Checkley vs Porthill.
Porthill won by 144 runs.
Porthill won the toss and elected to bat. Tom Steele led the way for the visitors with a sparkling 110 from 124 balls containing seventeen fours. New Zealand international Jeet Raval smashed his way to 113 from just 83 balls with thirteen fours and five sixes as the pair showed no mercy against the Checkley bowling attack. They shared 192 for the 2nd wicket after the early dismissal of John Hancock. Louis Allison 16* from 8 balls and Oliver Shirley 16* from just 5 balls added quick late runs before Porthill closed on a mammoth 294/3 after their 40 overs.
The Checkley reply started poorly when James Abbotts was dismissed from the very first ball. Tom Carrigan made 32 from 21 balls with five fours and a six. Elliot Boardwell added 27 from 20 balls with six boundaries, but after they’d shared 58 for the 2nd wicket, Checkley lost wickets at regular intervals, and only Dan Amos’ 27 with three fours at No. 9 was the next score of note as they were bowled out for just 150 in the 30th over. Tom Mason picked up 3/32 from 7 overs. Tom Kesteven bagged 3/30 from his 8 overs as they both put in a good day’s work with the ball. There were two wickets each for Ben Green and O’Shay Reddy, completing the rout for the visitors.
Leek vs Newcastle & Hartshill.
Newcastle & Hartshill won by 5 wickets.
Leek won the toss and elected to bat. Two early wickets from Joe Thorne had the home side in early trouble at 29/2. Tom Moulton then made a dogged 41 from 65 balls with five fours and a six. Mo Rameez was chipping away at the Leek middle order, and only 33 from Adam Rutterford, which contained four fours, dragged them up to 178/8 from their 40 overs. The Leek score was aided by Castle conceding 40 extras throughout their innings, with 26 being wides. Rameez finished with excellent figures of 3/11 from his 8 overs to be the standout bowler. Thorne and Theo Abel shared 4 wickets between them as the visitors could be pleased with their bowling effort.
Castle opener Jon Gidman made 24 with four fours to get the chase off to a good start. His opening partner Ryan Hassett then went on to make 50 from 63 balls with five fours and two sixes. He shared 42 for the 1st wicket with Gidman, but the match-winning partnership came with Kasun Ekanayakav, who struck an unbeaten 55 from 48 balls containing seven fours and three sixes. The pair added 76 for the 4th wicket, taking Castle from 84/3 to within touching distance of a semi-final spot at 160/4. Ekanayaka got them over the line in the 33rd over, reaching their victory target rather comfortably in the end. Harsh Parmar picked up two wickets for Leek, but it wasn’t enough to beat a Castle side that got ahead of the run rate early and bossed the chase.
Audley vs Norton-In-Hales.
Audley won by 1 wicket.
Norton-In-Hales won the toss and elected to bat. Chris Dyer made 25 at the top of the order for the visitors with four fours as they got off to a good start. Isaac Foster then played the anchor role for them, making an unbeaten 63 from 81 balls with five fours and three sixes. The Audley bowlers began to get into the game, taking wickets at regular intervals and keeping the brakes on the scoring before Norton-In-Hales closed on 157/7 from their 40 overs. There was no standout bowler for the home side, but 5 of their 6 bowlers claimed 1 wicket each.
Audley’s reply started well with Rob Hemmings striking 29 from 35 balls with four fours and a six. Ali Hamza Waseem then made a run-a-ball 33 with six boundaries before his dismissal left the home side 84/4. Ash Rogers added a further 29 containing four fours and six as the home side moved closer to their target. Chris Dyer had other ideas. A three-wicket burst from the right-arm seamer then turned the game on its head. He removed Ed Jones, Alex Coates and Archie Doorbar across 23 balls, sending Audley crashing to 143/9. The final wicket pair, Ben Mellor and Huey Nield, now had the job of getting the home side into the semi-finals. Norton-In-Hales’ extra count began to mount, and when Nield struck a vital boundary in the 37th over, they were on the brink of victory. Three wides then secured their place in the semi-final as the visitors lost their discipline at the wrong time. They conceded 25 extras in the 2nd innings, with 19 of those being wides, and it ultimately cost them. Dyer finished with excellent figures of 4/25 from 8 overs being unlucky to finish on the losing side, really. Ant Sheeran bagged 3/49 from his 8 overs, but it just wasn’t enough for the visitors in the end.
Hem Heath beat Meakins by 3 wickets in the other quarter-final, which I covered yesterday.
Semi-final draw, 30th August.
Audley vs Porthill.
Hem Heath vs Newcastle & Hartshill.
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