Runs galore in the sunshine

Spurred on by the good weather batsmen scored more than 850 runs over the weekend in Audlem's cricket matches.

The 1st XI piled on the runs in their basement battle at Eastham. Batting first they scored 221 for 3 in their 48 overs, with Dave Parry leading the scoring with 70 not out. There were also good knocks from George Gay (44) and Andy Capper (37).

In a disappointing response, Eastham never tried to go for a win, scoring only 89 for the loss of 4 wickets in 42 overs. In an attempt to get wickets Audlem used nine different bowlers.

The 2nd XI had a busy weekend, playing two matches. On Saturday a weakened team with only 10 players put in a gritty performance against Kerridge, who won the toss and batted first. Tight bowling by Geoff Seddon, Oliver Burney and Norman Hindle restricted the early run rate to less than two per over. Kerridge's innings eventually gained momentum and they finished on 179 for 4 in their 48 overs. Burney was the pick of the bowlers taking 2 for 13 off his ten overs. Max Gay took his first wicket in the league for Audlem, finishing with 1 for 8.

In reply Audlem's batsmen made steady progress and a stand of 74 between Dave Baxter (40) and John Wainwright (41) made an unlikely victory look possible. However, after Baxter was out, two further wickets fell quickly and Audlem batted out for a draw, ending on 138 for 7.

On Sunday they travelled to Wilmslow Wayfarers for a rearranged game, again with many regular players missing. Batting first they only managed to score 113 runs with Geoff Seddon scoring 35. Dave Parry (23) and Oliver Burney (19) also added useful runs.

Wayfarers never looked troubled by the low target, but good bowling and fielding by Audlem put pressure on the batsmen, resulting in 5 wickets being lost before the winning runs were hit. George Gay was the most successful bowler, finishing with 2 for 25.

Next Saturday both teams play Grange, with the 1st XI at home.

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