Bridgnorth CC 1st XI v Olton & West Warwick (Away)
Bridgnorth 1st XI (177) lost to Olton (182-5) by 5 wickets
Batting: T. Whitney 44, P. Thompson 34.
Bowling: G. Lewis 2-40.
Bridgnorth 1st XI's early season wobbles continued on Saturday as they went down by 5 wickets away to Olton & West Warwick.
Bridgnorth continued their run of losing every toss this season and were put into bat. After losing both openers early on, Tom Whitney (44) and Pete Thompson (34) steadied the ship and were looking towards a score in excess of 200 until Whitney was bowled by a ball that kept very low. The middle order all got starts but were all whittled out by Olton's accurate attack, the innings ending with the last four wickets all falling on 177.
Bridgnorth required early wickets and got them when Thompson took a smart catch at short extra cover and Eddie Mullard caught the other opener at slip, giving Greg Lewis his first Birmingham League 1st XI dismissal. Olton then batted with maturity and carefully accumulated the runs against Bridgnorth's inexperienced bowling attack and were in no trouble until pick of the bowlers Lewis (2-40) struck again in his second spell. A superb direct hit run-out by Thompson earned the team another bowling point but Olton eventually cruised to 182, reaching their target with five wickets in hand.
Bridgnorth CC 2nd XI v Old Hill (Home)
Bridgnorth 2nd XI (184-9) beat Halesowen (164) by 20 runs
Batting: C. Goodwin-Tindall 72*, A. Breakwell 27, M. Martin 23.
Bowling: S. Caine 4-61, A. Breakwell 3-31.
Bridgnorth 2nd XI showed great character as they upset early season pacesetters Old Hill at home on Saturday by 20 runs.
Put into bat first the home side made a shaky start moving to 52-3, including losing all-rounder Matt Martin (23). Andy Breakwell (27) and Conor Goodwin-Tindall set about repairing the damage but at 118-5 the innings was in danger of folding. However, Goodwin-Tindall, displaying an old head on young shoulders, showed great maturity as he marshalled the lower order through to 184-9 off 50 overs with himself unbeaten on 72* at the end. His fine innings set up an intriguing total on a pitch with some uneven bounce.
The visitors showed why they were top of the tree as they confidently strolled through the early overs and at 100-2 looked to be slight favourites. The home side, though, are a team of fighters and with a mixture of disciplined fielding together with Steve Caine (4-61), who used all his experience and skill to shut down an end, the required run rate began to climb. The Old Hill batsmen's nerves began to fray as a succession of players came and went as the result remained in the balance. The introduction of third spinner Andy Breakwell (3-31), together with two run-outs from stand-in captain Glenn Edwards, saw Bridgnorth roar back into the game with the final visiting batsmen being dismissed on 164 with just seven balls left in the match.
Bridgnorth CC 3rd XI v Hales (Away)
Bridgnorth 3rd XI (180-4) lost to Hales (186-3) by 7 wickets
Batting: A. Mooney 60, D. Taylor 34, L. Brown 21, J. Jones 20*.
Bowling: L. Brown 1-, E. Pottinger 1-, H. Broad 1-.
Bridgnorth 3rd XI's poor start to 2008 continued as they went down by seven wickets away at Hales on Saturday.
Batting first, Bridgnorth put on their best display of the year by a distance as they posted 180-4 off 40 overs. U15 stars Andy Mooney (60) and Dan Taylor (34) led the way with skipper Liam Brown (21) and Josh Jones (20*) chipping in.
In reply the home side timed their chase well ending on 186-3 in the 37th over to give them a seven wicket win. Bridgnorth's wicket takers were Liam Brown, Elliot Pottinger and Harry Broad.
Bridgnorth CC 2nd XI v Himley (Home)
Bridgnorth 2nd XI (261-5d), Himley (DNB) - Match Abandoned
Batting: J. Francis 128*, G. Edwards 63, E. Mullard 22.
Bowling: N/A
Bridgnorth 2nd XI's game at home to Himley was also washed out with the hosts well placed to pick up some more vital points.
On winning the toss Bridgnorth opted to bat first, but after slumping to 11-2 off 8 overs the decision looked to have backfired. However, the tempo of the game changed completely with the arrival of livewire Jason Francis, as he and opener Glenn Edwards (63) ran the Himley fielders ragged with a number of sharp singles and hard pushed twos. The two players added 151 in just 23 overs as the innings was transformed. Captain Eddie Mullard (22) then joined the fun by putting on 63 for the fourth wicket, but the undoubted star of the show was the excellent Francis, who posted a magnificent 128*, his first senior century for the club.
Bridgnorth declared on 261-5 off 45 overs but with heavy rain setting in during the tea break the players never returned to the middle, and unfortunately for the home side the game was abandoned.
