Traditional rivals Bowdon Cricket Club visited Moss Lane last Saturday for a match in the Cheshire County Premier League which ended up with all four results possible off the last ball of a 110 overs long match.
Alderley Edge batted first on what looked a good track, but for the whole day both sides struggled to put runs on the board. Openers Alan Day and Mark Currie found it far from easy against a pace attack of Lancashire’s Steven Cheetham and Cheshire’s Adam Syddall.
That Edge were able to register a reasonable total was down to a patient 67 from Richard Wilkinson, and then at the end of the innings, a splendid ninth wicket partnership between Jon Steele and Tom Pettini. In relation to such a low scoring game, a partnership of 50 from Steele and Pettini gave the Edge total a respectable look and also used up a significant number of overs, making them unavailable to their opponents.
Syddall ended the match with figures of 5 for 66, a reward for some accurate, pacey swing bowling. A total of 186 all out however looked to have made Bowdon big favourites to end Alderley’s unbeaten start to the season.
At 118 for 1, Bowdon looked as though they had the game totally at their mercy but a mid-order collapse of monumental proportions saw the game change dramatically in favour of Alderley after 50 from Bowdon’s Stephen Ball and 47 from Captain Carl Hey looked to have finished the match as a contest.
For Edge, Tom Atkinson took 4 for 21 off 9 overs, a reward for bowling a good line and length. However, it was the leg-spin bowling of 16 year-old Ethan Harding that really took the eye, as he had the Bowdon middle order in all sorts of trouble as he took 3 for 35 off 15 overs.
Bowdon’s ninth wicket went down at 177, and the last ball arrived with Bowdon needing two runs for victory. A scrambled single off the last ball resulted in a level-scores draw in a thoroughly entertaining game that kept Edge in second place in the league.
The following day Edge had a splendid win at Moss Lane over Birmingham Premier League side Wolverhampton in the National Knockout. Traditionally Wolverhampton have been one of the top club sides in the whole country and have a very impressive record over the years in the competition. Next Saturday Edge are away in the league at ambitious Nantwich looking to keep their unbeaten run in tact.
Cheshire County Cricket Premier League final score: Alderley Edge 186 all out Bowdon 186-9 Level-scores draw.
