Author name: Ian Roberts

Cheshire County Cricket League Division 3 Ashton on Mersey CC 1sy XI  255-3 Beat Bredbury St Marks CC 1st XI 254-7 Ashton came out on top of a high scoring thriller at The Beets which saw over 500 runs scored in the day. Opting to bowl first, Ashton found the visitors in an aggressive mood as the opening batters attacked from the start. James Marshall broke the opening partnership before Zac Roberts, on his 1st team league debut, took out the middle order with 3 wickets. Elliot Ridgeway and Will Mairs then came together to build an innings defining effort, putting on 111 for the 6th wicket. The Bredbury total of 254-7 looked above par on a pitch which always had something in it for the bowlers . 3 wickets each for Marshall and Roberts was a good reward for their hard work. In reply, Ashton batted excellently in pursuit of the target.  Dave Patterson and Harris Yassin put on 65 for the first wicket, before Charles Erasmus and Charlie Eaton built a 50 partnership for the 3rd wicket. After Eaton fell, Erasmus was joined by Marshall, and the pair produced a classy and fluent exhibition of how a run chase should be managed. Both batters played watchfully when needed but put away anything loose, whilst keeping the target in sight. The pair passed the winning line in the penultimate over with Erasmus unbeaten on 78 and Marshall 57 not out. This was a fine performance from Ashton, with the win taking them 2nd in the league just 2 points behind the leaders. Ashton’s 2nd team fell to a disappointing defeat away at Cheadle Hulme. Ashton 148 all out Cheadle Hulme 154-2. The matches of the 3rd and 4th team were abandoned due to the weatherPictured James Marshall bowls Charles Erasmus bats 

Cheshire County Cricket League Division 3 Ashton on Mersey CC 1st XI 271 -6 Beat Barrow CC 1st XI 103 all out Ashton bounced back after a couple of difficult weeks with a dominant away win at Barrow. Batting first after winning the toss, Ashton got off to a bright start with Dave Patterson and Harris Yassin putting on 68 for the first wicket. When they went Charles Erasmus and James Marshall both passed 50 to drive the Ashton effort forward.  Some late hitting allowed Ashton to post an impressive 271, which given the inconsistent batting of recent weeks was a welcome return to form. In reply Barrow were rocked as the Ashton opening attack of Erasmus and Kris Green proved too much of a handful for the top order batting. The home team never recovered from their poor start and only some last wicket hitting got their total into three figures. Green was the bowling pick, finishing with fine figures of 4-27. The 168 margin of victory was an accurate reflection of the gap between the sides and Ashton will hope to take this form into the next round of games. Ashton’s 2nd team lost a high scoring game to Grappenhall at The Beets. Ashton 197-6 Grappenhall 199-5 (Zach Tully 84) The Ashton 3rd XI went top of their league with a fine win against Didsbury. Ashton 177-7 (Ashish Gupta 43 no) Didsbury 155 all out. Ashton’s 4th XI pulled off a great win at home to Langley. Ashton 132 all out (Hari Puthanvitle 50) Langley 109 all out (Ethan White 7-23)

Ashton on Mersey CC 1st XI 128 all out Ashton on Mersey CC 1st XI 128 all out Lost to Runcorn CC 1st XI 229-9 Ashton’s bright start to the season hit the rocks as they were well beaten by Runcorn at The Beets. Losing the toss and being asked to bowl first Ashton could be satisfied with their early efforts as they took early wickets to restrict Runcorn to 48-3. But Keiran Maher (60) and Nauman Akram (52) posted a 90 run 4th wicket partnership to bring Runcorn back into the game. Ashton failed to take the few chances that came their way and with Dave McNamara hitting a rapid fire 52 not out in the final overs, the final total of 229 looked to be an acceptable if not exceptional effort. With the ball Charlie Eaton again showed his tremendous all round ability taking 3-45. Ashton’s hopes of challenging the target were blown away in the opening overs as Akram blitzed the home top order batting to leave the hosts at 24-5. A mixture of poor shot choice and a lack of application by the Ashton batters fell well below what one might have hoped for from the league leaders. Eaton showed his teammates how things should be done, with a fine 50, but the rest of the batting lineup need to take a long look at their approach. Akram finished with 5-26 and his efforts both with bat and ball underlined the difference between the teams. The result leaves Ashton in third place in the league with plenty to sort out before next week’s trip to Barrow. Ashton’s 2nd XI brightened the mood with a fine win away at Oakmere. Oakmere 199-8 (David Purcell 56) Ashton 203-5 (Tom Scott 53) Ashton’s 3rd XI continued their fine season with a win over Woodley at The Beets. Woodley 118 all out, Ashton 121-3 (Mo Shadaan 43 not out) Ashton’s 4th team lost a match against Didsbury who had originally conceded the game but found enough players at the last minute to fulfil the fixture….Ashton 128 all out Didsbury 129-8. Pictured Dave Patterson keeps wicket Charlie Eaton bats