LIVERPOOL COMPETITION CRICKET
ONLY two results were possible in the ECB Premier Division as batters once again dominated proceedings.
The season’s tally of top-flight centuries now stands at 29, from nine rounds of matches – in 11 full seasons since the change to three divisions in 2010, only three have seen a higher total after all 22 weekends.
Ormskirk skipper Gary Knight hit 111, backed up by 50s from George Politis and Harvey Rankin, to set up his side’s 22-run win over Southport & Birkdale.
Jack Stanley made 88 in reply to the hosts’ 251/4, but Zahir Shehzad’s 5/99 carried the day.
Rainhill did it differently – nobody scored more than 39 in their 190/9 against New Brighton, which was nonetheless just enough for a 12-run win.
Formby slipped to the bottom of the table despite racking up 264/3 at Birkenhead
Park – Sam Oldham scored 135 and Calum Turner 111 in a stand of 243, but Tom Foster’s unbeaten 67 helped his side close on 209/8.
Newton-le-Willows’ Ben Walkden passed 50 for the fifth time in nine innings in his side’s 230/9 at Leigh; the hosts’ Matty Hurst scored 63 in response, but they could only reach 150/5.
Neither Wallasey nor Northern will have come away from Saturday’s clash of the top two either completely happy or completely unhappy.
Both teams found out what they already knew about the quality of their spin bowling, with slow left-armers taking 13 of 18 wickets; both also suffered from slightly brittle middle orders.
Eight batters at 3, 4, 5 and 6 across both sides contributed 57 runs in a match where a substantial innings would have been decisive.
The hosts maintained their lead at the top of the Love Lane Liverpool Competition ECB Premier Division, and captain Greg Beaver would have taken the draw in a heartbeat having won the toss, chosen to bat and watched his top order suffer a rare bad day on their way to 97/9.
His counterpart, James Cole, must have feared the worst at 108/8 in response to 161, with seven overs to play out. But his tail stood firm on a wicket that left the skipper nonplussed.
“It was quite poor,” said Cole.
“In my opinion, the two best sides in the league, you want them to be playing on the best wicket.
“But it was slow, up and down, low and turning – it wasn’t, in my opinion, very good.”