First win worth
MARPLE’S long awaited first win of 2015 finally came over old rivals Cheadle at Kingsway last Saturday as they collected a 25-point victory haul.
Cheadle’s veteran skipper Paul Sperring elected to bat on winning the toss on the first June Saturday of the season.
The pitch appeared to be well grassed although it was sluggish in pace, and the outfield, whilst lush, was fast, with the ball racing away to the boundary in the early overs of the home side’s innings.
It was a good job for Marple that stand-in opening bowler Paul Wood picked up three quick wickets.
Joe Prince (19) and later Dan Brown (46) both played some extravagant strokes, with some off the outside edge, against the new ball, and the scoreboard rattled along at over five runs per over.
This was not what Marple needed in a crucial game against fellow strugglers in the league this year.
A number of sharp catches were also missed, with Sam Harbinson and later Eliot Young failing to hang on to hard hit caught and bowled chances.
Even after Wood had bowled the dangerous Elliot Bullock, the score continued to mount, and unfortunately for Marple, a back twinge meant that Wood had to be rested from the attack after taking 3-30 in just six overs.
Only Andy Greasley was able to give his captain any real control, as fellow spin twin Eliot Young struggled with his length, possibly being affected by the strong westerly wind that blew across the ground in the early part of the afternoon.
Brown and Will Holmes added fifty for the fifth wicket, but when both fell at 117, Marple may have felt that the back of the Cheadle innings was broken.
Although Sperring did not last long, Ben Samuels (26) and Drew Carswell (11) showed character to give the home side a reasonable score of 161 on what was to prove a tricky surface.
Harbinson came back well to clean up the tail and finished with 4 for 44 from 11 .4 overs.
The brilliant diving left handed catch by keeper Makin to dismiss Matt
It was a good job that stand-in opening bowler Paul Wood took three quick wickets
Fotia was the highlight of the day in the field for Marple.
Greasley, in good form again this season, ended with 2-33 from 14 overs of guile.
Marple had managed to take all ten wickets for the first time this summer, and were glad to have the use of eleven extra overs in the run chase.
On the resumption after tea, Marple were delighted to have former Cheshire skipper Andrew Hall back at the top of the order again.
Hall has been out of action for a month with a rib injury, and with Matt Fotia opening up for Cheadle, his skill and experience were much needed.
Fotia, still only twenty years of age, has represented Australia U19s on a number of occa- sions with some success.
He has a strong and easy approach to the wicket, and even on this pitch with low bounce, got the ball through to keeper Bullock with good pace.
He is also accurate, and Hall was particularly careful to leave any deliveries around off stump when he could.
Mark Makin (5) was soon bowled by Fotia, and when skipper Bennett (5)