Super Scott stars as Trinity are promoted

IT’S fair to say that expectations were low for Southport Trinity’s 2nd XI game on Saturday.

The weather forecast dictated that the most likely entertainment to be had for the day was watching either Phil Buck’s dance moves or admiring a masterclass in drinking Jagermeister from interim chair Steve Bennet.

To write a game off to the weather at the Rookery is a fool’s errand though, and when the rain moved away just before mid-day, both Trinity and their opponents Maghull were keen to get on with playing as much cricket as possible.

Maghull skipper Jay Stanley may have regretted their decision to bat first after the top order were blown away in the first 12 overs of the innings.

The returning George Campbell was the tormentor-in-chief after a customarily fiery spell of bowling, not forgetting a lightning stumping from Jamie Piggott, and at 19 for 5 the Maghull innings was teetering on the brink of collapse.

Some lusty hitting from Stanley moved the scoreboard on quickly, but at drinks Maghull were on the ropes at 51 for 7.

Cue a steady, solid partnership from Malone and Connolly which pushed the score into three figures.

As the fielding side looked nervously at the sky for signs of the forecasted monsoon to come, the Maghull tail were aided by some mediocre fielding, a number of chances going down.

Captain Phil Jones even turned to the famed mystery spin of Phil Buck in an attempt to break the partnership, unsuccessfully, before finally three quick wickets fell, leaving Maghull 123 all out from 54 overs. Bowling honours were shared by Campbell and Scott Francis, both taking 4 wickets.

Francis and Will Marsh opened the Trinity batting, and with the forecast now improving, the pressure to score runs quickly was somewhat reduced.

Marsh looked in fine form after last week’s unbeaten half century, until he played all around a straight one, dismissed for 15.

After a semi-dynamic fielding and bowling display, watching star allrounder Francis bat was like watching a Ferrari with a thimbleful of petrol, one spectator suggesting that removal of his parachute was in order after a particularly sloth-like run between the wickets.

This didn’t stop him bringing up his sixth half century of the season though, and although he was dismissed soon after, by this point the game was up for the visitors.

Piggott and Joey Damen sharing an entertaining partnership at the end to give Trinity an unexpected 25 points following the six wicket victory. Promotion from the 2nd division of the league has now been confirmed with four games to spare and eyes are now drawn to the fixture at the Rookery on 4 September between old rivals Trinity and Fleetwood Hesketh upon which the league title might be won and lost.

Credit to both Southport teams who have put serious daylight between themselves and the rest of the division over the course of this season.