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McKINNELL’S SOLICITORS

LINCOLNCRICKET LEAGUE

All the up-to-date results, reports and tables from the 2010 season

McKinnell’s Solicitors Lincoln Cricket League results and latest positions round-up for the 2010 season Click here for: Stats and averages 2010
Final update: September 26
Premier Division	M	W	L	NR	T	Bat	Bowl	Pts
Market Rasen	18	14	2	2		12	6	308
Boston 1st	18	12	2	3	1	8	4	274
Cherry Will. 1st	18	11	4	2	1	15	17	269
Lindum 1st	18	11	6	1		12	12	249
Hartsholme	18	7	7	4		21	11	192
Nettleham 1st	18	6	9	3		30	21	186
Hykeham 1st	18	5	11	2		23	17	150
Morton	18	4	10	4		20	30	150
Scothern	18	4	12	2		20	38	148
North Scarle**	18	3	14	1		20	11	36
** points adjustments
Division One	M	W	L	NR	T	Bat	Bowl	Pts
Martin	18	14	2	2		7	5	302
Saxilby	18	11	5	2		8	10	248
Heckington	18	11	6	1		9	14	248
BBH	18	11	6	1		11	9	245
Boston 2nd	18	8	9	1		25	20	210
Blankney	18	8	8	2		10	17	197
Carholme	18	8	9	1		5	20	190
Middle Rasen **	18	6	10	2		16	25	161
Old Lincolnians	18	4	14	0		23	35	138
Waddington	18	2	14	2		25	35	110
** points adjustments
Division Two	M	W	L	NR	T	Bat	Bowl	Pts
Owmby	16	12	3	1		4	11	260
Caythorpe	16	11	4	1		8	12	245
Lindum 2nd	16	10	6	0		9	6	215
Branston	16	9	7	0		13	18	211
Heighington	16	7	6	3		6	17	178
Washingborough	16	7	8	1		8	24	177
Bassingham	16	5	9	2		14	26	150
Fulbeck	16	5	10	1		18	22	145
Nettleham 2nd  **	16	6	10	0		15	13	138
Winthorpe	16	3	12	1		15	30	110
* Timberland withdrawn ** points adjustments
Division Three	M	W	L	NR	T	Bat	Bowl	Pts
Millers	18	16	1	1		3	0	328
Hougham & Marston	18	14	3	1		3	3	291
Reepham	18	13	3	2		4	4	278
Cherry Will. 2nd	18	11	5	2		3	23	256
Horncastle	18	10	5	3		20	9	244
Aswarby	18	7	9	2		8	28	186
Aisthorpe	18	4	9	5		12	22	139
Hykeham 2nd	18	4	13	1		16	24	125
Rustons	18	3	13	2		7	30	107
Bardney **	18	3	12	3		7	22	94
Nocton	18	2	14	2		9	27	86
** points adjustments
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Round-up details September 26 So another Cricket season has come to a close and at the end of the day our British climate had a little say, although most clubs with promotion and relegation issues to sort out made every effort to see games fulfilled. The final game in the Premier League was one such situation as Scothern was battling for their top flight status when hosting Hartsholme.  In the end they had to admit defeat but they went out fighting to the end. Hartsholme made the days top score of 186-4 with Nathan Poundall signing of this campaign with 100 not out, to take him to over 500 runs for the season. Scothern responded gallantly but at close of play had to accept defeat as they fell just eight runs short of their target thus seeing them relegated ahead of Morton and Hykeham by just three points. In Division One it was all about who would finish league runners up. Saxilby were in pole position and in reality only BBH could surpass them in their final game at Heckington, who, with victory, could only equal their points total and had lost to Saxilby twice. In a reduced overs game BBH made 100-9 with Kit Spence their top scorer with 34. When Heckington batted they were soon in trouble at 39-5 but skipper Chris Morley (40*) and the experienced Ian Glendinning (31*) saw them to a five wicket victory with just over two overs to spare. This gave Heckington the same points total as Saxilby but the latter the runners-up spot while BBH finished fourth, three points further behind. In the only other game in this division, relegated Waddington, ended their stay in Division One with a win as they overcame Carholme, who ended their campaign with a run of three straight defeats. In a low scoring game Waddington made 97 all out when they batted, including a maiden half century from Adam Morton (53), but this total was too many for Carholme who were bowled out for 70 to lose by 27 runs. For Waddington it was only their second win of the season and their first since the end of May. In Division Two, champions Owmby, ended their season with a home game against Lindum 2nd, who with victory could finish third. Again in a reduced overs game, Sam Atkin hit his fourth half century of the season with 67 in the home sides total of 167-4. In a tense finale the day then belonged to 16 year old Joel Waller (60) and 13 year old Louis Kimber (50) who put together a second wicket stand of 109 for Lindum to help them towards their target. The winning run came with three balls to spare and six wickets still in hand. In the two other games in this league Winthorpe failed to fulfil against Branston. This gave Branston 20 points which saw them finish in fourth position as the final game at Bassingham, where Heighington were the visitors, was abandoned when Heighington were set to attempt to reach Bassingham’s total of 129-6. Heighington, therefore, had to be content with fifth place and Bassingham seventh. In Division Three Millers saw their match at Nocton called off which proved to be the only match the new champions had called off due to the elements. Also rained off was the game between Reepham and Horncastle which in effect prevented Reepham finishing runners up and this position go to newcomers Hougham & Marston. The only match played in the bottom division was at Cherry Willingham 2nd who entertained Rustons. The home side, batting first, was bowled out for 97 but in response Rustons batting again let them down as they were bowled out for 67, the lowest score of the day. This gave Cherry a 29 run victory and avenged an early season defeat and also saw them finish the season in a creditable fourth place. PREMIER Scothern 178-9 Hartsholme 186-4 (N. Poundall 100*) Hartsholme (20 pts) beat Scothern 5 pts – 4 bat / 1 bowl) by 8 runs CHAMPIONS, Market Rasen 308 pts Runners-up, Boston 1^st 274 pts Relegated, Scothern 148 pts, North Scarle 36 pts Division One Heckington 104-5 BBH 100-9 Heckington (20 pts) beat BBH (3 pts – 1 bat / 2 bowl) by 5 wkts Waddington 97 (A. Morton 53) Carholme 70 Waddington (20 pts) beat Carholme (5 bowl pts) by 27 runs CHAMPIONS, Martin 302 pts Runners-up, Saxilby 248 pts Relegated, Old Lincolnians 138 pts, Waddington 110 pts Division Two Bassingham 129-6 Heighington Abandoned (Bassingham 7 pts – incl. 2 bat pts) Heighington 7 pts – incl. 2 bowl pts) Branston v Winthorpe Winthorpe conceded – Branston 20 pts Owmby 141-6 Lindum 2nd  144-4(J. Waller 60 / L. Kimber 50) Lindum (20 pts) beat Owmby (4 pts – 3 bat / 1 bowl) by 6 wkts CHAMPIONS, Owmby 260 pts Runners-up, Caythorpe 245 pts Relegated, Winthorpe 110 pts, Timberland  (withdrew) Division Three Aisthorpe v Bardney Postponed – 5 pts each Cherry Willingham 96 Rustons 67 Cherry (20 pts) beat Rustons (5 bowl pts) by  29 runs Nocton v Millers Postponed – 5 pts each CHAMPIONS, Millers 321 pts Runners-up, Hougham & Marston 291 pts Wooden-spoonists, Nocton 86 pts TOP BATSMEN Nathan Poundall (Hartsholme) 100* v Scothern Joel Waller (Lindum 2^nd) 60 v Owmby Adam Morton (Waddington) 53 v Carholme Louis Kimber (Lindum 2^nd) 50 v Owmby HIGHEST SCORES Hartsholme 186-4 v Scothern Scothern 178-9 v Hartsholme LOWEST SCORES Rustons 67 v Cherry Willingham 2^nd Carholme 70 v Waddington CLOSEST FINISHES 8 runs Scothern 178-9 Hartsholme 186-4 27 runs Waddington 97 Carholme 70 HIGHEST AGGREGATE 364-13 Scothern 178-9 Hartsholme 186-4 285-10 Owmby 141-6 Lindum 144-4
Round-up details September 19 Going into the last two weekends of the season the British weather stepped in to cause half the days scheduled games to be called off. These postponements had some affect on relegation and positional issues. The last league title though, was decided on the field of play, with Owmby securing the Division Two title and Caythorpe going up as runners-up. Of the seven games played none of these were in the Premier League where the postponement of all four fixtures ensuring Boston 1st became league runners-up after lifting the title last season. Cherry Willingham meanwhile had to settle for third place. In the relegation zone the five points secured by Hykeham lifted them out of danger of the drop, albeit they have the same points as Morton but have met and beaten their counterparts twice. As to who goes down, is now between Scothern and Morton, with the former needing to beat Hartsholme or collect no less than eight points in their final game. In Division One, postponements had a similar affect on the promotion places. Both Saxilby and Heckington saw their games at Blankney and Waddington called off which sees Heckington now out of the promotion race as they can only equal Saxilby’s points total but have lost to them twice. One game which did go ahead though, saw BBH move into third position and now gives them the chance to take the runners-up spot, ahead of Saxilby, should they collect at least seven points in their final game at Heckington. Managing to get their latest game in on the West Common against Carholme they came away with an impressive 69 run victory. Batting first BBH made 114-5 in their 32 overs innings. Highest scorer was Carl Walton with 44 while B. Walker took 3-24 and Don Inkpen 2-19 for Carholme. Then when the home side batted it was disaster from the start as they quickly found themselves 10-5. It was not until number eight batsman Paul Herrick (12) came in that anyone made double figures and the side was disappointedly bowled out 45. Carl Walton collected 3-10 and Andy Hall 4-13 as BBH kept their promotion hopes alive. In Division Two all clubs need commending as the four scheduled games all went ahead. League leaders Owmby hosted Bassingham and in their reduced (24 overs) innings the home side made 146-1 with Sam Atkin (64*) and Kev Bowring (65*) putting on 134 for the second wicket.  Bassingham in reply were unable to maintain the scoring rate of their hosts and their innings closed on 69-7 with Rob Beddows top scorer with 25. Ciaron Deegan finished with figure of  5-1-7-2 and Dan Clark 6-2-10-2 as Owmby won by 77 runs, the biggest margin of the day. The win gave Owmby the title despite nearest rivals Caythorpe also winning. They hosted Branston with the visitors batting first, making 122, including 65 from G. Wine. For Caythorpe Luke Endley became the leading wicket taker in all leagues with 3-11 (taking his tally to 44) and Andy Robinson took 3-16. When Caythorpe batted it was not any easier as they lost seven wickets before reaching their target. At the opposite end of the table Winthorpe’s fate was finally decided as they became the side to be relegated. Entertaining mid table Heighington it was the visitors who hit the days highest total of 177-7 with their skipper Dave Orrey making the days top score of 85 not out.  Battling to the very end Winthorpe got to within in 35 runs of their target before having to accept defeat and relegation. The only other game in this division was at Fulbeck where Washingborough were the visitors. This game saw the closest finish of the day with the visitors making 129-7 before Fulbeck got to within 15 of their target with 114-7 in response. In Division Three two of the four games were called off but one saw Nocton declared wooden spoonists as they lost for a twelfth consecutive occasion when hosting Hougham & Marston. Batting first Nocton amassed only 50, their second lowest total of a disappointing campaign after having won two of their first four games. For the visitors T. Deal had bowling figures of 4.1-0.3-5. Hougham & Marston in response reached their target for the loss of three wickets, collecting their fifth double in their final game and moving back into second place. As to who will take up the second promotion place is still in the balance as Reepham take on Horncastle in their final game, needing no less than a win to become runners-up. The days final game saw champions Millers also pick up their fifth league double in their penultimate match when taking on Hykeham 2nd. The visitors made 103 which included 50 from Mark Leverett. Millers made the target for the loss of three wickets but the day belonged to their opener Dave Newman who made 56 to take his season tally to 880. This is a new league record in recent times with the last highest total being recorded back in 1993 by John Robinson of Billinghay who scored 873 runs in the season. With one game left to play, against Nocton, Newman has an average of 97.77, which includes three fifties and three centuries. Premier Cherry Willingham 1st v Hartsholme Boston 1st v Lindum 1st Hykeham 1st v Nettleham 1st All games postponed – 5 pts each Div 1 Carholme 45 BBH 114-5 BBH (20 pts) beat Carholme (2 bowl pt) by 69 runs Blankney v Saxilby Waddington v Heckington Both games postponed – 5 pts each Div 2 Caythorpe 125-7 Branston 122 (G. Wine 65*) Caythorpe (20 pts) beat Branston (5 pts – 2 bat /3 bowl) by 3 wkts Fulbeck 114-7 Washingborough 129-7 Washingborough (20 pts) beat Fulbeck (4 pts – 1 bat / 3 bowl) by 15 runs Winthorpe 142 Heighington 177-7 (D. Orrey 85*) Heighington (20 pts) beat Winthorpe (6 pts - 3 bat / 3 bowl) by 35 runs Owmby 146-1 (S. Atkin / K. Bowring 50s) Bassingham 69-7 (24 overs) Owmby (20 pts) beat Bassingham (nil pts) by 77 runs Div 3 Aisthorpe v Rustons Bardney v Horncastle Both games Postponed – 5 pts each Nocton 50 (T. Deal 5-3) Hougham & Marston 51-3 Hougham & Marston (20 pts) beat Nocton 1 bowl pt) by 7 wkts Millers 104-3 (D. Newman 56) Hykeham 2nd 103 (M. Leverett 50) Millers (20 pts) beat Hykeham (2 pts – 1 bat / 1 bowl) by 7 wkts TOP BATSMEN D. Orrey (Heighington) 85* v Winthorpe G. Wine (Branston) 65* v Caythorpe D. Newman (Millers) 56 v Hykeham 2nd M. Leverett (Hykeham 2nd) 50 v Millers S. Atkin (Owmby) 50+* v Bassingham K. Bowring (Owmby) 50+* v Bassingham TOP BOWLERS T. Deal (Hougham & Marston) 5-3 v Nocton HIGHEST SCORES 177-7 Heighington at Winthorpe 146-1 Owmby v Bassingham LOWEST SCORES 45 Carholme v BBH 50 Nocton v Hougham & Marston BIGGEST WINNING MARGINS 77 runs Owmby 146-1 Bassingham 69-7 69 runs Carholme 45 BBH 114-5 CLOSEST FINISHES 15 runs Fulbeck 114-7 Washingborough 129-7 35 runs Winthorpe 142 Heighington 177-7 HIGHEST AGGREGATE 319-17 Winthorpe 142 Heighington 177-7
Round-up details September 12 Just two more weekends to go and we now know the champions of three of the four divisions. Congratulations go out to both Market Rasen and Millers for securing the league titles in their respective leagues. The only outstanding title to be decided is in Division Two and this is now down to a two horse race between Caythorpe and Owmby with both clubs already promoted. Titles may well be almost decided but the question of the relegation positions looks like going down to the final games in two of our leagues with Division One the only one totally decided. To be assured of their first title for some seasons Market Rasen knew a home victory over fourth placed Lindum 1st would see them unassailable. Securing a fifth double they won by eight wickets after bowling their visitors out for 98. Jon Drake took 4-30 and Matt Rutherford 3-22 before Luke Robinson carried his bat to see Rasen to victory with 52.   The only genuine challenge that Rasen were going to have should have come from Cherry Willingham 1st who had, what looked, a banker, away win at North Scarle. Closing their Premier League campaign before relegation Scarle collected a famous victory by the days narrowest margin of just seven runs. Scarle batted first making just 131 but it proved too many for Cherry who were then bowled out for 124. It was a pleasing finish for Scarles’ veteran bowler, Jeff Kemp, who brought his illustrious career to an end after the game. With Cherry losing, the battle for the runners-up spot is now down to the final game after Boston 1st won in emphatic fashion at home to Morton. Boston batted first and hit the highest total in the Premier League this season and the seventh highest of the season in the league with 309-4. Jonathan Cheer (79) and Luke Gilding (66) gave them the best possible start with an opening stand of 154. Tom Baxter then weighed in with 90 off 83 balls before Scott Elleray produced figures of 8-2-15-5 to see Morton all out for 86 for a 223 run defeat. Steve Crook was Morton’s top scorer with 35 with Matt Gleadell (16) the only other batsmen to make double figures. The two remaining games in the top flight involved sides fighting for their Premier League existence. Second to bottom Scothern took on Nettleham 1st, desperately needing a victory, but it was not to be, despite the efforts of their batsman Sam Naughton. Nettleham batting first made 159-5 and in reply Scothern got to within 20 of their target but Naughton sadly ran out of partners, stranded on 81 not out. Also needing a win were Hykeham 1st who visited Hartsholme. Here the home side batted first, making 180-4 which included a 100 partnership between Iain Evans (54) and Adrian Bunn (53 no). In response only Keiran Hammond (43) and Darren Chester (23) made worthwhile scores as they were bowled out for 120 to lose by 60 runs. For Hartsholme Martin Shillito took 3-30 and Gary Sutton 3-24. The relegation battle, as to who joins North Scarle in the drop, now goes down to the final two games. Scothern are due to play Hartsholme and Hykeham meet Nettleham. If, in actual fact, both were to win their games, or pick up eight points, they would subject Morton, who have concluded their fixtures, into the second relegation place. In Division One Martin were already crowned champions last weekend but the race for the second promotion place is still to be decided with Saxilby, Heckington and BBH still in with a shout. Saxilby hold second place with one game left while they other two have two games left. All sides won their respective games this weekend. Saxilby, on the back of two straight defeats against Martin, were seeking a fifth double of the season as they visited a relegated Waddington who had lost their last nine. The game went down to the wire with Saxilby having to chase only 102 but losing eight wickets before securing victory. As for third placed Heckington, they had an easier time of it against fifth placed Boston 2nd. Heckington batted first made 253, including the fifth highest partnership of the season, as opener Will Charlesworth hit his fourth century with 123 as he shared a stand of 206 with Chris Morley, who made 63. Boston saw six players make scores into double figures but only Steve Burnsell got into the twenties with 23 as the were bowled out for 103 to lose by 150 runs with Charlie Garrett taking 3-19 for Heckington. As for BBH, they sneaked up into a promotion challenging position, as they avenged a ten wicket defeat against their visitors Blankney. Blankney made 148-6 including 74 not out from their opener Andy Foster.  BBH reached the target with just over two overs left and two wickets in hand with Callum Steele top scoring with 58. The run-in for these three promotion hopefuls sees Saxilby visit Blankney in their final game; Heckington visit Waddington and BBH have a trip to Carholme before Heckington and BBH meet on the final weekend. With the two relegation positions already decided the final game in this division had no bearing on the title or relegation as Carholme took on Middle Rasen. This said, Rasen were looking to end a four match winless run while Carholme were after a second double of the season. The visitors, batting first posted a total of 167-7 which on the day proved too many for Carholme, who were bowled out for 154 to lose by 13 runs and end one of their best runs in recent times, six straight wins. In Division Two, leaders Owmby went into their game against bottom side Winthorpe, knowing victory would ensure promotion although the title was still in the balance. Deciding to bat first Owmby made a solid 179-5 which included a second wicket stand of 118 between Neil Looker (51) and Ben Brumby (59). Winthorpe’s response proved a total disaster with opener Paul Matthews top scoring with 12 as four of his colleagues scored two apiece and five got ducks in their total of 26 (the second lowest in the league’s this season). Ben Brumby completed an excellent personal performance with figures of 6-1-7-5 while Chris Leonard to 3-1. Second placed Caythorpe, too, knew that victory for them at Nettleham 2nd would put them in a virtual promotion position. Batting first the visitors made 236-5, which included 104 by Matt Duncan. Colin Woolfson hit an unbeaten 57 for the home side but they closed on 146-6, to lose by 90 runs. Owmby, with two games left against Lindum 2nd and Bassingham, need only ten points to lift the title while Caythorpe have just Branston to play and need two points to be assured of the runners-up place. The only other game in this division saw Bassingham pick up their first league double of the season with a five-wicket victory over Washingborough after being set a target of only 84 to chase. Following the demise of Timberland earlier in the season only one side is scheduled to go down from this division and at the present time it looks like it will be Winthorpe. To avoid the drop they need 35 points from their final two games against Heighington and Branston to subject Nettleham 2nd to this fate. In Division Three it is congratulations to Millers who avenged their only defeat of the season to become champions with a convincing victory over Horncastle. Millers made 159-7 with Simon Godby their top scorer with 61. Then Stuart Gollop took 4-17 and Dave Newman 3-13 as Horncastle were bowled out for only 79. Second placed Hougham & Marston were inactive which gave third placed Reepham the chance to leapfrog them into a promotion position. This they did in convincing fashion with a 154 run victory over ninth placed Rustons. Richard Straw (56) and Steve Lamming (70) helped Reepham to a massive 217-8 with a fourth wicket stand of 102. Then Martin Straw (4-26), Ady Newton (3-16) and Andy Housam (2-7) saw Rustons skittled out for 63. Another side to hit a two hundred plus total were Aswarby who registered their third double of the season with a 159 run victory over Hykeham 2nd. In this game Ben Bulmer made 73 and Ian Shorthouse 56 as Aswarby made 239-8. Hykeham in reply could manage only 80. The final game was in reality a match to decide who will finish wooden spoonists as bottom side Bardney, without a win in twelve games took on Nocton, without a win in ten. Bardney skipper Pal Barrett saw Barndey to a total of 165 with a top score of 43 and then Richard Bradley took 3-9 as Nocton were bowled out for 68 to give Bardney a 97 run victory and a win, which pushed Nocton to the bottom of the table. Who will finally be wooden spoonists is still in the balance with both sides having two games left and just four points separating them. As for the remaining promotion position, this too is in the balance with Reepham and Hougham & Marston vying for the cherished place. Reepham hold second place with a narrow two point lead but have to meet Horncastle in their final game while Hougham & Marston travel to Nocton. Premier Boston 1st 309-4 (T. Baxter 90 / J. Cheer 79 / L. Gilding 66) Morton 86 (S. Elleray 5-18) Boston (20 pts) beat Morton (1 bowl pt) by 223 runs Hartsholme 180-4 (I. Evans 54 / A. Bunn 53) Hykeham 1st 120 Hartsholme (20 pts) beat Hykeham (3 pts – 2 bat / 1 bowl) by 60 runs Market Rasen 1st 99-2 (L. Robinson 52*) Lindum 1st 98 Mkt Rasen (CHAMPIONS) (20 pts) beat Lindum (nil pts) by 8 wkts North Scarle 131 Cherry Willingham 1st 124 North Scarle (20 pts) beat Cherry Willingham (7 pts – 2 bat / 5 bowl) by 7 runs Scothern 139 (S. Naughton 81*) Nettleham 1st 159-5 Nettleham (20 pts) beat Scothern ((4 pts – 2 bat / 2 bowl) by 20 runs Div 1 BBH 151-8 (C. Steele 58) Blankney 148-6 BBH (20 pts) beat Blankney (6 pts – 3 bat / 3 bowl) by 2 wkts Carholme 154 Middle Rasen 167-7 Middle Rasen (20 pts) beat Carholme (6 pts – 3 bat / 3 bowl) by 13 runs Heckington 253 (W. Charlesworth 123 / C. Morley 63) Boston 2nd 103 Heckington (20 pts) beat Boston (6 pts – 1 bat / 5 bowl) by 150 runs Waddington 102 Saxilby 103-8 Saxilby (20 pts) beat Waddington (4 pts – 1 bat / 3 bowl) by 2 wkts Div 2 Bassingham 85-5 Washingborough 84 Bassingham (20 pts) beat Washingborough (2 bowl pts) by 5 wkts Nettleham 146-6 (C. Woolfson 57*) Caythorpe 236-5 (M. Duncan 104) Caythorpe (20 pts) beat Nettleham (5 pts – 3 bat / 2 bowl) by 90 runs Owmby 179-5 (N. Looker 51 / B. Brumby 59) Winthorpe 26 (B. Brumby 5-7) Owmby (20 pts) beat Winthorpe (2 bowling pts) by 153 runs Div 3 Bardney 165 Nocton 68 Bardney (20 pts) beat Nocton (5 bowling pts) by 97 runs Cherry Willingham v Aisthorpe Postponed – ground unfit (5 pts each) Horncastle 79 Millers 159-7 Millers (CHAMPIONS) (20 pts) beat Horncastle (3 bowl pts) by 80 runs Hykeham 2nd 80 Aswarby 239-8 (B. Bulmer 73 / I. Shorthouse 56) Aswarby (20 pts) beat Hykeham (3 bowling pts) by 159 runs Reepham 217-8 (R. Straw 56 / S. Lamming 70)Rustons 55 Reepham (20 pts) beat Rustons (3 bowling pts) by 162 runs TOP BATSMEN W. Charlesworth (Heckington) 123 v Boston 2nd M. Duncan (Caythorpe) 104 v Nettleham 2nd T. Baxter (Boston 1st) 90 v Morton S. Naughton (Scothern) 81* v Nettleham 1st J. Cheer (Boston 1st) 79 v Morton B. Bulmer (Aswarby) 73 v Hykeham 2nd S. Lamming (Reepham) 70 v Rustons L. Gilding (Boston 1st) 66 v Morton C. Morley (Heckington) 63 v Boston 2nd S. Godby (Millers) 61 v Horncastle B. Brumby (Owmby) 59 v Winthorpe C. Steele (BBH) 58 v Blankney C. Woolfson (Nettleham 2nd) 57 v Caythorpe I. Shorthouse (Aswarby) 56 v Hykeham 2nd R. Straw (Reepham) 56 v Rustons I. Evans (Hartsholme) 54 v Hykeham 1st A. Bunn (Hartsholme) 53 v Hykeham 1st L. Robinson (Mkt Rasen) 52* v Lindum 1st N. Looker (Owmby) 51 v Winthorpe TOP BOWLERS B. Brumby (Owmby) 5-7 v Winthorpe S. Elleray (Boston 1st) 5-18 v Morton HIGHEST SCORES Boston 1st 309-4 v Morton biggest Premier score of season Heckington 253 v Boston 2nd LOWEST SCORES Winthorpe 26 v Omwby 2nd lowest of season Rustons 55 v Reepham 100 PARTNERSHIPS W. Charlesworth / C. Morley (Heckington) (1st wkt) 206 v Boston 2nd 5th highest of season T. Baxter / J. Cheer (Boston 1st) (1st wkt) 154 v Morton R. Straw / S. Lamming (Reepham) 4th wkt) 102 v Rustons BIGGEST WINNING MARGINS 223 runs Boston 1st 309-4 Morton 86 162 runs Reepham 217-8 Ruston 55 CLOSEST FINISHES 7 runs North Scarle 131 Cherry Willingham 1st 124 13 runs Carholme 154 Middle Rasen 167-7 HIGHEST AGGREGATES 395-16 Boston 1st 309-4 Morton 86 382-11 Nettleham 2nd 146-6 Caythorpe 236-5
Round-up details September 5 As we move into the final month of the season the Division One title has been emphatically decided and also the second relegation place too. In the other divisions the promotion and relegation issues are all “still in the melting pot” but slowly becoming clearer. The top sides all won in the Premier Division and Division Two while there were a couple of surprise results in Division Three. Unfortunately most of the sides in the low reaches of each division did themselves little favours as most were on the end of defeats. Some of the defeats incurred were by massive totals while the day also produced the lowest score recorded this season. In the Premier League, as we approach the final hurdle, Market Rasen registered their intentions to secure their first title in some years with a fourth league double and a 185 run victory over relegation threatened Hykeham 1^st. Dale Christie hit 68 not out in Rasen’s total of 270-7 and then the visitors bowlers skittled the home side out for 85 with Gary Beirlein taking 4-31 and Matt Rutherford 3-9. This total of less than three figures was one of 13 on the day. Rasen, with one game left against Lindum, are just ten points away from being uncatchable. Second places Cherry Willingham too had a convincing win over old adversaries, Nettleham 1^st. Here Cherry skipper Joe Dobson picked up his first five wicket haul, with 5-19 as Nettleham were bowled out for the days second lowest total of 59 as they too registering their fourth league double of the season. Still hanging in there, with the best hope of the runners-up spot, are reigning champions Boston 1^st, who like the two sides above them picked up an easy victory. Visiting mid table Hartsholme, they collected their third double of this season, by nine wickets, after bowling the home side out for 99. Jonathan Cheer took his personally run tally to over 700 in twelve innings, with 53 not out. One place behind Boston come Lindum 1^st who had to work somewhat harder when hosting Morton from the bottom half of the table. Batting first only Karanjit Bansal, with 57 made a score beyond twenty for Lindum who were bowled out for 127. Simon Turner picked up 4-34 and Steve Butroid 3-20 for the visitors. Then in reply Morton’s top scorer, C. Butroid made only 22 as the visitors were bowled out for 87 to lose by 40 runs. The Lindum bowlers shared the wickets with Dinesh Logendran the pick, with 3-12 from 7 overs. The final game in this division was the bottom of the table clash between Scothern and North Scarle with the home side in desperate need of a victory to have any hope of avoiding the drop. North Scarle posted a total of 137-9 with skipper Chris Hogg top scorer with 62. Scothern went on to collected their fourth win of the season, reaching their target for the loss of five wickets and are now just three points behind Hykeham 1^st with both sides due to play Nettleham and Hartsholme in their two remaining games. In Division One, Martin became champions in emphatic fashion, against second placed Saxilby. Having met less than a week ago in the corresponding game Saxilby were seeking revenge for an eight wicket defeat but it was not to be. Martin made a solid 222-4 when batting first, including a third century of the season from Steve Scott (117) who shared a second wicket stand of 115 with Tom Harrison (33). Then when Saxilby batted they totally fell apart, being 26-5 at one point before recording their lowest score of the season, just 57, to lose by 165 runs. Victory gave Martin their fifth double of the season and an unassailable position as they make an instant return to the Premier Division. Third placed Heckington, failed to take advantage of Saxilby’s demise, for the second promotion place, as they suffered a crushing defeat on Lincoln’s West Common against the in-form Carholme. The home side went into the game on the back of five straight wins and had their early season form been its equal they too would have been promotion candidates instead of being in a mid table position. In this game Heckington were only able to post a total of 92, their second lowest score of the season. Carholme in reply, had to battle to the very end, before winning by just one wicket. Another close finish was encountered at Boston 2^nd where relegation threatened Middle Rasen were the visitors.  This game produced the closest finish of the day with Boston making 200-5 in their innings (including 50 from Kev Manning). In response Middle Rasen took the game to the very last over, closing on 193-8, to lose by just 7 runs. T. Bradford made 60 and W. Bradford 50 in their total which saw them pick up 7 invaluable points. Fellow strugglers, Old Lincolnians, who went into their game at Blankney, were looking for a league double but more importantly they needed a victory in their final game to escape relegation. The home side set them a target of 170 with their opener Cameron Donald making a top score of 50 while M. Cunningham took 4-44 for the city team. Everything looked on course for a match winning performance with openers Joey Walukiewicz (65) and Ali Mann (48) putting on 120 for the first wicket. With ten overs left and nine wickets in hand, they needed five an over but they totally fell apart with their remaining eight batsmen making just eleven between them as they went from 120-1 to 153 all out. Using seven bowlers it was Cameron Donald who came on as the home sides last bowler to pick up 5-15 and send Old Lincolnians down.  The eight points they collected gave them 138 points against Middle Rasen 141 (with a game left to play). The disaster of disasters, however, took place in fellow relegated side, Waddington’s encounter with neighbours BBH. Waddington’s one and only win of the season was way back in May but BBH were not looking to give them a second one as they were seeking their third league double. Batting first BBH made the days second highest total of 281-6 including knocks from Tom Cuthbert  (83)  Kev Coulson (82) and  James Hinson (53). Cuthbert and Coulson shared a fourth wickets and of 143. If the Waddington challenge was not big enough their innings was a nightmare with R. Pryce their top scorer with 10 as they registered the lowest total of the season of just 20. For BBH Carl Walton had bowling figures of 6-2-6-5 while Connor Steele took 2-0. The defeat by 261 runs was the fourth highest of the season. In Division Two the title race is now looking to be between Owmby and Caythorpe. Leaders Owmby made their long trip to Fulbeck and picked up an easy 10 wicket victory. Fulbeck’s top scorer was Dan Pinfold (26) in their total of 97-7 while Ben Brumby was the pick of the Owmby bowlers with 3-10 from 8 overs. Owmby’s openers of Sam Atkin (48*) and Neil Looker (31*) saw Owmby home inside 24 overs.  Third placed Caythorpe also had an easy victory on their short trip to Winthorpe. The hero of the hour for Caythorpe was teenager Luke Endley who made 59 with the bat in the visitors total of 155 and then collected his second seven wicket haul of the season with 7-15 (the season’s third best bowling figures) as Winthorpe were dismissed for 60. This defeat leaves Winthorpe stuck to the bottom of the league as relegation favourites as Caythorpe moved back into second place above an inactive Lindum 2nd. One place lower in the table, in fourth place, are Branston, who look as though this is the position they will end the season in. They visited second to bottom side Bassingham and came away with their first league double of the season with a 58 runs victory. Neil Robson made 64 in Branston’s total of 147 before Bassingham were bowled out for 89. The lowest total in this division was witnessed at third to bottom Nettleham 2^nd who entertained seventh placed Washingborough.  Batting first Washingborough made 188-4 with Jonathan Bigham (70*) and Richard Fish (57) sharing a second wicket stand of 99. For Nettleham Chris Dobbs took 3-32. When Nettleham batted they were bowled out inside 27 overs for only 54 with Martin Connor (16) the only player to make a double figure score. A. Sale took 3-15 and D. Coggan 2-3 for Washingborough who climbed up to fifth position as a result of their first league double.  It was in Division Three where two, somewhat surprising results took place. Leaders Hougham ND Marston, whose only defeats had been against promotion rivals Millers, took on a Reepham side that still has promotion hopes of their own. The home side batted first making 139-9 but this proved no target for Reepham who saw opener Sam Housam hit 101 in an opening partnership with Richard Straw as they won by 10 wickets. This result allowed Reepham to move back into third place as another surprising result took place at sixth placed Aswarby where Horncastle were the visitors. Horncastle went into the game with one defeat in their last eight games but batting first could make only 99. Jim Watters, batting at eight, was their top scorer with 22 as George Gibson picked up his third five wicket haul with figures of 10-1-22-5. In reply Aswarby lost six wickets on route to victory with M. Dowse unbeaten on 25 as Gareth Jones took 3-20 for the visitors. Returning to top spot, on the back of Hougham & Marston’s defeat, are Millers who produced the days highest total and fourth highest partnership when hosting Aisthorpe. Hitting his third century of the season Dave Newman (139) and Paul Roberts (106*) put on 225 for the first wicket for Millers, in their total of 302-3. This score takes Newman to within 20 of 800 runs for the season. When Aisthorpe batted they made a bit of a fight of the game as they closed on 142-8. Further down the table but out of the promotion race are Cherry Willingham who collected their fourth double of the season with a narrow victory at Nocton who had not won in nine games. Nocton made 92-9 in their innings before Cherry won by only two wickets.  The final game saw bottom side Bardney take on Hykeham 2^nd who were one of only two sides they had picked up a victory against this season. Again in the runs, Mark Leverett, made 86 in Hykeham’s total of 174-8 which included a fourth wicket stand of 81 with Paul Buffham (33). For Bardney Danny Laughton took 3-50 and then with the bat, he top scored with 39, in his sides sad total of 60. For Hykeham Nathan Bunn took 4-25 and J. Woodcock 3-10. Premier Cherry Willingham 1^st 61-3 Nettleham 1^st 59 (J. Dobson 5-19) Cherry Willingham (20 pts) beat Nettleham (1 bowl pt) by 7 wkts Hartsholme 99 Boston 1^st 100-1 (J. Cheer 53*) Boston (20 pts) beat Hartsholme (nil pt) by 9 wkts Hykeham 1^st 85 Market Rasen 270-7 (D. Christie 68) Mkt Rasen (20 pts) beat hykeham (3 bowl pts) by 185 runs Lindum 1^st 127 (K. Bansal 57) Morton 87 Lindum (20 pts) beat Morton (5 bowl pts) by 40 runs Scothern 138-5 North Scarle 137-9 (C. Hogg 62) Scothern (20 pts) beat North Scarle (4 pts – 2 bat / 2 bowl) by 5 wkts Div 1 Blankney 170 (C. Donald 50) Old Lincolnians 153 (J. Walukiewicz 65 / C. Donald 5-15) Blankney (20 pts) beat Old Lincolnians (8 pts – 3 bat / 5 bowl) by 17 runs Boston 2^nd 200-5 (K. Manning 50) Middle Rasen 193-8 (T. Bradford 60 / W. Bradford 50) Boston (20 pts) beat Middle Rasen (7 pts – 5 bat / 2 bowl) by 7 runs Carholme 93-9 Heckington 92 Carholme (20 pts) beat Heckington (4 bowl pts) by 1 wkt Saxilby 57 Martin 222-4 (S. Scott 117) Martin (20 pts) beat Saxilby (1 bowl pts) by 165 runs Waddington 20 (C. Walton 5-6) BBH 281-6 (T. Cuthbert 83, K. Coulson 82 / J. Hinson 53) BBH (20 pts) beat Waddington (2 bowl pts) by 261 runs Div 2 Bassingham 89 Branston 147 (N. Robson 64) Branston (20 pts) beat Bassingham (5 bowl pts) by 58 runs Nettleham 2^nd 54 (J. Bigham 70*/ R. Fish 57) Washingborough 188-4 Washingborough (20 pts) beat Nettleham (2 bowl pts) by 134 runs Winthorpe 69 (L. Endley 7-15) Caythorpe 155 (L. Endley 59) Caythorpe (20 pts) beat Winthorpe (5 bowl pts) by 86 runs Fulbeck 97 Owmby 98-0 Owmby (20 pts) beat Fulbeck (nil pt) by 10 wkts Div 3 Aswarby 101-6 Horncastle 99 (G. Gibson 5-22) Aswarby (20 pts) beat Horncastle (2 bowl pts) by 4 wkts Bardney 60 Hykeham 2^nd 174- 8 (M. Leverett 86) Hykeham (20 pts) beat Bardney (3 bowl pts) by 114 runs Hougham & Marston 139-9  Reepham 143-0 (S. Housam 101*) Reepham (20 pts) beat Hougham & Marston (2 bat pts) by 10 wkts Nocton 92-9 Cherry Willingham 2^nd 93-8 Cherry Willingham (20 pts) beat Nocton (3 bowl pts) by 2 wkts Millers 302-3 (D. Newman 139 / P. Roberts 106) Aisthorpe 142-8 Millers (20 pts) beat Aisthorpe (4 pts – 3 bat / 1 bowl) by 160 runs TOP BATSMEN D. Newman (Millers) 139 v Aisthorpe S. Scott (Martin) 117 v Saxilby P. Roberts (Millers) 106* v Aisthorpe S. Housam (Reepham) 101* v Hougham & Marston M. Leverett (Hykeham 2^nd) 86 v Bardney T. Cuthbert (BBH) 83 v Waddington K. Coulson (BBH) 82 v Waddington J. Bigham (Washingborough) 70* v Nettleham 2nd D. Christie (Mkt Rasen) 68 v Hykeham 1^st J. Walukiewicz (Old Lincolnians) 65 v Blankney N. Robson (Branston) 64 v Bassingham C. Hogg (North Scarle) 62 v Scothern T. Bradford (Middle Rasen) 60 v Boston 2^nd L. Endley (Caythorpe) 59 v Winthorpe R. Fish (Washingborough) 57 v Nettleham 2nd K. Bansal (Lindum 1) 57 v Morton J. Cheer (Boston 1) 53* v Hartsholme J Hinson (BBH) 53 v Waddington K. Manning (Boston 2) 50 v Middle Rasen W. Bradford (Middle Rasen) 50 v Boston 2^nd C. Donald (Blankney) 50 v Old Lincolnians TOP BOWLERS L. Endley (Caythorpe) 7-15 v Winthorpe 3^rd best of season C. Walton (BBH) 5-6 v Waddington C. Donald (Blankney) 5-15 v Old Lincolnians J. Dobson (Cherry 1^st) 5-19 v Nettleham 1^st G. Gibson (Aswarby) 5-22 v Horncastle HIGHEST SCORES 302-3 Millers v Aisthorpe 8^th highest of season 281-7 BBH at Waddington LOWEST SCORES 20 Waddington v BBH lowest of season 57 Saxilby v Martin 100 PARTNERSHIPS 225 D. Newman / P. Roberts (Millers (1^st wkt) .v. Aisthorpe 4^th highest of season 143 T. Cuthbert / K. Coulson (BBH) (4^th wkt)   .v. Waddington 143 S. Housam / ? (Reepham) (1^st wkt) .v. Hougham & Marston 125 J. Walukiewicz / A. Mann (1^st wkt) v Blankney 115 T. Harrison / S. Scott (Martin) (2^nd wkt) v Saxilby BIGGEST WINNING MARGINS 261 runs Waddington 20 BBH 281-7 4^th biggest of season 185 runs Hykeham 85 Mkt Rasen 270-7 165 runs Saxilby 57 Martin 222-4 161 runs Millers 302-3 Aisthorpe 142-8 CLOSEST FINISHES 7 runs Boston 1^st 200-5 Middle Rasen 193-8 17 runs Blankney 170 Old Lincolnians 153 1 wkt Carholme 93-9 Heckington 92 HIGHEST AGGREGATES 444-11 Millers 302-3 Aisthorpe 142-8 393-13 Boston 2^nd 200-5 Middle Rasen 193-8
Round-up details August 30 Three games took place on the Bank Holiday Monday, one involved the Premier League leaders Market Rasen and two others from Division One, one of which virtually decided the title. In the Premier League Market Rasen met Lindum 1^st with Rasen looking to get back on track for their title dream after their disappointing result the previous day against Boston.  Lindum too were hoping for a win to keep their title hopes going. It was Lindum who batted first making 157 including 54 from Karanjit Bansal. For Rasen Jonathan Darke took 3-14 and Matt Rutherford 3-24. In reply Market Rasen reached the target for the loss of five wickets with Ian Williams making 44 and Dale Christie 36, while Bansal took 2-32 for Lindum. This result takes Rasen 31 points clear of nearest rivals Cherry Willingham with Cherry having three games left and Rasen two. To be assured of the title Market Rasen need 30 more points to ensure no one can catch them. As for Lindum their title hopes have all but vanished, barring a miracle. In Division One it was in effect the title decider with leaders Martin hosting second placed Saxilby. Here Saxilby batting first making 154-8. For Martin, Rob Noble picked up 4-20 and became the sixth player this season to complete a hat-trick. When Martin batted, opener Mark Joyce hit his second century for them with an unbeaten 108 as the home side won by 5 wickets. The victory put Martin onto 282 points with one game left and Saxilby only able to equal this total should they pick up maximum points in their remaining three games. In reality one can say Martin are the first League Champions of the season and will be making an immediate return to the Premier League after relegation last season.  The second game saw Heckington make the long trip to Middle Rasen looking for their second double of the weekend after victory over Blankney on Sunday and third in total this season. Middle Rasen batted first with Richard Boryszczuk again their main run-maker with 83 in a total of 165. In reply Heckington opener Will Charlesworth got back in the runs with his third century of the season. He hit 102 not out as they cruised to victory by six wickets. Charlesworth is now just six runs short of becoming the sixth batsmen to 600 runs this season with Dave Newman (Millers) and Jonathan Cheer (Boston 1^st) both reaching that target on Sunday. The victory moved Heckington above Boston 2^nd into third position in the table, 23 points behind Saxilby and with a game in hand. One has to believe that the second promotion place to the Premier League is now a two horse race between Heckington and Saxilby Saxilby’s remaining games are Martin (H) and Blankney and Waddington (a) while Heckington have home games against Boston and BBH and away games at Carholme and Waddington. Premier Lindum 1^st 157 (Bansal 54) Market Rasen 158-5 Market Rasen (20 pts) beat Lindum (5 pts – 3 bat / 2 bowl) by 5 wkts Div 1 Martin 158-2 (M. Joyce 102*) Saxilby 154-8 (R. Noble 4-20 incl HT) Martin (20 pts) beat Saxilby (3 bat pts) by 8 wkts Middle Rasen 165 (R. Boryszczuk 83) Heckington 166-4(W. Charlesworth 102*) Heckington (20 pts) beat Middle Rasen (5 pts – 4 bat / 1 bowl) by 6 wkts TOP BATSMEN W. Charlesworth (Heckington) 102* v Middle Rasen R. Boryszczuk (Middle Rasen) 83 v Heckington K. Bansal (Lindum 1^st) 54 v Market Rasen TOP BOWLERS R. Noble (Martin) 4-20 (Incl HT) v Saxilby
Round-up details August 28-29 The bank holiday Sunday proved the second worst weekend of the season for games called off with six grounds ruled unfit. The worst previous day was the 6 June when 14 were lost.  As we move into the final month of the season there was little movement in the Premier League although the title race once again looks like a four horse race after the outcome of the days results. Other than the top two, it was in Division One where all the movement was with sides leapfrogging over each other.  Division Two saw only one side move up the table and it involved this side going into a promotion position. Also in Division Three there was just one side seeing movement as they too moved into an outside promotion challenging position. The Premier League title race has become one of the most interesting in recent seasons with four sides still capable of taking the title. By this time of the season, in previous campaigns, it was already down to a two horse race but the weekend results has totally thrown it open again. Leaders Market Rasen looked on course to lift the title for the first occasion in many a long year but their hopes suffered a knocked as they lost for only the second occasion this season. They hosted Boston 1^st who, too, had recently seen their hopes of retaining the title diminish, after picking up just one win in their last three games. Boston were seeking their third double of the season which in turn meant they were the only side to have beaten Rasen this season. The home side batted first but posted, a less than pleasing total, of 146. Leading from the front, Boston’s Jonathan Cheer, took the game by the scruff of the neck, and with an individual tally of more than half the target set, he made 76, as Boston scrapped home by two wickets. While this table topping game was taking place, second placed Cherry Willingham’s, “banker home win” was postponed against second to bottom side Scothern.  Also called off was Nettleham’s match against Morton but bottom side North Scarle managed to get their game in, with fourth placed Lindum. With a game in hand over all the sides above them, it was a must win match for the city side for them to keep their title hopes alive. North Scarle batted first, making 148-9 but the in-form Alex Hornsby then made an unbeaten 59 to see Lindum picked up their fourth double of the season, with a five wicket victory. This result now sees just 29 points separating fourth placed Lindum from Market Rasen at the top, with the two sides still to meet twice. Lindum have also Boston still to play in their run in while Cherry face none of the title challengers in their final games. In Division One, title favourites Martin’s game at Middle Rasen fell foul of the weather while second placed Saxilby were inactive. It was below them all the movement was though, with third placed BBH and fourth placed Blankney both losing, allowing Boston 2^nd and Heckington to rekindle their outside promotion hopes. BBH, who had lost only once in their last eight games, took on a Carholme side that had won five of their last six, after previously having won only once in seven at the start of the season. BBH batted first making their lowest total since the opening day of the season with just 124. Top scorer was Harry Ginniff with 37 while Steve Peace took 4-37 for Carholme. In reply the city team lost two early wickets but opener John Habershon carried his bat, taking Carholme to a seven wicket victory with 71. Blankney meanwhile visited a Heckington side that had slipped of late, with a run of three straight defeats. This they ended, picking up their second double of the season as they beat Blankney by nine wickets when set just 83 to chase. Chris Morley did all the damage for the home side with figures of 5-11. The victory saw them leapfrog Blankney who slipped from fourth to sixth as Boston 2^nd climbed from sixth the fourth with victory at home to Old Lincolnians. This match saw the highest aggregate score of the day and the only century maker. Boston, batting first made 220-6 with Mike Troop hitting 106. In response Old Lincolnians hit the days second highest score with 154 but fell 66 runs short of their target. The seven points they did pick up however was enough to move them out of the bottom two as Middle Rasen slipped below them. In Division Two the top two, Owmby and Caythorpe, were inactive but a win for Lindum 2^nd at home to Winthorpe saw them move above Caythorpe into second place. Here the visitors batted first, making only 99, which Lindum eventually achieved for the loss of seven wickets. There was no other movement in this division with fourth placed Branston retaining this position as they reaped revenge over eighth placed Nettleham 2^nd. Again a low total by the side batting first was the order of the day with Nettleham out for the second lowest total of the day of 58. Batting appeared to be difficult as Branston lost five wickets themselves on their way to victory. The game between Heighington and Fulbeck was another to be lost to the elements. In Division Three games between Reepham and Cherry Willingham 2^nd and Aisthorpe and Aswarby were further postponements but the points collected by Reepham were enough to see them move above an inactive Horncastle into third position. The two games which did go ahead involved the top two sides with leaders Hougham and Marston collecting an easy victory at home to second to bottom side Nocton. Nocton were without a win in seven games and batting first made the lowest total of the day for the second week running with just 53. The home side lost only one wicket before victory. Also collecting a nine wicket victory were second placed Millers who visited eighth placed Hykeham 2^nd. Here the home side was bowled out for 93 before Millers opener Dave Newman became the fourth batsman to 600 runs in the season with an unbeaten 60 as Millers romped to a swift victory. With two games in hand over the league leaders, Millers still look title favourites as they are only five points behind Hougham & Marston and have only one game against a team from the top half of the table in their final four matches. Premier Cherry Willingham 1^st v Scothern (postponed - ground unfit – 5 pts each) Market Rasen 146 Boston 1^st 147-8 (J. Cheer 76) Boston (20 pts) beat Mkt Rasen (6 pts – 3 bat / 3 bowl) by 2 wkts Nettleham 1^st v Morton (postponed – ground unfit -  5 pts each) North Scarle  148-9 Lindum 1^st 149-5 (A. Hornsby 59*) Lindum (20 pts ) beat North Scarle (5 pts – 3 bat / 2 bowl pts) by 5 wkts Div 1 Boston 2^nd 220-9 (M. Troop 106) Old Lincolnians 154 Boston (20 pts) beat Old Lincolnians (7 pts – 3 bat / 4 bowl) by 66 runs BBH 121 Carholme 125-3 (J. Habershon 71*) Carholme (20 pts) beat BBH (3 pts – 2 bat / 1 bowl) by 7 wkts Heckington 87-2 Blankney 83 (C. Morley 5-11) Heckington (20 pts) beat Blankney (nil pts) by 8 wkts Middle Rasen v Martin (postponed – ground unfit – 5 pts each) Div 2 Branston 60-5 Nettleham 2^nd 58 Branston (20 pts) beat Nettleham (2 bowl pts) by 5 wkts Heighington v Fulbeck (postponed – ground unfit -  5 pts each) Lindum 2^nd 100-7 Winthorpe 99 Lindum (20 pts) beat Winthorpe (3 bowl pts) by 3 wkts Div 3 Aisthorpe v Aswarby (postponed – pitch unfit – 5 pts each) Hougham & Marston 57-1 Nocton 54 Hougham & Marston (20 pts) beat Nocton (nil pts) by 9 wkts Hykeham 2^nd 93 Millers 96-1 (D. Newman 60*) Millers (20 pts) beat Hykeham (nil pts) by 9 wkts Reepham v Cherry Willingham 2^nd (postponed – ground unfit -  5 pts each) Fixtures for Monday August 30 Premier Lindum 1^st v Market Rasen Div 1 Martin v Saxilby Middle Rasen v Heckington HIGHEST SCORES 220-9 Boston 2nd v Old Lincolnians LOWEST SCORES 54 Nocton at Hougham & Marston 58 Nettleham 2^nd at Branston TOP BATSMEN M. Troops (Boston 2^nd) 106 v Old Lincolnians J. Cheer (Boston 1^st) 76 v Mkt Rasen J. Habershon (Carholme) 71* v BBH D. Newman (Millers) 60* v Hykeham 2^nd A. Hornsby (Lindum 1^st) 59* v North Scarle TOP BOWLERS C. Morley (Heckington) 5-11 v Blankney BIGGEST WINNING MARGINS 66 runs Boston 2^nd 220-9 Old Lincolnians 154 9 wkts Hougham & Marston 57-1 Nocton 54 9 wkts Hykeham 2^nd 93 Millers 94-1 HIGHEST AGGREGATE 374-19 Boston 2^nd 220-9 Old Lincolnians 154
Round-up details August 21-22 Several of the tops sides in their respective leagues were brought to earth with a bump this weekend. None more so than Cherry Willingham 1st and Boston 1st in the Premier League and Owmby and Caythorpe in Division Two, who all had surprising defeats. Generally, scores were very much on the low side, with only two games seeing teams hit two hundred runs, the highest coming from BBH who saw the only century maker of the weekend as Kit Spence hit a ton for the second occasion in recent weeks. The day also produced some nail-biting finishes with one being by just two runs while there was also the lowest score of the season recorded. In the Premier League leaders Cherry Willingham visited a Hartsholme side that had lost their last two games. The home side batted first with Nathan Poundall (48) top scorer in a total of 153-9. For Cherry their most successful bowler was Andy Johnson with 3-5. When Cherry batted the home side fielders produced a great team performance, taking eight catches as the leaders were dismissed for 138, 15 short of the target. Top scorer once again for them was Scott Coupland with 32 while Iain Evans was Hartsholme’s best bowler with 3-14. This defeat for Cherry allowed second placed Market Rasen the chance to go top should they beat Morton. Rasen went into the game on the back of seven straight wins while Morton had seen a mini-rival of late, with back to back wins. Rasen batted first, making 182, with Matt Rutherford top scorer with 67. In reply Morton were never in the hunt being bowled out for 122, their top scorer being Steve Crooks (42) as Gary Beirlein took 4-17. Victory took Rasen top by ten points. One has to wonder if the challenge of reigning champions and third placed Boston 1st has come and gone as they lost for only the second occasion, on their visit to Lindum 1st. The home side had lost their last two games after going unbeaten for eight games. In a low scoring match Boston were bowled out for just 106, their lowest total of the season. Only two players made scores into the twenties with Luke Gilding top score with 26. For Lindum Ram Vasudev took 4-39 and Jake Benson 2-15.  Lindum’s response was not very encouraging at the start as they slipped to 20-3 with two of their top three bats both making ducks. Alex Hornsby rescued the innings and took his side to a four wicket victory inside 25 overs with an unbeaten 71. The pick of the Boston bowlers was Scott Elleray with 3-23. The two remaining games in the division involved sides in the lower half with bottom side North Scarle visiting Hykeham 1st and second to bottom Scothern at neighbours Nettleham 1st. At Hykeham, North Scarle were bowled out for a paltry 52 but Hykeham lost five wickets before securing victory. At Nettleham, both sides went into the game with just one win each in the last month. Nettleham batted first making 162-9 but Scothern in response closed on 120-9, still 42 off their target. In Division One, leaders Martin are now only two wins away from an immediate return to the top flight. They collected their twelfth win of the season and avenged an early season defeat against previous title contenders Heckington. After a run of six straight wins, Heckington went into this game on the back of two defeats. Martin, batting first soon made their intentions known with 54 on the board in the opening ten overs. At the close they had posted a total of 175-4 with Steve Scott unbeaten on 66 (50 of which came in boundaries). For Heckington, Nathan Garfoot, was their most successful bowler with 2-47. The visitors reply got off to a dreadful start with only one of their top six batsmen making a double figure score. At one point their score stood at 37-6 until Neil Saunders (42 not out) and Nathan Garfoot (23) briefly rescued the innings. A late flurry from last man Damon Tunnicliffe (31) saw Heckington’s innings close on 135, still 40 from their target. Steve Scott completed a pleasing afternoon with 5-49 while skipper Dave Gollop returned figures of 10-4-9-3. Second placed Saxilby, after their surprise defeat of last week, resumed their challenge for promotion with a 71 run victory and fourth double of the season over Middle Rasen. Saxilby made 166 in their innings, before dismissing their visitors for 95. Saxilby, however, need to be mindful of the challenge of BBH who have quietly moved into an outside, promotion challenge. Suffering their first defeat in seven games last week against Martin they went into their match at Boston looking for a second double of the season. Hitting their highest score of the season and the days’ top score, they posted a total of 247-5. For the third occasion in a row their top scorer was Kit Spence who hit his second century in three weeks with 104 off only 81 balls. When Boston batted their top six batsmen made just 22 between them until Ian Morris (36) and Paul Deans (44) gave the innings some respectability as they closed on 117, to lose by the days’ biggest margin of 130 runs. The pick of the BBH bowlers was Carl Walton 3-30. BBH moved into third position after Blankney suffered a surprise defeat, only their second in seven games, at home to Carholme. That said though Carholme were on the back of a three match winning run going into this game. Batted first the visitors made a moderate total of 124-8 but on the day it was sufficient as Blankney were then bowled out for only 94 to give Carholme a 30 run victory. The only other game in this division brought together the bottom two sides Old Lincolnians and Waddington with both without a win in their last seven games. The Lincoln side batted first making 140-9 and they then collected their first double of the season after bowling Waddington out for 84. This leaves Waddington near certainties to be relegated unless these see a late recovery in their campaign. In Division Two there were defeats for both of the top two sides. Owmby with only one previous defeat this season, hosted Washingborough who had won three of their last five games. The visitors batted first being bowled out for just 91 but their bowlers then responded magnificently as the home side capitulated with their lowest score of the season of 83 for an eight run defeat. An equally surprising result took place at Bassingham who had failed to win in their last three games. They hosted a Caythorpe side which had won six of their seven games to have moved into a promotion position. Bassingham, batting first made 150-8 but then dug in to bowl Caythorpe out for 120 for a 30 run victory. While the top two were losing, Lindum 2nd, who had won only one of their last six, visited a Nettleham side that had recently secured a hat-trick of wins. Looking for their first double of the season, Nettleham, batting first, made 109 all out. Lindum secured victory after losing six wickets on the way. Another side seeking a league double were Branston on their trip to Fulbeck. The visitors batted first but their innings closed on only 117-6 with only Pete Flint (35) and Neil Robson (38 not out) making double figure scores. These two recovered their innings from 17-3 to 101-4 with a stand of 84. When Fulbeck batted they lost an early wicket but Josh Pollard (27), Ben Pollard (23) and Simon Barter (32) helped them to a five wicket victory. In Division Three there were two games which produced the days’ lowest scores including the lowest of the season but the main games involved matches between title / promotion contenders. Leaders Hougham & Marston visiting outside contenders Cherry Willingham 2nd came away with a comfortable 69 run victory after setting Cherry a target of 157 to chase. With figures of 5-22 G. Morgan saw Cherry bowled out for 88. A closer finish, however, took place at third placed Reepham who entertained second placed, free-scoring Millers. Here the visitors batted first with openers Mark Pilgrim (36) and Dave Newman (82) putting on 115 for the first wicket. The innings eventually closed on 202-6, including 40 from Simon Godby and 32 not out from Steve Gollop. Reepham in reply got off to a good start with a stand of 79 from Sam Housam (46) and Andy Housam (27) but then lost three quick wickets. Richard Straw then weighed it with 42 but lacking any support their challenge end with them all out for 154 for a 49 run defeat. Key bowler for Millers victory was Steve Gollop with 6-25. Another promotion contender, Horncastle, had to dig deep into their resources to secure victory on their trip to a Ruston side that had won only once in their last five games and only twice all season. Horncastle batted first but made their lowest score of the season of just 87. In dramatic fashion they secured the second closest finish of the season to win by just two runs, bowling Rustons out for 85. The penultimate game saw a recently improving Aisthorpe side, with two wins from their last three games, take on a Hykeham side that had just two wins to their name. This Hykeham 2nd changed, as Mark Leverett returned figures of 5-10 to bowl Aisthorpe out for 40 (the second lowest score of the day). Hykeham then lost three wickets before securing an important win which moved them away from the lower reaches of the table. This unenviable position remains with Nocton who, at present, can not buy a win. Looking for their first win in eight games, they took on an Aswarby side that had not won in four. On the day it was all about Aswarby’s George Gibson who ripped through the Nocton innings with the best bowling figures of the day, 7-2-14-6. Nocton were bowled out inside14 overs for the lowest score of the season of 28 with top scorer extras (12) while only Richard Bates (10) made double figures with the bat. As expected Aswarby won inside 8 overs without loss for their second double of the season. This defeat leaves Nocton second to bottom as Aswarby hold a comfortable, mid table, position. Premier Hartsholme 153-9 Cherry Willingham 1^st 138 Hartsholme(20 pts) beat Cherry Willingham (6 pts – 2 bat / 4 bowl) by 15 runs Hykeham 1^st 53-5 North Scarle 52 Hykeham (20 pts) beat North Scarle (2 bowl pts) by 5 wkts  Lindum 1^st 107-6 (A. Hornsby 71*) Boston 1^st 106 Lindum (20 pts) beat Boston 3 pts – 1 bat / 2 bowl) by 4 wkts Market Rasen 182 (M. Rutherford 67) Morton 122 Market Rasen (20 pts) beat Morton (7 pts – 2 bat / 5 bowl) by 60 runs Nettleham 1^st 162-9 Scothern 120-9 Nettleham (20 pts) beat Scothern (6 pts – 2 bat / 4 bowl) by 42 runs Div 1 Blankney 94 Carholme 124-8 Carholme (20 pts) beat Blankney (3 bowl pts) by 30 runs Boston 2^nd 117 BBH 247-5 (K. Spence 104) BBH (20 pts) beat Boston (3 pts – 1 bat / 2 bowl) by 130 runs Martin 175-4 (S. Scott 66*) Heckington 135 (S. Scott 5-49) Martin (20 pts) beat Heckington (3 pts – 2 bat / 1 bowl) by 40 runs Old Lincolnians 140-9 Waddington 84 Old Lincolnians (20 pts) beat Waddington (4 bowl pts) by 56 runs Saxilby 166 Middle Rasen 95 Saxilby (20 pts) beat Middle Rasen (5 bowl pts) by 71 runs Div 2 Bassingham 150-8 Caythorpe 120 Bassingham (20 pts) beat Caythorpe (5 pts- 2 bat / 3 bowl) by 30 runs Fulbeck 118-5 Branston 117-6 Fulbeck (20 pts) beat Branston (3 pts – 1 bat/ 2 bowl) by 5 wkts Nettleham 2^nd 109 Lindum 2^nd 110-6 Lindum (20 pts) beat Nettleham (3 pts – 1 bat / 2 bowl) by 4 wkts Owmby 83 Washingborough 91 Washingborough (20 pts) beat Owmby (5 bowl pts) by 8 runs Div 3 Aisthorpe 40 (M. Leverett 5-10) Hykeham 2^nd 41-3 Hykeham (20 pts) beat Aisthorpe (1 bowl pts) by 7 wkts Aswarby 33-0 Nocton 28 (G. Gibson 6-14) Aswarby (20 pts) beat Nocton by 10 wkts Cherry Willingham 2nd  88 (G. Morgan 5-22) Hougham & Marston 157 Hougham & Marston (20 pts) beat Cherry Willingham (5 bowl pts) by 69 runs Reepham 154 (S. Gollop 6-25) Millers 202-6 (D. Newman 92) Millers (20 pts) beat Reepham (5 pts – 3 bat / 2 bowl) by 49 runs Rustons 85 Horncastle 87 Horncastle (20 pts) beat Reepham (5 bowl pts) by 2 runs HIGHEST SCORES 247-5 BBH at Boston 2^nd 202-6 Millers at Reepham LOWEST SCORES 28 Nocton at Aswarby lowest of season 40 Aisthorpe home to Hykeham 2^nd TOP BATSMEN K. Spence (BBH) 104 v Boston 2^nd D. Newman (Millers) 92 v Reepham A. Hornsby (Lindum 1^st) 71* v Boston 1^st M. Rutherford (Mkt Rasen) 67 v Morton S. Scott (Martin) 66* v Heckington 100 PARTNERSHIPS 115 M. Pilgrim / D. Newman (Millers) (1^st wkt) v Reepham TOP BOWLERS G. Gibson (Aswarby) 6-14 v Nocton S. Gollop (Millers) 6-25 v Reepham M. Leverett (Hykeham 2^nd) 5-10 v Aisthorpe G. Morgan (Hougham & Marston) 5-22 v Cherry 2^nd S. Scott (Martin) 5-49 v Heckington BIGGEST WINNING MARGINS 130 runs Boston 2^nd 117 BBH 247-5 10 wkts Aswarby 33-0 Nocton 28 CLOSEST FINISHES 2 runs Rustons 85 Horncastle 87 8 runs Owmby 83 Washingborough 91 HIGHEST AGGREGATES 364-15 Boston 2^nd 117 BBH 247-5 356-16 Reepham  154 Millers 202-6
Round-up details August 14-15 It was again “as you were” at the top of three of our four leagues with there only being a change in leaders at the head of Division Three. In the Premier League the three leading sides all won although third placed Boston 1st were taken to the wire at Nettleham. The visitors had posted the days second highest total with 208 but when Nettleham batted Warren Nel (106) weighed in with his second century in successive weeks. Unfortunately he had no one to assist for the final push as the home side were all out, 14 runs from their target (the days closest finish). As for league leaders Cherry Willingham 1st they hosted Lindum 1st who, until just recent, were possible title contenders. Batting first Cherry made 175-9 with Scott Coupland again in the runs with a top score of 72. When Lindum batted they were bowled out for their lowest total of the season, 114, to lose by 61 runs as Cherry picked up a third league double. The divisions most consistent team at the moment, second placed Market Rasen, won for a seventh occasion in a row and tenth in eleven games as they overcame another side that was recently considered a title challenger, Hartsholme.  Hartsholme batting first, also made their lowest total of the season, being bowled out for 97. Rasen lost four wickets on route to victory as they keep pressure on the leaders, being just four points behind them. In the final game in this flight it was a relegation battled at Scothern where Morton were the visitors. The visitors batted first but made only 138, which included 72 from Steve Butroid. In response the home side could not contend with opening bowler Simon Turner who returned the days best bowling figures and third best of the season with 7-33 to see Scothern all out for 102, 36 off their target. In Division One Martin ended home side BBH’s six match winning run as they collected a fourth double of the season. Martin elected to bat and after losing an early wicket saw skipper Dave Gollop (69) and an in-form Steve Scott (68) put on a second wicket stand of 152. The partnership was broken by James Pudney who went on to pick up six wickets on the day for 39 runs. He was ably assisted by home keeper James Hinson who claimed five victims (three stumpings and two catches). In actual fact the home side recovered excellently to see the remaining eight Martin batsmen only add a further 70 runs to be all out for 222.  For BBH another in-form batsmen Kit Spence led the way with 72 but he had no one who could assist him with their innings and when he was the sixth to go the home innings petered out to close on 166-8, still 56 off their target. As for Martin’s chief title contenders Saxilby, who had won six of their last seven games, they came unstuck against an improved Blankney side who had lost only once in their last five games. The visitors batted first but were restricted to just 116-7 with Graham Morley picking up 3-22. The Blankney bowlers then turned the screw with some positive bowling of their own as the home side was dismissed for only 84, their lowest total of the season. For Blankney Cameron Donald took 4-26 and Neil Gilbert 4-15. With BBH losing and Boston 2nd and Heckington in-active, Blankney climbed three places to third. The days lowest score and second lowest of the season was witnessed on the West Common where second to bottom Carholme hosted bottom side Waddington. The visitors batted first but could manage just 33 which Carholme reached for the loss of  three wickets. The win lifted Carholme out of the bottom two as Old Lincolnians were relegated to this position as they became the fifteenth side to fail to fulfil a game this season for their scheduled trip to Middle Rasen. In Division Two, Owmby continue to hold top spot as they won on their trip to Lindum 2nd, who last week, collected a first win in five games. The home side posted a total of 154-6 but this posed no total for Owmby who reached it with seven wickets to spare. Caythorpe continue to be Owmby’s main and possibly only challengers as they collected their second double of the season with the biggest winning margin of the day against visitors, eighth placed Washingborough. The visitors had seen some improvement in recent weeks with three wins from their last four games but it came to an abrupt halt in this game with Caythorpe making 165-9 in their innings before Washingborough were bowled out for the days second lowest score of 71. As for Heighington their challenge looks to have gone as they lost at home to Nettleham 2nd who climbed out of the threat of relegation with their third successive victory. This most recent win was a close call as Heighington made 110 before Nettleham reached the target with only one wicket left. The remaining game in this division was another relegation battle as bottom side Winthorpe took on Fulbeck. Ben Pollard hit 53 in Fulbeck’s total of 136-7 which also saw home bowler Simon Potter claim 5-21. The home side in reply was bowled out for 99 to lose by 37 runs. In Division Three, leaders Millers were without a game while second placed Hougham and Marston were visiting bottom side Bardney who had failed to fulfil their previous two games. Bardney batted first but visiting bowled Alex Sainsbury-Bow was on form, picking up 6-13 as Bardney were bowled out for 73. Hougham & Marston did not have it all their own way, losing five wickets before achieving a win which saw them go top by five points. One time leaders Reepham also maintained their promotion challenge on their visit to Aswarby. Here Reepham batted first making 154 as home bowler A. Illingworth had figures of 5-1-7-5. Aswarby were unable to make this total, also falling 49 runs short, as Reepham collected a fourth double of the season. The challenge of Cherry Willingham 2nd, however, looks over as they lost at Horncastle, who resurrected their promotion ambition. Horncastle made 137-9 in their innings which was less than convincing but Julian Loveley saw them to victory by 49 runs as he picked up 5-11. Premier Cherry Willingham 1^st 175-9 (S. Coupland 72) v Lindum 1^st 114 Cherry (20 pts) beat Lindum (5 pts – 1 bat / 4 bowl pts) by 61 runs Market Rasen 101-4 Hartsholme 97 Market Rasen (20 pts) beat Hartsholme (1 bowl pts) by 6 wkts Nettleham 1^st 194 (W. Nel 106) Boston 1^st 208 Boston (20 pts) beat Nettleham (10 pts – 5 bat / 5 bowl) by 14 runs Scothern 102 (S.Turner 7-33) Morton 138 (S. Butroid 79) Morton (20 pts) beat Scothern 6 pts – 1 bat/ 5 bowl) by 36 runs Div 1 BBH 166-8 (K. Spence 72) Martin 222 (D. Gollop 69 / S. Scott 68 / J. Pudney 6-39) Martin (20 pts) beat BBH (9 pts – 4 bat / 5 bowl) by 56 runs Carholme 34-3 Waddington 33 Carholme (20 pts) beat Waddington (1 bowl pt) by 7 wkts Middle Rasen v Old Lincolnians Middle Rasen (20 pts) – Old Lincolnians failed to fulfil Saxilby 84 Blankney 116-7 Blankney (20 pts) beat Saxilby (3 bowl pts) by 32 runs Div 2 Heighington 110 Nettleham 111-9 Nettleham (20 pts) beat Heighington (5 pts – 1 bat / 4 bowl) by 1 wkt Winthorpe 99 Fulbeck 136-7 (B. Pollard 53 / S. Potter 5-21) Fulbeck (20 pts) beat Winthorpe (3 bowl pts by 37 runs Lindum 154-6 Owmby 155-3 Owmby (20 pts) beat Lindum (4 pts – 3 bat / 1 bowl) by 7 wkts Div 3 Aswarby 105 Reepham 154 (A. Illingworth 5-7) Reepham (20 pts) beat Aswarby (6 pts – 1 bat / 5 bowl) by 49 runs Bardney 73 (A. Sainsbury-Bow 6-13) Hougham & Marston 74-5 Hougham & Marston (20 pts) beta Bardney (2 bowl pts) by 5 wkts Caythorpe 165-9 Washingborough 71 Caythorpe (20 pts) beat Washingborough (4 bowl pts) by 94 runs Horncastle 137-9 Cherry Willingham 2^nd 88 (J. Loveley 5-11) Horncastle (20 pts) beat Cherry (4 bowl pts) by 49 runs HIGHEST SCORES 222 Martin at BBH 208 Boston 1^st at Nettleham 1^st LOWEST SCORES 33 Waddington at Carholme 2^nd lowest of season 71 Washingborough at Caythorpe TOP BATSMEN W. Nel (Nettleham 1^st) 106 v Boston 1^st S. Butroid (Morton) 79 v Scothern S. Coupland (Cherry Willingham 1) 72 v Lindum 1^st K. Spence (BBH) 72 v Martin D. Gollop (Martin) 69 v BBH S. Scott (Martin) 68 v BBH B. Pollard (Fulbeck) 53 v Winthorpe 100 PARTNERSHIPS 152 (2^nd wkt) D. Gollop / S .Scott for Martin at BBH TOP BOWLERS S. Turner (Morton) 7-33 v Scothern A. Sainsbury-Bow (Hougham & Marston) 6-13 v Bardney J. Pudney (BBH) 6-39 v Martin A. Illingworth (Aswarby) 5-7 v Reepham J. Loveley (Horncastle) 5-11 v Cherry Willingham 2^nd S. Potter (Winthorpe) 5-21 v Fulbeck BIGGEST WINNING MARGINS 94 runs Caythorpe 165-9 Washingborough 71 61 runs Cherry Willingham 1^st 175-9 Lindum 1^st 114 CLOSEST FINISHES 14 runs Nettleham 1^st 194 Boston 1^st 208 37 runs Winthorpe 99 Fulbeck 137-7 HIGHEST AGGREGATES 402-20 Nettleham 1^st 194 Boston 1^st 208 388-16 BBH 166-8 Martin 222
Round-up details August 7-8 The top sides in all four divisions were in-active but after the days matches just one club was to be toppled. In the Premier League Market Rasen moved back into second place with a stunning performance at Scothern. Making just 132 in their own innings, including 72 from Dale Christie, the Rasen total looked an achievable target for the leagues’ second to bottom side. This did not however prove to be the case as Rasen skipper Graeme Bell then returned the season’s first eight wicket haul with 8-15 to see Scothern skittled out for just 50, the lowest total of the day. This gave Rasen their third league double and moved them to within four points of leaders Cherry Willingham.  The two remaining games in this division were more about relegation battles. Bottom side North Scarle, already resigned to the drop, visited Morton and were well beaten by seven wickets when posting a total of just 70 for the home side to chase. In the second game seventh placed Nettleham 1st, who had not won in three games, hosted a sixth placed Hykeham 1st side that had seen a mini revival recently with four wins from their last five games. The visitors batted first making 162 but this total proved no challenge for Nettleham who saw their openers of Warren Nel (116*) and Dave Hutchinson (37*) cruise to the target. The victory allowed Nettleham to leapfrog above Hykeham in the table. As stated, Martin, the leaders of Division One were inactive which gave second placed Saxilby the opportunity to close the gap, with games in hand. This they did on their trip to eighth placed Old Lincolnians who had lost five games in a row. The visitors batted first setting a less than convincing total of 125 but it proved enough on the day as the city side was bowled out for 82 with Graham Morley registering figures of 6-9. This was Saxilby’s sixth win in their last seven games and third double of the season. Also looking to close the gap on the leaders were fourth placed Heckington who had lost last week for the first time in seven games. This week they visited a fifth placed BBH who were in exceptional form on the back of a five match winning run. Batting first the young BBH side hit their highest score of the season in emphatic style. Callum Steele (29) and Kit Spence put on 60 for their first wicket before the latter went on to make an unbeaten 112 in a partnership of 182 with Harry Ginniff  82 not out. The innings closed on 242-1. When Heckington batted their free scoring opener, Will Charlesworth went cheaply for 6. The innings started to recover but the BBH bowlers took the upper hand and coming on as their seventh bowler, Kit Spence completed an excellent day with figures of 5-12 to see Heckington bowled out for 175, still 67 runs off their target. The final game in this league saw Blankney entertain bottom side Waddington who had hit rock bottom without a win in their last six games and their only victory of the season having been against their hosts. Waddington batted first but were bowled out inside 30 overs for just 72. Top scorer was A. Morton with 31 but he was picked up by Ian Holvey who finished with figures of 2-9. The last six visitors batsmen amassed just ten runs as Cameron Donald returned figures of 8-2-18-4. Blankney needed less than 15 overs to reach their target for the loss of one wicket with Andy Foster 30 not out and Lee Allman 31 not out. In Division Two an inactive Caythorpe started the day as league leaders but they were to be replaced by Owmby who completed their first double of the season when hosting third placed Heighington. Again a less than convincing total was set by the side batting first as Owmby made only 141-7 in their innings. Top scorer for them was Matt Pashley with 51. When the visitors batted they found the going tough and were eventually bowled out for 110 still 29 off their target. Another side looking for a league double was Lindum 2nd who had Fulbeck as their visitors. Having led the table at the beginning of July, Lindum had lost their last four games while Fulbeck had won two in the same period. Lindum batted first making a steady start, losing their first wicket at 43. They then slipped to 72-4 but an unbeaten knock of 39 from Alex Hornsby saw them post a total of 165-7. For Fulbeck Luke Pollard was their most successful bowler with 3-58. When Fulbeck batted they were in trouble early on being 46-4 but Simon Barter recovered the innings with 47 but once he went only Harry Millard (32) of the late order, made any contribution as their innings closed on 142 to finish 23 runs short of their target. For Lindum Dinesh Longendran took 3-30 and Ollie MacDonald 3-18. The victory was enough to push Lindum into a promotion challenging position of third. Also moving back into promotion contention was Branston who had actually only won once in their last four games. Entertaining a Bassingham side that had an identical, recent record, Branston hit their highest total of the season with  their leading batsman, John Stephenson making his second century of the season with 102. He shared a 4th wicket stand of 151 with George Ward (44) as they posted a total of 242-8. Bassingham were never up with the rate with them falling 80 runs short, still with four wickets in hand. The victory moved Branston up to fourth as Heighington slipped from third to fifth. At the bottom of the table eight placed Washingborough entertained bottom side Winthorpe. Despite being in the lower reaches of the division, Washingborough had lost only once in their last three games going into this match while Winthorpe had picked up just two wins all season. Winthorpe batted first but could not contend with home bowler Ben Shapcott who not only collect 5-19 but became the fifth bowler to complete a hat-trick this season. Winthorpe were bowled out for 106 which would have been a big enough score had Washingboorugh not had the experienced Mark Willey in their side as he guided them to a 2 wicket victory with 78 not out. Despite Washingborough moving up to sixth in the table things are very tight in this division with just 20 points (one win) separating them from bottom place. In Division Three, inactive leaders Millers were in no danger of being overtaken but this said the chasing pack all closed the gap as all four sides immediately below them won. Second placed Hougham and Marston had a 55 run victory over Aswarby after setting them a target of 165-7 to chase. Bowler Alex Sainsbury-Bow collected 5-12 as the Aswarby side was bowled out for 110. Third placed Reepham were gifted maximum points as Bardney failed to raise a side for the second successive week.  This was the fourteenth game conceded this season for this reason. The game between the second teams of Cherry Willingham and Hykeham saw the days’ highest aggregate of runs scored but also saw two century partnerships including one involving father and son. Batting first Cherry made 258-2 with Matt Carter (58) and dad, Colin Carter putting on 121 for the second wicket. The veteran Colin, making an unbeaten 83, then shared an unbeaten 106 with the nippy Scott Coupland who was unbeaten on 72 at the close of their innings. Looking to avenge an early season defeat, Hykeham looked to be making a worthy effort of things being 152-3 at one point but closed on 167-7 as Cherry completed their third double of the season. Also collecting a league double, but surprisingly their first, were Horncastle who won on their visit to Nocton who had lost their last six games. Horncastle batted first making 183-4 with R. Wilson their top scorer with 61. Nocton in reply were bowled out for 105, losing by 78 runs. The final game was possibly the most tensed of the day as home side Rustons took on an improved Aisthorpe side that had won two of their last three games. In a low scoring match Aisthorpe batted first with their two openers, Mike Reynolds (17) and Eddie Tyrell (20) being their top scorers. After having been 51-2 at one point they were bowled out for 69 with Liam Buick taking 3-17, Tennyson Ponraj 3-19 and Martin Noble 2-13. Ruston must have been confident of picking up their third win of the season but their top four batsmen made 6 between them and at one point they were 8-4. A middle order recovery between Buick (11) and Ponraj (27) saw the score up to 47 but it all went down hill from here as they were bowled out for 61, eight short of the target, the closest finish or the day. J. Nair had figures of 10-3-18-4, Tyrell 7-4-6-2 and P. Brooks 4-0-11-3. Premier Morton 71-3 North Scarle 70 Morton (20 pts) beat North Scarle (1 bowl pt) by 7 wkts Nettleham 1^st 163-0 (W. Nel 116*) Hykeham 1^st 162 Nettleham (20 pts) beat Hykeham (4 bat pts) by 10 wkts Scothern 50 (G. Bell 8-15) Market Rasen 132 (D. Christie 72) Market Rasen (20 pts) beat Scothern (5 bowl pts) by 82 runs Div 1 Blankney 73-1 Waddington 72 Blankney (20 pts) beat Waddington (nil pts) by 9 wkts BBH 242-1 (K. Spence 112* / H. Ginniff 82*) Heckington 175 (K. Spence 5-12) BBH (20 pts) beat Heckington (4 bat pts) by 67 runs Old Lincolnians 82 (G. Morley 6-9) Saxilby 125 Saxilby (20 pts) beat Old Lincolnians (5 bowl pts) by 43 runs Div 2 Branston 242-8 (J. Stephenson 102) Bassingham 162-6 Branston (20 pts) beat Bassingham (7 pts – 4 bat / 3 bowl) by 80 runs Lindum 2^nd 165 Fulbeck 142 Lindum (20 pts) beat Fulbeck (6 pts – 3 bat/ 3 bowl) by 23 runs Washingborough 110-8 (M. Willey 78*) Winthorpe 106 (B. Shapcott 5-19 HT) Washingborough (20 pts) beat Winthorpe (4 pts – 1 bat / 3 bowl) by 2 wkts Owmby 141-7 (M. Pashley 51) Heighington 112 Owmby (20 pts) beat Heighington (4 pts – 1 bat / 3 bowl) by 29 runs Div 3 Bardney v Reepham Reepham (20 pts) – Bardney unable to raise side (10 pts deducted) Cherry Willingham 2^nd 258-2 (C. Carter 83* / S. Coupland 72* / M. Carter 58) Hykeham 2^nd 167-7 Cherry Willingham (20 pts) beat Hykeham (4 bat pts) by 91 runs Hougham & Marston 165-7 Aswarby 110 (A. Sainsbury-Bow 5-12) Hougham & Marston (20 pts) beat Aswarby (4 pts – 1 bat / 3 bowl) by 55 runs Nocton 105 Horncastle 183-4 (R. Wilson 61) Horncastle (20 pts) beat Nocton (2 pts – 1 bat / 1 bowl) by 78 runs Rustons 61 Aisthorpe 69 Aisthorpe (20 pts) beat Rustons (5 bowling pts) by 8 runs HIGHEST SCORES 258-2 Cherry 2^nd  v Hykeham 2nd 242-1 BBH v Heckington 242-8 Branston v Bassingham LOWEST SCORES 50 Scothern v Mkt Rasen 61 Rustons v Aisthorpe TOP BATSMEN W. Nel (Nettleham 1^st) 116* v Hykeham 1^st K. Spence (BBH) 112* v Heckington J. Stephenson (Branston) 102 v Bassingham C. Carter (Cherry 2^nd) 83* v Hykeham H. Ginniff (BBH) 82* v Heckington M. Willey (Washingborough) 78* v Winthorpe S. Coipland (Cherry 2^nd) 72* v Hykeham 2^nd D. Christie (Mkt Rasen) 72 v Scothern R. Wilson (Horncastle) 61 v Nocton M. Carter (Cherry 2^nd) 58 v Hykeham 2^nd M. Pashley (Owmby) 51 v Heighington 100 PARTNERSHIPS K. Spence / H. Ginniff (BBH) 182* v Heckington 6^th highest of season W. Nel / D. Hutchinson (Nettleham 1st) (1^st wkt) 163* v Hykeham J. Stephenson / G. Ward (Branston) (4^th wkt) 151 v Bassingham TOP BOWLERS G. Bell (Mkt Rasen) 8-15 v Scothern best of season G. Morley (Saxilby) 6-9 v Old Lincolnians 4^th best of season A. Sainsbury-Bow (Hougham & Marston) 5-12 v Aswarby K. Spence (BBH) 5-12 v Heckington B. Shapcott (Washingborough) 5-19(HT) v Winthorpe 5^th hat-trick of season BIGGEST WINNING MARGINS 10 wkts Nettleham 1^st 163-0 Hykeham 1^st 162 91 runs Cherry Willingham 2^nd 258-2 Hykeham 2^nd 167-7 82 runs Scothern 50 Mkt Rasen 132 CLOSEST FINISHES 8 runs Ruston 61 Aisthorpe 69 23 runs Lindum 2^nd 165 Fulbeck 142 29 runs Owmby 141-7 Heighington 112 HIGHEST AGGREGATES 425-9 Cherry Willingham 2^nd 258-2 Hykeham 2^nd 167-7 417-11 BBH 242-1 Heckington 175 404-14 Branston 242-8 Bassingham 162-6
Round-up details July 31-August 1 There was nothing to separate the two giants of the Premier League as last years champions and this years league leaders played out the first tied game of the season. But the day belonged to the minnows as several teams in the lower reaches of their leagues registered much needed victories. These included North Scarle and Scothern in the Premier. Middle Rasen in One, Nettleham 2^nd in Two and Rustons in Three. The day also saw the second highest total of the season in a game which also produced the biggest winning margin recorded. Boston 1^st went into their game with leaders Cherry Willingham having lost only one game and that was to the same opponents. Batting first Boston made 174-6 with their top scorer being Paul Timby with 52. After the Cherry innings, which included 75 from Will Carter, there was nothing to separate the sides as the day closed with identical scores. With second placed Market Rasen inactive this result allowed Boston to go second. As for the chasing teams it was a day of gloom for both Lindum 1^st and Hartsholme who suffered surprise defeats. Lindum hosted second to bottom Scothern looking for a fourth double of the season but it was not to be. In a disappointing total of 128 Lindum’s top scorer was Grant Watkins with 42 as Callum Pearse took 4-28 and P. Lawson 4-12 for the visitors. In response Sam Naughton proved the hero for Scothern with an unbeaten 42 as they made the target with five wickets to spare. Also looking for a league double, their second, were Hartsholme, who visited bottom side North Scarle, who had not registered a win since the opening game. North Scare batted first posting an achievable total of 147-8 but it provide too many for the city team as they were bowled out for 128, nineteen short of the total. The in-form Matt Wooldridge was the only highlight for them with 53. In the final Premier game Hykeham 1^st were looking to continue on their improved run of three wins from their last four games as they hosted a struggling Morton side without a win since May. The home side batted first and after losing two early wickets Keiran O’Sullivan and Chris Hammond put on 149 for the third wicket. The former was then out for 118 but Hammond, sharing a stand of 99 with Josh Taylor (34), went on to be “not out” with exactly the same score as O’Sullivan as Hykeham closed on 298-5, their highest total of the season. In response Morton were always in trouble and only Steve Butroid with 31 made double figures as they were bowled out for 67, the days’ lowest total. Darren Chester took 4-30 but Hammond completed a pleasing day with figures of 5.1-3-8-4. The result sees Hykeham move into a mid-table position as Morton slipped into a relegation place. In Division One the closest finish of the day took place at Boston 2^nd who were hosting leaders Martin. Having already beaten Boston by a massive 277 runs just a month ago, Martin were looking to secure their third league double. Boston, batting first made 165 with Ian Morris their top scorer with 52. Martin were not to have things all their own way as they steadily lost wickets including that of top scorer Dave Gollop with 88. The game went down to the last ball with Martin sneaking home by two wickets. As for second placed Saxilby they too looked to have a tough game on their hands as they hosted a Heckington side that had gone six games unbeaten since their last defeat (at home to Saxilby). On the day Heckington made their lowest total of the season with just 74 and their top scorer Sam Elliott only making 17. For Saxilby Dan Hill took 3-11, Graham Morley 2-8 and Tom Mangham 3-27. Morley then carried his bat with an unbeaten 41 to see Saxilby to a seven wicket victory and a second league double. The final game in this division saw Middle Rasen pick up their first win since June, to move out of the bottom two as they thrashed mid table Blankney. Skipper Richard Boryszczuk made 123 in their total of 298-6 before Blankney were bowled out for 105. In Division Two it was “as you were” at the top of the table with both Caythorpe and Owmby collecting victories. Caythorpe, who hosted Lindum, had won four of their last five games whilst the visitors had lost three in a row after previously heading the table and being unbeaten. Caythorpe’s teenage opener Luke Endley hit his second century in a row and third of the season with the days top individual score of 139 as the home side amassed 298-4. Also in the runs was S. Skipworth with 88, a total which proved to be more than the entire Lindum side, who were skittled out for 84 to lose by 214 runs. As for Owmby, they kept up the pressure on Caythorpe, with a six wicket victory at Branston when set a total of only 123 to chase. Lindum’s poor run allowed Heighington to climb above them into third position as they won their local derby against Washingborough. Ian Tomlinson destroyed the Washingborough innings with the days’ best bowling figures of 6-25 as they made just 87. Heighington then lost four wickets on their way to avenging an early season reverse. Two sides desperate for a win were bottom two sides Nettleham 2^nd and Winthorpe who were in opposition. On the day it was honours for Nettleham as they won in impressive style by eight wickets. Batting first Winthorpe made a convincing 193-8 but their bowlers could not live with the home batsmen of Dan McCardell (88) and Dave Butter (75) who put together a partnership of 159 to see Nettleham to an eight wicket victory, a win that took them up to sixth in the table. In Division Three, leaders Millers moved a step closer to promotion in emphatic fashion as they collected their eleventh victory with a massive 294 runs victory (the biggest of the season) over Nocton. Showing no mercy, Millers batted first with two of their top three batsmen making centuries and the third, Paul Roberts out for 97. Mark Pilgrim collected his second century of the season with 101 and Simon Godby made 111 in their massive 398 (the 2^nd highest total of the season). In Nocton’s reply veteran Dave Glew top scored with 17 as they made only 84 with Paul Cook taking 6-35.  After their back to back defeats against Millers, Hougham & Marston got back to winning ways as they completed their third double of the season against visitors Hykeham 2^nd . The visitors batted first but were restricted to 127-5 before Hougham & Marston cruised to a ten wicket victory with Stuart Pick not out 72. This victory moved Hougham & Marston back up to second position as Reepham were inactive while Cherry Willingham 2^nd were suffering a surprise reverse at bottom side Rustons. In a low scoring game Rustons were bowled out 91 with D. Cassell their top scorer with 21 as Gary Topliss took 5-23 and Trev Doughty 3-21 for Cherry. The Ruston’s bowler then shared two wickets each as Cherry could make only 77 in response with their top score coming from Dave Patten with 20. Victory for Rustons moved them up to eighth in the table as an inactive Bardney slipped to bottom place. The final game saw a middle of the  table clash between Aswarby and Aisthorpe. Having, last week, hit their highest score of the season Aisthorpe bettered it this week with 195-8, including an opening stand of 99 between Mike Reynolds (83) and Eddie Tyrell (24). Aswarby looked on course to make the total with George Gibson making an unbeaten 76 but Aisthorpe’s opening bowler Andy Dowling returned to see off  the home sides late order to see them fall 16 runs short. Dowling finished with figures of 4-35 Premier Cherry Willingham 1^st 174-6 (W. Carter 75) Boston 1^st 174-6 (P. Timby 52) Match tied (both sides 13 points – 7 for tie / 4 bat / 2 bowl) Hykeham 1^st 298-5 (K. O’Sullivan 118 / C. Hammond 118*) Morton 57 Hykeham (20 pts) beat Morton (2 bowl pts) by 241 runs Lindum 1^st 128 Scothern 132-5 Scothern (20 pts) beat Lindum 1^st (4 pts – 2 bat / 2 bowl) by 5 wkts North Scarle 148-7 Hartsholme 129 (M. Wooldridge 53) North Scarle (20 pts) beat Hartsholme (5 pts – 2 bat / 3 bowl) by 19 runs Div 1 Boston 2^nd 165 (I. Morris 52) Martin 166-8 (D. Gollop 88) Martin (20 pts) beat Boston (7 pts – 4 bat / 3 bowl) by 2 wkts (off last ball) Middle Rasen 296-6 (R. Boryszczuk 123) Blankney 105 Middle Rasen (20 pts) beat Blankney (3 pts 1 bat / 2 bowl) by 191 runs Saxilby 77-3 Heckington 74 Saxilby (20 pts) beat Heckington (1 bowl pt) by 7 wkts Div 2 Branston 123 Owmby 124-4 Owmby (20 pts) beat Branston (3 pts – 2 bat / 1 bowl) by 6 wkts Caythorpe 298-4 (L. Endley 139 / S. Skipworth 88) Lindum 2^nd 84 Caythorpe (20 pts) beat Lindum (1 bowl pt) by 214 runs Heighington 88-4 Washingborough 87 (I. Tomlinson 6-28) Heighington (20 pts) beat Washingborough (1 bowl pt) by 6 wkts Nettleham 2^nd 195-2 (D. McCardell 86 / D. Butter 75) Winthorpe 193-8 Nettleham (20 pts) beat Winthorpe (5 bat pts) by 8 wkts Div 3 Aswarby 179-8 (G. Gibson 76*) Aisthorpe 195-8 (M. Reynolds 83) Aisthorpe (20 pts) beat Aswarby (7 pts – 4 bat / 3 bowl) by 16 runs Hougham & Marston 131-0 (S. Pick 72) Hykeham 2^nd 127-5 Hougham & Marston (20 pts) beat Hykeham (2 bat pts) by 10 wkts Millers 398 (S. Godby 111/ M. Pilgrim 101) Nocton 84 (P. Cook 6-35) Millers (20 pts) beat Nocton (5 bowl pts) by 294 runs Rustons 91 (G. Topliss 5-23) Cherry Willingham 2^nd 77 Rustons (20 pts) beat Cherry Willingham 2^nd (5 bowl pts) by 14 runs HIGHEST SCORES 398 Millers v Nocton 2^nd highest of season 298-4 Caythorpe v Lindum 2^nd 298-5 Hykeham 1^st .v. Morton LOWEST SCORES 57 Morton at Hykeham 1^st 74 Heckington at Saxilby TOP BATSMEN L. Endley (Caythorpe) 139 v Lindum 2^nd R. Boryszczuk (Middle Rasen) 123 v Blankney C. Hammond (Hykeham 1^st) 118* v Morton K. O’Sullivan (Hykeham 1^st) 118 v Morton S. Godby (Millers) 111 v Nocton M. Pilgrim (Millers) 101 v Nocton D. Gollop (Martin) 88 v Boston 2^nd S. Skipworth (Caythorpe) 88 v Lindum 2^nd D. McCardell (Nettleham 2^nd) 86 v Winthorpe M. Reynolds (Aisthorpe) 83 v Aswarby G. Gibson (Aswarby) 76* v Aisthorpe W. Carter (Cherry Willingham 1^st) 75 v Boston 1st D. Butter (Nettleham 2^nd) 75 v Winthorpe S. Pick (Hougham & Marston) 72 v Hykeham 2^nd M. Wooldridge (Hartsholme) 53 v North Scarle I. Morris (Boston 2^nd) 52 v Martin P. Timby (Boston 1^st) 52 v Cherry Willingham 1^st 100 PARTNERSHIPS 154 - D. McCardell / D. Butter (Nettleham 2^nd) .v. Winthorpe 131 - S. Pick / N. Bell (Hougham & Marston) .v. Hykeham 2^nd TOP BOWLERS P. Cook (Millers) 6-35 v Nocton I. Tomlinson (Heighington) 6-28 v Washingborough G. Topliss (Cherry Willingham 2^nd) 5-23 v Rustons BIGGEST WINNING MARGINS 294 runs Millers 398 Nocton 84 (Biggest of season) 241 runs Hykeham 1^st 298-5 Morton 57 (4^th biggest of season) CLOSEST FINISHES 14 runs  Rustons 91 Cherry Willnigham 2^nd 77 16 runs  Aswarby 179-8 Aisthorpe 195-8 HIGHEST AGGREGATES 482 -20 Millers 398 Nocton 84 401-11 Middle Rasen 296-6 Blankney 105
Round-up details July 24-25 The title races continues to hot up as we approach the final two months of the season. The Premier, First and Third Divisions were very much “as you were” but Division Two sees new leaders as only one of the top four win. In the Premier Division, leaders Cherry Willingham 1^st were taken to the closest finish of the day (and third closest of the season) on their trip to Morton, who had not won a game since May. Cherry batted first, making 212-5 with Scott Coupland scoring 81 and Will Carter a classy 59. Then in response Andy West hit 59 and Chris Needham 53 as Morton got to within three runs of their target before being bowled out. It was much easier for second placed Market Rasen who entertained bottom side North Scarle and won by ten wickets when set a target of only 85 to chase. Like Cherry, third placed Boston 1^st  were also made to work for their result at second to bottom side Scothern. Boston made 197-8 in their innings with Tom Baxter making 48 not out and Luke Gilding 47. For Scothern the ageless Colin Holman was the pick of their bowlers with 3-46. When Scothern batted they got to within 42 of the total with one wicket left before the game ended. Nathan Pearce was their top scorer with 21 while Scott Elleray had figures of 4-25 for Boston. The highest aggregate scores was seen at Hartsholme who took on Nettleham 1^st. Hartsholme bludgeoned their way to an impressive 266-5 with Nathan Poundall (51) and Matt Wooldridge (71) setting the bench-mark with an opening stand of 110. Nick Wilkinson followed on with a cavalier 91 not out. Nettleham also saw a good opening stand as Dave Hutchinson (78) and Craig Cosgrove (31) put on 98 for their first wicket. Although Glenn Mitchell weighed in with 29 the momentum had gone from the innings and it closed at 197-6, still 69 runs short. Gary Sutton collected 4-26 for Hartsholme who picked up their first double of the season. In Division One, Martin look on course to make a swift return to the top flight as they completed their second double of the season when beating Old Lincolnians by nine wickets. The Lincoln side made 142-4 in their innings but Andy Wilson, with an unbeaten 76, quickly saw Martin to victory and a 41 point lead at the top.  Perhaps one of the surprise results of the day was at Carholme where third placed Boston 2^nd were the visitors. Boston batting first were unable to live with the home bowling attack with their top score coming from Steve Elleray who made 21 in the days second lowest total of just 63. For Carholme Steve Peace took 2-14, Sam Toofany 3-10, Ian 3-22 and Don Inkpen 2-14. Steve Peace then completed a satisfying day with an unbeaten 44 as Carholme cruised to a nine wicket victory inside 17 overs. This victory, their third in four games saw Carholme move out of the bottom two as Middle Rasen slipped into their place as they failed to raise a team for the second occasion this season for their scheduled trip to BBH. In Division Two, leaders Owmby were inactive which gave Lindum 2^nd the opportunity to go top but this they failed to do losing for their third game in a row as they entertained mid table Heighington. The visitors were looking to avenge an early season thrashing and were set a target of 173 to chase. Lindum’s top scorer was Charlie Tomlinson with 73 but he proved to be upstaged by Heighington’s new acquisition, Ben Nicholson, who made 78 as the villagers won by 6 wickets. Taking advantage of Lindum’s recent decline were Caythorpe who leapfrogged both them and Owmby into top spot with a 128 run victory at Fulbeck. Caythorpe amassed the days second highest total of 222-6 with their opener Luke Endley making an unbeaten 103 as the Fulbeck fielders chose to drop him three times. When the home side batted their misfortunes continued as they were bowled out for 94 to give Caythorpe their first league double. Another surprise result of the weekend was witnessed at Washingborough where the side, second to bottom of the league, saw neighbours Branston as their opponents. These two sides met in the opening week of the season with Branston winning by 142 runs and hopeful of completing their first double of the season, but it was not to be. Washingborough batted first posting a total of 180-7 and despite 59 from John Stephenson for the visitors they were bowled out for 172 with just three balls left and eight runs off their target. It was success all round for the sides at the bottom of this league as bottom side Nettleham 2^nd also picked up a much needed victory and first double of their season. Hosting Bassingham they batted first making 137-9 but this proved too many for their opponents as they were bowled out for 104. In Division Three newcomers Hougham and Marston will be pleased to have seen the last of leaders Millers. Last week the two sides met with Hougham and Marston then the last unbeaten side in the league but they were to suffer a resounding 170 run defeat. It got no better this week as they two sides met again. On this occasion Hougham & Marston were bowled out for the days lowest total of 48 to go on to suffer a league double and nine wicket defeat and slip from third to fifth as other sides around them moved above them. One of these was Reepham who visited Aisthorpe hopeful of their second double of the season. The home side batted first posting their highest total of the season as they made 192. Top scorers were K. Chennuri with 52 and Eddie Tyrell 41 while Martin Straw was the pick of the Reepham bowlers with 3-46. Then when Reepham batted Andy Housam made an unbeaten 83 including a fourth wicket stand of 92 with Richard Straw (32) to see Reepham to a 6 wicket victory. The other side to climb was Horncastle who collected 20 points without bowling a ball as Bardney became the 13^th side this season who failed to raise a side. The days biggest winning margin came at Nocton where Aswarby were the visitors. Nocton were without a win in four games while Aswarby had won once in seven. This became two wins from three as they hit their highest total of the season with Ben Bulmer making 81 in their total of 216-8. Then S. Pemberton produced the days best bowling figures of 5-11 as Nocton were bowled out for 79 to lose by 137 runs. The final game brought, not only a local derby, but a bottom of the table clash as Hykeham 2^nd hosted Rustons. These two sides had met less than a month ago in a game which saw Rustons collected their first win of the season.  Rustons batting first made 139-7 including 55 from opener Martin Noble. Hykeham, in a position to bring in some first team experience, saw Darren Chester claim 3-30 and Josh Taylor 2-27. When they then batted, the in-form Taylor, carried his bat with 90 as Hykeham cruised to a seven wicket victory inside 18 overs. Victory helped Hykeham climb off the bottom of the table to eighth while Rustons took up the basement spot. Premier Market Rasen 86-0 North Scarle 85 Market Rasen (20 pts) beat North Scarle (nil pts) by 10 wkts  Hartsholme 266-5 (N. Wilkinson 91* / M. Wooldridge 71 / N. Poundall 51) Nettleham 1^st 197-6 (D. Hutchinson 78) Hartsholme (20 pts) beat Nettleham ((7 pts – 5 bat / 2 bowls) by 69 runs Morton 209 (A. West 59 / C. Needham 53) Cherry Willingham 1^st 212-5 (S. Coupland 81 / W. Carter 59) Cherry Willingham (20 pts) beat Morton (7 pts – 5 bat / 2 bowl) by 3 runs Scothern 155-9 Boston 1^st 197-8 Boston (20 pts) beat Scothern (6 pts – 3 bat / 3 bowl) by 42 runs Div 1 BBH v Middle Rasen BBH (10 pts) Middle Rasen (10 pts deducted) unable to raise side (2^nd occasion) Martin 143-1 (A. Wilson 76*) Old Lincolnians 142-4 Martin (20 pts) beat Old Lincolnians (3 bat pts) by 9 wkts Carholme 65-1 Boston 2^nd 63 Carholme (20 pts) beat Boston (nil pts) by 9 wkts Div 2 Washingborough 180-7 Branston 172 (J. Stephenson 59*) Washingborough (20 pts) beat Branston (7 pts – 4 bat / 3 bowl) by 8 runs Lindum 2^nd 173 (C. Tomlinson 74) Heighington 177-4 (B. Nicholson 78) Heighington (20 pts) beat Lindum (5 pts – 4 bat / 1 bowl) by 6 wkts Nettleham 137-9 Bassingham 104 Nettleham (20 pts) beat Bassingham (5 pts – 1 bat 4 bowl) by 33 runs Fulbeck 94 Caythorpe 222-6 (L. Endley 103*) Caythorpe (20 pts) beat Fulbeck (2 bowl pts) by 128 runs Div 3 Hykeham 2^nd (J. Taylor 90*) 143-3 Rustons 139-7 (M. Noble 55) Hykeham (20 pts) beat Rustons (3 pts – 2 bat / 1 bowl) by 7 wkts   Hougham & Marston 48 Millers 49-1 Millers (20 pts) beat Hougham & Marston (nil pts) by 9 wkts Horncastle v Bardney Horncastle (20 pts) Bardney unable to raise side Aisthorpe 192 (K. Chennuri 54) Reepham 194-4 (A. Housam 83) Reepham (20 pts) beat Aisthorpe (6 pts – 5 bat / 1 bowl pt) by 6 wkts Nocton 79 (S. Pemberton 5-11) Aswarby 216-8 (B. Bulmer 81) Aswarby (20 pts) beat Nocton (3 bowl pts) by 137 runs HIGHEST SCORES 266-5 Hartsholme (h) v Nettleham 1^st 222-6 Caythorpe (a) v Fulbeck LOWEST SCORES 48 Hougham & Marston (h) v Millers 63 Boston 2^nd (a) v Carholme TOP BATSMEN L. Endley (Caythorpe) 103* v Fulbeck N. Wilkinson (Hartsholme) 91* v Nettleham 1^st J. Taylor (Hykeham 2^nd) 90* v Rustons A. Housam (Reepham) 83 v Aisthorpe S. Coupland (Cherry 1^st) 81 v Morton B. Bulmer (Aswarby) 81 v Nocton B. Nicholson (Heighington) 78 v Lindum 2^nd A. Wilson (Martin) 76* v Old Lincolnians C. Tomlinson (Lindum 2^nd) 74 v Heighington M. Wooldridge ~(Hartsholme) 71 v Nettleham 1^st J. Stephenson (Branston) 59* v Washingborough W. Carter (Cherry 1^st) 59 v Morton A. West (Morton) 59 v Cherry 1st M. Noble (Rustons) 55 v Hykeham 2^nd K. Chennuri (Aisthorpe) 54 v Reepham C. Needham (Morton) 53 v Cherry 1^st N. Poundall (Hartsholme) 51 v Nettleham 1^st 100 PARTNERSHIPS TOP BOWLERS S. Pemberton (Aswarby) 5-11 v Nocton BIGGEST WINNING MARGINS 137 runs Aswarby 216-8 Nocton 79 128 runs Fulbeck 97 Caythorpe 222-6 CLOSEST FINISHES 3 runs Morton 209 Cherry Willingham 1^st 212-5 8 runs Washingborough 180-7 Branston 172 HIGHEST AGGREGATES 463-11 Hartsholme 266-5 Nettleham 1^st 197-6 421-15 Morton 209 Cherry Willingham 1^st 212-5
Round-up details July 17-18 After the rock solid wickets of early Summer, the rain, prior to the weekend games, gave something to the bowlers which saw no less than eight of them produce five wicket hauls or better.  Of these eight bowlers, two, namely Simon Godby (Millers) and Luke Benyon (Cherry Willingham 2nd) have showed consistency with the ball all season as it was their third such wicket haul. In the case of Godby his bowling feat ended the last unbeaten record of the season as Division Three leaders and newcomers Hougham and Marston were totally blown away by Millers who leapfrogged above them in their league. The weekend also proved more than pleasing for all the bottom sides in Divisions One, Two and Three who all collected important wins. In the case of Divison One side Carholme they even collected a rare league double over local rivals Old Lincolnians. In the Premier League the top two were inactive which gave the chasing pack the opportunity to close the gap and this is exactly what they did with third placed Lindum 1st now a serious threat in the title chase. Hosting bottom side North Scarle the city team hit the top score of the day with 263-4. This included 61 from opener Pierce Morley-Barnes followed by a third wicket stand of 139 between Alex Hornsby, who hit 123 and Jon Begley (40*). North Scarle’s response got off to the worst possible start with opener Andy O’Brien having to retire hurt without scoring followed by two of the next three batsmen both out for ducks. Matt Baker saved the innings somewhat with 50 but they were bowled out in 34 overs for 122 to lose by 141 runs, the days second biggest losing margin. This win moved Lindum up to within three points of the joint leaders but with two games in hand over Boston and one over Cherry Willingham. Also in title contention are Market Rasen who made easy work of collecting their second league double of the season with a seven wicket victory at Nettleham 1st. The home side with only one win in their last seven games could only post a total of 98 which proved no real target for Rasen with Ian Williams making an unbeaten 50. Out of the title race but in fifth place Hartsholme picked up a 55 run victory over Morton who drooped to seventh. Hartsholme made 222-8 in their 40 overs with Adrian Bunn unbeaten on 49 while Steve Butroid was the pick of the Morton bowlers with 3-32. When Morton batted Butroid was again the key figure making 68 but they were bowled out for 167 with Liam Hargrave collecting 4-37. One place lower are Hykeham 2nd whose turn of fortune continued with a third  win in four games as they avenged an early season defeat against a struggling Scothern side who themselves slipped into a relegation position. Again the winning margin was by 55 runs with Hykeham only posting a score of 138 after Ian Brown had taken 5-39 for Scothern. Once again Josh Taylor was in the runs for Hykeham with an unbeaten 70. The Scothern innings never got going with them being 27-5 at one point. Top scorer for them was Richard Johnson with 20 while Ryan Chester took 4-34 and Chris Hammond 3-16. At the top of Division One Martin suffered only their second defeat of the season as neighbours Blankney avenged an early defeat with a 61 runs victory. Blankney batting first recovered from 46-3 to make 222-8 with skipper James Ingamells making 79. Rob Noble was Martin’s best bowler with 3-27 and then top scored for the home side with 61 but besides he and Steve Scott, who made 35, no other batsmen contributed as they were bowled out for 159. Using seven bowlers Ian Holvey, with 3-13, was the pick for Blankney. Martin’s defeat along with Heckington being inactive saw Saxilby climb into second place with a three wicket victory at Middle Rasen, who are slipping rapidly down the table. This game saw five wicket hauls by bowlers from both sides. Saxilby’s Ian Burnett returned figures of 5-15 to see the home side bowled out for 98 and despite Middle Rasen skipper Richard Boryszczuk taking 5-28, Saxilby crept home by three wickets. Heckington, although they now have games in hand, were pushed further down the table by Boston 2nd who completed their first double of the season as they won at home against second to bottom side Waddington. The visitors saw three of their batsmen make scores into the thirties with Billy Evans top scorer with 33 as they closed on 162-9. Ricky Drury then hit an unbeaten 61 as Boston won inside 30 overs for the loss of four wickets. At the other end of the table it was joy all round on the West Common as home side Carholme completed their first league double to move off the bottom with victory over Old Lincolnians by 6 wickets. Batting first Old Lincolnians made 114-8 which was reached by Carholme for the loss of only four wickets. In Division Two, leaders Lindum lost for the second game in a row as Branston reaped revenge for a June defeat. Lindum, batting first again failed to make a three figure total, being bowled out for only 80, the second lowest total of the day. On their way to victory Branston lost just two wickets. This defeat saw Owmby go back to the top as they got back to winning ways with victory at Bassingham. Home captain Rob Beddows top scored with 58 as Bassingham made 155 but Sam Atkin responded with 64 for Owmby to help them to a four wicket win. Moving back into a promotion challenging position were Caythorpe who avenged an opening day defeat against Heighington with a 51 run home victory. Chris Morris top scored for Caythorpe with 62 to see them post a target of 168. Then, despite a knock of 55 from Keith Duke, Andy Robinson weighed in with the days best bowling figures of 6-18 to see Caythorpe home. The battle of two sides just outside the relegation places saw home side Fulbeck edge out Winthorpe. The visitors made 143 with Max Cope making 56 not out while home bowler Dan Pinfold took his first five wicket haul with 5-22. Fulbeck lost seven wickets before collecting the maximum points which lifted them up the table to sixth. The remaining game in this division was a bottom of the table clash between bottom side Washingborough and Nettleham 2nd.   Both sides were without a win in their last five games and on the day it was victory for Washingborough by the days closest finish of 41 runs. Washingborough made 166-8 but Nettleham could manage only 125 with defeat pushing them to the bottom of the table. It was Division Three that saw the top game of the day as the top two were in opposition. Second placed Millers, with just one defeat in their previous nine games, hosted new-comers and leaders, Hougham & Marston, who had won eight of nine games with the other postponed. Millers batted first setting the second highest total of the day of 255-6. Dave Newman with 167 (his second century of the season) hit the top individual score of the day. Simon Godby then collected his third five wicket haul of the season with 5-22 as Hougham & Marston were skittled out for only 85 to lose by the biggest margin of the day, 170 runs. Victory for Millers took them to the top and to add insult to injury, Hougham & Marston not only slipped off the top but were pushed down to third as Cherry Willingham 2nd climbed above them with a 133 run victory at Aswarby. Lee Coupland top scored for Cherry with 28 in their total of 171 while Jonathan Wilbraham collected 5 wickets for 35 runs. Using only two bowlers Cherry then bowled Aswarby out for the seasons’ third lowest score of 38. Cherry youngster Luke Benyon collected his third five wicket (or more) haul of the season with figures of 6-22 and Joe Dobson took 4-16 with J. Brooks Aswarby’s top scorer with 10. After their hiccup of the previous week Reepham moved back into promotion contention with their second league double as the beat visitors Nocton. It was Nocton who batted first but only skipper Dave Franklin (28) made a score into the twenties as they were bowled out for 90. Andy Housam had bowling figures of 3-4 and Sam Housam 3-16 before the latter made 42 as Reepham cruised to a 7 wicket victory inside 13 overs. Finally it was again joy for a side at the bottom of their league as Rustons won for only the second time this season, avenging an early season defeat against opponents Bardney.  Home side Bardney were on the back of a seven game winless run and it became eight as they could only make a total of 112 for Rustons to chase. This total nearly proved too many for the Lincoln side but they eventually got there with two wickets to spare and movement off the bottom of the table. Premier Hartsholme 222-8 Morton167 (S. Butroid 68) Hartsholme (20 pts) beat Morton (7 pts – 4 bat / 3 bowl) by 55 runs Hykeham 1st 138 (J. Taylor 70*/ I. Brown 5-39) Scothern 83 Hykeham (20 pts) beat Scothern (5 bowl pts) by 55 runs Lindum 1st 263-4 (A. Hornsby 123 / P. Morley-Barnes 61) North Scarle 122 (M. Baker 50) Lindum (20 pts) beat North Scarle (3 pts – 2 bat / 1 bowl) by 141 runs Nettleham 1st 98 Market Rasen 100-3 (I. Williams 50*) Mkt Rasen (20 pts) beat Nettleham (1 bowl pt) by 7 wkts Div 1 Boston 2nd 163-4 (R. Drury 61*) Waddington 162-9 Boston (20 pts) beat Waddington (4 pts – 3 bat / 1 bowl) by 6 wkts Carholme 118-4 Old Lincolnians 116-8 Carholme (20 pts) beat Old Lincolnians (2 pts – 1bat / 1 bowl) by 6 wkts Martin 158 (R. Noble 61) Blankney 222-8 (J. Ingamells 79) Blankney (20 pts) beat Martin (6 pts – 3 bat / 3 bowl) by 64 runs Middle Rasen 98  (I. Burnett 5-15) Saxilby 102-7 (R. Boryszczuk 5-28) Saxilby (20 pts) beat Middle Rasen (3 bowl pts) by 3 wkts Div 2 Bassingham 155 (R. Beddows 58) Owmby 159-6 (S. Atkin 64) Owmby (20 pts) beat Bassingham (5 pts – 3 bat / 2 bowl) by 4 wkts Branston 83-2 Lindum 2nd 80 Branston (20 pts) beat Lindum (nil pts) by 8 wkts Caythorpe 168 (C. Morris 62) Heighington 117 (K. Duke 55 / A. Robinson 6-18) Caythorpe (20 pts) beat Heighington (6 pts – 1 bat / 5 bowl) by 51 runs Fulbeck 145-7 Winthorpe 143 (M. Cope 56* / D. Pinfold 5-22) Fulbeck (20 pts) beat Winthorpe (6 pts – 3 bat / 3 bowl) by 3 wkts Washingborough 166-8 Nettleham 1st 125 Washingborough (20 pts) beat Nettleham (5 pts – 2 bat / 3 bowl) by 41 runs Div 3 Aswarby 38 (L. Benyon 6-22) Cherry Willingham 171-8 (J. Wilbraham) 5-36 Cherry Willingham (20 pts) beat Aswarby (3 bowl pts) by 133 runs Bardney 112 Rustons 113-8 Rustons (20 pts) beat Bardney (4 pts – 1 bat / 3 bowl) by 2 wkts Millers 255-6  (D Newman 167 / S. Godby 5-22) Hougham & Marston 85 Millers (20 pts) beat Hougham & Marston (2 bowl pts) by 170 runs Reepham 92-3 Nocton 90 Reepham (20 pts) beat Nocton (1 bowl pt) by 7 wkts HIGHEST SCORES 263-4 Lindum 1st v North Scarle 255-6 Millers v Hougham & Marston LOWEST SCORES 38 Aswarby v Cherry Willingham 2 80 Lindum 2nd v Branston TOP BATSMEN D. Newman (Millers) 167 v Hougham & Marston A. Hornsby (Lindum 1st) 123 v North Scarle J.  Ingamells (Blankney) 79 v  Martin J. Taylor (Hykeham 1st) 70* v Scothern S. Butroid (Morton) 68 v Hartsholme S. Clark (Owmby) 64 v Bassingham C. Morris (Caythorpe) 62 v Heighington R. Drury (Boston 2nd) 61* v Waddington P. Morley-Barnes (Lindum 1st) 61 v North Scarle R. Noble (Martin) 61 v Blankney           R. Beddows (Bassingham) 58 v Owmby M. Cope (Winthorpe) 56* v Fulbeck K. Duke (Heighington) 55 v Caythorpe I. Williams (Mkt Rasen) 50* v Nettleham 1st 100 PARTNERSHIPS 139 (3rd wkt) A Hornsby / J Begley (Lindum 1st) v North Scarle TOP BOWLERS A. Robinson (Caythorpe) 6-18 v Heighington L. Benyon (Cherry Willingham 2) 6-22 v Aswarby I. Burnett (Saxilby) 5-15 v MiddleRasen S. Godby (Millers) 5-22 v Hougham & Marston D. Pinfold (Fulbeck) 5-22 v Winthorpe R. Boryszczuk (Middle Rasen) 5-28 v Saxilby J. Wilbraham (Aswarby) 5-36 v Cherry Willingham 2 I. Brown (Scothern) 5-39 v Hykeham 1 BIGGEST WINNING MARGINS 170 runs Millers 255-6 Hougham & Marston 85 141 runs Lindum 263-4 North Scarle 122 CLOSEST FINISHES 41 runs Washingborough 166-8 Nettleham 2nd 125 51 runs Caythorpe 168 Heighington 117 HIGHEST AGGREGATES 389-18 Hartsholme 222-8 Morton 167 385-14 Lindum 263-4 North Scarle 122
Round-up details July 10-11 Yet again another weekend of local cricket at the highest level. This included one match which produced the highest winning margin of the season and the lowest total so far. Of sides batting second, all but one were won by huge margins while most sides which batted second won comfortably with just a few exception. An interesting statistic of the day was the fact that all five centurians on the day carried their bat. It was a weekend of sides at the top meeting opponents from the lower reaches of their divisions but in several instances it was a day for the underdog. To a certain extent this was evident in the Premier League were present leaders Cherry Willingham came unstuck on their trip to dark-horses Market Rasen. It was a game of low scores as the home side was bowled out for 141 with Gary Bierlein their top scorer with 34 and Joe Dobson the pick of the Cherry bowlers taking 3-16. The match went to the last over, bowled by Matt Hamilton (2-16) and was won by the home side by the fourth closest finish of the season, just seven runs. Scott Coupland was the visitors’ best batsman with 41 while Rasen skipper Graeme Bell produced a hostile spell of bowling returning figures of 3-34. Defeat for the leaders saw second placed Boston 1^st move level on points at the top as they, as one expected, beat lowly Hykeham 1^st. Chris Hammond hit 72 in Hykeham’s total of 209-7 while Scott Ellaray took 3-31 for the home side. Jonathan Cheer then carried his bat with 115 (his third century of the season) including a second wicket stand of 113 with Lee Brook (45) as Boston won by 7 wickets. Retaining third position were Lindum 1^st who had an even easier victory over local rivals Nettleham 1^st. It was a third league double for Lindum who saw Nettleham post a total of 185-9 thanks to solid knocks from Chris Cosgrove (56) and Tom Dalton (68) while Jake Benson returned figures of 10-1-27-4 for Lindum. In response the home sides’ openers of Pierce Morley-Barnes and Karanjit Bansal put on 116 for the opening stand before the latter went for 45. Morley-Barnes went on to make an unbeaten 121 as Lindum cruised to victory inside 19 overs. In Division One there were three huge wins for sides batting first including the top two. Martin visited second to bottom side Waddington and batting first made 260-6 with Steve Scott getting his second century in successive weekends with an unbeaten 116. When Waddington batted the Martin skipper Dave Gollop collected his second five wicket (or more) haul in successive matches, taking 6-13 as Waddington were bowled out for 112, to lose by 148. Second placed Heckington, not to be outdone, entertained Middle Rasen and won by 145 runs. Heckington saw their openers of Will Charlesworth (94) and Dom Kew (69) put on 166 for their first wicket and then Chris Morley weighed in with 51 as they posted the days top total and fourth highest of the season, 333-6. When Rasen batted Luke Chambers top scored with 62 as they closed on 188-6. Perhaps one of the closes finishes of the day was at Blankney where third placed Boston 2^nd were the visitors. Batting first the visitors saw seven batsmen make double figure scores, the best coming from their last man Paul Deans who was 31 not out at the close, in a total of 179. For Blankney Ian Holvey collected 5-27 (his second 5 wicket haul of the season) and James Ingamells 2-16. In the home sides innings Lee Allman proved the stabling force with a score of 71 but it was left to No 10 bat, Gareth Schwandt to hit a four of the last ball to see Blankney home by 2 wickets and their first double of the season. Paul Deans, despite finishing on the losing side, completed a pleasing day for himself with 5-29. As Boston were suffering defeat this allowed Saxilby to move into third position as they too completed their first league double with a 153 run victory over Carholme. Graham Morley made 63 in Saxilby 216-6 before Carholme were bowled out for 63, their lowest total of this season.  The final game in this division saw yet another side collect their first double of the season as BBH visited Old Lincolnians and inflicted an 8 wicket defeat on the city side. Only two Old Lincolnian players made double figures in their total of 95 with Steve Dale the top scorer making 21. Kit Spence came on as the Heath’s sixth bowler and had figures of 4.1-2-7-3 before then taking up the willow and hitting an unbeaten 52 as BBH strolled to an eight wicket victory inside 19 overs. Tim Phipps was Old Lincolnians only wicket taker with 2-24. Division Two saw one of the surprise results of the day as league leaders Lindum 2^nd were thrashed by 10 wickets at second to bottom side Winthorpe. Batting first Lindum were quickly bowled out for 85 which provide easy pickings for the home side. The second lowest total of the day came in the local derby at Heighington where Branston were the visitors. Heighington were the side in form with three successive wins and they bowled out Branston for just 45. Not having it all their own way Branston then claimed six wickets before the game was won by the home side before tea. Despite victory, Branston remained fifth, one place above Heighington in the table, by just one point. The remaining game in Division Two saw Fulbeck hosting Bassingham, looking for their first league double of the season. In dramatic fashion the game went to the final over.  Fulbeck, batting first scored 173 all out with opener Jake Pollard top scorer with 58 and Rob Beddows taking 5-24 for Bassingham.  Beddows then top scored with 48 but from being 150-3 Bassingham lost four more wickets before edging home with five balls left. Anil Gajjar bowling the final over finished with figures of 9.1-3-23-2. In Division Three just 23 points separate the top five sides after the weekend results. Leaders Hougham & Marston continue to be the remaining unbeaten side in all the leagues as they collected their seventh win of their debut season with a 105 run victory over Bardney. Having posted a total of 193-7 the home side then inflicted Bardney to a sixth successive reverse as they were bowled out for 88 with Wayne Rogers collecting 5-39. On the shoulder of the leaders, just three points adrift are Millers who saw two players make unbeaten centuries in their total of 321-3 against bottom side Rustons. Mark Pilgrim hit the weekends’ top individual score with 124 and Michael Musson made 103 before Rustons bettered the League’s lowest total of the season as they were skittled out for 32 (two worse than their own score of 34 against Aswarby back in May). The 289 run defeat was the biggest winning margin in the league this season. Dave Newman registered the equal second best bowling figures of this season with figures of 10-5-7-6. Cherry Willingham 2^nd remain in third position as they entertained Reepham who had lost just once before this game. Knocks of 74 from Dave Patten and 63 from Luke Benyon saw Cherry make 188-5 and then Matt Hudson claimed 5-22 as Reepham were bowled out for 103 to lose by 85 runs. Horncastle remain in the promotion chase as they got back to winning ways on their trip to Hykeham 2^nd.  Opener, Andy Moon (29) top scored for Hykeham in their total of 138 with Phil Roberts the pick of the Horncastle bowlers, taking 4-37. Roberts with 14 not out and Charlie Hodgson 37 not out saw Horncastle to an eight wicket victory after Liam Wilkinson had given them the base with 42.  Last but not least, Aisthorpe collected only their second victory of the season as they beat Nocton by nine wickets. Nocton had been bowled out for exactly 100 before Aisthorpe skipper Mike Reynolds made an unbeaten 69 to see his side home. Premier Boston 1^st 210-3 (J. Cheer 115*) Hykeham 1^st 209-7 (C. Hammond 72) Boston (20 pts) beat Hykeham (6 pts – 5 bat / 1 bowl pt) by 7 wkts Lindum 1^st 189-1 (P. Morley-Barnes 121*) Nettleham 1^st 185-9 (C. Cosgrove 56 / T. Dalton 68) Lindum (20 pts) beat Nettleham (5 bat pts) by 9 wkts Market Rasen 141 Cherry Willingham 1^st 134 Mkt Rasen (20 pts) beat Cherry Willingham (7 pts – 2 bat / 5 bowl pts) by 7 runs Div 1 Blankney 182-8 (L. Allman 74 / P. Deans 5-29) Boston 2^nd 179 (I. Holvey 5-27) Blankney (20 pts) beat Boston (7 pts – 4 bat / 3 bowl) by 2 wkts Heckington 333-6 (W. Charlesworth 94 / D. Kew 69 / C. Morley 51) Mid Rasen 188-6 (L. Chambers 62) Heckington (20 pts) beat Middle Rasen (7 pts – 5 bat / 2 bowl) by 145 runs Old Lincolnians 95 BBH 97-2 BBH (20 pts) beat Old Lincolnians (nil pts) by 8 wkts