Author name: Ian Roberts

Charlie Eaton bowls Cheshire County Cricket League Div 2 Ashton on Mersey 1st XI  112-2 Beat Hale Barns 1st XI 109 all out Ashton on Mersey kept their season alive with an emphatic win over fellow strugglers Hale Barns. Winning the toss and choosing to bowl first, Ashton made the most of favourable conditions to put the hosts under pressure from the start. With opening bowlers Jackson Noske and Charlie Eaton bowling a tight spell, Hale Barns struggled to make any progress as the overs ticked by. Whilst veteran Mike Hunter dug in to try and build the innings, the rest of the Hale batting came and went as the batters failed to rise to the challenge. With spinner Sam Thoburn and seamer James Marshall bowling in tandem, wickets fell at regular intervals. The big hitting Ben Hicks tried to lift the Hale gloom, but when he was dispatched by Marshall, the innings fell away for a well below par 109. Marshall led the wicket column, taking 4-33, but the most remarkable figures were returned by teenager Charlie Eaton who finished with 7 overs, 6 maidens, 2 wickets for only 1 run. In reply, Macca Hooton and Henry Murray set the tone with a fluent opening partnership which snuffed out any hopes of a Hale Barns victory. Hooton went playing one shot too many but Murray pushed on, showing his class as he cruised to a fine 50. Murray departed with the winning post in sight, but Dave Patterson and Jamal Benzafar brought home the win with 20 overs to spare. This was a magnificent performance by Ashton which only emphasised how poorly they had played in the first half of the season. The result moves them out of the relegation zone, but they remain in peril with three games to go. The Ashton 2nd XI made it a double winning Saturday, as they chased down a large total to beat Warrington at The Beets Warrington 246-7 (Jagadeesha 75, Ravi Sabba 58) Ashton 250-6 (Sam Kingsman-Ali 95 not out, Ryan Carey 48). Ashton’s 3rd XI fell short in their clash with Ashley. Ashley 181-7 (Max Davies 3-33) Ashton 129 all out (Steve McKinney 50, Mohammed Waheed Munir 7-17) Henry Murray bats

Macca Hooton bats Cheshire County Cricket League Div 2 Ashton on Mersey CC 1st XI 147 all out Beat Bollington CC 1st XI 141 all out Ashton on Mersey kept their survival hopes alive with a hard fought and tense win at Bollington. Choosing to bat first on a dry track, Ashton were rocked when opener Henry Murray fell to the first ball of the match. But Macca Hooton and Dave Patterson steadied the nerves with a fine 50 run partnership. With Hooton playing with his usual flare and Patterson giving fine support, the innings looked set fair, before spinner Toby Phipps entered the scene. Phipps bowled Hooton and Ryan Carey to retake the initiative for the home side. Ashton then suffered two run outs with Patterson and Tom Scott falling to over ambitious attempts at a quick single. Three more wickets to the admirable Phipps left Ashton teetering on 95-8 before Mike Roberts and Jackson Noske brought some sanity to proceedings. Noske hit out whilst Roberts played with his normal calm authority to take the score to 139 before Noske became Phipps sixth victim. When Roberts was last man out, the final score of 147 was below par but a substantially better total than had been feared. Phipps earned his excellent figures of 6-39. In reply Noske took an early wicket but Tom Horsfield and Keegan Fortune looked like building the game deciding partnership. Spinner Mark Weighill broke the pair, dismissing Horsfield for 48, before the introduction of Ashton’s skipper James Marshall turned the match in the visitors’ favour. Using all his experience, Marshall bowled a probing line which unsettled the home batters. Bollington wobbled and found themselves at 87-6 before Ryan Ouwerkerk dug in to bring the target within sight. But Marshall was not to be denied and when he removed Ouwerkerk, Ashton had the sniff of victory. With the tension mounting Bollington’s last pair came together with just 8 runs needed, but spinner Sam Thoburn proved up to the challenge, taking the final wicket to give Ashton a 6-run win. Marshall finished with a 5-37 match winning effort. Ashton go into next week’s clash with fellow strugglers Hale Barns knowing that another win will mean their season is still alive. The Ashton 2nd XI added to the joy by bringing home a win against Davenham at The Beets Davenham 144 all out (Simmons 64, Max Davies 3-16), Ashton 145-8 Max Scott 4-37). The 3rd XI lost a high scoring contest at Hyde. Hyde 209 -9 (Jamie Richardson 53, Finn Coburn 3-38)  Ashton 171 all out ( Charlie Eaton 59, Jamie Richardson 4-21) James Marshall bowls

James Lines flicks one to leg Cheshire County Cricket League Division 2 Ashton on Mersey CC 1st XI 216 all out Lost to Davenham CC 1st XI 218 -3 Ashton once again tasted defeat as they failed to contain promotion chasing Davenham at the Beets. Losing the toss and being asked to bat on a surface that gave early help to the bowlers, Ashton found themselves in trouble as the top order crumbled to 32-4. James Lines led the fightback with a pugnacious 50, before falling after a rain break disrupted the innings. The rain delays did little to help the Ashton cause, with the home team finding themselves struggling at 104-7. But skipper James Marshall and Mark Weighill dug in to restore some respectability to the score. Marshall played excellently before falling in the final overs for 58. Weighill gave great support before also departing in the final push for an admirable 43. The Ashton total of 216 represented a good recovery, although on a pitch which had lost its early venom, it seemed a very reachable target. The Davenham bowling honours were taken by Harry Garner who finished with 3-34. Davenham’s response began in dramatic style, as Jackson Noske clean bowled both openers to leave the visitors rocking at 7-2. But that was the end of the good news for Ashton as batters Regan Johnson and Jason Van Der Meulen took complete control of the game. The Ashton attack failed to bowl with any control, with the exception of teenager Charlie Eaton, who once again showed his immense promise as an all round cricketer. The rest of the Ashton bowling was hit to all parts as the Davenham pair put on 180 runs at better than a run a ball. Davenham eventually strolled to a comfortable win within 30 overs, leaving Ashton once again pondering their lack of options with the ball which has blighted their season. The 1st XI are now in deep relegation trouble and will need something remarkable in the coming weeks to avoid the drop. Cheer was once again restored by Ashton’s 2nd XI who stormed to a win at Urmston. Urmston 84 all out (Jaskaran Cheema 4-13) Ashton 86-5 Ashton’s 3rd XI lost to Grappenhall. Grappenhall 230-6 (Iain Wright 94, Adam Heap 4-35) Ashton 116-9 (Stephen McKinney 46, Zach Tully 4-34) Ashton’s Womens’ XI went down to a narrow defeat against Lindow. Ashton 92 all out, Lindow 93-8 (Naz Hancioglu 4) James Marshall steers the ball through the gully

James Marshall bats in cap Cheshire County Cricket League Div 2 Ashton on Mersey CC 1st XI 166 all out Lost to Mobberley CC 1st XI 167-2 Ashton on Mersey’s difficult season continued as they fell to defeat to Mobberley at The Beets. The toss proved vital, as Ashton were put into bat on a wicket that offered much help to the visitors’ seam attack. With the veteran Abdul Aqeel and Luke Stow bowling a splendid opening spell, Ashton’s top order had little answer to balls which had considerable lateral movement off a length. Despite a brave innings from Akash Patel, Ashton found themselves at 69-8 before skipper James Marshall and Sam Kingsman-Ali came together to bring some respectability to the score. As the pitch flattened out, the pair took advantage of the Mobberley change bowling, posting a 95 run partnership before Kingsman-Ali departed. Marshall was last man out for a splendid 52, having taken Ashton to a score which at least gave the home side something to defend. Stow finished with figures of 4-39 with Aqeel posting 3-28. In reply Mobberley took advantage of the improving batting conditions and despite the loss of a couple of early wickets the run chase never looked in doubt. Will Berrisford Ince (74 no) and Osman Butt (60 no) put on an unbeaten 125 run partnership to take the visitors over the line inside 27 overs, as the Ashton bowling flagged in a lost cause. The loss leaves Ashton stranded in the relegation zone with 7 games to go in the season. They will need something special across those games to avoid the drop. The Ashton 2nd XI brought some smiles back to the club with a comfortable win at Upton. Upton 137 all out (Sam Talbot 53, Ryan Carey 3-25, Aadam Ali 3-26),  Ashton 138-5 (Dave Patterson 35, Ryan Carey 35). Akash Patel bats in helmet

Cheshire County Cricket League Division 2 Ashton on Mersey CC 1st XI 107-5 Drew with Haslington CC 1st XI 224-8 Charlie Eaton bowls Ashton on Mersey were thwarted by the weather on a day when they put up a fine performance against title-chasing Haslington at The Beets. Choosing to bowl first after winning the toss, Ashton were soon on top as the opening attack of Charlie Eaton and Jackson Noske bowled a probing and controlled spell. With the Ashton support bowling keeping up the pressure, Haslington were reduced to 70-5 before the visitor’s Ben Istead took control of the effort to build a total. Batting with judgement and skill, Istead played a superb innings as he helped Haslington to a respectable score of 224-8 off their 50 overs. Istead remained undefeated on 108 at the innings’ close. Eaton took the bowling honours with well-deserved figures of 3-53. In reply Ashton made steady progress despite the loss of wickets, including a controversial decision which gave key man Henry Murray out bowled when the bails appeared to be disturbed by the keeper’s gloves. Despite that setback, Ashton looked set to mount a serious push for the target when the rains came and denied both sides a chance of the win. The result leaves Ashton in the relegation zone but with hopes that the improved form in the last few weeks will lead to a points push in the coming weeks. A weakened  Ashton 2nd XI fell to a heavy defeat at Haslington. Ashton 63 all out (Joe Cork 4-2) Haslington 64-0 (Will Dale 50 not out). Henry Murray bats

Henry Murray Drives Cheshire County Cricket League Div 2 Ashton on Mersey 1st XI 194 all out Lost to Marple 1st XI 195-4 Ashton fell to defeat at table topping Marple despite a battling performance on a rain interrupted day. Winning the toss and choosing to bat first, Ashton shrugged off the loss of an early wicket to make a bright start with Macca Hooton and Henry Murray playing fluently against the Marple opening bowlers. But the introduction of spinners Joe Cash and Mark Makin turned the game in Marple’s favour. Cash bowled Hooton and Makin trapped Murray lbw before Tom Scott set about rebuilding the Ashton effort. Working with the Ashton middle order, Scott played cautiously to move the score along without ever threatening the acceleration which would have allowed the visitors to post a challenging total. Scott’s innings finished when he pulled a muscle and had to retire. The rest of the Ashton batting was removed by the returning Will Fraser-Smith who finished with 4-45. With Makin posting 4-57, the Ashton total of just short of 200 was below par. Rain meant that Marple had to press on to try and win the match, and a sparkling opening partnership between Andrew Hall and Mark Bennett set the basis of their victory. Hall went for a fine 50 but Bennett got the home side within sight of the winning post before falling for a splendid 73. Marple got over the line by 6 wickets with minutes to spare before the rains hit the ground. Tom Scott with keeper Ashton will have been pleased in some aspects of their performance and will be looking to continue their form when they welcome Haslington to the Beets in the next round of league games. Ashton’s 2nd XI were frustrated by the rain as they tried to chase down a challenging total set by Neston. Neston 262 all out ( Matt Brookes 96, Dan Warner 60, Sam Kingsman-Ali 4-44) Ashton 184-6 (Mike Roberts 68, Asmin Khan 63)