Alderley Edge 1st XI, following a poor run of results, came back to form in no uncertain terms on Saturday with a comfortable victory over title-chasing Hyde.
Put into bat, Alderley ran up a useful 239-7 from 55 overs, star man being Charlie Reid with an exquisite innings of 85, well supported by Adam Worrall (53) and Mark Currie (38).
However, with five Cheshire players in their top six, Hyde would have fancied their chances of reaching this target, but those hopes were soon dashed as Jason Whittaker tore into their upper order, returning figures of 6 for 49. Then with a couple of wickets from fellow opening bowler Chris Cook, and Tom Foreman bowling danger man Tipper with what the umpire described as 'the ball of the season', Hyde were shot out for just 133 - giving Alderley a 106 run victory and a highly valuable 25 points.
The 2nd XI had a disappointing weekend, losing in the last over at Hyde despite half centuries from David Johnson and Ollie Hall, then on Saturday meeting defeat against Toft in the semi final of the T20 knock-out. A fine innings of 90 from Toft's opener Williams plus a glut of wides allowed them to reach a mammoth 187 from their 20 overs. In a rain-interrupted reply, a valiant effort from Alderley's batsmen left them frustratingly 15 runs short when the overs ran out. The team is nevertheless to be congratulated on its sterling efforts this season.
Match report by Richard Davis.
