Band leader Firth striking a chord
Liverpool Gin Liverpool Competition: First Division: Southport & Birkdale (24pts), 191 for eight declared, beat Newton-leWillows (5pts), 101, by 90 runs
FOR almost all this pleasant season, Chris Firth has been content to conduct the band. With Chris Cunningham and Gary Keedy able to share the spinners’ duties, S&B’s captain has been able to lead his largely inexperienced team without worrying that he will be needed to bowl 20 overs or so in every game. And it has worked very well. S&B have enjoyed almost unbroken success in league matches and that run was continued on Saturday when they made it ten wins in 12 matches with a 90-run defeat of Newton-le-Willows at Crow Lane East.
However, with Cunningham unavailable, Firth seized the opportunity offered by a crusty Crow Lane pitch to bowl his side to their comfortable victory.
Firth’s figures of 8-55 were not his best in the Liverpool Competition but during his spell he took his 500th league wicket and also achieved a hat-trick when he trapped Nathan Hughes lbw for nought.
The celebrations greeting this latter feat were very low-key on Saturday.
This was mainly because the wickets were taken in two different overs and no one noticed it had occurred until Colin Warhurst, S&B’s scorer, brought it to everybody’s attention on Sunday afternoon.
Firth, himself, was happy with the result of the match but typically selfdeprecatory about his own performance. “I didn’t bowl that well,” he said. “The good balls got wickets but there were a few full tosses in there as well.”
Firth’s capacity for self-criticism is to be admired.
It allows him to set an example to S&B’s younger batsmen, three of whom batted very well in tough conditions on Saturday but then failed to go on and make the 80-plus scores which determine the shape of a match.
Isaac Lea, Charlie Byrne and Harry May are all having good summers but the trio rather donated their wickets to the bowlers on Saturday.
It is the sort of indiscipline which invariably carries a heavy penalty in Premier League cricket and Firth is entitled to ask for more from such talented young cricketers.
As things turned out on Saturday, Adam Burton’s fine unbeaten 33 allowed S&B to post 191 for eight and then take three top-order Newton wickets before the players took a two-hour break to watch England’s World Cup match against Sweden.
When they returned Firth grabbed another five wickets and Adam Phillips pickpocketed his second and third short-leg catches of the day.
Chris Chambers’ batsmen, who never looked likely to survive on a wicket offering turn and bounce, even- tually subsided after 34 overs and S&B now lead the table by 67 points from Orrell Red Triangle.
A fast-improving Wigan team visit Trafalgar Road on Saturday.
Last Sunday S&B reached the league final of the Vitality Club T20 when they beat Colwyn Bay by nine wickets at Brook Lane.
However, that was where the fun ended for Firth’s team as they lost to Ormskirk by 81 runs in the match to decide which club made progress towards the national Finals Day in September.
Southport and Birkdale’s second team still lead their Premier League after playing a full part in a tense draw against second-placed Ormskirk on Saturday.
Jonny Hine made 40 in his side’s 171 all out in 49.3 overs but Olly Green’s four for 52 then restricted the 2017 champions to 156 for nine in 42 overs.
S&B head the table by 22 points but Ormskirk have three games in hand and can be considered strong favourites to retain their title.