Cup kings Kirk look good to keep title
ORMSKIRK made it four in a row in the Liverpool Gin Liverpool Competition’s T20 cup on Sunday – and they look in good form to defend their ECB Premier Division title too.
The heroes of Sunday’s Finals Day triumphs were Gary Knight and Luke Platt.
In the semi-final against Bootle, they amassed 104 together to set up a 27-run win, with Knight finishing on 70* from 48 balls.
Then, in the final against Southport and Birkdale, it was Platt’s turn to take the lead with an unbeaten 63 as the pair put on 68 in an imposing total of 189.
Knight finished the day with 115 runs from 72 balls, while Platt was named man of the match after the S&B lower order crumbled to give Ormskirk an 81-run win.
Skipper Nicky Caunce described the final as “the most complete T20 performance we’ve had this year”.
He said: “We knew Southport had a few dangerous players and we knew we needed to restrict them early on and take key wickets at key times. We bowled really well.
“We had plans and we executed them really well – the wicket was flat and to restrict them to 108 was a great effort.”
Saturday’s 28-run league win over Lytham was a tighter affair.
Caunce said it was only in the last half hour of the game, as Tom Hartley took 7/69 to blow away the visitors’ lower order, that they truly looked like winning.
Prevailing in such situations, of course, is what champions do.
After an iffy start on a newly watered pitch, Andy Baybutt’s 83 held the innings together and set up a total of 213/8.
“He deserved a hundred,” said Caunce. “He batted for about two and a half hours, grifted it out and got us to our total.”
In reply, Lytham were 145/2 with 15 overs left, before Hartley took over. Caunce says time spent with the Lancashire 2nd XI has been paying dividends for the 19-year-old left-arm tweaker.
“At one point, there was no other result than a Lytham win,” said Caunce. “We’ve got a young side and I think that shows we’ve got the mental strength to just keep going.
“Tom has really stepped up this year. I had a word with him in the winter – Simon Kerrigan had gone back to Fulwood, and it was on Tom’s shoulders to be the main spinner.
“He’s come through with flying col- ours – he’s the one we turn to when we want to get wickets.
“Just from playing for Lancs these past few week, he’s gone up another gear as well.”
Northern are Ormskirk’s closest challengers in the league – they got one over on local rivals Bootle with a sixwicket win. Daniel Davies finished unbeaten on 50 for the visitors, but only two other batsmen made double figures, and 145 was never likely to be enough; Liam Grey hit a half-century of his own to set up the win.
Formby lost ground after Rainford dismissed them for 116 – John Dotters taking 5/37 – then knocked off the runs with four wickets to spare.
New Brighton earned their second win of the season a week after their first, chasing down 172 to beat Highfield by five wickets.
An unbroken stand of 150 between Neil Cross (80*) and Matthew Wilcox (78*) saw Wallasey earn a six-wicket win over Rainhill, chasing down 193.
And Leigh hung on to beat Colwyn Bay by two wickets, in pursuit of 191.