Duncan Snell, with Dan Woods, returns to the pavilion 248 not out
Posted by Tony Hutton
University cricket is coming towards the end of it's short season as the students will soon all depart for their long vacation. However recent weeks have been full of action for a young cricketer by the name of Duncan George Headley Snell having a particularly good run. His father must have been a cricket fan to give him the name of the famous West Indian batsman.
Snell, a left hander, who has played with considerable success for York cricket club for some time, is a student at Leeds Metropolitain University. On the first of June the Leeds/Bradford University played, and lost to, a strong MCC side at Weetwood, with Snell top scoring with 60. Two days later,with Leeds Met. playing Loughborough 2nd XI in the national university knock out at Kirkstall, Snell scored an excellent 117 as Leeds Met piled up a huge score of 348-7.
Then on the 8th of June came a slight blip, when Leeds/Bradford were suprisingly easily beaten in their cup semi-final by Oxford at Weetwood and Snell scored only 16. Two days later however he bounced back with what can only be described as the innings of a lifetime.
Leeds Met. were playing local rivals Leeds University again at the excellent Kirkstall Educational ground looking it's usual immaculate self thanks to the hard work of groundsman and club president Dave Hodgson. This was a national cup quarter final and Leeds Met. with seven members of the Leeds/Bradford UCCE side were strong favourites. So it proved as the openers Snell and Dougherty put on an opening stand of 177 in only 20 overs, of this Snell had made a 100 of only 58 balls when the reliable Dougherty was out for 68.
Snell completely dominated the rest of the innings hitting the ball repeatedly out of the ground and the major problem became the shortage of balls as many were lost in the mayhem. Snell hit no less than 20 sixes and when the innings was closed in the 46th over at 378-8, he had made an impressive 248 not out. Even allowing for the smallish ground and modest opposition it was a remarkable innings with clean hitting in all directions.
The following day it was back to earth with a three day match against Gloucestershire at Weetwood. A mixture of county first and second team players gave the Leeds/Bradford team a hard, close game and the county men came out winners by only two wickets in the last hour of the third day. Snell, no doubt keen to impress, scored 29 and 36 but was unable to really dominate. However all good experience and this young man, who after one game with Yorkshire's second XI seems to have been ignored since, may still have a future in the first class game.
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