Senior Section round-up for 16 April
Posted on 19th April 2022 at 17:03
Division 1
There was a mixed start for the three promoted teams in Division One, with Coal Aston and Doncaster Town 2nds both picking up home wins, while Sheffield Collegiate 3rds were well beaten at Wakefield Thornes 2nds. Low scores were the theme of the day on some soft April pitches, with no teams being able to make it past the 200 mark. Notable performances included 7-39 for Collegiate’s Lawrie Brennan and 6-34 from Doncaster’s Warren Graca on a bowling-dominated day all round. Sheffield United chased down 151 with just a wicket remaining at home to Darfield in the game of the day, after initially being reduced to 38-5 in their second innings. Elsewhere there were wins for South Kirkby, in a low scoring encounter with Oughtibridge, and Upper Haugh, who convincingly got the better of Whitley Hall 2nds at home. Results see Wakefield Thornes 2nds at the top in the very early running, with Darfield being the only losing side to pick up any bonus points.
Division 2
There were some interesting results in Division Two as Ackworth convincingly beat Monk Bretton at home in their first YCSPL game; while Treeton 2nds beat Hallam 2nds on their own patch in a face-off between two teams who were relegated last season. Ackworth’s first innings score of 213-7 was the only one of over 200 in the division – captain Luke Townsend notching 54 from 63 balls. Townsend wasn’t finished there, however, as he ended with figures of 5-22 to help bowl Monk Bretton out for 101 in a fine all-round performance. Wickersley Old Village 2nds beat Norton Oakes by 55 runs at Northfield Road, with a couple of notable performances from each side. After posting 197-9, Jack Eggleston took 7-24 for Wickersley to bowl the away side out for 142, with Daniel Baldwin’s 71 from 119 balls coming in vain. Elsewhere there were wins for Norton Woodseats and Aston Hall 2nds, with newly promoted Caribbean Sports losing at home to Thorpe Hesley and High Green. Ackworth top the early standings, with Hallam, Caribbean and Monk Bretton the only teams not to pick up any points.
Division 3
Promoted sides Bradfield Village Fellowship and Parkhead both picked up convincing wins in Division Three. Both teams defended sizeable early-season totals with Bradfield totting up 205-7 against Kexborough, and Parkhead scoring 196-9 at home to Tickhill 2nds. Jonathan Balfour scored 73 for the former, with Harry Crossley taking 5-38; while Rohan Ardley scored 78 from 100 balls for Parkhead. Wath 2nds bowled out hosts Sprotbrough 2nds for just 75 in a six-wicket win, thanks to Max Bettson-Burdett (6-57) and Mark Wilson (4-9). The individual performance of the day surely came from Dilshan Luxman Sukumar, who took 8-33 for Oughtibridge 2nds, as they ran out comfortable winners away at Worsbrough Bridge. In the other games, Frecheville Community failed to chase down just 91 at home to Elsecar, with David Ratcliffe (5-18) ending on the losing side. There was yet another away win as Whiston Parish Church 2nds prevailed at Thorncliffe & Wentworth, thanks mainly to Richard Daughtrey, who scored 57, and Owen Struggles, who took 5-25. Results leave Wath 2nds at the top of the tree with only Worsbrough Bridge and Sprotbrough 2nds not picking up any points.
Division 4
It was a very low-scoring weekend in Division Four with the game of the day coming at Outgang Lane, where newly relegated Maltby Miners Welfare and newly promoted Whiston Forge were both bowled out for 57 in an extraordinary tied game. Mark Traquair and Andy Smith both picked up ‘four-fer’ for Whiston before Liam Woodward took 5-23 for Maltby. The excitement didn’t stop there, however, as Rockingham Colliery 2nds won at home to Handsworth by just one run. In an intriguing encounter, the scores were level with Handsworth still having two wickets in hand, but both fell before the all-important run could be scored. Elsewhere, Barnsley Woolley Miners 3rds lost convincingly away at Cawthorne 2nds, being bowled out for just 86 chasing 124. Thom Macrow scored 57 from 72 balls for the home side in the first innings, with Zaheer Mirza’s 5-3 the only highlight for the visitors. Gareth Kilburn did a lot of the damage in the second innings, picking up 5-21. Shiregreen 2nds and Silkstone United were both bowled out cheaply, scoring 63 and 54 against Millhouses Works and Stocksbridge, respectively. Sohail Mumtaz took 5-14 for Millhouses while Andrew Hibbert’s 6-22 did the job for Stocksbridge in their first YCSPL game. A special mention for Silkstone United’s Jakob Taylor, whose 6-8 unfortunately came in vain. The low totals leave Silkstone, Shiregreen and Barnsley WM on zero points.
On Sunday, Mark Longley led the way with 4-15 as Sheffield Collegiate 4ths bowled out Higham for 135 at Abbeydale; the visitors made the home side fight all the way in the second innings, but Collegiate gt home with four wickets and nine balls to spare.
Division 5
Five teams were bowled out below the hundred mark in Division Five as promoted sides Doncaster Town 4ths and Wombwell Main both recorded away victories. Wombwell’s was particularly emphatic, as they posted 172-9 with the help of 54 from 38 balls from Tom Peck, before bowling their hosts, Norton Oakes 2nds, out for just 58. Peck topped off a fine individual performance with bowling figures of 4-22 working in tandem with Ben Reeves, who picked up 5-24. Doncaster’s win showcased yet another brilliant individual effort, with Joe Woodiwiss taking 8-37 to bowl Fishlake out 12 runs short of the 129-7 Town had posted in the first innings. Two games saw no scores above the century mark, with Coal Aston 2nds successfully chasing just 47 at Darfield 2nds; and another new team, Sheffield University Staff, defending 98 with relative ease at Mexborough Athletic. Notable bowling performances included 5-25 for Mexborough’s Jonny Bradley, 5-7 for the University’s Robert Hill, and 4-15 for Coal Aston’s Edward Rabjohn. Last but certainly not least, Upper Haugh 2nds beat Conisbrough 2nds by 75 runs as Craig Jackson’s 6-32 helped bowl the home side out for just 58. Yet more low scores meant the only losing team to pick up points were Fishlake, with Hallam 3rds and Rotherham Town 2nds yet to play.
Division 6
There were some big wins in Division Six with Thorpe Hesley & High Green 2nds, Green Moor 2nds and Barnsley Woolley Miners 4ths all prevailing by significant margins. Barnsley posted the biggest score of the day, finishing their 40 overs on 204-4 at home to Caribbean 2nds. Wicketkeeper Mark Kenny was their top scorer with 61 before skipper Adrianna Darlow took 5-34 to limit Caribbean to 173-9. Zaryab Hussain’s 57 for the away side was the one shining light. The biggest winning margin, however, came at Thorpe Hesley as Thomas Parker’s 50 and Matthew Bradley Green’s 62 helped the home side to 185-9, before removing the visitors for 113 in the second innings. Green Moor’s win at Handsworth 2nds came courtesy of a brilliant bowling performance from Anthony Godley, who picked up 8-13 to carry his side to a comfortable 65-run win. The other game of the day was closer, as Penistone 2nds chased down 111 at home to Wickersley Old Village 3rds. Extras proved costly for Wickersley as the 30 runs they contributed to Penistone’s chase were only exceeded for the hosts by Sam Lee’s 46. The visitors earlier had Subhaan Hussain to thank as his 60 from 110 balls made up more than half of their total. Whitley Hall 3rds, Sprotbrough 3rds and Bradfield Village Fellowship 2nds are all still yet to play as Thorpe Hesley & High Green top the early standings.
On Monday, at Baxter Field, 5-29 from Sam Tomlinson helped Whitley Hall 3rds bowl Bradfield 2nds out for 132, despite Mick Bocking's 40. Josh Dobson's unbeaten 73 in 77 balls propelled his side to a nine-wicket win with nearly 20 overs to spare.
Division 7
An extraordinary bowling display from Higham 2nds took the plaudits in Division Seven as they bowled their visitors, Mexborough Athletic 2nds, out for just 28 runs. No Mexborough batsman made it to double figures and the hosts chased down the total in 6 overs, but not without the loss of two wickets. There were some close encounters elsewhere as Frecheville Community 2nds chased 77 away at Eden Grove Parklands, winning with just three wickets to spare. Ackworth 2nds also played out a tight affair at Harley as the home side came within just 11 runs of chasing down the 128 Ackworth had set in the first innings. Ian Wood scored 60 for the visitors in what was very much a match-winning innings, while Tom Wade’s 6-25 for the hosts wasn’t enough to inspire a victory. In the other game, Monk Bretton 2nds came out clear winners at home to Millhouses Works 2nds, where they bowled their visitors out for just 91 chasing 145. James White scored 60 off 90 for the home side with their wickets shared between six bowlers. Higham 2nds hit the front on the first weekend, leaving Mexborough propping up the table.
Division 8
There were just two games to report in Division 8 as Rockingham Colliery 3rds saw their game at home to Fishlake 2nds cancelled, along with Scholes’ game against Dearne. Worsbrough Bridge 2nds won with room to spare at Stocksbridge 2nds as they prevailed by 64 runs. A collective batting effort saw them to 197-7 as they were put into bat in the first innings before yet more teamwork from the bowling attack saw them easily over the line as they limited their hosts to 133-8. All five of their bowlers took at least one wicket. The other game was a much closer affair as Hatfield Town 2nds chased down 102 away at Houghton Main 2nds with just four wickets and 2.3 overs to spare. Events mean only Worsbrough Bridge and Hatfield finished the weekend on the maximum 12 points.
Division 9
Two games went down to the wire in Division Nine as Upper Haugh 3rds fell just seven runs short of victory at Kexborough 2nds and Whiston Forge 2nds chased down 99 with just two wickets to spare at home to Brookhouse 2nds. Kexborough won’t have been at all happy with their first innings total as their visitors bowled them out for just 98, but their bowlers had other ideas as a collective effort saw them bowl Upper Haugh out agonisingly close to the finish line. Brookhouse’s attack nearly pulled off a similar feat in the second innings of their game with David Fox’s 4-18 making Whiston Forge sweat, only for them to eventually scramble to victory. The other two matches were much more straightforward. Hampole & Skelbrooke bowled Eden Grove Parklands 2nds out for just 31 after a score of 67 from James Lawson helped set the visitors 127 to win. Stuart Stubbins and James Beresford did the damage with the ball as they took 4-11 and 4-9 respectively. Finally, on Sunday, Adwick-le-Street completed a relatively comfortable victory at Sheffield United 3rds. Christopher Jeeves’ 4-26 helped bowl the home side out for just 73, before they chased the total down for the loss of four wickets. Hampole & Skelbrooke lead the way to begin with, with Eden Grove Parklands propping up the table.
by Sam Chadwick
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