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LINCOLNSHIRE ECB

PREMIER CRICKET LEAGUE

All the up-to-date news from Lincs ECB Premier League 2010 cricket season

				Archive: 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008 and 2009
Lincolnshire ECB Premier League sponsored by Readers Results and latest positions round-up for the 2010 season
Final positions (September 18)
Premier League	P	W	L		D	T	NR	Bat	Bowl	W	D	Pts	%
Bourne	22	12	5		1	0	4	69	75	120	9	273	75.83
Sleaford	22	11	5		1	0	5	62	71	110	1	244	71.76
Lindum	22	9	7		1	1	4	65	67	90	14	236	65.56
Skegness	22	12	7		0	0	3	54	73	120	0	247	65.00
Bracebridge Heath	22	9	7		0	0	6	53	62	90	0	205	64.06
Market Deeping	22	8	6		3	0	5	58	56	80	15	209	61.47
Nettleham	22	7	6		4	0	5	58	51	70	26	205	60.29
Grimsby	22	3	8		7	1	3	70	60	30	50	210	55.26
Louth	22	5	7		3	2	5	44	57	50	15	166	48.82
Boston	22	6	10		1	0	5	39	63	60	3	165	48.53
Woodhall Spa	22	5	10		3	0	4	53	48	50	13	164	45.56
Hartsholme	22	2	11		4	0	5	46	54	20	14	134	39.41
Details this season:
End of season summary Same again for 2011 campaign The Readers Lincolnshire ECB Premier League will go into 2011 with the same line-up as this season after Messingham declined the opportunity to return to the league only one year after they were demoted. Despite finishing almost 60 points up on Caistor at the top of the Lincolnshire County Cricket League Premier League, Messingham decided to spend another year in the feeder league where they have introduced more talented juniors to the side. With South Lincolnshire and Border League champions Billingborough lacking the junior set-up necessary to qualify for promotion, bottom side Hartsholme’s place in the top flight is safe, giving the Lincoln side the chance to build on what was a promising start to the Premier League career. Hartsholme captain Nathan Poundall carried off a trophy in his first season in charge when he tied with Skegness player Roald Badenhorst for the fielding prize, both players taking 13 catches. And fellow newcomers Boston also celebrated as Janet Morris came out top of the scorers’ list. Following the retirement of six-times winner Don Oslear, umpire David Ginn will receive the Sibber Addison Memorial Trophy at the league dinner in February. Sleaford pipped Grimsby to pick up the fair play trophy. And Nettleham’s ground staff are the first winners of the trophy awarded in memory of late chairman Terry Bates for the pitch that scores the highest average marks over the season. Clubs expressed their concern about the lack of uniformity in the rules of the different leagues, which can particularly affect promoted teams. They were told that the Lincolnshire Cricket Board was looking to meet with league chairmen to discuss this and other related matters. County Pitch Adviser Martin Deans handed out reports on pitch markings and told clubs that the results of tests on soil samples he had taken from all pitches in the league were being distributed. He said that Lincolnshire is in the top 10 Premier Leagues in the country for its pitch marks. Various rule changes were put forward and these will be voted on at the league’s AGM on October 13.
Review for September 18 (final day) The Readers Lincolnshire ECB Premier League season of surprise results continued right to the final weekend when Sleaford beat champions Bourne to claim the runners-up spot and Lindum came seemingly out of nowhere to claim third place after beating Bracebridge Heath. At the start of the day Bracebridge and Skegness were both contenders for second place but the seasiders went down to Market Deeping and had to be content with fourth with Bracebridge finishing fifth with Deeping in sixth. At the foot of the table, Boston moved out of the bottom two, beating Woodhall Spa to push them down into 11th, while Hartsholme went down to Nettleham for whom Warren Nel hit an unbeaten century to finish with 928 runs, the top batting figures for the season. An eventful game at Augusta Street saw Gary Tillison take seven Louth wickets, including four in four balls as his side recorded their eighth draw of the season, Louth hanging on to finish 153 for eight after Grimsby had reached 215 for eight. Gihan Perera hit 73 before badly injuring his ankle in his last match before returning to Sri Lanka on Tuesday. Sleaford skipper Oliver Burford snatched the wicketkeeping title from Jason Scheepers, snaffling four catches in his side’s victory over Bourne to take his total to 29, one ahead of his Bracebridge rival while Bourne’s Fahad Masood topped the bowling with 62 wickets despite missing his last two matches through injury. Results for September 18 Market Deeping 203 (Peacock 74, Kirkham 5-52), Skegness 167 (Epton 57); Grimsby 215-8 (Perera 73 ret hurt), Louth 153-8 (Osmond 56, Tillison 7-40 inc four in four balls); Bourne 140, Sleaford 144-1 (Shorthouse 67no); Hartsholme 208-9 (Shooter 60, Bell 51), Nettleham 209-5 (Nel 100no); Bracebridge Heath 192 (Khoza 77, Morley-Barnes 5-42), Lindum 193-6 (Hornsby 93no); Boston 194-8 (Timby 54, Sergeant 55), Woodhall Spa 141 (Wilson 6-41).
Review for September 11 Bourne are crowned champions The weather and a 20-point win over Hartsholme combined to allow Bourne to claim the Readers Lincolnshire ECB Premier League championship with a week still to go. While rain affected the north of the county, forcing Louth to call of their match against challengers Sleaford, Abbey Lawn hosted a full game. And in addition to sealing the championship, Bourne bowler Mark Dixon also recorded a first for his club, taking nine wickets in the match. Earlier Will Clough had blasted an unbeaten 110 to get Bourne out of trouble and take the score to 219 for eight at the close. Dixon then claimed nine Hartsholme wickets for 31 runs as the visitors were all out for 62. Two other games were completed, Skegness beating Woodhall Spa by six wickets while Market Deeping claimed a five wicket win over Grimsby to move into the top half of the table above Nettleham, whose game against Bracebridge Heath fell foul of the weather as did Lindum v Boston. Woodhall made 139 for nine at Jubilee Park before Saeed Bariwala hit an unbeaten 71 to take the seasiders to victory. And at Outgang Road, Harry Warwick made 64 and Ali Sharp took five wickets as Grimsby were all out for 148. Gary Yeeles then hit 54 of Deeping’s 151 for five. Sleaford need 10 points from their final game against Bourne to claim the runners-up slot. Results for September 11 Bourne 219-8 (Clough 110no), Hartsholme 62 (Dixon 9-31); Grimsby 148 (Warwick 64, Sharp 5-46), Market Deeping 151-5 (Yeeles 54); Woodhall Spa 139-9, Skegness 143-4 (Bariwala 71no); Lindum v Boston – abandoned, no play; Louth v Sleaford – abandoned, no play; Nettleham v Bracebridge Heath – abandoned, no play.
Review for September 4 Bourne moved a step closer to sealing the Readers Lincolnshire ECB Premier League championship with a five wicket win over rivals Bracebridge Heath, Charlie Hopkins taking six wickets and Fahad Masood moving four closer to the league record as the former champions where bowled out for 107. Sleaford moved above Bracebridge into second place after Dammika Gunawardena hit his second century in successive weeks and Jonathan Adams made 56 to help their side to victory over Market Deeping who were all out for 199, Stephen Bradford taking five wickets. Sleaford still have mathematical chance of catching the leaders and both play teams from the bottom three next week before meeting at London Road in the final match of the season. Just a fraction behind Bracebridge are Skegness who were involved in the closest game of the day at Augusta Street where almost 500 runs were scored. Batting first, the seasiders notched up 254 for four, Saeed Bariwala making 80 and Carl Wilson an unbeaten 81. Grimsby’s pursuit included 58 from Richard Antcliffe and 50 from Gary Tillison as the home side edged closer to their target, only to end 14 runs short as the final wicket fell on the last ball of the game. The two bottom teams both enjoyed a good day, Boston overcoming Nettleham by eight wickets after bowling their visitors out for 157. Jonathan Cheer and Alan Mountford then put on over a hundred for the first wicket, making 63 and 54 respectively as the home side coasted to victory. And Hartsholme recorded a winning draw at home to Louth who hung on to their last wicket to take a vital extra three points from the game. The bottom side made 199 for seven before holding Louth to 176 for nine. The highest total of the day came at Jubilee Park where Lindum notched 282 for eight, Geoff Middleton making 81, before bowling Woodhall Spa out for 171. Results for September 4 Bracebridge Heath 107 (Hopkins 6-59), Bourne 111-5; Nettleham 157, Boston 159-2 (J Cheer 63, Mountford 54); Sleaford 310-9 (Gunawardena 130, Adams 56), Market Deeping 199 (Bradford 5-53); Lindum 282-8 (Middleton 87), Woodhall Spa 171; Skegness 254-4 (Bariwala 80, Wilson 81no), Grimsby 240 (Antcliffe 58, G Tillison 50); Hartsholme 199-7, Louth 176-9.
Review for August 28 Bracebridge Heath closed the gap very slightly on Readers Lincolnshire ECB Premier League leaders Bourne, picking up 20 points to their rivals 16 after both had bowled their opposition out cheaply. At Abbey Lawn, Bourne were all out for 142, Conrad Louth hitting 64 and Dan Milgate taking five for 44 for Boston. But Fahad Masood proved too accurate for the visiting batsmen, taking five for 41 as Boston could only reach 90 before the final wicket fell. At London Road, Louth batted first but met Matt Bradley in good form, the Bracebridge bowler taking six for 14 as the home side were all out for 88, a total the visitors knocked off for the loss of four wickets. Sleaford are now breathing down Bracebridge’s neck, having hit the highest total of the day at Augusta Street as they overcame Grimsby to move into third while their opponents slipped won to seventh behind Market Deeping whose game against Hartsholme was rained off without a ball being bowled. Sleaford’s Dammika Gunawardena was the day’s only centurion, hitting an unbeaten 138 in his side’s 275 for five. In an unexpected result at Richmond Road, Skegness went down heavily to Lindum who are back in the top six after hitting 206 for eight then demolishing the seasiders for just 75. And Fawad Alam, playing his last game for Woodhall Spa before joining the Pakistan one-day squad, went out on a high note with 63 runs of his side’s total of 169 for eight before taking six for 30 to help bowl Nettleham out for 108, leaving them in fifth place and only a fraction ahead of Lindum. Results for August 28 Bourne 142 (Louth 64, Milgate 5-44), Boston 90 (Masood 5-41); Sleaford 275-5 (Gunawardena 138no, Miles 63no), Grimsby 197; Lindum 206-8 (Hornsby 88), Skegness 75; Woodhall Spa 169-8 (Alam 63), Nettleham 108 (Alam 6-30); Louth 88 (Bradley 6-14), Bracebridge Heath 90-4; Market Deeping v Hartsholme – abandoned, no play.
Review for August 21 Only one game reached a conclusion on the Readers Lincolnshire ECB Premier League, but Sleaford’s victory over Skegness altered the look of the top of the table. Despite being rained off in the 30th over at home to Market Deeping, Bracebridge Heath moved above Skegness into second place behind Bourne, who played 39 overs at Woodhall Spa, the home side reaching 133 for two with Fawad Alam making an unbeaten 61. And Sleaford overtook Nettleham, who were rained off at Lindum, to go fourth. Oliver Burford made 68 as Sleaford finished on 220 for six at London Road where Skegness were then bowled out for 198, despite an innings of 96 from Paul Butler. Boston missed the chance to pick up points when rained stopped play after the first innings which had seen Louth bowled out for 127, Mick Troops claiming five wickets. Results for August 21 Sleaford 220-6 (Burford 68), Skegness 198 (Butler 96); Grimsby 80-3 v Hartsholme – abandoned; Bracebridge Heath 130-3 (Crook 65no) v Market Deeping – abandoned; Woodhall Spa 133-2 (Alam 61no) v Bourne – abandoned; Louth 127 (Troops 5-43) v Boston – abandoned; Lindum v Nettleham – abandoned.
Review for August 14 On a day of heavy and spectacularly fierce downpours, all matches were called off due to waterlogged pitches.
News for August 10 A prestigious ECB competition comes to Skegness Cricket Club on Sunday, August 22 after Lincolnshire was invited to host the Area Finals of the ECB League Twenty/20 competition. On a day that is being planned as a showpiece for cricket as well as a family day out, Bracebridge Heath, winners of the Readers Lincolnshire ECB Premier League competition, the Winkworth Cup, will represent the home county. They will take on Wath CC from the South Yorkshire League and Northowram Fields from the Central Yorkshire League for a place in the ECB Regional Finals on September 5. Here, their opponents will be the winner of the North East area final, which involves York, South Northumberland and Richmondshire. Finals day is at the Rose Bowl on September 23. The Wath side has already been announced and includes former West Indian test player Lesroy Weekes, now 39 but described by the club’s chairman of selectors Mark Barlow as “a hard hitting batsman and high class opening bowler. “Lesroy brings a wealth of knowledge, experience and age to the side,” he said. “The Big Man can still change games in the blink of an eye, albeit sometimes a rather long blink nowadays!” Wath expect to bring around 40 spectators by coach and several car loads of supporters and Skegenss CC are currently finalising plans for a marquee for officials of all three clubs. In addition, the club is laying a bouncy castle and ice cream and burger stalls, a Kwik Cricket demonstration by junior players and other entertainment. The bar at the Richmond Road will also be open and food will be available for visitors, while a PA system will keep spectators in touch with proceedings. A raffle is planned for which the Lincolnshire Cricket Board has secured an amazing first prize - a day/evening with the Red Arrows and members of the Board. Second prize is £100 and third £50. The first match begins at 10.30am with the losers staying on for the second match at 1.30pm and the final game will begin at 4.30pm. Admission is free for pedestrians and £5 for cars, which includes a programme.
Review for August 7 Fahad Masood took his total of wickets for the season to 52 as Bourne consolidated their lead at the top of the Readers Lincolnshire ECB Premier League table with an eight wicket win over third placed Nettleham. Masood took six for 21 as the Lincoln side were bowled out for just 76 and, with six matches to go, now has the league record of 68 in his sights. Bourne have opened up a gap over second placed Skegness who won at Hartsholme but picked up only 15 points after the home side recovered from 10 for four to hang on to their last wicket and finish their innings on 137 for nine, a total the seasiders overtook for the loss of five wickets. Bracebridge Heath move back up to third, above Nettleham, despite reaching a winning position then seeing their match washed out with six overs to go. Alex Sears took seven wickets as Bracebridge were all out for 166 but three wickets each for Matt Bradley and George Neal reduced visitors Sleaford to 102 for eight before rain stopped play. The game at Boston also brought a seven-wicket haul for skipper Paul Timby as Grimsby were bowled out for 210. The home side then battled to 158 for eight giving them a total of 10 points and opening up the gap with bottom side Hartsholme. Market Deeping celebrated their second win in successive weeks in the tightest match of the day at Jubilee Park. Brodie Andrew took five wickets as Woodhall Spa were bowled out for 150 but Matt Haslam was also on firm, claiming six Deeping victims before the visitors edged to a one wicket victory. The highest and lowest scores of the day came at Lindum where the home side were bowled out for 226 in the 50th over only to see Louth dig in and make just 82 for nine off their 50 overs. Results for August 7 Results: Nettleham 76 (Masood 6-21), Bourne 79-2; Hartsholme 137-9, Skegness 138-5; Grimsby 210 (Timby 7-60), Boston 158-8; Lindum 226, Louth 82-9; Woodhall Spa 150 (Andrew 5-48), Market Deeping 151-9 (Haslam 6-31); Bracebridge Heath 166 (Sears 7-51), Sleaford 102-8 – match abandoned, rain.
Review for July 31 Hartsholme pulled off the shock results of the Readers Lincolnshire ECB Premier League weekend with a four wicket win over Bracebridge Heath who had appeared to be fighting back from a run of defeats. The current champions were bowled out for 158 by the bottom team, Martin Shillito and Liam Hargrave taking four wickets each while Ben Davis hit 81 to take his side to victory, Aaron Keverne Onyon also taking four wickets for Bracebridge who slipped from third to fourth following this defeat. Louth also celebrated a surprise win when they overcame second placed Nettleham, Seth Rance taking five wickets as the Lincoln side were all out for 127. Rory Osmond then made an unbeaten 54 in Louth’s seven-wicket victory. And in the battle at the top of the table, Skegness beat Bourne by just two wickets to move into second behind their opponents who were bowled out for 183. Fahad Masood then claimed five Skegness wickets but an unbeaten 89 from Roald Badenhorst took the seasiders to victory. Skegness are now on equal terms with Nettleham but go above their Lincoln rivals having claimed more outright victories. The highest scoring game was at Grimsby where the home side reached 230 for six, Scott Harneiss returning to his position as opener with an innings of 40 and Gihan Perera weighing with a swashbuckling 80 not out. But Jack Luffman, newly returned to fitness after three weeks in plaster with a ligament injury, found the August Street track to his liking, making 116 off 118 balls while Fawad Alam hit 61 to help Woodhall to a seven wicket win. This result pushed Grimsby down to sixth behind Sleaford who made 218 for seven at home to Boston, Alex Sears and Matthew Mountain with half centuries, before bowling their visitors out for 149 to leave the Mayflower side neck and neck with Hartsholme at the bottom of the table. Lindum hung on in seventh place despite going down to Market Deeping in the closest game of the day. Lee Peacock hit an unbeaten 59 as Deeping notched up 205-7 then Charlie Kearns took five wickets as Lindum were bowled out just 12 runs short of their target. Results for July 31 Results: Bracebridge Heath 158, Hartsholme 160-6 (Davis 81); Nettleham 127 (Rance 5-41), Louth 130-3 (Osmond 54no); Market Deeping 205-7 (Peacock 59no), Lindum 193 (C Kearns 5-47); Bourne 183, Skegness 186-8 (Badenhorst 89no, Masood 5-41); Sleaford 218-7 (Sears 51, Mountain 50), Boston 149; Grimsby 230-6 (Perera 80no), Woodhall Spa 231-3 (Luffman 116, Alam 61).
Review for July 24 Current champions Bracebridge Heath moved up to third place in the Readers Lincolnshire ECB Premier League table after inflicting a heavy defeat on Skegness. Aaron Keverne Onyon and Brett Houston each took five wickets as the seasiders were bowled out for 67 in less than 30 overs, a total Bracebridge overtook for the loss of two wickets. At the foot of the table, Boston won the battle of the bottom two, Colin Cheer taking five wickets to pass the 30 mark for the season and Matthew Wooldridge hitting 66 for Hartsholme. Jonathan Cheer then took his runs total past the 650 mark with an unbeaten 103 to help Boston to an eight-wicket win that took them within two per cent of Woodhall Spa who suffered a major batting collapse against Sleaford. Batting first at Jubilee Park, Sleaford reached 226 for six, Tom Shorthouse making 69 and Dammika Gunawardena 66. With Jack Luffman back in the side, Woodhall got off to a good start and Ricky Lovelace and Fawad Alam with 57 pushed the score to 167 for two. However, both were caught off Shorthouse who went on to take six for 35 and the final wicket fell on 192. Bourne marched on at the top with a 20 pointer at home to Louth who went down fighting after being bowled out for 185. At 134 for eight, the leaders were staring at a possible defeat until Tom Lindley came out to join David Christmas in an unbeaten partnership that took Bourne to victory. Nettleham stay second despite a dogged Market Deeping defence that saw the Mulsanne Park side held to a draw. Warren Nel took his runs total to 790 for the season with an unbeaten 135 and Matt O’Halloran hit 106 as Nettleham notched up the day’s highest score of 275 for four but Deeping hung on to make 207 for eight and take an extra three points from the game. The closest match was at Lindum where the home side set Grimsby a total of 232 for eight, Pierce Morley Barnes and Alex Hornsby both making half centuries. Grimsby recovered from the loss of a wicket in the first over and at 187 for five and Perera on 71, the result could have gone either way. Going into the 47th over, Grimsby were 202 for seven but with six balls to go had nine down and still needed 12 to win and the second ball of the final over brought a fifth wicket for Karanjit Bansal as the visitors were all out for 223. Results for July 24 Results: Nettleham 275-4 (Nel 135no, O’Halloran 106), Market Deeping 207-8; Louth 185, Bourne 189-8; Hartsholme 181-9 (Woodridge 66, C Cheer 5-52), Boston 183-2 (Cheer 103no); Sleaford 226-6 (Shorthouse 69, Gunawardena 66), Woodhall Spa 192 (Alam 57, Shorthouse 6-35); Lindum 232-8 (Morley-Barnes 66, Hornsby 65), Grimsby 223 (Perera 71, Bansal 5-80); Skegness 67 (Onyon 5-36, Houston 5-25), Bracebridge Heath 68-2.
Review for July 17 Bourne took over at the top of the Readers Lincolnshire ECB Premier League as Louth inflicted a surprise defeat on last week’s leaders Skegness. Fahad Masood scored his second century in successive weeks to help Bourne to 278 for eight at Market Deeping who were then bowled out for 178. Meanwhile Skegness were set a modest total of 162 after Saeed Bariwala had claimed five Louth wickets. But Seth Rance and Stewart West exploited a turning Richmond Road pitch with Rance, who had earlier top scored with 38, taking four for 26 and West finishing with three wickets to help bowl the home side out for 102. Nettleham took advantage of the seasiders’ defeat to move up to second with 17-year-old Tom Dalton seeing his side to a three wicket victory with an unbeaten 77 at Augusta Street after Grimsby were bowled out for 161. Louth’s win moved them up another place above Market Deeping while Woodhall Spa stayed tenth following their win at Hartsholme but have opened up a gap over the bottom two. Ben Davis hit 93 for Hartsholme whose 50 overs ended on 194 for nine, Fawad Alam taking six wickets and 16-year-old wicketkeeper Jack Hughes bagging five dismissals for the visitors. Alam then hit 71 as Woodhall went on to win by four wickets. At Cross O’Cliff Court, in an almost carbon copy of their early season game, Bracebridge Heath were bowled out by Boston for 168, Colin Cheer taking five wickets, only for the visitors to go down by 30 runs as Brett Houston claimed seven victims. Lindum and Sleaford remain locked together in mid-table after their game at London Road which saw Sleaford go above their opponents after bowling them out for 169. Jonathan Miles took five of the Lindum wickets and Dammika Gunawardena and Matthew Mountain both made half centuries in the home side’s five-wicket victory. Results for July 17 Results: Lindum 169 (Miles 5-71), Sleaford 171-5 (Gunawardena 53, Mountain 56no); Bourne 278-8 (Masood 110no, Spinks 50), Market Deeping 178; Louth 162 (Bariwala 5-69), Skegness 102; Grimsby 161, Nettleham 162-7 (Dalton 77no); Hartsholme 194-9 (Davis 93, Alam 6-49), Woodhall Spa 195-6 (Alam 71); Bracebridge Heath 168 (Cheer 6-60), Boston 138 (Houston 7-77).
Review for July 10 Woodhall Spa unleashed the secret weapon they hope will stave off relegation from the Readers Lincolnshire ECB Premier League – and Pakistani Test and ODI player Fawad Alam didn’t disappoint, taking five wickets and hitting 140 runs to help defeat Bracebridge Heath. Batting first, the current champions set a challenging total of 239 for eight, Paul Cook making 81 and Alam finishing with five for 49 before blasting his 140 off 112 balls with 11 fours and 10 sixes, ably assisted by Sam Evison with 39 and Ben Percival with an unbeaten 46 off 42 balls which took the home side to a seven-wicket win. Alam’s fellow countryman, Fahad Masood had an equally good day for Bourne to keep them in second place. Masood hit 105 of the home side’s 257 for nine with Ben Stroud scoring 34 and Charlie Hopkins 33 in two productive wicket partnerships with their overseas player who then took five for 43 as visitors Grimsby were restricted to 176 for nine. This keeps Grimsby in fifth place while Skegness ensured they stayed top with a 20 point win over Boston who were left chasing 246 for six, but fell to 140 all out, Steve Kirkham claiming six of the wickets. Nettleham moved up to third above Bracebridge Heath after a low scoring game against Sleaford at Mulsanne Park. The home side made 179 for nine while Sleaford could manage only 129 for nine, Andy Carter taking six wickets for Nettleham. Lindum climbed to sixth and at the same time consigned Hartsholme to bottom place behind Boston. Put into bat at St Giles Avenue, the home side had reached 182 for nine, Karanjit Bansal with 41 and Luke Robinson making 61. Then Oliver Guilliatt joined Dale Christie at the crease for a partnership that set the game alight, Christie hitting 40 off 21 balls with two sixes and four four as the pair added 44 for the final wicket before Christie was bowled by Martin Shillito to give him his fifth wicket. Matt Rutherford and Bansal then took full advantage of a spinners’ wicket to take six for 31 and four for 42 respectively and bowl the visitors out for 87. Louth finally found some batting form and eased their relegation worries as they reached 271 for five at home to Market Deeping, Graham West with 60 and Joe Irving 53, both unbeaten. Deeping were then bowled out for 159. Results for July 10 Results: Bracebridge Heath 239-8 (Cook 81, Alam 5-49), Woodhall Spa 240-3 (Alam 140); Lindum 226 (Robinson 61, Shillitoe 5-76), Hartsholme 85 (Rutherford 6-31); Bourne 257-9 (Masood 105), Grimsby 176-9 (Perera 60, Masood 5-43); Louth 271-5 (G West 60no, J Irving 53no), Market Deeping 159; Skegness 246-6 (Epton 52no), Boston 140 (Kirkham 6-55); Nettleham 179-9, Sleaford 129-9 (Carter 6-54).
Review for July 3 Skegness consolidated their lead in the Readers Lincolnshire ECB Premier League, recording the day’s highest individual and team totals. But top the table remains just as tight with only six per cent separating the top five teams after Bourne took 20 points at home to Sleaford, Bracebridge Heath halted their run of defeats with 20 at Lindum and Grimsby tied at Louth. Skegness took advantage of a batsman’s paradise at Market Deeping to amass 346 for three, Roald Badenhorst making 162 and Carl Wilson an unbeaten 113. But Market Deeping failed to capitalise on the good track and were bowled out for 160, David Gillett with 60 not out and Saeed Bariwala taking five wickets for the seasiders. Bourne lost four wickets chasing Sleaford’s modest total of 154 while in an eventful game at Lindum, which saw Bracebridge Heath lose two wickets in the first over, Andrew Crook hit 64 and 18-year-old George Neal 74 not out to help the final total to 267 for seven. Josh Brodie with 68 and Pierce Morley-Barnes with 67 then put on 151 in Lindum’s opening partnership. But from here Matt Bradley took four wickets, Aaron Onyon three and a Brett Houston ended the innings on 214 with a hat trick, wicketkeeper Jason Scheepers claiming two catches and four stumpings. This lifted the champions to third place, just ahead of Nettleham who picked up 16 at home to Hartsholme. The visitors made 212 for six, Nathan Poundall top scoring with 91. Warren Nel then passed the 600 run mark for the season with an unbeaten 141 to take his side to an eight wicket victory. Behind Nettleham, Grimsby slipped to fifth after a tie at Louth which saw both sides end on 114 all out and Market Deeping stay sixth but now have a gap opening up above them. It was all change at the bottom of the table as Boston picked up 20 points at Woodhall to consign their opponents to last place. Dan Milgate claimed seven wickets as Woodhall were all out for 193, Sam Evison making 59 and 18 year old Jonathan Cheer then took his runs tally past the 500 mark with an unbeaten 125 as Woodhall went down to a three wicket defeat. This win lifted Boston to eighth place with Louth in ninth and Hartsholme 10^th but, as with the top of the table, the competition stays tight with only five per cent separating these four. Results for July 3 Results: Sleaford 154, Bourne 157-6; Skegness 346-3 (Badenhorst 162, Wilson 113no), Market Deeping 160 (Gillett 60no, Bariwala 5-55); Hartsholme 212-6 (Poundall 91), Nettleham 213-2 (Nel 141no); Woodhall Spa 193 (Evison 59, Milgate 7-66), Boston 195-7 (J Cheer 125no); Louth 114, Grimsby 114; Bracebridge Heath 267-7 (Crook 64, Neal 74), Lindum 214 (Brodie 68, Morley-Barnes 67).
Review for June 26 The Readers Lincolnshire ECB Premier League table was blown wide open as champions Bracebridge Heath suffered their third defeat in a row, this time at the hands of Nettleham, to plummet down to fifth place. Skegness went top following their 20 point win over Woodhall after Grimsby could only manage a winning draw at home to Market Deeping so stay second. Nettleham share third place with Bourne who survived a mid-innings hiccup at Hartsholme to win by two wickets but with just 4 percentage points separating the top five teams, all have everything to play for. At Cross O’Cliff Court, Nettleham set Bracebridge a modest total of 172, Warren Nel last man out for 94 and four wickets falling to Aaron Onyon and Matt Bradley. But Bracebridge were unable to regain the batting form that has deserted them recently and were all out for 111 of which Brett Houston hit 42 while for the visitors, Andy Carter and James Stevens also took four wickets each. The closest game of the day came lower down the table after Lindum set Boston a seemingly tough target of 263 for eight, Pierce Morley-Barnes hitting 54. However, the home side also made runs in the sunshine and looked like securing a surprise victory until, with just five balls of the match to go, the final wicket fell on 259, three players having notched up half centuries. Boston stay bottom but are in close touch with the three teams above them after Woodhall went down at Skegness by six wickets, Jack Luffman and Ricky Lovelace making half centuries for the visitors and Saeed Bariwala and Carl Wilson for Skegness. Hartsholme failed to bowl Bourne out despite Martin Shillito’s haul of five for 40 but are on equal terms with Louth who lost five of their wickets to Jonathan Miles but gave Sleaford a hard time before the home side eventually won by four wickets, Tom Shorthouse making an unbeaten 81. Grimsby’s Neal Snell hit the day’s only century, piling on a massive 157 at home to Deeping but Charlie Kearns with 74 and Gary Yeeles (59) helped the visitors hang on for a share of the points. Results for June 26 Results: Nettleham 172 (Nel 94), Bracebridge Heath 111; Louth 133 (Miles 5-42), Sleaford 137-6 (Shorthouse 81no); Grimsby 288-7 (Snell 157), Market Deeping 216-7 (Yeeles 59, C Kearns 74); Hartsholme 165 (Shooter 71), Bourne 169-8 (Shillito 5-40); Lindum 263-8 (Morley-Barnes 54), Boston 259 (Brooks 69, Poole 53, Elleray 54); Woodhall Spa 197 (Luffman 50, Lovelace 58), Skegness 198-4 (Bariwala 55, Wilson 62no).
News extra for June 20 Lincolnshire over-60s second win of the season in the Spitfire National Over-60s Championship East came with just four balls of their innings to spare. Playing Suffolk at Boston, Lincs lost the toss and were put in the field but Mike Smith was among the wickets in his first over. From five for one, Suffolk rallied to reach 51 before the second wicket but were then reduced to 71 for five. A good stand between Peter Boughton (48) and Peter Webb (41) took the score to 144 and at the close the visitors had reached 183 for nine, John Mountain with three wickets. Lincs’ reply got off to an even worse start, two wickets falling on 15 and the third on 38. But this brought out Keith West to join Bob Leafe and their partnership added 109 before West was out for 53. Leafe lost another partner on 171 but went on to make an unbeaten 70 off 86 balls with 10 fours and take Lincs to victory in the final over the game. By coincidence, on the following Saturday, West’s son Graham also scored 53 for Louth in the Lincs ECB Premier League – using the same bat! The over-60s next match is on Tuesday, June 29 against Norfolk at Skegness CC. The following day, Lincolnshire over-50s also plays Norfolk at Skegness.
Review for June 19 In a weekend of surprise results, last week’s Readers Lincolnshire ECB Premier League giant killers Louth were themselves vanquished by a Hartsholme side who had been without a victory until their eight wicket triumph at London Road. And Woodhall Spa also scored their first win of the season coming home by four wickets at Lindum. But it was Bourne who pulled off the shock result of the day, inflicting a second defeat in successive weeks on champions Bracebridge Heath who were bowled out for only 134, a total Bourne overtook for the loss of three wickets. Fahad Masood added another four wickets to his tally, including that of Andrew Crook with only one run on the board and Charlie Hopkins contributed three while George Neal top scored for the visitors with 42. In reply, Bourne recovered from 35 for two to claim victory in 32 overs, Conrad Louth also making 42 while skipper Peter Morgan was unbeaten on 51. This drastically reduced Bracebridge’s lead at the top of the table but second placed Grimsby failed to capitalise on the opportunity to go top as they went down to Skegness by two wickets, despite a maiden Premier League half-century for Harry Warwick. Grimsby’s 50 overs ended on 213 for eight but an unbeaten 71 from Roald Badenhorst saw Skegness to victory. At London Road, Louth collapsed from 134 for five to 156 all out, Graham West hitting 53 and Ben Davis taking four wickets for Hartsholme who went on to win by eight wickets, Davis making an unbeaten 77 and Matthew Wooldridge 52 not out. Hartsholme and Woodhall’s victories consigned Boston to bottom place after they lost heavily to Nettleham who are now equal third with Skegness while below them, Market Deeping and Bourne are also neck and neck after Deeping also pulled off a 20 pointer against Sleaford. Put in to bat at Mulsanne Park, Boston were 47 without loss, then 110 for three but slumped to 124 all out, Jonathan Cheer making 77 and Andy Carter and Warren Nel taking three wickets each. Nel then made an unbeaten 58 as Nettleham claimed victory in 27 overs. The only five- wicket haul of the day went to Tom Andrews of Market Deeping as Sleaford were bowled out for 151 despite a battling 41 from Stuart Cope. Deeping lost early wickets but David Gillett made 40 and Chris Jones and Lee Peacock saw them home to a five wicket victory. Top score of the day went to Woodhall skipper Jack Luffman with an unbeaten 115 after Josh Brodie’s 63 and 68 from Geoff Middleton helped Lindum to 217. Luffman went on the attack from the start and had already reached 49 when the first wicket fell on 71 but then lost five more partners before sharing an unbeaten stand of 51 with Rob Bee (28) to take his side to a welcome four wicket win. Results for June 19 Results: Sleaford 151 (Andrews 5-39), Market Deeping 155-5; Louth 156 (G West 53), Hartsholme 160-2 (Davis 77no, Wooldridge 52no); Bracebridge Heath 134, Bourne 136-3 (Morgan 51no); Boston 124 (J Cheer 77), Nettleham 125-2 (Nel 58no); Lindum 217, Woodhall Spa 218-6 (Luffman 115no); Grimsby 213-8 (Warwick 50), Skegness 219-8 (Badenhorst 71no).
Review for June 12 A week is a long time in cricket as Readers Lincolnshire ECB Premier League leaders Bracebridge Heath found out to their cost as, from breaking records one weekend, the champions fell to their first defeat of the season the next. And it was lowly Louth who only hauled themselves off the bottom of the table last weekend who inflicted that defeat to cause the upset of the day. Batting first at Cross O’Cliff Court, Louth reached 212 for nine, thanks in part of an innings of 83 from Graham West. Chasing this seemingly modest total, Bracebridge found themselves five for two as last weekend’s record breakers Mark Fell and Andrew Crook were both out in the first three overs. Jason Scheepers appeared to be rescuing the innings but when he went for 64, Bracebridge fell to 179 all out, Seth Rance taking five for 38 for Louth. This moved Louth up another two places to eighth. Meanwhile at the top of the table, second placed Grimsby closed the gap with a 20-pointer at Sleaford, bowling the home side out for 145 before going on to win by seven wickets, new signing John Maddock making his first half century for the club. This sent Sleaford plummeting down the table once again, going from third to seventh with Skegness taking their place in third after an equally low scoring game against Lindum who were all out for 144, a total the seasiders overtook for the loss off four wickets. At the Mayflower Ground, Boston were bowled out for 140, Fahad Masood adding another five wickets to his tally. Bourne then cruised to a six wicket win which took them into the top half of the table for the first time this season, leaving Boston in 10th. The closest game of the day was at Jubilee Park where fourth placed Nettleham set bottom team Woodhall Spa a total of 214 for seven, only to see their opponents come with six runs of their target, finishing on 206 for eight to pick up a valuable 10 points. This moved Woodhall closer to 11th placed Hartsholme who also hung on for a draw. Having bowled Market Deeping out for 225, Hartsholme were in trouble at 101 for six but at the close had reached 156 for eight, giving them eight points. Results for June 12 Results: Lindum 144 (Brodie 50), Skegness 145-4 (Houghton 55); Boston 140 (Masood 5-37), Bourne 143-4 (Morgan 59no); Sleaford 145 (Gunawardena 69), Grimsby 148-3 (Maddock 57); Market Deeping 225 (Peacock 53), Hartsholme 156-8 (Davis 52); Louth 212-9 (G West 83), Bracebridge Heath 179 (Scheepers 64, Rance 5-38); Nettleham 214-7 (Manby 52), Woodhall Spa 206-8 (Evison 66, P Cook 5-43).
Review for June 5 The first Readers Lincolnshire ECB Premier League records to be broken in 2010 fell to reigning champions Bracebridge Heath who made runs in the sunshine at Market Deeping. Mark Fell and Andrew Crook opened the batting and by the time Fell was caught off Nick Cowley for 148, the two openers had set a new first wicket partnership record of 293 – a record Fell had already held with Rob Cook, this pairing sharing a stand of 257 in 2008. Crook went on to make 168 and half centuries from Jason Scheepers and Paul Cook took Bracebridge to a new highest team total record of 456, the previous record of 435 having been set in 2003 by Market Deeping. Crook then completed his man of the match performance with five wickets to help bowl Deeping out for 94. Two centuries were also scored at Grimsby, on this occasion one on each side. Neal Snell anchored the innings for the second placed team with a knock of 104 and at the close, Grimsby had notched up 278 for eight. However, Hartsholme were in the hunt for points that would take them away from the bottom of the table and 119 from Ben Davis saw their reply reach 233 for seven, giving them a valuable 11 points. Sleaford’s journey up and down the table continued, this time in the right direction as they beat Skegness to move into third, Dammika Gunawardena celebrating his return to London Road with a half century in the home side’s 218 for eight and Stephen Bradford taking five wickets to restrict the seasiders to 148 all out. Fahad Masood also claimed five as Bourne claimed their second win of the season and at the same time consigned Woodhall Spa to bottom place in the table. Woodhall were all out for 89 and Bourne cruised to a seven-wicket victory in just 15 overs. Louth moved off the bottom after Jim Morgan’s 94 helped them to victory over Boston. Matt Crowther hit 50 as Louth reached 263 for eight before bowling their visitors out for 161, of which Alan Mountford made 70. Nettleham were also among the runs, making 245 for six, Rob Cook with 58. Lindum were then bowled out for 180, Pierce Morley-Barnes hitting 75, leaving the two sides in equal fourth place. Results for June 5 Results: Bracebridge Heath 456-2 (Fell 148, Crook 168, Scheepers 56, Cook 50no), Market Deeping 94 (Crook 5-45). Bracebridge Heath’s score was a new team total record, beating the old record set by Market Deeping in 2003 by 21 runs. Mark Fell and Andrew Crook set a new first wicket partnership record of 293 – the old record of 257 was set by Fell and Rob Cook in 2008. Nettleham 245-6 (R Cook 58), Lindum 180 (Morley-Barnes 75); Woodhall Spa 89 (Masood 5-14), Bourne 92-3; Grimsby 278-8 (Snell 104), Hartsholme 233-7 (Davies 119); Sleaford 218-8 (Gunawardena 52), Skegness 148 (Bradford 5-43); Louth 263-8 (Morgan 94, Crowther 50), Boston 161 (Mountford 70).
Review for May 29 Rain again decimated the Readers Lincolnshire ECB Premier League programme with four games called off without a ball being bowled and the other two being abandoned after only a handful of overs. The weather intervened with Sleaford on 34 for two off 14 overs at Hartsholme, Paul Sheppard and Martin Shillito taking the wickets. And Nettleham, Skegness had reached 16-1, Andy Carter taking the wicket, when rain stopped play. Results for May 29 No matches completed (rain).
Review for May 22 The first tie of the Readers Lincolnshire ECB Premier League season was played out at Louth where, despite New Zealand star Josh Brodie marking his comeback with an innings of 63, Lindum were restricted to 167 for nine off their 50 overs. Louth batted steadily until they were on equal terms with their visitors with one wicket standing but were unable to score the vital winning run, losing their last batsman with eight balls to go of the match. League newcomers Boston are rapidly becoming the team to watch for the unexpected result – on this occasion a five-wicket win over second-placed Grimsby at Augusta Street. Top score of the day went once again to Boston opener Jonathan Cheer who hit a massive 133 as his side chased down Grimsby’s 227 for nine of which Richard Antcliffe made 66. There were also celebrations at Bourne where the home side recorded their first win of the season, beating Nettleham by four wickets after the visitors had finished on 227 for six. Andrew Hibberd added another 75 to his growing runs tally while for Bourne, Conrad Louth was unbeaten on 88 and Charlie Hopkins hit 76. Bracebridge Heath marched on at the top of the table after being bowled out for 238 by Sleaford, Nick John scoring 56. In reply, Oliver Burford hit the day’s only other century with 110 but couldn’t prevent his side going down by 61 runs. This defeat means that the London Road side, who rose three places to third last week, have slipped back down to sixth. Woodhall Spa looked set for high score when they raced to 104 without loss off 12 overs at Market Deeping, only to be bowled out for 214, Nick Cowley taking five for 54. Deeping then knocked the runs off for the loss of only three wickets. Four half centuries were scored in this match, Sam Evison (57) and Ricky Lovelace (52) for Woodhall and Charlie Kearns (56) and David Gillett (62no) for Market Deeping. Skegness hit the highest individual score of the day with 285 for seven, Peter Houghton making 72 and Saeed Bariwala 55. This proved too big a challenge for Hartsholme who were bowled out for 200, Nathan Poundall scoring 67 and Roald Badenhorst taking six for 37. Results for May 22 Results: Woodhall Spa 214 (Evison 57, Lovelace 52, Cowley 5-54), Market Deeping 217-3 (C Kearns 56, Gillett 62no); Nettleham 227-6 (Hibberd 75), Bourne 231-6 (Louth 88no, Hopkins 76); Bracebridge Heath 238 (John 56), Sleaford 177 (Burford 110, Onyon 5-47); Grimsby 227-9 (Antcliffe 66), Boston 228-5 (Cheer 133); Skegness 285-7 (Houghton 72, Bariwala 55), Hartsholme 200 (Poundall 67, Badenhorst 6-37); Lindum 167-9 (Brodie 63), Louth 167.
News for May 21 Four teams go head to head for the chance to fly the flag for Lincolnshire when they contest the Winkworth Cup finals at Sleaford CC on Bank Holiday Monday (May 31). The winner will go forward to the ECB League T20 area finals, which, this year, will be hosted by the Lincolnshire ECB Premier League. First up on May 31 at 10.30am are Boston and Skegness with the victors going forward to the final to play the winners of the second semi-final between Nettleham and Bracebridge Heath, who meet at 1.30pm. The final takes place at 4.30pm with the winners going through to the next round on August 22. Here they will meet cup winners from the Airedale & Wharfedale League, the South Yorkshire League and the Bradford League, all fighting to become North Champions and go on to the Regional Final on September 5 against the top team from the North East. The national final takes place at the Rose Bowl, home of Hampshire CCC, on September 23. Skegness CC will host the regional final in August and plans are under way to make it a big event in the Lincolnshire season. In the meantime, spectators and supporters are very welcome to the Winkworth Cup finals on Bank Holiday Monday, an excellent day’s cricket that has been hosted by Sleaford for several years. There is ample parking around the ground and drinks and refreshments will be available in the clubhouse.
Review for May 15 A high scoring game at Mulsanne Park saw Nettleham claim their first victory of the Readers Lincolnshire ECB Premier League season with just four balls of the game to spare. Warren Nel batted 50 overs for his unbeaten 130, putting on 155 for the first wicket with Andrew Hibbert (61) as the home side chased down Louth’s challenging total of 256 for nine, Jim Morgan making 68 and Graham West 56 for the visitors. This leaves Louth anchored at the foot of the table on equal terms with Bourne who went down to Skegness by six wickets despite showing an improvement in their batting to reach 199 for eight. Carl Wilson then hit an unbeaten 57 for the seasiders who moved into the top six. Hartsholme succeeded in bowling out leaders Bracebridge Heath for 227 on the last ball of the innings, collecting a valuable five points before themselves being bowled out for 112. Grimsby stay second after a winning draw at Woodhall Spa, who lost eight wickets as they fell 32 runs short of their visitors’ total of 217 for nine, while Sleaford went from sixth to third despite losing seven wickets chasing Boston’s modest total of 141. This Sleaford victory denied Lindum a move back up from fourth despite their seven wicket win over Market Deeping which earned them 20 points. Three batsmen from the Lincoln side made half centuries, Geoff Middleton top scoring with an unbeaten 70. Results for May 15 Results: Bracebridge Heath 227 (Houston 57), Hartsholme 112; Bourne 199-8, Skegness 201-4 (Badenhorst 54, Wilson 57no); Market Deeping 199 (Cowley 64), Lindum 200-3 (Morley-Barnes 52, Hornsby 54, Middleton 70no); Boston 141, Sleaford 142-7; Louth 256-9 (Morgan 68, G West 56), Nettleham 259-4 (Nel 130no, Hibbert 61); Grimsby 217-9, Woodhall Spa 185-8 (Evison 67).
Review for May 8 Only one game went ahead in the Readers Lincolnshire ECB Premier League as rain affected all matches from Louth southwards. However, the game that was possible saw Grimsby move up to second in the table as they swept to a 10 wicket win over Lindum, who slipped from second to fourth. Matthew Cocks and Paul Taylor saw off the Lindum batsmen for just 60 runs, Cocks taking five wickets and Taylor four and Grimsby made short work of the total without losing a wicket. No play was possible in any of the other games. Results for May 8 Results: Lindum 60 (Cocks 5-23), Grimsby 64-0; All other games rained off.
Review for May 3 WINKWORTH CUP First round results Having picked up 24 points from their first two league games following their promotion to the Readers Lincolnshire ECB Premier League, Boston’s season got even better when they won through to the finals of the Winkworth Cup. Played in 20/20 format, the first round of the cup brings together three teams at each of four venues. Boston hosted one group and after Bourne and Boston had both beaten Louth, the two met for a place in the finals, Jonathan Cheer scoring 74 off 40 balls, the host club won through by five wickets. At St Giles Avenue, Woodhall Spa were first to go after losing to Bracebridge Heath and Lindum. These two then met in the third match which Bracebridge won easily after Andrew Cook had hit an unbeaten ton. Market Deeping hit the highest total of the day, making 232 for two off their 20 overs against Hartsholme, who had earlier lost out to hosts Nettleham despite a knock of 80 from Tim Shooter. David Gillett also hit the top individual total with an unbeaten 105 but in the final match, Nettleham’s 191 for five proved too high a target for Deeping who could only manage 152 for nine. Skegness were the victors at Sleaford, overcoming the host club by three wickets with Saeed Bariwala hitting 55. Richard Antcliffe then made 71 not out as Grimsby also beat Sleaford, this time by nine wickets, to set up an exciting third match against the seasiders. Batting first, Grimsby rattled up 168 for five, Antcliffe again among the runs with 64 and Steve Crossley –who made 40 in the first match – hitting 51. Skegness then lost a wicket in each of the first two overs for just nine runs but quickly got back into batting mode, Carl Wilson and Peter Houghton adding 44 before skipper Tony Santini joined Wilson on an unbeaten 117 run spree that saw his side into the final, Wilson with 69 off 47 balls and Santini with 66 off 41. The semi-finals and final take place at Sleaford Cricket Club on Monday May 31. Matches are 10.30am, 1.30pm and 4.30pm. Venue, Boston CC: Bourne 95-9, Louth 91-8. Louth 133-6, Boston 134-4 (Newton 66no). Bourne 174-6, Boston 177-5 (J Cheer 74). Finalist: Boston Venue, Lindum CC: Woodhall Spa 92-6, Bracebridge Heath 95-4. Woodhall Spa 131-8, Lindum 132-8. Bracebridge Heath 214-2 (Crook 100no), Lindum 62-9. Finalist: Bracebridge Heath Venue, Nettleham CC: Hartsholme 152-6 (Shooter 80), Nettleham 155-5. Market Deeping 232-2 (Gillett 105no), Hartsholme 90-9. Nettleham 191-5, Market Deeping 152-9. Finalist: Nettleham Venue, Sleaford CC: Match 1: Sleaford 132-9, Skegness 133-7 (Bariwala 55). Match 2: Sleaford 122-8, Grimsby 127-1 (Antcliffe 71no). Match 3: Grimsby 168-5 (Antcliffe 64, Crossley 51), Skegness 170-3 (Wilson 69no, Santini 66no). Finalist: Skegness
Review for May 1 Warren Nel made it from South Africa to play for Nettleham and Grimsby skipper Richard Antcliffe finally escaped from Barbados – and both made major contributions to the tightest game of the day in the Readers Lincolnshire ECB Premier League. Playing at Mulsanne Park, Antcliffe ht 59 of Grimsby’s total of 216 for nine with Paul Cook taking five for 43 for the home side. Nel then opened the batting and made 73 as Nettleham closed in on a win – but with two runs required off the final two balls and only one wicket standing, Gihan Perera pinned down the last two batsmen and the innings ended on 215 for nine, six of the wickets falling to Lee Charlton. Qasim Memon was the architect of a Lindum win in another close game at home to Sleaford. Memon hit 37 as he supported Richard Cross in a partnership of 69 after his side had been reduced to 64 for four. Cross was unbeaten on 58 as Lindum ended on 165 for seven and Memon then went on take five wickets to help bowl Sleaford out for 151, of which Shaun Morris contributed 52. Mark Dixon also took five wickets for Bourne as Market Deeping were bowled out for a very modest 129. But a devastating opening spell from Tom Andrews left the home side’s reply in tatters with three wickets down and only three runs scored. After Andrews took the fourth on 11, Fahad Masood put up some resistance, first with Owen Williams then with Charlie Hopkins. But the return of Andrews saw Masood caught behind for 67 and three wickets for Nick Cowley helped bowl Bourne out for 108, Andrews finishing with six for 31 and Jamie Morgan making five dismissals behind the stumps against the team that is now captained by his brother Peter. Bracebridge Heath’s Jason Scheepers also claimed five victims as Boston faced up the challenge of the seven times champions – and responded by bowling out them out for 153 in 43 overs, Dan Milgate taking his second five-wicket haul. In reply, after losing their first two wickets for 11 runs, Boston made slow but steady progress, reaching 60 for two off 27 overs thanks to a partnership between Lee Brooks and Milgate. But once these two went, tight bowling saw Boston all out for 116 in their 51st over, Aaron Keverne-Onyon taking six for 38. The highest scoring game, and the only century of the weekend, was at Woodhall Spa where newcomers Hartsholme showed a real improvement on their previous performance. Woodhall made 264 for eight, Jack Luffman hitting 80 and Ben Percival 57 while for the visitors Paul Sheppard took five wickets. Tim Shooter then provided the anchor for the Hartsholme innings with an unbeaten 101 to take his side to 205 for six at the close. Shooter shared a second wicket partnership of 88 with skipper Nathan Poundall (48) as the Lincoln side picked up a useful 10 points. At Louth, Skegness recovered from last weekend’s heavy defeat to chase down the home side’s 160 for seven and win by three wickets. Results for May 1 Results: Market Deeping 129 (Dixon 5-45), Bourne 108 (Masood 67, Andrews 6-31); Bracebridge Heath 153 (Milgate 5-42), Boston 116 (Onyon 6-38); Grimsby 216-9 (Antcliffe 59, P Cook 5-43), Nettleham 215-9 (Nel 73, Charlton 6-59); Lindum 165-7 (Cross 58no), Sleaford 151 (Morris 52, Memon 5-34); Louth 160-7, Skegness 161-7; Woodhall Spa 264-8 (Luffman 80, Percival 57, Sheppard 5-74), Hartsholme 205-6 (Shooter 101no).
Review for April 24 Boston provided the surprise result on the first day of the Readers Lincolnshire ECB Premier League season with a 96-run victory over last year’s runners-up Skegness. And 18-year-old opening bat Jonathan Cheer proved that he is up for the challenge of top-flight cricket by recording the day’s highest total. Cheer hit 138 and brother Colin then reduced Skegness to 11 for two before Dan Milgate came on to claim five wickets and help bowl the seasiders out for 125. Fellow newcomers Hartsholme looked like having a baptism of fire into the Premier League after Lindum had made 230 for nine, Alex Hornsby with an unbeaten 78. The home side found themselves on 35 for four thanks to bowlers Oliver Guilliatt and Stuart Turner but rallied to make 144 before the final wicket fell. Andrew Crook recorded the second century of the day with 110 as Bracebridge Heath blasted a huge 416 for four at home to Woodhall Spa. Jason Scheepers and Aaron Onyon made quick-fire scores of 88 and 77 respectively and Brett Houston ended 62 not out. The visitors also set off at a good pace, reaching 80 without loss before Crook inflicted further damage on his former team taking five for 30 as Woodhall were all out for 160, Jack Luffman hitting 61. Despite flight delays, both overseas players have arrived at Grimsby and at Bourne and both showed no signs of jet lag in the clash at Augusta Street. Sri Lankan Gihan Perera hit 43 of Grimsby’s total of 172, the final wicket falling in the 46th over, while Pakistan’s Fahad Masood took five for 34 for Bourne. This gifted the visitors four overs though, at 90 for one, this looked irrelevant. But the introduction of Michael Brown to the attack swung the game Grimsby’s way and Bourne’s final wicket fell on 152, Brown with five for 39. At Market Deeping, 18-year-old Rory Osmond got his season off to a good start for Louth, hitting 81 of his side’s total of 197 for eight. Graeme Bell then reduced Deeping to 27 for two but skipper Dave Gillett held the innings together with an unbeaten 85 to take the home side to a five-wicket victory. Half centuries from Tom Shorthouse and Oliver Burford saw Sleaford to a seven wicket victory over Nettleham who got off to a solid start with knocks of 48 from Sam Hickingbotham and Matt Smith and finished their 50 overs on 209 for nine, a total Sleaford overtook with six overs to spare. Results: Boston 221-8 (J Cheer 138), Skegness 125 (Milgate 5-28); Nettleham 209-9, Sleaford 212-3 (Shorthouse 64, Burford 57no); Grimsby 172 (Masood 5-34), Bourne 152 (Brown 5-39); Lindum 230-9 (Hornsby 78no), Hartsholme 144; Bracebridge Heath 416-4 (Crook 110, Scheepers 88, Onyon 77, Houston 62no), Woodhall Spa 160 (Luffman 61, Crook 5-30); Louth 197-8 (Osmond 81), Market Deeping 198-5 (Gillett 85no).
Preview for April 24 Volcanic ash may have delayed his arrival in Lincoln, but Kiwi Josh Brodie is again set to erupt on to the Readers Lincolnshire ECB Premier League scene with a return to St Giles Avenue. Lindum have secured the services of their former top batsman for the first half of the new season, giving a huge boost to their batting line-up. He will join Richard Cross, who hit an unbeaten 96 in a pre-season friendly at Skegness and Alex Hornsby, giving Lindum a formidable top order. Brodie, who is now a member of the New Zealand Emerging Players side for whom he has scored a century and two 50s, should have arrived last weekend and his team mates are now hoping that flight restrictions will be lifted in time for him to turn out against league newcomers Hartsholme on Saturday. Hartsholme are captained by Nathan Poundall, with Australian Ben Davis as their overseas player and, while fellow newcomers Boston have played at this level previously, the Ashby Avenue side will be an unknown quantity to many Premier League opponents Bracebridge Heath are at home to Woodhall Spa, having secured the services of their opponents’ former opening bat Andrew Crook. The champions also have a new wicketkeeper in Jason Scheepers , newly signed from demoted Messingham. Scheepers replaces Peter Morgan following the county player’s move to take over as captain at Bourne who have also signed batsman Conrad Louth from Woodhall and are expecting an overseas player from Pakistan. Morgan will enjoy his first outing as skipper when he takes his team to Grimsby who welcome back popular Sri Lankan Gihan Perera. Grimsby have lost Geoff Middleton, who is now playing at Lindum but will be relying on their ever-improving young side to hold their own once again in the top flight. Boston’s first fixture back in the Premier League is away at Skegness who are now skippered by Tony Santini and were strongly rumoured to have recruited Jacob Oram! Their signing did attend the same school as the Kiwi international but is, in fact, 19 year old all-rounder Roald Bradenhurst, a member of the New Zealand Centre of Excellence. An unexpected bonus for the seasiders has been the return of Saeed Bariwala who had intimated that he might be moving overseas and Skegness have also welcomed back batsman Peter Houghton. Boston have retained the services of Australian Daniel Milgate and he and the much-improved Cheer brothers, Colin and Jonathan, will be relishing their return to Premier League cricket. Louth, in their first full season back at London Road, begin their programme with a trip down to Market Deeping. Louth, captained once again by Arran Brindle, have also signed a New Zealander, Seth Rance, while Deeping have a 19 year old Australian Brodie Andrew in their side which will again be skippered by David Gillett. Warren Nel returns to familiar territory when he travels with his new team, Nettleham, for their opening fixture at Sleaford, where he played as wicketkeeper/batsman in 2008. He is joined in the Mulsanne Park side by former Messingham bowler Ben Brumby, both of them playing under new captain David Manby. Fixtures for April 24 (12 noon start): Market Deeping v Louth; Bracebridge Heath v Woodhall Spa; Hartsholme v Lindum; Sleaford v Nettleham; Grimsby v Bourne; Skegness v Boston.