once Roberts had gone for 26, with the score at 100 for 3 we were still hot favourites, then on 20, Williams R looked bewildered as he spooned a double bounce delivery up to mid off. In the meantime A Hoyle had gone home ill after failing to recover from a recent bout of food poisoning picked up in Turkey, well that's what you get for eating foreign food! Then I'm afraid the collapse was swift, Ian Millington was left stranded on 14 not out as wickets tumbled at the other end. All out for 130 in the end.

4XI - Urmston (A)

After receiving a surprise call to captain the 4th eleven on Saturday, Joey Des got off to a great start and lost the toss after taking the advice of Jamie Littler to pick tails, "pick tails as 80% of the time it always wins".

With Chester being put into bat on a dead wicket with very short boundaries’ a high score was needed. Captain marvel and new signing Rob Morris got Chester off to a great start scoring 61 & 64 respectively, before the skipper was bowled by a young bowler touted as the new Shane Warne. The ball moved a mile. Rob Morris continued to smash the ball around the park before listening to a classic Steve Henshaw, 'yes, no, yes, no, yes' shout for a second run. Steve knew his legs couldn't have taken him there. After this wicket Chester somewhat collapsed, but still managed to post a good total of 192 all out off 39 overs. The lads had agreed that we would declare on 40 overs anyway so we could get stuck into the Urmston batsmen.

After a lovely Urmston lunch, the guys weren't exactly raring to go and were seen dragging themselves out onto the field of play. Captain marvel preferring to lead by actions not inspirational words, was the excuse heard on the grapevine. Finally after getting on to the field, both teams were made to wait for opening bowler J.Littler to surface from a locked toilet?? When Jazzy finally arrived he didn’t disappoint taking a wicket in a maiden opening over thanks to a great catch from captain marvel (leading by example). Joe 'mad dog' Maddock’s opened from the opposite end for what proved to be an amazing bowling display from the young man. Firstly taking the wicket of the dangerous opening batsman, before bamboozling, the rest in the next few overs. Due to this it was almost forgotten that, Littler ran off the field of play after the final ball of his 2nd over, apparently it was something to do with his follow through, he resurfaced about 4 overs later. Chester continued to pile on the pressure with another debutant Jamie Bonner taking the wicket of the Urmston’s No.3 (31), which was thanks to catch of the season from Ali Hoyle, running in off the boundary with a diving catch that Jonty Rhodes would have been proud of. The rejuvenated Littler then took the wicket of Urmston’s No.4, for 41. After these wickets it was over to Mad dog Maddock’s to rip into Urmston and leave them staring defeat in the face. Maddock’s, finished his day with figures of 14-0-37-5 (man of the match performance). With Urmston’s tail offering some resistance the skipper turned to Laurie Peet to finish them off and Laurie duly obliged by taking the final to wickets leaving Urmston all out for 158.

All in all this was a great team performance, especially in the field where Chester was on fire. Top of the league for another week, dare we start to believe that Phil Evans will lead us all the way??

4XI - Sale 4 (A)

4XI - Ashley (H)

I was fortunate enough to be at the ground early enough to see the weekly baton handover at 12.15 when the 4th X1 Director of Cricket Phill Evans hands the cricket balls over to the third skipper of the season Allan Axon. Axon, the vice-captain had mysteriously been unavailable for the first two games of the season, but fortunately the problem hadn’t prevented him watching Chester’s last two games of the season. There’s a nice blend of youth in the 4ths and the more senior players have a responsibility to show them the way, so it’s great that the skipper for the first week Laurie Peet has led from the front. Fresh from Laurie forgetting his kit last week, one of the juniors followed his example this week and forget his whites (don’t worry Matt I’m not letting on who it was).

So on a sunny afternoon, having won the toss, our skipper decided to field first. 6 overs gone and Ashley are 14 – 2, the minds already wandering to do we have anything in at home for a BBQ as we’ll be finishing early at this rate. However Harry Hatchell batting at 4 had different ideas, returning from a football injury and having dropped down a couple of teams, he commenced a hard hitting innings which saw Ashley still two down on 74 at drinks, some tight bowling from Jamie Littler (1/54), Joe Maddocks (2/25) and Dave Henson (0/21) kept Hatchell and Ashley in check. More worrying though was Ashley sitting on 155/3 with ten overs still to play. James Cotterill (0/14) almost took a superb c&b to get Hatchell out, but the power of his hitting was too strong, forcing James to eventually sit out a couple of overs for his pains. Bob Knight (2/13), creaked on for a really tight, miserly spell near the end, to be fair he’d taken quite a hefty blow on the shin the week before, which still resembled a B&Q colour chart. Laurie Peet (2/31) and the Axon (2/41) shared the last ten overs which only went for 65; some inspired captaincy saw tactical singles given off the last ball of the over. Eventually we took a wicket, the new batsman’s third ball went for 6 and his fourth for 4, so that plan was dropped and the team stayed out for everything. Hatchell's innings eventually came to end in the last over scoring 132 out of 220/9. Special mention to Steve Henshaw who only conceded 2 byes and took 5 dismissals behind the stumps, 3 of them stumpings, didn’t know any team could have three such slow batsmen!! Also to the bowlers giving away just 8 extras in the mammoth total.

So following tea, the chase commenced and it was an opportunity to show what we could really do, sadly when we’ve scored runs batting first the opposition have declined the challenge to chase. We got off to a flier Dave Henson (54) racing to 50, out scoring the slow Joey Desormeaux almost 2:1, when he was eventually out, in came Steve Henshaw who matched Desormeaux’s scoring rate with 14 out of a 27 partnership and so after just 20 overs the chase stood at 120/2. James Cotterill fell to the quick and accurate Woods, but whilst not personally scoring many he’d chivvied up Joey D and held his own in a valuable 30 partnership and so the score was 150/3 after just 26 overs. Joey was then joined by the skipper and they put on a fifty partnership in just over six overs, again disappointingly Joey only scoring 39 of that partnership. There will be a special discussion at selection this week as Joey was quite insistent that the skipper faced the accurate Woods (3/43) whilst he did the scoring off the weaker bowling at the other end. So 202/4 in the 33rd over, Jamie Littler decides batting at 9 he can get changed, with the score on 208 Joey decides its calypso time and at the third hoik in three balls he’s caught by the keeper for a brilliant 109. Littler's now back in the changing room, mumbling something about finding his batting shorts. Bob Knight, despite creaking, manages to swiftly nip to the crease before Ian Millington, it’s one for the skipper to watch out for in future, and so a special thanks should go to Ian for his efforts in the field as he didn’t get the opportunity to bat, as Joe Maddocks (9no) and Knight (4no) maturely saw the team through to victory. At 212/5 needing just 9 off 9 overs, they eventually need 4 of the last 4 overs but waited and waited for the right balls to hit and Joe M then skilfully edged the winning 4 runs past the keeper’s gloves! So the winning runs are hit off the first ball of the 42nd over, 221/5.

The champagne moment must go to the skipper, whilst trying to keep Hatchell off strike on the last ball of the over he informed the team that he didn’t want them nicking a two, but a boundary was ok!

4XI - Warrington (A)

The 4th XI recorded a deserved, if closely fought and tight-finished, win against the usual negative Warrington side. After calling incorrectly, Phil – back in his rightful role as skipper – was unsurprised to find himself being asked to bat first. Steve Henshaw and Dave Henson strode to the crease and were initially stifled by some tight Warrington bowling. Steve fairly quickly departed after being strangled for room to play shots. Dave settled down and after the odd early scare played with his usual assurance in making 66. At the other end, he had been joined by Adam Roberts, making his return to the club. Adam settled in quickly and composed an assured 72, with some swashbuckling drives punctuating his innings.

On reaching maximum batting points, Phil declared after 40 overs. It proved a masterstroke, and gave the bowlers time to dismiss the Warrington batsmen. A high class display of opening bowling from Bannu, with a stiff breeze at his back, brought an early wicket. Bannu charged in for 8 overs and was unlucky not to add to this solitary prize, beating the bat time and again. At the other end, Jamie Littler had the thankless task of bowling into the wind, and was no doubt relieved when Phil gave Bannu a rest and allowed Jamie a go with nature’s assistance. Drinks, as the old cliché goes, bring wickets. This was indeed the case for us this afternoon. After the break, the deadlock – for that is what it had become, the cautious Warrington batsmen were undoubtedly playing for a draw – was broken by the spin of Joe Maddocks. Fit again after a calf injury had prevented him bowling against Irby, Joe settled into his rhythm and bowled Warrington’s opener behind his legs, before adding a second scalp two balls later. A smart piece of glovework by Steve saw the bails removed for a stumping. It was now a case of being patient and waiting for the batsmen to make mistakes. Jamie saw to it that they did, inducing a loose cut that was held at point, in his elbows, by Lawrie Peet; then in his next over splaying the stumps with a fine piece of seam bowling. Just as Jamie’s fine spell of 2-28 came to an end, the black clouds that had been gathering for several minutes began to empty themselves. Warrington’s batsmen were only too keen to scarper to the pavilion whilst their teammates hauled on the covers. Rather shamefacedly, they had to haul them off again a few minutes later. The final push for Chester was on. Left with 19 overs to remove the final few batsmen, the inroads were gradually made as Lawrie, James Cotterill and Bannu bowled probing spells which on other day would have ended the game far earlier than they did. With 8 balls to spare, Bannu produced a vicious inswinging yorker which crashed into the middle stump of Warrington’s number 11 who – if there is any justice in the world – will surely be batting higher up for his team for the rest of the season. The relief was as great as the joy. A draw would have been a travesty for the 4th XI this weekend. Well as we batted, bowled and fielded, however, the plaudits must go to Phil for his timely declaration.

4XI - Irby (A)

The fourth XI endured a bore draw at Irby which nevertheless hinted at a strong season to come. A quick glance at the scorebook confirms a number of excellent performances. First among these was Joey Desmoreaux, with a personal best score of 115 (his three dropped catches later on, he confirmed later, were another type of personal best). The book itself, by the way, began the day in pristine condition. Skipper Phil Evans had not only filled in the club’s address, meticulously, on the front page, but also recorded the details of the fixture on the first available scoresheet. Sadly, over the afternoon, the scorers continued last season’s trend of despoiling it with the usual barely-legible scrawl and numerous crossings-out.

Having been inserted on the loss of the toss, we posted an excellent score of 253-4 off 45 overs delivered on the most lifeless of pitches. Carrying on from where he left off last season, Joey was the linchpin of the innings; his knock was chanceless, despite being hit in the knackers early on. Joey and Steve Henshaw took advantage of some generous bowling from the Irby openers to reach 65-0 off 10 overs. Joey pointed out to Steve between overs, just in case he was unsure – he wasn’t – that this worked out at 6.5 runs per over. When Steve was caught for 32, Joe Killoran strode to the crease. Once he had tossed the banana that been in his trouser pocket to the square leg umpire, Joe played himself in slowly before accelerating to 29. It was then over to one of our youngsters, James Cotterill, who also scored 29 classy runs. Phil pulled off a couple of blinding selections 12 months ago in Joe Maddocks and Tom Wyatt. This year James may well prove himself the latest 4th XI gem. A little cameo from Phil Desmoreax saw us through the final overs, and almost added to the Desmoreaux family trait of running out the youth. James fortunately survived when called through for the riskiest of singles.

Once play had resumed following the tea interval, it quickly became clear that Irby had not the slightest intention of making a game of it. With a close field, opening bowlers Jamie Littler and Matt Rawson steamed in and delivered hostile spells of bowling that deserved far greater reward than one wicket for Jamie, a caught-and-bowled off a leading edge. The bearded one bowled his heart out for 11 consecutive overs, posing challenging questions for Irby’s batsmen. Matt also showed his potential with 5 tidy overs, and looks to be a bowler who could command a place in the team for the whole season. His dad Chris has lesser ambitions (to play only when we are short), but did a fine job in the legside all innings. As the field came closer and closer in, tight spells from Lawrie Peet, Joe Killoran and Phil failed to make more than a single breakthrough. It was time to bring Jamie back on. Fairly quickly he sent middle stump flying, and victory looked like it might be possible. Joe Killoran trapped another Irby batsman fairly soon after, but unfortunately this proved the end of the wicket-taking. After Joey had got his shoulders loose in front of his captain as a reminder of his abilities with the ball, not even a few overs from his golden arm could break the deadlock.

After the game peered out, there was still time for a bit of drama. Lawrie was reminded that unless drivers are notified, they will take the same people home as they took to the game. Having neglected to mention that Joe Killoran was going straight to a table-tennis match, a few phone calls were needed to divert Ian Millington back from Junction 4 of the M53.

Not bad for a bore draw…