After last weekend's double defeat in league and cup games Harrogate cricket club had the opportunity this weekend to get back to winning ways with two home league games on Saturday 5th May against the Yorkshire Academy and Monday 7th May with a re-arranged game with Scarborough.
Perfect summer weather had brought out a bigger than usual crowd for both games, the Academy game no doubt boosted by parents and grandparents of the new intake of very young players. Despite the weather only one batsman, Jack Potticarry, made the most of the conditions when Harrogate batted. The opener, who had a full week's cricket with Leeds/Bradford University at Weetwood looked in good form from the word go and despite chancing his arm on occasions he looked a dead cert for a century until caught off leg spinner Josh Sullivan by newcomer Arjun Ramkumar for 97.
The total by then was 141-4, early wickets for Dominic Leech and George Hill made it 53-2 with Potticarry already 47 not out. Matthew Taylor then had high scorer Josh Atkinson caught behind by skipper Ben Birkhead, but Potticarry carried on in his own merry way with some support from Ed Wilson and Harry Stothard before the innings tailed away against some good spin bowling by Sullivan and Harry Harding.
Harry Stow, the other Leeds/Bradford regular, virtually settled the match as he did in the T20 game on Thursday, with an opening spell which got rid of the two main Academy men, Ben Birkhead and Bilal Anjum. There were good innings from Matthew Revis (27), Tom Loten (48) and George Hill (34) but after that Tom Geeson-Brown (Goosie to his friends) ran through the tail. The Academy were all out for 175 in 44 overs, so ten points for Harrogate.
Monday's game, still in perfect summer weather, was different again - a very low scoring affair. Both teams made a couple of changes from Saturday's sides and Scarborough would probably miss opener James Pickup more than anyone as he top scored with 97 (same as Potticarry) in Saturday's win over Castleford. Indeed Scarborough have started well with two wins and have former Academy and Yorkshire Second XI wicketkeeper Jonathon Read back in their ranks. Good to meet up with his Grandad again doing his familiar laps of the ground throughout the game.
Another interesting fact had come to light in that Potticarry and Stow of Harrogate had both played for Lincolnshire yesterday at Jesmond against Northumberland in two Minor County T20 games.
The first game produced what must be a record score of 290-3 for Lincolnshire in the first game with Louis Kimber 162 not out. Northumberland turned it round to win the second game - in all 950 runs scored in 80 overs of cricket!
Back to the action in Harrogate and with the home side batting first hopes were high for a big score in what appeared to be ideal batting conditions. How little do we know. In very quick time Harrogate were one run for two wickets. First of all Potticary was given out caught behind by Read off Kristian Wilkinson to the first ball of the match. The batsman was obviously not in agreement with the decision and took some while to leave the crease. Captain George Ross only lasted three balls and was out in similar fashion with a clear cut decision this time.
William Bates and Ed Wilson restored the position for a while with a stand of fifty, but left arm spinner Ben Elvidge had Wilson caught at slip by Darren Harland for 22. Bates stayed around for a bit longer but Wilkinson claimed the wickets of Stothard and Keable both caught behind. Jack Holt then got rid of Bates for top score of 39, which brought Read's tally to five catches. Holt then destroyed the tail fairly rapidly and Harrogate were all out for a very modest 110 in 38.2 overs.
Wilkinson with 4-24 and Holt 4-27 had the best bowling figures for Scarborough but the Harrogate pair of Harry Stow and Tom Geeson-Brown struck back very quickly and soon the visitors looked in danger of defeat with the score on 46-5. Geeson-Brown struck first getting rid of stand in opener Read for three and then Oliver Stephenson and new skipper Sam Drury both for ducks.
Soon afterwards Harry Stow cleaned bowled both Ben Elvidge and Theo Smith for ducks and Harrogate really had their tales up. The man holding the Scarborough innings together was veteran opener Darren Harland, who had a couple of games for Yorkshire seconds a good many years ago now, and it was his experience helped by opening bowler Wilkinson in a vital eighth wicket partnership which brought the score from 76-7 to 95-8.
Then crucially after the opening bowlers had bowled out number 10 Linden Gray blocked out one end while Harland reached his 50 to win the match in the thirty third over. 111-8 was the final score and Scarborough winners by two wickets happy in the end with their third victory of the season after a fascinating struggle.
No comments:
Post a Comment