Game 2 v Northampton Spencer

St Michael's Cricket Club

Opponent	:	Northampton Spencer
Date	:	7 May 2005
Venue	:	Weston Favell Upper School
Result	:	Won by 56 runs

Innings of: St Michael's

1	D Harrison	b	Morgan	46	Bowling	O	M	R	W
2	A Bartley	ct Tootle	Warsthorne	38	M Clare	9	0	26	0
3	M Collier		run out	14	A Bishop	5	0	25	0
4	W Kingston jr		not out	45	R Morgan	12	2	38	1
5	D York		not out	9	T Warsthorne	10	0	52	1
	Overs	40	Extras	19	R Muscutt	4	0	21	0
	Wickets	3	Total	171

Innings of: Northampton Spencer

1	M Geogle	b	Baker	4	Bowling	O	M	R	W
2	S Faulkner	ct Kingston jr	Swann	15	M Baker	9	1	35	4
3	P Hedy	b	Marlow	1	M Swann	6	3	18	1
4	M Woodem	b	Baker	10	T Marlow	8	1	39	1
5	R Muscutt	b	Geddes	57	S Cannell	6	1	20	0
6	G Morgan	ct Swann	Baker	6	I Geddes	4.1	0	8	4
7	T Crabtree	ct Bartley	Geddes	2
8	R Tootell	b	Geddes	3
9	M Clare	b	Geddes	4
10	T Rawsthorne	ct Geddes	Baker	6
11	A Bishop		not out	1
	Overs	33.1	Extras	6
	Wickets	10	Total	115

Match report

Week two of the Northants County League Division 12 campaign saw St Michael's face up to old Town League rivals Northampton Spencer.

The start of the match was delayed by half an hour due to a damp wicket following an earlier shower, reducing the match to 40 overs a side. Spencer won the toss and put St Michael's in to bat.

In freezing cold conditions, openers Al Bartley and Dale Harrison made a solid start, putting on 75 for the first wicket in positive fashion, scoring at 4 an over until Bartley was first to go, caught at cover off Warsthorne for 38. Matt Collier joined Harrison at the crease and made a quickfire 14 before he chanced a cheeky single and was run out. Harrison was out soon after, bowled for solid 46.

Will Kingston was next in, and despite his 89 last week, he started nervously. But after the first run was on the board, he let loose with some ferocious hitting in a rapid 45 not out to push the score to 171 off 40 overs.

Spencer's reply got off to a flying start with Geogle hitting opening bowler Martin Baker for 4 off the third ball of the innings. However Baker then delivered a superb slower ball to bowl Geogle and claim immediate revenge of the most definitive kind.

Malc Swann then had Faulkner caught at square leg by Kingston for 14, before Baker struck again, bowling Woodem for 10. At 17 for 3, Spencer were on their heels.

However Muscutt then put up a stubborn response, halting the early clatter of wickets whilst keeping up with the scoring rate. Change bowlers Tom Marlow and Simon Cannell then applied the pressure to increase the scoring rate to over 5 runs an over before skipper Ian Geddes remove the dangerous Muscutt, bowling him for 57.

They say that catches win matches, and in the field, the St Michael's fielders certainly seemed to be taking their chances. Al Bartley took one round his ankles to remove Crabtree, Malc Swann stooped low to remove Morgan, and then skipper Ian Geddes gobbled a straightforward^#effort at mid wicket to send Rawsthorne on his way for 6.

With wickets coming at regular intervals, St Michael's marched to their second victory in a row by a comfortable 56 runs. Pick of the bowlers were Geddes with 4 for 8 and Baker with 4 for 35.

# For 'straightforward', read 'straightforward for Jonty Rhodes'. It was actually a bloody good catch, though I'm not sure if the tumble afterwards was really necessary