Author name: Ian Roberts

Cheshire County Cricket League Div 2 Ashton on Mersey CC 1st XI 137 all out Lost to NE Cheshire CC 1st XI 228-8 Mark Weighill bowls Ashton fell to defeat on the road at North East Cheshire, as their batting failed to chase down a challenging target. Choosing to bowl first, Ashton found home openers Daniel Williams (50) and James Banner (59) in fine form. North East batted well throughout as they punished anything loose delivered by the Ashton bowlers. Whilst wickets fell at regular intervals, the runs kept coming, with Jake Reynolds hitting a half century at better than a run a ball.   Spinner Mark Weighill emerged with the best figures (5 for 61) and Ashton never allowed the innings to truly get away from them. But they knew that the run chase would not be easy, particularly as they were missing several top order batters. And so it proved, as early wickets put Ashton on the back foot. Whilst skipper James Marshall and Sam Kingsman-Ali both showed sparks of a fightback, a mixture of decent bowling and some poor shot selection saw Ashton slump to 137 all out. Toby Carson took the bowling honours with 5-24. This was a second consecutive loss for Ashton who will need to get back on track in the coming weeks to ensure that their season meets its early promise. The Ashton 2nd XI lost their game against Oulton Park at The Beets. Ashton 148 all out (Mark Duncan 48 not out, Damian Barton 6-39) Oulton Park 151-4 (Ben Kettle 60) The 3rd XI lost a low scoring game against Bowdon. Bowdon 97 all out ( Adam Heap 4-34) Ashton 66 all out (Anay Deshpande 4-13) Sam Kingsman-Ali bats

Cheshire County Cricket League Division 2 Ashton on Mersey CC 1st XI 109 all out Lost to Cheadle Hulme CC 1st XI 315 -6 Charlie Eaton bowls Ashton were well beaten at Cheadle Hulme as the home side produced a dominant batting display to enhance their promotion prospects. Choosing to bat first, Cheadle Hulme shook off the early loss of opener Rhys Collister as Veteran Adam Wilde and overseas player Ashton Muir came together to record a 200 run partnership for the second wicket. Muir rode some early luck whilst attacking the bowling at every opportunity. The Ashton bowling did not wilt under the onslaught but there was little anyone could have done to stop Muir in this mood. Charlie Eaton eventually removed Wilde for a fine 67, but Muir pressed on to his well-deserved century. Muir eventually fell, caught in the deep hitting out, for 143 made off just 110 balls. With Sam Bright (55) and Aayush Singh Slathia energetically adding runs in the final overs, Ashton were left with a mammoth total to try and chase. Ashton’s effort stalled before it began, with Hugh Gibbons and Mike Roberts falling for ducks to Scott Howarth in the first over. Whilst Fraser Hay, Dave Patterson and Tom Scott battled hard, the result was never in doubt. With Scott having to retire injured, the innings spluttered to an end with just over 100 on the board. This was a harsh lesson for Ashton but they deserve credit for sticking to the task in the field and they will write this off as a day when they came up against a fine batsman whose day it was. Ashton’s 2nd XI also fell to defeat, against Urmston at The Beets. Urmston 219-8 (Jamie Cotton 56, Yousuf Bhamjee 3-54) Ashton 118 all out (Richard Partington 7-41) Ashton’s 3rd XI went down to defeat against Ashley. Ashley 177-5 (Mohammad Kamran 67) Ashton 48 all out (Rory Wilkinson 5-24) Fraser Hay bats

Cheshire County Cricket League Division 2 Ashton on Mersey CC 1st XI 231-5 Beat Alvanley CC 1st XI 229-7 Kris Green bowls Ashton recorded an excellent victory as they fought off the challenge of Alvanley in a fine game of cricket at The Beets. On a near perfect summer’s day, Ashton invited the visitors to bat first on what promised to be a fine batting track which would get even better during the day. Opening bowers Fraser Hay and Kris Green bowled well with little luck as Mike Rowlands and Stephen Charles put on 50 for the first wicket. The introduction of Charlie Eaton saw the breakthrough, as he dislodged Rowlands, taking a second wicket in his next over.  Ashton wobbled in the field with a number of dropped chances, but Jack Cumersdale clung onto a caught and bowled to remove veteran Andy Bennion. Spinner Zaheer Khan made the next breakthrough, removing Charles for a fine 53, but the Alvanley lower order kept pressing to move their score past 200. The final total of 229 was perhaps par for the day. Khan finished with well deserved figures of 3-48. In reply Ashton started steadily with Hugh Gibbons and Macca Hooton combating Alvanley’s  fine opening attack of  Chris Charles and Ieuan Morris. When Hooton fell, Gibbons was joined by Mike Roberts and together they built a 75 run partnership which moved the game Ashton’s way.  When they fell (Gibbons for a well made 58) Hay and Tom Scott took up the challenge and the victory target came into sight. Scott fell on the home straight but Hay hit the winning runs to finish unbeaten on 57. This was a superb game of cricket between two fine teams, played in a good spirit. Ashton will be very satisfied to have got the win, which moves them up to 5th in the table ahead of next week’s trip to Cheadle Hulme. Ashton’s 2nd XI went down to defeat at Maritime. Maritime 230 all out, Ashton 97 all out. The 3rd XI also lost at Bramhall. Ashton 165 all out (Steve Mckinney 66) Bramhall 168-2 (Josh Patel 101 not out­) Mike Roberts bats

Cheshire County Cricket League Division 2 Ashton on Mersey CC 1st XI 104 all out Lost to Maritime CC 1st XI 110 -2 James Marshall Batting Ashton on Mersey fell to defeat on a farcical day at promotion chasing Maritime. Heavy morning rain had left the ground sodden, with muddy areas across the square and the outfield. The pitch was water damaged and prospects for play looked slim as rain continued on and off through the day. But the home side worked hard to try and get the ground playable and their efforts should be applauded. Despite their work, the ground remained treacherously soft. Remarkably, the umpires deemed the ground fit for play at just before 5pm, with both sides allocated 24 overs each to bat. Ashton were asked to bat first on a pitch which still showed signs of the water damage, and it soon became clear that this was no surface for stroke makers, as the ball stopped and cut on a deck that could not be trusted. Runs only came through hitting out and hoping for the best. Skipper James Marshall led the way with a fighting 36, but the rest of the strong Ashton batting line up was neutralised by the conditions and a lack of luck as aerial shots went straight to fielders who would have struggled to make ground had they needed to move. Some tail order hitting by Kris Green got the score above 100 and the fact that only he and Marshall reached double figures shows the impact of the conditions. In reply, the Ashton bowling was hindered by the wet run ups. The normally potent seam attack of Marshall and Fraser Hay needed a firm footing to perform as they can, and this was denied them by the conditions. The Maritime attack, based on spin and medium pace had been  less hampered by the conditions, which may, no doubt, have influenced their enthusiasm to play. Despite some early wickets the result was never in doubt as the Maritime batters hit out to win the game easily, with a rapid 50 from Kankanange. This game should never have been played. Fielders could not run and it was only by luck that no-one was injured. Whilst the desire to get a game on is admirable, allowing a game to proceed as a reward for efforts at “mopping up” when the ground remained unfit for play was a dreadful error. Ashton’s 2nd XI lost to Congleton at The Beets in another game impacted (although much less so) by the weather. Congleton 173-8 (Stephan Stubbs 64, Ayush Chakrabati 5-31)  Ashton 128 all out (Owen Lees 4-25). Kris Green

Ashton on Mersey CC 1st XI 212-4 Beat Congleton CC 1st XI 211-8 Cheshire County Cricket League Division 2 Hugh Gibbons hits out Ashton on Mersey recorded a fine win over Congleton thanks to an excellent batting performance at The Beets. Losing the toss and being asked to bowl first, Ashton did well to restrict the early efforts of Congleton, with James Marshall in particular delivering an exceptional opening spell. Whilst several of the visitors’ batters got starts, none of them could go on to make an innings-defining score. Spinner Zaheer Khan snuffed out any attempt to accelerate the run rate, finishing with well-deserved figures of 4-32. Backed up by some fine work in the field, Ashton had Congleton on the ropes, before Jayden Armstrong and John Copeland came together to provide the visitors with some hope. Chancing their arm, the pair hit out to take the score beyond 200, leaving Ashton with a batting challenge to confront. Ashton’s reply began steadily with Macca Hooton and debutant Hugh Gibbons putting on 45 for the first wicket before Hooton fell. Gibbons was joined by Mike Roberts and the pair worked together to create the basis of victory for the home side. With both batters playing steady cricket, whilst pouncing on anything loose, they put on 136 for the 2nd wicket, before Roberts was dismissed for an invaluable 43. The excellent Gibbons, who had been the leader of the partnership with Roberts, posted a superb century before departing with the winning post in sight. Ashton got over the line with 4 overs to spare for the loss of 4 wickets. Gibbons’ excellent performance allowed Ashton to move up the table and they will be looking forward to the challenge of travelling to promotion-chasing Maritime in the next round of league games. Ashton’s 2nd XI made it another double winning Saturday as they overcame Stockport CC. Ashton 161-9 (James Newton 33) Stockport 108 all out (Qand Agha 52 not out, Kris Green 4-20). Gibbons celebrates his century

Ashton on Mersey CC 1st XI 180-9 Lost to Port Sunlight CC 1st XI 195-9 Cheshire County Cricket League Division 2 Fraser Hay Bowling Ashton went down to a narrow defeat against table topping Port Sunlight in a fine game of cricket at The Beets. Choosing to bowl first Ashton had early success as Fraser Hay and Charlie Eaton produced another fine new ball spell. With runs hard to come by the visitors were grateful to Lewis Davies who dug in to provide a stable base from which Port Sunlight could rebuild. With the middle order batting launching a counterattack through Simon Melberzs, Keelan Metzer and Wayne Greve, the Sunlight score rose to a competitive total. Melberzs fell for 44, but Davies carried his bat for a solid and invaluable 73 as Sunlight reached 195 off their 50 overs. Hay posted fine and deserved figures of 4-23 with spinner Mark Weighill picking up late wickets to finish with 3-29. In reply Ashton lost both openers early, but James Newton and Dave Patterson built a platform for the run chase. When they went, Hay took up the challenge with a well judged batting effort, but the rest of the Ashton middle order failed to fire. With three wickets falling for the addition of only one run Ashton were on the back foot, but Hay and Weighill maintained hope as they kept the required run rate within sight. But when Hay was caught for 43, Weighill and the tail could not quite keep up the momentum required. In the end the home team fell 15 runs short. Martin Naylor took the bowling honours with 4-26. This was a fine advert for the game and Ashton will be looking to turn good performances into wins over the coming weeks. Ashton 2nd XI lost on their travels at Romiley. Romiley 133-8 (Lee Heap 3-19, Max Lilley 3-33) Ashton 119 all out (Peter Stuart 4-17, Ethan Turner 3-19) Fraser Hay Batting