Author name: Ian Roberts

Cheshire County Cricket League Division 2 Ashton on Mersey CC 1st XI 91 all out Lost to Haslington CC 1st XI 207-9 Image: Fraser Hay bowls Ashton on Mersey slumped to a heavy defeat at home to Haslington, as they failed to capitalise on a fine start to the match. Bowling first on a track offering some help to the seamers, Ashton had Haslington in all sorts of trouble as Fraser Hay and James Marshall ran through the top order.  With spinner Zaheer Khan posing more problems to the visitors, Ashton reduced Haslington to 83-8. But hopes of bundling out the visitors for a modest total were dashed by the excellent Ben Instead, who batted with calm excellence to rescue the batting effort. With support from the gritty Stephen Davies, Istead gave a batting masterclass to take the game away from a flagging Ashton attack. Instead fell just short of what would have been a well-deserved century, finishing on 96 not out having guided his team to 207-9 off their 50 overs. Marshall returned figures of 3-28 but the Ashton team seemed shellshocked by their failure to finish off the Haslington batting effort when they had the chance. In reply some bright cricket up front by openers Jamal Benzafar and Macca Hooton was snuffed out by two successful shouts for lbw. The rest of the batting failed to come to terms with the tight Haslington bowling and despite some late order hitting by Marshall (38), the home side slumped to a modest 91 all out. Tom Gledhill posted figures of 3-13 with Imran Khan returning 3-27. This was a disappointing game for Ashton, although the excellence of Istead needs to be acknowledged as the main reason for the loss. The Ashton 2nd XI lost a thrilling encounter away at Haslington. Ashton 172 all out (Lee Heap 59, Saeed Bhamjee 50, Joe Cork 4-40, Callum Istead 3-27) Haslington 173-9 (Will Dale 48, Kristian Green 3-30, Yousuf Bhamjee 3-48). Image: James Marshall bats

Mark Weighill bowls Cheshire County Cricket League Div 2 Ashton on Mersey CC 1st XI 186-7 Beat Christleton CC 1st XI 184-7 Ashton on Mersey completed an amazing great escape from relegation by beating Christleton on a day of high drama at The Beets. Going into the game Ashton knew that to avoid the drop  they had to win and either Hale Barns or Bollington had to fail to win their final fixtures. Being asked to bowl first, Ashton started steadily with the ball, restricting the visitor’s flow of runs. But the arrival Mubashir Hassan upped the tempo with a quick fire fifty, before a splendid catch by Jackson Noske accounted for the Christleton number three. The visitors made decent progress, punishing anything loose, but their final total of 184 looked within range given the strong Ashton batting line up and the fine pitches which have been characteristic of The Beets this season. Mark Weighill took the bowling honours with 4-66. The Ashton response stuttered as the top order all failed to capitalise on good starts. News from the other grounds added to the pressure as both Hale Barns and Bollington got off to good starts in their run chases, and with Ashton reduced to 117-7, the task looked beyond the home side. But skipper James Marshall and Mark Weighill dug in, slowly building the score to bring the target into sight. Reports came in of batting collapses at Hale Barnes and Bollington, with both those teams crashing to defeat. A win for Ashton would therefore save their season, and as the score mounted the tension grew. Marshall batted with superb skill and calmness, but overs were beginning to run out.  The climax came in the final over, with Ashton hitting the winning boundary off the first ball to prompt huge celebrations. Marshall’s unbeaten 46 was the game defining knock. The Ashton escape has been quite remarkable. With five weeks to go they seemed doomed, but the spirit with which they approached the final games, recording three wins in the period, has been a credit to the club. The Ashton 2nd XI finished their excellent season on a disappointing note, falling to defeat at Cheadle Hulme. Ashton 78 all out , Cheadle Hulme 82-5. James Marshall bats

James Marshall bats Cheshire County Cricket League Division 2 Ashton on Mersey CC 1st XI 141 all out Lost to Cheadle Hulme CC 1st XI 142- 8 Ashton on Mersey went down to defeat despite another battling performance which kept their season alive. Losing the toss and being asked to bat, Ashton soon found themselves in deep trouble as they struggled on a pitch which gave significant help to the home bowlers. Andrew Whylie and Usman Arshad gave the batters a torrid time as Ashton slumped to 36-7. But James Lines and James Marshall dug deep to rescue Ashton from the embarrassment that was facing them. With Lines hitting out and Marshall working the ball around, the pair dragged the visitors back into the game. When Lines fell lbw for 44, Marshall continued the fightback, farming as much of the strike as possible. When Marshall was last man out for a splendid 60, Ashton’s total of 141, whilst below par, was a fine effort given the early problems they faced. Whylie finished with excellent and well-deserved figures of 4-35. In reply, Cheadle Hulme looked in no trouble against the new ball, on a pitch that had lost much of its early spite. But Jackson Noske dug deep to remove both openers and Ashton kept the pressure on with the bowlers hitting good line and length. Wickets fell at regular intervals, and when Adam Wilde was dismissed by Marshall, Ashton saw the prospect of an unlikely win. But chances came and went, and Cheadle got over the line with two wickets in hand. Noske and Marshall took 3 wickets each but Ashton will rue the dropped catches that cost them dear. The result leaves Ashton still in the relegation zone with one game left in the season, but the points gap to safety leaves everything to play for next week. Ashton’s 2nd XI pulled off a splendid win against top of the table Didsbury at The Beets. Ashton 199-9 (Sam Kingsman-Ali 85 not out) Didsbury 193 all out (Jack Airey 67, Ryan Carey 6-27). Ashton’s 3rd XI went down to defeat at North East Cheshire. Ashton 136 all out, North East Cheshire 137-3 (Sam Westerby 53) Jackson Noske bowls