Roll your sleeves up and fight like hell
MI Dental Liverpool Competition: First Division: Ainsdale (20pts) 187-3 beat Southport and Birkdale (3pts) 184 by seven wickets THERE were 62 reasons why Southport and Birkdale’s supporters could find a little comfort in their side’s seven-wicket defeat at Ainsdale on Saturday.
Each of Isaac Lea’s runs confirmed that a very talented young batsman was learning what first-team cricket is all about.
On a much less exalted level Lea’s 87-ball innings helped his side manage a total above 80 for the first time in five competitive innings.
That, however, is more or less where the good news ended for the Trafalgar Road side. Lea’s nine fours and one six may have helped his side post a total of 184 in 59.4 overs but Ainsdale’s batsmen coasted past that target with 17 balls to spare and their comfort zone would have been greater had not a light shower trimmed two overs of the day’s play.
Ainsdale won because bowlers like Malcolm Swift and the multi-talented Martyn Farrell displayed a discipline which most of S&B’s lacked and because they had three batsmen capable of playing major innings.
No one exemplified the difference between the sides more clearly - or enjoyed the victory more - than home skipper Andy Barlow, who anchored his side’s pursuit perfectly.
The Ainsdale skipper played second trombone to Mark Foster and Sam Lucas, both of whom made fifties, but it was Barlow’s application that gave his partners licence to attack.
Chris Firth must wish that one or other of his senior batsmen could play a similar innings each week.
As it is, Firth’s team have lost four matches on the trot and are currently in eleventh position in the middle tier of the MI Dental Liverpool Competition. S&B should admit that relegation is a danger; one way or another, two teams are going to be demoted in September. Then they should circle their wagons, practice hard and fight like hell when Saturdays come round.
What will harm S&B’s chances if they blame their plight on umpiring decisions, poor outfields, bad luck, acts of God or what they had for breakfast. Firth and his players are going through one of the toughest periods in their cricketing careers.
They are losing matches because they are playing poor cricket. And no one can get them out of this mess except themselves.
On Saturday, they host Northop Hall and the game starts at one o’clock. We shall see what they are made of.
S&B’s second team also lost on Saturday but only after playing a full part in what is likely to be one of their matches of the season.
A third-wicket partnership of 173 between Nick Knight, who made 92, and the returning Salopian Charlie Byrne, who contributed 77 not out helped the home side make 224-5 declared, which looked a pretty formidable target at tea time.
However, almost eight of Leigh’s batsmen reached double figures and the visitors squeezed home by one wicket, despite the efforts of those cerebral seamers, Craig Todd, who took 3-61, and Jordan Bell, the Whitgift wobbler, who returned figures of 4-71.
The rest of the weekend’s defeats were a little less memorable.
On Sunday the second team played a rearranged league match but could make only 97 against Wallasey, 43 of them being scored by Josh Hine and 21 by the multi-talented Todd.
Jake Reitschel then dimissed four Wallasey batsmen at a cost of 18 runs but the Wirral side won by four wickets in a mere 18 overs.
And despite Simon Pearce’s 57, S&B’s third team could make no more than 142 in reply to Widnes’s 247-5 declared and they therefore lost by 105 runs.