County Durham leagues round-up

Jul 21 2008 The Journal

HORDEN and Marsden were the only sides in the Warmseal Durham Senior League to gain more than five points – but even they had to give in to the rain in the end.

Their game started on time but the sides were on and off three times as they fought the elements. Hosts Horden were in a hurry in between the showers as Adrian Hedley and Graham Smith gave them a tremendous start with an opening partnership of 112.

When Smith fell for 37, in which he struck six fours, Hedley continued to batter the bowling, ending with 71, 50 of these in boundaries with three sixes. With time at a premium, the declaration came after 27 overs with the score 153-5.

Marsden struggled when they set off in pursuit of the target, as first Scott Birks (1-10) and then Adam Dixon (2-5) struck. But with the score on 29-3 a torrential downpour sent the teams scurrying off for the fourth and final time. There was some play in all but one of the other games, but it was limited as the heavy rain arrived with a few overs in each.

There was more luck in the Readers Durham County League, although even then only one game was played to a conclusion. Evenwood were one of the few teams in the North-East to win a match on Saturday, but they did so in impressive fashion as they swept aside the challenge of visiting Hylton.

Zimbabwean international Ed Rainsford combined with home-grown Billy Teesdale to destroy their opponents on a bowler-friendly surface.

Only Chris Allan and Kevin Mustard, who each scored 22, looked like coping as Rainsford returned figures of 3-27 in 12 overs, and Teesdale claimed 4-25, also in 12 overs, to leave Hylton with 100 to their name.

And Evenwood weren’t leaving anything to chance with the weather as they powered to victory in only 13.5 overs, with John Maughan leading the charge with an unbeaten knock of 55 made from 35 balls. The innings including seven fours and two sixes.

Crook Town and Shildon Railway managed to get through a good proportion of their game, and while the weather determined that it would be a stalemate in the end, the points picked up allowed each of them to close the gap on the two teams above them in the table, leaving both within striking distance.

Shildon struggled initially against the bowling of Arsalan Mir (6-50) and it took two late order knocks from skipper Phil Timmens (35) and Michael Lumley (30) to refloat the creaking ship.

But Jamie Robinson (3-23) nipped the recovery in the bud to leave the Railwaymen in the sidings on 157.

Town found the going just as tough when they went to the crease, with only Omar Shahid – hitting two fours and two sixes in his 41 – coping as Peter Garbutt (3-16) and Timmens (2-37) turned the screw. The game ended with Town still 32 short and seven wickets down.

Mainsforth’s West Indian pro Brian Yearwood will be ruing the English weather even more as he was on the way to a superb century when halted in full flow by a thunderstorm.

Yearwood had cracked 76 from just 59 balls faced, and his 14 boundaries included six sixes as he lifted his side to a score of 91-1 before the premature end against Langley Park.

Stephen Meek (4-20) had Brandon on the rack at 39-4, but at least his strikes enabled league leaders Kimblesworth to pick up two vital bonus points, which was the same return for second-placed Esh Winning who had Etherley on 67-4 after Ryan Moralee (2-6) had broken through.

In the remaining game, Tudhoe had advanced to 51-1 against Willington, Ross Hodgson ending unbeaten with 31 of those.

Though every game in the County League started only three did so in the 3D Durham Coast League, and each lasted just two or three overs with all sides ending with the five points they started with.

The major beneficiaries in this weather-induced mayhem were Ryhope who were sitting at home with their feet up, enjoying their free weekend in the knowledge that while they were surrendering their leadership to Castle Eden, they have a precious game in hand, with just two points separating them from the top spot.

CHRIS WEST