NSSCCL Mid season round-up part 2.

Welcome to the second part of my rundown where I take a look at the top and bottom of the leagues along with the top runs scores, leading wicket takers and the players with the safest hands. Today I will be focusing on Divisions 3 to 5.

Division 3.

1. Leek 2nd XI – 196 points.
2. Porthill 3rd XI – 183 points.
3. Barlaston 2nd XI – 176 points.

Leek are unbeaten at the top with 8 wins and 3 draws as they hold a narrow 13 point lead over Porthill who have won 7 matches so far. Barlaston sit in 3rd with 8 wins as they sit 7 points behind the promotion places. It’s looking like a three horse race with others well behind at the moment. It will be interesting to see who secures promotion as the summer progresses.

10. Norton-In-Hales 2nd XI – 74 points.
11. Longton 2nd XI – 71 points.
12. Church Eaton 1st XI – 62 points.

It’s three teams for the two relegation places in this division as they’ve already been cut adrift at the bottom. Norton-In-Hales have 2 wins as they sit just 3 points above the danger zone. Longton and Church Eaton have one win apiece and this battle for survival could be one of the best in all the divisions.

Leading run scorers.

1. Steve Proffitt (Ashcombe Park 2nd XI) 370 runs @ 46.25 with Two 50’s HS 97* vs Audley 2nd XI.
2. Ross Kesteven (Porthill 3rd XI) 316 runs @ 31.60 with Three 50s HS 75 vs Longton 2nd XI.
3. Ben Richardson (Bagnall Norton 2nd XI) 277 runs @ 27.7 with One 50. HS 78 vs Barlaston 2nd XI.
4. Venu Gopal Reddy (Audlem) 265 runs @ 29.44 with One 50 HS 66 vs Barlaston 2nd XI.
5. Ravi Lindamulage (Moddershall 3rd XI) 259 runs @ 23.55 HS 53 vs Norton-In-Hales 2nd XI.

Leading wicket takers.

1. Sadeeptha Jayathilaka (Moddershall 3rd XI) 36 wickets @ 7.58 with three five-wicket hauls BB 5/13 vs Norton-In-Hales 2nd XI.
2. Ethan Plummer (Porthill 3rd XI) 28 wickets @ 10.93 with three five wicket hauls BB 6/15 vs Bagnall Norton 2nd XI.
3. Grant Roberts (Ashcombe Park) 23 wickets @ 11.09 BB 4/5 vs Bagnall Norton 2nd XI.
4. Nick Aitken (Bagnall Norton 2nd XI) 22 wickets @ 6.23 with two five-wicket hauls BB 5/14 vs Leek 2nd XI.
5. Matt Bowcock (Leek 2nd XI) 21 wickets @ 7.29 with one five-wicket haul BB 5/17 vs Norton-In-Hales 2nd XI.

Top Keepers & Fielders.

1. Uchitha Jayawickrama (Moddershall 3rd XI) 13 victims. 10 catches (one in the outfield) and 3 stumpings.
2. Gary Wright (Oakamoor 2nd XI) 13 victims. 10 catches, 2 stumpings and a run out.
3. Damien Harvey (Leek 2nd XI) 11 victims 9 outfield catches and 2 run outs.

Division 4.

1. Kidsgrove – 196 points.
2. Rode Park & Lawton 2nd XI – 167 points.
3. Silverdale 2nd XI – 162 points.
4. Hem Heath 3rd XI – 156 points.
5. Burslem – 151 points.

Kidsgrove are flying at the top as they lead by 29 points. They’ve got 9 victories to their name and it should just be a case of when they secure promotion. The chasing pack are tightly bunched behind them with only 16 points separating 2nd and 5th. Rode Park currently occupy 2nd but Silverdale are hot on their heels. Hem Heath trail them by 6 points and Burslem lurk in 5th. It could be a case of who beats who towards the end of the season as it looks like it’s going to be a fascinating promotion race.

9. Whitmore 2nd XI – 109 points.
10. Stafford 2nd XI – 103 points.
11. Woore – 98 points.
12. Bignall End 2nd XI – 72 points.

Bignall End are rooted to bottom with only one victory all season. They are 31 points away from safety and it will take a huge effort from them to reach safety this season. 11 points separate 11th and 9th as the race for safety above Bignall End looks like a close one. They all have 3 wins each and it could be a very close race.

Leading run scorers.

1. Finley Beswick (Kidsgrove) 490 runs @ 54.44 with Two 50’s & One 100 HS 114* vs Whitmore 2nd XI.
2. Billy Strong (Alsager 2nd XI) 399 runs @ 49.88 with Three 50’s & One 100 HS 114* vs Stafford 2nd XI.
3. Jamie Birch (Woore) 382 runs @ 47.75 with Four 50’s HS 94* vs Little Stoke 2nd XI.
4. Dan Manning (Woore) 365 runs @ 36.5 with Two 50’s & One 100 HS 103 vs Burslem.
5. Michael Brown (Burslem) 362 runs @ 32.91 with Three 50’s HS 91 vs Kidsgrove.

Leading wicket takers.

1. Glynn Moore (Silverdale 2nd XI) 27 wickets @ 11.22 with one five-wicket haul BB 5/24 vs Burslem.
2. Neil Crump (Rode Park & Lawton 2nd XI) 19 wickets @ 12.37 BB 4/5 vs Woore.
3. Dave Quinton (Onneley) 19 wickets @ 11.95 with one five-wicket haul BB 6/22 vs Bignall End 2nd XI.
4. Joel Brierley (Kidsgrove) 17 wickets @ 15.53 with one five-wicket haul BB 7/36 vs Silverdale 2nd XI.
5. Kieran Peake (Bignall End 2nd XI) 17 wickets @ 16.76 BB 3/16 vs Rode Park & Lawton 2nd XI

Top Keepers & Fielders.

1. Finley Beswick (Kidsgrove) 11 victims. 10 outfield catches and a run out.
2. Joe Jones (Rode Park & Lawton 2nd XI) 10 victims. 9 catches and a stumping.
3. Jude Norcup (Silverdale 2nd XI) 9 victims. 8 catches and a run out.
4. Tushant Saini (Bignall End 2nd XI) 9 victims. 7 catches and 2 stumpings.
5. Max West (Onneley) 9 victims. 8 catches and a stumping.

Division 5.

1. Caverswall – 206 points.
2. Leycett 2nd XI – 202 points.
3. Endon 2nd XI – 182 points.

Caverswall lead the way by just 4 points from Leycett. Caverswall have an impressive 9 victories to their name. Leycett are unbeaten but only have 7 wins and 4 four draws as it tight at the top. Endon are 20 behind the promotion places as they hope for any slip-ups from the top two. They have 7 wins with 2 draws as they continue their good start to the season but they’ll need a victory over one if not two of the sides above them on the second half of the season.

9. Cheadle 3rd XI – 106 points.
10. Sandyford 2nd XI – 102 points.
11. Knypersley 2nd XI – 100 points
12. Porthill 4th XI- 94 points.

Its extremely tight at the bottom with only 12 points covering the bottom four sides. A win for any of these sides could catapult them away from danger. Porthill and Knypersley both have two wins with Sandyford and Cheadle on 3 as its all to play for at the bottom.

Leading run scorers.

1. Tom Blackwood (Leycett 2nd XI) 335 runs @ 41.88 with Three 50s HS 59* vs Sandyford 2nd XI.
2. Rob Whilding (Knypersley 2nd XI) 278 runs @ 25.27 with Two 50s HS 58 vs Sandyford 2nd XI.
3. Jon Evans (Cheadle 3rd XI) 268 runs @ 38.29 with Three 50s HS 75 vs Porthill 4th XI.
4. Sameera Dassanayake Jnr (Whitmore 3rd XI) 265 runs @ 29.44 with Two 50s HS 71 vs Moddershall 4th XI.
5. Dan Bailey (Endon 2nd XI) 242 runs @ 40.33 with Two 50s HS 68 vs Porthill 4th XI.

Leading wicket takers.

1. Sameera Dassanayake Jnr (Whitmore 3rd XI) 25 wickets @ 8.56 with one five-wicket haul BB 5/19 vs Sandon.
2. Mark Underwood (Caverswall) 21 wickets @ 8.67 BB 4/19 vs Cheadle 3rd XI.
3. Finley Waterhouse (Leycett 2nd XI) 20 wickets @ 13.95 BB 4/21 vs Sandon.
4. Muhammad Shah (Cheadle 3rd XI) 19 wickets @ 12.11 with two five-wicket hauls BB 5/4 vs Porthill 4th XI.
5. Deacon Purcell (Newcastle & Hartshill 3rd XI) 18 wickets @ 10.56 BB 3/12 vs Porthill 4th XI.
6. Daniel Stevenson (Moddershall 4th XI) 18 wickets @ 11.83 BB 4/24 vs Porthill 4th XI.

Top Keepers & Fielders.

1. Joshua Stones (Moddershall 4th XI) 16 victims. 14 catches (3 outfield catches), 1 stumping and a run out.
2. Kallum Crawford (Caverswall) 12 victims. 7 catches, 2 stumpings and 3 run outs.
3. Priyankara Wijewickrama (Whitmore 3rd XI) 11 victims. 11 catches (1 outfield catch).