Match Day 28th April 2001
JUPITER PLUVIUS INTERVENES
By Gerry Wolstenholme
Only two weeks into the new season and rain has to intervene in the Northern Premier League programme. Worst sufferers were last week's winners Chorley who had its game against St Annes abandoned without a ball bowled. Other games were affected to one degree or another but there were results in four of the remaining five games.
The one game that did not get completed was that at Netherfield where the home side made a modest 115-9 with professional Keith Semple taking his second four wicket haul of the season with 4-38 and skipper Jeff Hacking weighing in with 4-32. And in reply Darwen was struggling at 16-3 when the rains returned.
A delayed start at Fleetwood saw the home side batting and once again struggling. Professional Craig Pryor came to the rescue with a hard-hit 45 but no-one was able to support him to any great degree and the innings closed on 115-9. Leyland's stand-in professional Carl Crowe, who is on the Leicestershire staff, took 4-48. Leyland then battled through to 117-7, despite 4-50 from Neil Gregson, to gain its first win of the season.
Two of the remaining games had similar scenarios with all the scores in the eighties. At Kendal the Shap Road team carried on its inconsistency from last season and, after last week's mammoth 234-8, was bowled out for just 83, Peter Stephens reeking most havoc for Morecambe with 4-23. Morecambe's reply in a six-wicket victory was 84-4 with opener Mark Woodhead anchoring the innings with 40 not out.
The other 160-plus game was at Leyland Motors where Motors made 82 with Graham Barnes taking 4-35 to which Lancaster replied with a comfortable 83-2 thus gaining victory by eight wickets.
At Stanley Park Preston put Blackpool in but could not then prevent the home side making 181-5 declared. Runs came from all the top order with Mark Lomas' 54 being the best effort. James Anyon, who was restricted to an opening spell of seven overs by his age, took 2-11. Thereafter Preston very nearly hung on for a draw but once Ian McDonnell had been run out, through no fault of his own, for the second week in succession, the innings declined and Blackpool won by 77 runs with nine balls remaining. Left arm spinner Chris Barrow took 4-12.
After only two games a table is hardly appropriate but Blackpool and Chorley lead the way with 19 points while Leyland and Netherfield have 16 points each.
Abbreviated scorecards (with home team in bold type):
Blackpool 181-5 (Lomas 54, Anyon 2-11), Preston 104 (Barrow 4-12)
Chorley v St Annes - no play
Fleetwood 115-9 (Pryor 45, Crowe 4-48), Leyland 117-7
Leyland Motors 82 (Barnes 4-35), Lancaster 83-2
Kendal 83 (Stephens 4-23), Morecambe 84-4 (Woodhead 40*)
Netherfield 115-9 (Hacking 4-32, Semple 4-38), Darwen 16-3 - rain stopped play
MATCH OF THE DAY
By Gerry Wolstanholme
On a fine but bitterly cold day at Stanley Park, a weakened Preston side came within nine balls of earning a draw against a strong Blackpool side. Having won the toss and asked Blackpool to bat, the Preston bowlers could not earn their side a bowling bonus point as only five Blackpool wickets were captured as the home side knocked up 181 runs and then declared with eight overs and four balls remaining. Incidentally, in declaring Blackpool saved Preston the deduction of two points for a slow over rate. In reply Preston never looked in the hunt and eventually was bowled out for a meagre 104 runs to lose by 77 runs.
At the start Preston professional Raoul Akbar bowled magnificently and it was two overs before bat could be laid on ball. And at the other end Julian Edwards also bowled well. But Blackpool openers Martin Pickles and Richard Lamb gradually found their form and put on 52 before both were out at the same total. And it was first change bowler James Anyon who took both wickets in a lively seven over spell that brought him 2-11. First he bowled Pickles for 22 and then had Lamb leg before wicket for 30.
Paul Danson at three looked out of sorts to start with and it was his partner, skipper Mark Lomas, who did the bulk of the scoring in the early part of their 84-minute 100-run partnership. Lomas batted well, faced 81 balls and hit five fours before Akbar bowled him for 54. Danson followed seven runs later for a battling 38 before Rehman Shah bowled Gavin Armstrong for nine. Rudra Singh scored 15 not out and Stephen Croft nought not out before the declaration came at 181-5.
Rain interrupted the Preston reply and six overs were lost. But it was to be academic in the end as Preston lost Anthony Mann leg before wicket to Marcus Sharp for three with the total at 11 and then his brother Paul Mann for nine, caught and bowled Croft, when the total had risen to 43. During this time Ian McDonnell looked in no difficulty and seemed to be heading for an early season half-century.
Akbar came and went quickly, leg before wicket to Croft for two with the total on 54 and then came the decisive wicket of the innings. McDonnell, who had at the time hit the innings only two boundaries, played slow left armer Barrow wide of Singh at mid-off. Singh fell on the ball as McDonnell took the easy single that was on offer. Sadly for him Shah had decided otherwise and remained crease-bound as McDonnell joined him at the bowler's end. He had no chance of making his ground as Singh got up, retrieved the ball and threw it to Martin Hackett who had all the time in the world to do the necessary. McDonnell, having battled it out for 80- balls, was out for a fine 29 and the major breakthrough had been made
Shah did not last long thereafter as he was leg before wicket to Barrow for five when the total had only advanced to 58. Ex-Blackpool player Jabbir Namajee tried to steady the ship with help from James Anyon but Danson came on for a single over and dismissed the latter, caught at point by Croft for four. That was 77-6 and Preston was staring defeat in the face. But Paul Richardson did not see it that way and he played a cameo innings of 21 made from 19 balls from which he struck two fours. But the accurate Sharp returned and, one ball after being straight driven to the boundary, he extracted his revenge by bowling Richardson with the total on 98-7.
When Namajee went, after a 55-ball vigil, as the fourth leg before wicket victim of the innings for 13 at 102-8, the game was almost over. Young Peet kept his head and kept out the best Blackpool could offer but at the other end Edwards and Shaw succumbed. Edwards was caught by Croft at silly mid-off as the desperate Blackpool fielders crowded the batsmen and Shaw was another leg before wicket victim at 104. Peet was left three not out but Preston, all out 104, had lost by 77 runs. Barrow in his first home game for his new club was the best of the bowlers with, albeit slightly flattering, figures of 12.3-7-12-4.
Division 2 Results
Abbreviated Results (Home team in bold type)
Darwen v Netherfield - no play
Kendal v Morecambe - no play
Leyland Motors 33 (Dawson 8-17), Lancaster 34-0
Fleetwood 54-7 (Mansour 5-34), Leyland 43-6
Preston 153-9 (Williams 41*, Mustafa 7-43), Blackpool 154-8 (Bartholomew 45)
Chorley 171-6 (Hotham 62, Booth 5-71), St Annes 103-7
