Cricket latest - Elworth 177/9 (45 overs) beat Stone 148 all out (41.5 overs) by 29 runs
By The Editor
16th May 2022 | Local News
This was a remarkable win for the Foxes which sees them in third place in the Premier
Division.
That they won on Saturday from the dire position of 86/8 halfway through their
allotted overs is quite something.
It looked desperate for Elworth as wickets tumbled regularly, Alex Banks, captaining the side
went for 15, Ryan Sloan for eight and Joe Stephenson for nought as the home side stumbled
to 33/3 after eight overs, Cameron Sinclair taking the wickets of Banks and Stephenson.
Sinclair is well known to Elworth having moved to Stone from Eccleshall during the off-
season.
He had been a leading light for his former club and is now spearheading Stone's
attack to good effect. Beyers Swanepoel (21) and Chris Regan (14) stopped the rot for a time
and Swanepoel took a pair of boundaries of Ed Gaffney.
Things looked promising when the South African all-roiunder took nine off Jack Degg's
first over to take the score past 50.
However three wickets fell in 10 balls, Swanepoel was a victim for Sinclair, and Degg came
back strongly to pick up Ed Parrish (0) and Thom Bamford (0) in the space of three balls. This
left Elworth doing their Blondin act, walking over Niagara Falls on a tightrope at 59/6.
Sinclair had three of them. Mike Stewart had joined Regan but things did not improve as
Regan was LBW to Sinclair and it was 70/7.
Ben Holt and Stewart both hit boundaries, Holt off Degg and Stewart off Ben Morley before
another wicket fell when Holt was bowled by Degg for eight, and the score was 86/8. Chris
Winter walked out with the look of a man who means business, he always does. He hit his
first ball for four and repeated the dose a few balls later, Degg looked moderately surprised.
By a mixture of enterprising running and occasional boundaries the score mounted. With
Winter in the middle you know there will be plenty of sharp singles and Stewart was equally
alert to any opportunity.
He took boundaries of both Degg and the returning Gaffney. In the
course of 15 gripping overs the pair added 59 crucial runs before Stewart was LBW to Mikey
Parker. At 145/9, with nine overs remaining, Steve Morgan came in to join his fellow spinner..
A single to Winter off Parker took the Foxes to 150 and a fourth batting point. It got better
for Elworth as Winter and Morgan grew in confidence and no sooner had the 150 come up
than Morgan took a crisp boundary of Stan Langmead's bowling.
With 175 in their sights, Winter gathered nine from another Langmead over and a succession of well-run singles off Parker took the Foxes to 175 and a maximum batting paints haul of five. These points only
come into play if the team does not win the match, the important thing was setting a
challenging target. The innings closed shortly afterwards at 177/9, a brilliant effort by the
Foxes lower order. Stewart, Winter and Morgan had harvested 91 runs after Holt's dismissal.
There was now something to defend.
Stone raced out of the blocks and were 16/0 after just two overs. Yet, if Ben Holt's first over
had been a little wayward, going for 10, his second was right on the numbers. George
Hawbrook, back at Stone after a season with Barlaston, was bowled by Holt for 12. He had
faced every ball of the first three overs bar one.
In Swanepoel's next over, he trapped opener and skipper Sam Graham LBW for nought and
the homesters had a spring in their step. A Degg boundary off Holt aside, the next few overs
were heavy going for the batting side. Holt and Swanepoel maintained a disciplined attack
backed by some sharp fielding. Morgan relieved Holt and was immediately in his groove, but
Degg a stout-hearted opponent hit back with a two and a four off Swanepoel. Winter
relieved the latter and he, like Morgan, quickly found his rhythm.
Degg and Phil Cheadle were putting together a worrying partnership for all that the bowling
had not been collared. Cheadle first crossed Elworth's path as long ago as 2003, this was his
558th game for Stone, and he needs only a handful of runs to reach 12,000. Swanepoel
made the crucial breakthrough and then made it a double. Degg (26) was caught in the deep
by Stewart and, the batsmen having crossed, Cheadle was on strike next ball.
He will be wishing that the rule t the rule change scheduled for October 1st, which decrees that, unless the
wicket fell from the last ball of the over, the incoming batsman will take strike, was already in effect because
Swanepoel pinned him on the crease and he departed LBW for 21. The pairhad added 50 and at 69/2 Stone
were looking good. 69/4 with two new batsmen was a very different prospect.
Ben Motley and Cameron Sinclair took Stone to a first batting point and beyond but Mike
Stewart, who had relieved Morgan, bowled the latter for three and Winter had Dan Lunn
caught by Alex Banks for four. The visitors were now 93/6. Remembering what had
happened in the Elworth innings, nobody was counting any chickens. Motley went three
runs later (caught Winter bowled Morgan 16) and, Morgan made it two in two when Gaffney
was stumped by Ryan Sloan for nought. At 96/8 Chanaka Ekanayka had few partners to come
but one of them was Parker.
Parker arrived at Stone this season from Crowbrough where he was a regular in their Sussex
Cricket League 1st XI. He and Ekanayka began to chase down the target and got the bit
between their teeth to a good extent. Parker took 16 off one Stewart over. This took the
total to 134/8 and there was a degree of agitation amongst the Elworth followers. They need
not have worried as Morgan bowled Parker in the next over for 22. The returning Swanepoel
bowled the persevering Ekanayka for 18 four overs later and Stone were all out for 148.
Swanepoel returned 4/30, his best figures of the season so far, Morgan 3/28, Holt 1/33,
Winter 1/21 and Stewart 1/35. Elworth's win takes them to third in the table.
This was a remarkable win for the Foxes which sees them in third place in the Premier
Division.
That they won on Saturday from the dire position of 86/8 halfway through their
allotted overs is quite something.
It looked desperate for Elworth as wickets tumbled regularly, Alex Banks, captaining the side
went for 15, Ryan Sloan for eight and Joe Stephenson for nought as the home side stumbled
to 33/3 after eight overs, Cameron Sinclair taking the wickets of Banks and Stephenson.
Sinclair is well known to Elworth having moved to Stone from Eccleshall during the off-
season.
He had been a leading light for his former club and is now spearheading Stone's
attack to good effect. Beyers Swanepoel (21) and Chris Regan (14) stopped the rot for a time
and Swanepoel took a pair of boundaries of Ed Gaffney.
Things looked promising when the South African all-rounder took nine off Jack Degg's first
over to take the score past 50.
However three wickets fell in 10 balls, Swanepoel was a victim for Sinclair, and Degg came
back strongly to pick up Ed Parrish (0) and Thom Bamford (0) in the space of three balls. This
left Elworth doing their Blondin act, walking over Niagara Falls on a tightrope at 59/6.
Sinclair had three of them. Mike Stewart had joined Regan but things did not improve as
Regan was LBW to Sinclair and it was 70/7.
Ben Holt and Stewart both hit boundaries, Holt off Degg and Stewart off Ben Morley before
another wicket fell when Holt was bowled by Degg for eight, and the score was 86/8. Chris
Winter walked out with the look of a man who means business, he always does. He hit his
first ball for four and repeated the dose a few balls later, Degg looked moderately surprised.
By a mixture of enterprising running and occasional boundaries the score mounted. With
Winter in the middle you know there will be plenty of sharp singles and Stewart was equally
alert to any opportunity.
He took boundaries of both Degg and the returning Gaffney. In the
course of 15 gripping overs the pair added 59 crucial runs before Stewart was LBW to Mikey
Parker. At 145/9, with nine overs remaining, Steve Morgan came in to join his fellow spinner..
A single to Winter off Parker took the Foxes to 150 and a fourth batting point. It got better
for Elworth as Winter and Morgan grew in confidence and no sooner had the 150 come up
than Morgan took a crisp boundary of Stan Langmead's bowling.
With 175 in their sights, Winter gathered nine from another Langmead over and a succession
of well-run singles off Parker took the Foxes to 175 and a maximum batting paints haul of five.
These points only come into play if the team does not win the match, the important thing was setting a
challenging target. The innings closed shortly afterwards at 177/9, a brilliant effort by the
Foxes lower order. Stewart, Winter and Morgan had harvested 91 runs after Holt's dismissal.
There was now something to defend.
Stone raced out of the blocks and were 16/0 after just two overs. Yet, if Ben Holt's first over
had been a little wayward, going for 10, his second was right on the numbers. George
Hawbrook, back at Stone after a season with Barlaston, was bowled by Holt for 12. He had
faced every ball of the first three overs bar one.
In Swanepoel's next over he trapped opener and skipper Sam Graham LBW for nought and
the homesters had a spring in their step. A Degg boundary off Holt aside, the next few overs
were heavy going for the batting side. Holt and Swanepoel maintained a disciplined attack
backed by some sharp fielding. Morgan relieved Holt and was immediately in his groove, but
Degg a stout-hearted opponent hit back with a two and a four off Swanepoel. Winter
relieved the latter and he, like Morgan, quickly found his rhythm.
Degg and Phil Cheadle were putting together a worrying partnership for all that the bowling
had not been collared. Cheadle first crossed Elworth's path as long ago as 2003, this was his
558th game for Stone, and he needs only a handful of runs to reach 12,000. Swanepoel
made the crucial breakthrough and then made it a double. Degg (26) was caught in the deep
by Stewart and, the batsmen having crossed, Cheadle was on strike next ball.
He will be wishing that the rule t the rule change scheduled for October 1st, which decrees that, unless the
wicket fell from the last ball of the over, the incoming batsman will take strike, was already in effect
because Swanepoel pinned him on the crease and he departed LBW for 21. The pair had added 50 and at 69/2 Stone were looking good.1 69/4 with two new batsmen was a very different prospect.
Ben Motley and Cameron Sinclair took Stone to a first batting point and beyond but Mike
Stewart, who had relieved Morgan, bowled the latter for three and Winter had Dan Lunn
caught by Alex Banks for four. The visitors were now 93/6. Remembering what had
happened in the Elworth innings, nobody was counting any chickens. Motley went three
runs later (caught Winter bowled Morgan 16) and, Morgan made it two in two when Gaffney
was stumped by Ryan Sloan for nought. At 96/8 Chanaka Ekanayka had few partners to come
but one of them was Parker.
Parker arrived at Stone this season from Crowbrough where he was a regular in their Sussex
Cricket League 1st XI. He and Ekanayka began to chase down the target and got the bit
between their teeth to a good extent. Parker took 16 off one Stewart over. This took the
total to 134/8 and there was a degree of agitation amongst the Elworth followers. They need
not have worried as Morgan bowled Parker in the next over for 22. The returning Swanepoel
bowled the persevering Ekanayka for 18 four overs later and Stone were all out for 148.
Swanepoel returned 4/30, his best figures of the season so far, Morgan 3/28, Holt 1/33,
Winter 1/21 and Stewart 1/35. Elworth's win takes them to third in the table.
This Saturday the 1st XI is at Porthill Park (12 noon), they were there last Sunday in the
National Club Knockout.
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