BVCC 2007 Match Reports

Bowdon Vale Cricket Club Match Reports - 2007

Saturda= y 15^th September:

1^st XI Away: Wilmslow 239-8. Bowdon Vale 197-5. Match drawn.<= /p>

Big hitting was the order of the day as the Vale rounded off their season with a high scoring draw at mid-table Wilmslow. Wilmslow won the toss and elected = to bat first and their intentions were made clear from the start as Roylance’s first ball was despatched unceremoniously for six. Twenty = four more six’s followed as Fulker 73 and Buys 76 made full use of the sho= rt straight boundaries, as the home team closed on 239-8. Roylance 4-85 and Halsall 3-71 manfully keeping the onslaught in check. In truth this total w= as probably 30 runs too many for the Vale. Ian Frogatt with a patient unbeaten= 76 and Nigel Halsall continuing his fine form with the bat with 54 were the mainstays of the Vale reply, with a partnership of 106. The Vale closed on 197-5 with ex-Pakistani one-day international Mahboob 4-66 the pick of the Wilmslow bowlers.

2^nd XI Home: Bowdon Vale 115 all out. Wilmslow 116-2. Wilmslow won by 8 wickets= .

The Vale 2^nd XI ended their promising season in disappointing fashion with an 8 wicket defeat to Wilmslow. Batting first, Vale took the score to 102-3 thanks to the efforts of Tom Robinson (35) & Alex Faupel (29) but then failed to capitalise on the good start & collapsed to 115 all out = off only 30 overs. In reply, the visitors were never in trouble with Green (87*) leading the attack & Wilmslow achieved their target with half the overs= to spare. The main plus point in the Vale performance was young Jack Ryan, who took his first wicket for the 2^nd XI in a promising return of 1-= 17.

Saturda= y 8^th September:

1^st XI Home: Bowdon Vale 198 all out. Trafford MV 182-8. Match drawn.

The Vale once again reiterated that they don’t go in for easy finishes wi= th another thrilling last over finale as they entertained local rivals Trafford MV. Trafford MV entered the last over with 21 runs required for victory, wi= th 7 wickets down, and the dangerous Asad on strike. The first ball of the last = over from Nigel Halsall was despatched for four, the second ball saw Asad stumpe= d by Ascott for a hard-hitting 83, which nearly tipped the balance in favour of = the visitors. With 8 wickets down Trafford MV settled for a draw. Roylance finishing with 4-78 and Halsall 4-62. Earlier in the day, the Vale were o= ff to a steady start, but a quick fall of wickets left them perilously placed at 64-6. At this point debutant Gareth Roberts joined in-form Nigel Halsall in= a match turning 94 run sixth wicket partnership. The Trafford attack was despatched to all parts of the Priory Street ground by both batsmen, in a display of controlled aggression not seen at the Vale for sometime. Indeed, one huge h= it from Roberts was last spotted heading towards the Lymm roundabout. The Vale return of 16 points sees them head to the comfort of mid-table with one game to play.

2^nd XI Away: Bowdon Vale 102 all out. Trafford MV 103-1. Trafford MV won by 9 wickets.

Openers Mark Nicholas (47) & Tom Robinson (21) made a promising start for Vale = 2^nd XI taking them to 62-1 off 22 overs but then collapsed to 102 all out, Walsh (5-34) & Fox (4-29) being the pick of the Trafford Metrovick bowlers. Another good start was made by Vale bowlers Steve Robinson & Tony Gardner but Trafford Metrovick (turner 48= *) took command to easily pass the Vale score for the loss of only 1 wicket.

Saturda= y 1^st September:

1^st XI Away: Bowdon Vale 142-8. Lymm OP 143-9. BVCC lost by 1 wicket.

For the second week running the Vale were involved in a thrilling ‘last o= ver – last ball’ finish & once again they agonizingly missed ou= t on a victory. On a damp green wicket, Lymm on winning the toss, had no hesitat= ion in asking the Vale to take first knock. A watchful innings from Peter Ascot= t (26) laid the foundation for a later assault from the middle order. The returning Lee Woods (24) & an excellent 42 not out from Steve Bottomley, including one huge straight six over the pavilion roof were the main contributors as = the Vale closed on 142-8, which was a competitive total given the conditions. In reply, Lymm soon found runs hard to come by against opening pair Roylance &= amp; Nigel Halsall. As the pressure built the home side collapsed to 40-5 with t= he Vale in the driving seat at the mid-way point. A sixth wicket partnership b= etween Knowles 30 & Lord 64 brought Lymm back into the game. As the Vale made inroads into the Lymm later order, the last pair was at the wicket at the s= tart of the final over with 3 runs required for victory. A near run out brought = them a single, before a chip into the outfield brought them the remaining 2 runs with a ball to spare. Mark Roylance finishing with 5-56 & there w= ere 2 wickets a piece for Jack and Nigel Halsall.

2^nd XI Home: Bowdon Vale 135-8. Castrol 132 all out. BVCC won by 3 runs.

Vale 2^nd XI emerged winners in a tight game against Castrol at Priory Street. A strong Vale batting line up posted a mediocre score on a good wicket. At 10= 5-7 after 31 overs, it looked like the Castrol bowlers would come out top but Grimshaw & Turner provided stubborn resistance to finish on 135-8. Castrol posted a steady response &= amp; at 70-3 looked to be favourites but when Robinson entered the attack he mad= e an immediate breakthrough for the first of his 5 wickets (5-34). Skipper Gardner brought back openin= g bowler Singleton for a final throw of the dice & he did the business, clean bowling 3 of the Castrol batsmen to win the match by 3 runs.

Saturda= y 25^th August:

1^st XI Home: Mere 181-7. Bowdon Vale 180-5. Match drawn.

A superb Ian Froggatt maiden century for the Vale took them agonisingly close= to what would have been a deserved victory over champions elect Mere at Priory Street on Saturday. Chasing a total of 182 for victory, the Vale fell just 2 runs sho= rt of their target. A second wicket partnership of 94 between Froggatt & J= ack Halsall with a mature 30 provided the platform for the Vale run chase. 13 r= uns were required off the last over for victory. A four was required from the f= inal ball in a thrilling finish, but with the field spread around the boundary e= dge, Froggatt & Johnson were only able to scamper two runs. Froggatt closing= on 103 not out. Earlier, the powerful Mere batting line up was off to an explo= sive start, with Adams 52 the main contributo= r, when a score of 200 plus looked on the cards. However tighter 10 over spells from both Roylance 4-66 and Nigel Halsall 1-36 pegged back the visitors. Th= ere were three catches for Jack Halsall & a wicket a piece for both Shakesp= eare & Jack Halsall.

2^nd XI Away: Bowdon Vale 178-8 dec. Knutsford 100 all out. BVCC won by 78 runs.=

Vale 2^nd XI stretched their winning run to 4 matches with a resoundin= g 78 run victory over Knutsford. Having declared on 178-8, the Vale opening atta= ck of Gardner (3-20) & Singleton (6-30) made immediate inroads into the Knutsford batting with only 15 year old Hammond (21*) providing much resist= ance to post a final score of 100. The foundation for Vale’s win had been = laid by their top 5 batsmen (G.Roberts 41) plus a promising solid contribution f= rom 13 year old James Callwood. The Vale returned home with all 25 points.

Saturda= y 18^th August:

1^st XI Away: Winsford 106 all out. Bowdon Vale 99 all out. BVCC lost by 7 runs.=

Against all expectations, the Vale 1st XI game at Winsford Knights Grange Sports Complex went ahead in gloomy & damp conditions. Missing last weeks bowl= ing heroes Roylance and Nigel Halsall, skipper John Ollier threw the new ball t= o 16 years old Jack Halsall and the youngster certainly didn’t disappoint.= He returned excellent figures of 4-28 from his two 6 over spells. Jack was supported by two 18 year olds; Andy Shakespeare who displayed his usual immaculate line & length to finish with 1-11 from 9 overs & Rick Ax= on 1-34. Ian Froggat made a welcome return to the bowling attack to produce a = fine spell of seam bowling returning 4-27 to complete an excellent first half of= the game by the Vale to dismiss the home side for 106. If ever a day the Vale n= eed some consistency down the batting order this was it. After a steady start, = the Vale collapsed from 42-2 to 45-5 to hand the initiative to the home side. O= nce again, no partnerships were built & it was left to the last pair Johnson & Ascott to negotiate the last 3 overs in the rain & gathering darkness. A victory was still on the cards with 7 runs required for victory from the final over but it was opening bowler Clarke who had the last word, bowling Johnson, with the Vale agonisingly 7 runs short of their target.

2^nd XI Home to Cheshire County Officers. No= play – rain.

Saturda= y 11^th August:

1^st XI Home: Bowdon Vale 175 all out. Barrow 113 all out. BVCC won by 62 runs.<= o:p>

A fine all round team performance by the Vale earned them their second 25 poi= nt haul of the season against high flyers Barrow. Asked to bat first the Vale posted a par score of 175 on an excellent Priory Street wicket. Opener Ryan 5= 4, skipper Ollier 38 and Mark Roylance with a brisk 21 not out saw the Vale to maximum batting points. In reply the Vale were immediately into the Barrow = top order with two early wickets for Roylance and a lively opening spell from S= hakespeare. Dwyer 44 and Balac 34 brought the visitors back into the game with solid third wicket partnership. It was at = this stage that Roylance weaved his left arm magic to finish with a seasons best 8-32. Halsall chipped in to finish with 2-42 as Barrow were dismissed for 1= 13, both bowlers being backed up by some energetic fielding. If the Vale can lo= ok to sustain this form in the remaining part of the season, a top half finish= is certainly on the cards.

2^nd XI Away: Chelford 176 all out. Bowdon Vale 177-8. BVCC won by 2 wickets.

Vale 2^nd XI gained their 3^rd consecutive win at the expens= e of Chelford. The home side raced to 138-4 off 30 overs thanks to Laurence (44) & Banbes (42), a lightning-fast outfield & 43 extras. A score of 250 looked on the cards, however the introduction of Mark Nicolas (3-10) & = Tom Robinson (3-19), slowed down the scoring & pegged Chelford back to 176.= The Vale replied in quick time with Gareth Roberts leading the charge with a br= utal 60*, supported by Dominic Turner (13) in a stand of 66. Roberts hit a six to reach the target off only 34 overs.

Saturda= y 4^th August:

1^st XI Away: Weaverham 177-4. Bowdon Vale 138-9. Match drawn.=

The 1^st XI made their first trip to Weaverham for a number of seasons and were welcomed by a lightening fast outfield and probably the best batti= ng track seen so far this season. Skipper Ollier’s bowling options were limited, with Roylance and Nigel Halsall bowling unchanged. For the best pa= rt, the two bowlers were in control until a late partnership between Fraser 56 = not out and Lightfoot posted 90 runs in the final 9 overs. In reply this total = was well within the Vale sights, but once again the fall of early wickets and t= he inabilities to build sensible innings was apparent. A fine seventh wicket partnership between Ollier and Halsall saw 68 runs posted in double quick t= ime and the Vale on course for victory but when Ollier fell for an excellent 42= the Vale run chase faltered. Halsall finished with a season’s best 49 not= out as the Vale finished 40 runs short, settling for the draw points.

2^nd XI Home: Wistaston 194-8. Bowdon Vale 197-6. BVCC won by 4 wickets.

The 2^nd XI made it three victories in a row with a fine batting disp= lay against their visitors from Crewe. Gardn= er 3-40 and Allen 2-39 made early inroads into the visitors batting before a l= ate order recovery, aided by some poor fielding, enabled Wistaston the post a decent total. In reply the Vale’s best batting display of the season saw Tom Robinson with 44 and Mark Nicholas with 68 lay the foundations for victory. Gareth Roberts with = an aggressive 36 not out saw the Vale reach their victory target with 3 overs = to spare.

Wednesd= ay 1^st August:

Over 40’s Away: Bowdon Vale 110-7. Mobberley112-5. Mobberley won by 5 wick= ets.

The last game of the season for the Vikings provided a nail-biting finish as the game went down to the final ball. Needing 35 off the last 4 overs, Sutcliffe set about the Vale attack scoring 30 in no time but had to retire on 30* wi= th 1 ball remaining & 3 runs to win. Wheeldon was the Mobberley hero hitting= 4 off his first ball & the last ball of the game. The Vale innings got off to a slow= start but Critchley (31*) steadied the ship & the middle order of Bottomley (= 25) & Rowe (30*) took Vale to a respectable total.

Saturda= y 28^th July:

1^st XI Home: Bowdon Vale 94-9. Pott Shrigley 89 all out. BVCC won by 5 runs.

Vale batted first in an extremely close encounter & thanks to a late rally f= rom Iain Johnson (25*) & Steve Robinson (3*), took the score from 60-8 to 9= 4-9. Ian Frogatt, on his return, was the only other notable contributor with 17. When Pott Shrigley batted, Mark Roylance was soon amongst the wickets with = his second ball & continued success game him a match return of 8-39. At 33-6 Pott Shrigley were out of the game but a stand of 38 between Martin (20) &a= mp; Mattock (28) took them closer= to the Vale total. However, the pressure from Roylance added to the fact that = they had not won a game all season meant that Pott Shrigley ended 5 runs short &= amp; the Vale gained a much needed win.

2^nd XI Away: Pott Shrigley 149-7. Bowdon Vale 153-5. BVCC won by 5 wickets.

On winning the toss on a difficult trip to Pott Shrigley, skipper Allen chose = to use the damp conditions & had no hesitation in putting Pott in to bat. T= he wicket proved fruitful as great swing bowling spells from Singleton (1-25) = and Gardner restricted= Pott Shrigley to a slow start. Indifferent fielding & a catalogue of extras brought Pott Shrigley right back into it until Roberts (3-17) got some purc= hase out of the damp wicket limiting Pott Shrigley to a final 149-7. In reply th= e Vale started positively with Joe Ryan hitting 28, followed by an aggressive 75* = from Singleton & 22* from Sullivan who shared a partnership of 69. The Vale returned home with 20 points and their first win for a while.

Wednesd= ay 25^th July:

Over 40’s Home: Bowdon Vale 137-4. Cheadle Hulme 111-8. Vale won by 26 run= s.

The Vale batsmen prospered at = Priory Street with Mark Barratt (27), Neil Baxter (35= *), Steve Bottomley (30*) & Gareth Roberts (31*) all contributing to a scor= e of 137. Despite an unbeaten 31 from Stewart, Cheadle Hulme were never up with = the rate owing to some tight bowling from all the Vale bowlers.

Saturda= y 21^st July:

1^st XI Away at Barnton. No play – rain.

2^nd XI Home to Barnton. No play – rain.

Saturda= y 14^th July:

1^st XI Home: Alderley Park 108-9. Bowdon = Vale 109-9. BVCC won by 1 wicket.

Bowdon Vale tipped the balance to clinch a nail-biting victory against fellow strugglers Alderley Park and step towar= ds survival. Difficult playing conditions set the scene at Priory Street for a low scoring enc= ounter and, barring a steely last wicket stand of 18 between Roylance and Robinson, the home side would have found themselves on the losing side of a crucial clash. Vale were set a tricky 109 to win as they elected to field first, ta= king 9 Alderley wickets. At one point, a shorter run-chase was on the cards with= out the intervention of rational yet aggressive lower order batting from the visitors. S. Prime headed the rescue effort with 46 after the Alderley top order had slumped. Roylance (6-47) was backed up by Halsall (2-48), Robinson (1-13) and an excellent fielding display. The Vale took a cautious tone in reply, although T. Parry’s figures of 4-34 were worthy of note as a worrying steady fall of wickets began, However, Jack Halsall (27), followed= by Nigel Halsall (21) took control to shape the Vale innings and set up an exciting finale. Cue Roylance and Robinson.

2^nd XI Away: Wirral 139 all out. Bowdon Vale 61 all out. Wirral won by 78 runs.=

A long trip to the Wirral on the other hand bore no fruit for the 2nd XI. Aft= er being set a target of 139 following impressive bowling from Singleton (4-49) and Allen (3-24), the Vale faltered to 51 all out.

Wednesd= ay 11^th July:

Over 40’s Away: Warrington 87-7. Vale Vikings 90-6 all out. Vale won by 4 wickets.

Vale Vikings came out top in a close game at Warrington thanks to Mark Critchley who, chasing Warrington’s score of 87, batted for 19 overs for an unbeaten 30. Critchley was supporte= d by Nick Talbot who hit a quick 17 when the pressure was on. Having survived a scare on his first ball, Neil Halsall crashed a 4 to seal the victory with 3 balls to spare. Earlier the Vale opening attack of Neil Halsall (1-11) and = Bill Crowson (1-8) had taken advantage of the slow, damp wicket to restrict the = Warrington batsme= n. Mark Roylance grabbed 3 wickets at the end to give Vale a modest total to chase.=

Saturda= y 7^th July:

1^st XI Away at Over Peover. No play – rain.

2^nd XI Home: Offerton 183-4. Bowdon Vale 102 all out. Lost by 81 runs.

Despite the poor weather, play was possible on a damp wicket at the Vale. This did = not deter Offerton who toughed out the first 14 overs against Shakespeare & Gardner, scoring only 26 but then largely due to the efforts of G. Myatt accelerated to 183-4 at the end of 45 overs. The Vale bowlers found it difficult to break through with two of the dismissals being run out and Mya= tt finishing unbeaten on 102. In reply only Joe Ryan (28) really troubled the Offerton attack as the Vale were bowled out for 102 in 38 overs.

Saturda= y 30^th June:

1^st XI Home to Wilmslow. No play – rain.

2^nd XI Away at Wilmslow. No play – rain.

Wednesd= ay 27^th June:

Over 40’s Home: Urmston 124-8. Vale Vikings 75 all out. Urmston won by 49 runs.

Top of the league Urmston took all the points from the game with Vale Vikings. Batting first, they raced to 77-2 off 11 overs (S. Dartnell 33*, R. Tootle = 29) until spin-twins Pete Shakespeare & Mark Critchley applied the brakes w= ith Shakespeare finishing with an excellent 5-25. Vale restricted Urmston to 124-8 w= ith Robinson giving a polished performance on debut behind the stumps. With 16 coming off the second over (mostly extras!) the innings got off to a flying start but then Tootle took control, bowling his 4 overs for 3 runs & Davis took 4-12 to skittle Va= le for 75, only Talbot (21) providing any real resistance.

Saturda= y 23^rd June:

1^st XI Away: Bowdon Vale 89 all out. Trafford MV 92-0. Trafford MV won by = 10 wickets.

The Vale 1st eleven made the short trip down the A56 to <= st1:place w:st=3D"on">Sale to take on high flyers Trafford MV= . In cloudy overcast conditions and a wicket recovering from overnight rain winn= ing the toss was always going to be important. The Trafford MV skipper had no hesitation in asking the Vale to take first knock. In bowler friendly conditions the Vale top order struggled to wrestle the initiative from the = home side as Asad 4-19 and Haughton 3-13 controlled proceeding. Only Ryan 33, Ol= lier 14 and Williamson 13 reached double figures as the Vale just managed to bat= out the 45 overs. In reply Traffo= rd survived an early scare as Halsall found an edge that flew between the keep= er and first slip. Thereafter Warner 57 not out and Butcher 29 not out made li= ght of the conditions and comfortably took the home side to victory.

2^nd XI Home: Bowdon Vale 136 all out. Trafford MV 137-5. Lost by 5 wickets.

The 2nd Eleven were unable to prevent a Trafford double at Priory Street. Gareth Roberts was t= he star of the Vale batting with a hard hitting knock of 68 not out, including= 7 sixes. Unfortunately Gareth was unable to find any substantial support as o= nly Donalds 17 and skipper Allen 16 reached double figures as the Vale were all= out in the 31st over. Walsh finishing with 5-35. With 59 overs in which to pace their reply Trafford were never going to be rushed as Thomas 29 and Holt 57 not o= ut saw them to victory for the loss of 5 wickets. Allen 3-65 being the pick of= the Vale bowling.

Wednesd= ay 20^th June:

Over 40’s Away: Cheadle Hulme 110-6. Vale Vikings 110-5. Match tied.<= /o:p>

Needing 20 runs off the last 2 overs, Vale Vikings tied an exciting game with Chead= le Hulme. Nick Talbot & Gary Web hit 11 off the penultimate over which lef= t 9 to win off the last. A wide off the last ball meant that 1 run was still required and with all the fielders closing in, the Cheadle Hulme keeper took the catch that tied the game. Earlier, Pete Ascott hit a patient 30* to keep the score ticking over until Webb (22*) and Talbot (19) made the final assa= ult. The Cheadle Hulme innings got off to a flying start (Potts 24, Stewart 32*)= so the Vale Vikings bowling attack did well to peg them back to a respectable score with veteran Steve Robinson the pick of the bowlers (2-14).

Saturda= y 16^th June:

1^st XI Home: Lymm OP 204-7. Bowdon Vale 97-9. Draw.

Amazingly the Priory Street ground was in a remarkably dry state following recent heavy rain, credit for which must go to grounds man Harry Wood. Upon winning the toss, stand in skipper Peter Ascott asked Lymm to take first knock. Lymm were off to a fly= ing start, with McIntosh in particular quick to despatch anything loose to the boundary. From a position of 100 without loss after 18 overs, a big score looked on the cards, however the Vale bowlers and fielders stuck to their t= ask manfully. Nicholas obtained a breakthrough, accounting for both openers McIntosh for 74 and Wright 47 as the Vale fought back to see Lymm close on 204-9 after 45 overs. Shakespeare 3-59 and Robinson 3-58. In reply the Vale never really got = going to seriously threaten the visitors total. Although Shakespeare, Jack Halsal= l, Bottomley, Ryan and Willson all reached double figures, it was the bowling = of Wright 4-18 and Whelan 4-23 that held the upper hand as the Vale settled fo= r a draw.

2^nd XI Away at Castrol. No play – rain.

An early morning downpour put paid to any chance of play.

Saturda= y 9^th June:

1^st XI Away: Bowdon Vale 121 all out. Mere 127-3. Mere won by 7 wickets.

The Vale first eleven made the short trip to table topping Mere on Saturday. The Vale batted first and their young top order batting line up was met by a li= vely opening bowling attack of overseas Kiwi Sinclair and Pinnington. Early on t= he helpful bowling conditions made life difficult for all the top order as wic= kets fell at regular intervals. The later order attempted to bat out the overs a= s the conditions eased, as Ryan 23 not out and Willson 26 brought some credibilit= y to the score. Sinclair finished with 5-52 and Pinnington 3-36 as the Vale fini= shed on 121 with four of their overs still remaining. For the second week running Shakespeare grabbed a wicket with his first ball, the Mere opener caught be= hind by Ascott. An aggressive knock from Roper 46 and a cultured innings from Ekstein 56 not out saw Mere comfortably home for the loss of just three wickets.

2^nd XI Home: Bowdon Vale 158 all out. Knutsford 40 all out. BVCC won by 118 run= s.

The second eleven recorded their first 25 point haul of the season with a resounding win over near neighbours Knutsford. Batting first the Vale posted 158, Johnson 21, Robinson 29 and Gardner 16 the main contributors. Tony Gardner continued his recent p= urple patch with another almost unplayable spell of swing bowling. Gardner four wickets cost him just 3 ru= ns from 11 overs, as Paul Allen 3-11 and Rick Axon 2-16 saw Knutsford tumble t= o 40 all out.

Saturda= y 2^nd June:

1^st XI Home: Bowdon Vale 135 all out. Winsford 136-5. Winsford won by 5 wickets.

A man of the match performance by Winsford’s Barry Crellin swung the sp= oils in favour of the visitors to Priory Street on Saturday. The Vale batted first, and Andy Sha= kespeare continued where he left off last week with another excellent knock of 78 including 10 fours and 1 six. Unfortunately, support was once again lacking down the order with only Jack Halsall, Johnson and Roylance reaching double figures. The introduction of Crellin 6-28 ripped through the Vale middle or= der, with 3 wickets falling on the same score. In reply Winsford lost a wicket to the first ball of their innings, Shakespeare clean bowling Barrett. The Vale were making inroads into the Winsford top order at which point the game was delicately poised. Enter Crellin with 52 not out to have his say and with support from Dean 23 took Winsford to victory by 5 wickets.

2^nd XI Away: Cheshire County Officers 147 all out. Bowdon Vale 94 all out. Lost.

The 2nd XI made the trip to newcomers Cheshire County Officers. They were let d= own in the field as extras posted the top score as the home side finished on 147 despite fine bowling efforts from Tony Gardner 5-48 and skipper Paul Allen 4-45. In reply the Vale never really got going and only Singleton with 15 a= nd Allen 14 poised any real threat as the Vale sank to 94 all out

Saturda= y 26^th May:

1^st XI Away: Bowdon Vale 106 all out. Barrow 108-4. Barrow won by 6 wicket= s.

The Vale were asked to bat first which was probably no surprise as the wicket w= as in the process of being prepared upon arrival at Barrow. However, the Vale = were off to a flying start with Shakespeare 52 (including 10 x 4’s) Willia= mson 19 and Ollier 15 seeing the Vale to 93-4 off 27 overs. What then followed w= as a batting collapse that saw the Vale lose their last 6 wickets for a paltry 13 runs with 10 overs still remaining. The Vale finishing on 106 all out, at l= east 50 runs short of a competitive target. In reply, Barrow soon lost two early wickets, one to a superb direct throw run out by Jack Halsall. With Barrow precariously placed at 45-4 the Vale were in with a real chance of rescuing something from the game with Roylance and Shakespeare making life difficult= for the home side. Dwyer 43 and Be= ll 32 not out dug in for Barrow as the Vale lost the impetus, to see Barrow to victory by 6 wickets.

2^nd XI Home: Chelford 62 all out. Bowdon Vale 64-1. BVCC won by 9 wickets.=

A much stronger Vale 2nd XI including debutants Mark Nicholas and Gareth Robe= rts from Winsford cruised to a much-needed victory at home to Chelford. Tony Gardner opened with an inspired spell of swing bowling, finishing with figures of 7= -21. Gardner= was supported with a wicket a piece for Allen, Axon and Singleton as Chelford w= ere dismissed for 62. The Vale had little difficulty in knocking off the runs w= ith Nicholas 36 not out and Donalds 18 taking the Vale to victory by 9 wickets.=

Saturda= y 19^th May:

1^st XI Home: Waeverham 53 all out. Bowdon Vale 56-7. BVCC won by 3 wickets= .

The bowlers from both sides held the upper hand at Priory Street on Saturday as 17 wic= kets fell for just 109 runs. Weaverham elected to bat first on winning the toss.= A lively opening spell from Andy Shakespeare ripped through the Weaverham top order to have them reeling at 17-3. Shakespeare finished with figures of 3-= 18 from his 7 over spell. Mark Roylance continued where he left off last week = and tied down the one end, whilst promoted second team skipper Steve Robinson polished off the middle and late order. Robinson finished with the remarkab= le figures of 5 wickets for 4 runs, Roylance 3-20 as Weaverham collapsed to 53= all out. The Vale did not have it all their own way in reply to such a small to= tal. Wickets fell at regular intervals on a slow, low bounce track to Allen 4-16= and Robertson 3-16, as Weaverham sniffed a chance of victory. Jack Halsall with= 16 was the pick of the Vale batting. In the end, the home side reached their target with 7 wickets down and pocketed the 20 win points on offer.

2^nd XI Away: Bowdon Vale 43 all out. Wisaston 46-0. Wisaston won by 10 wickets.=

Nuff said!

Saturda= y 12^th May:

1^st XI Away: Pott Shrigley 143-9. Bowdon Vale 83-2. Match drawn.

The only winner in the Vale’s disappointing draw at Pott Shrigley was the weather. In wet and miserable conditions, this reduced overs game was furth= er affected by home side’s insistence on batting their full allocation of overs; rather than something nearer a fairer ’50-50’ split. When play did get underway, Shakespeare soon got an early break through with the wicket of Hart. Roylance was soon exploiting the damp conditions to finish = with figures of 5-50. Aided by 2 run outs and a wicket for part time bowler Ryan, Pott finished on 143-9. Barlow 45 and White 32 not out the main contributors for Pott Shrigley. Given that= the Vale were left with 12 less overs in which to reach their target in worseni= ng batting conditions, the game plan was to bat out their reduced over allocat= ion. This they did with considerable ease, with Williamson along with youngsters= Joe Ryan and Jack Halsall seeing the Vale close on 83-2.

2^nd XI Home to Pott Shrigley. Match abandoned.

A late morning downpour put paid to any chance of play at Priory Street.

Saturda= y 5^th May:

1^st XI Home: Barnton 143 all out. Bowdon Vale 147-7. BVCC won by 3 wickets= .

The Vale 1st XI continued their promising start to the season with another vict= ory at home to Barnton. Barnton chose to bat first in fine conditions. Mark Roylance was back to his imperious best, returning figures of 8-56, well su= pported at the other end by youngsters Shakespeare and Syed Hussain. For the visito= rs only Ashley 78 and Langham 35 offered any resistance, as their scorecard ma= de sorry reading with 6 ducks. T= he foundation of the Vale reply was laid by Joe Ryan and Peter Williamson, wit= h a blend of youth and experience putting on 60 for the second wicket. The introduction of N.Yarwood 5-61 into the attack caused a few wobbles in the middle of the Vale innings but once again skipper John Ollier steadied the = ship with another aggressive knock of 52 not out to see the Vale home with 3 wic= kets to spare.

2^nd XI Away: Barnton 193-7. Bowdon Vale 119 all out. Barnton won by 74 runs.

The Vale 2nd XI made the visit to Barnton where a strong home side posted 195 f= or 7, Noden starring with 115 and skipper Steve Robinson being the pick of the Vale bowling with 4-32.

In reply, it was always going to be a tall order for the Vale to chase this to= tal down. Contributions from Grimshaw 25 and Willson 33 took the Vale past the = 100 mark but they were unable to seriously threaten the home sides’ total= .

Saturda= y 28^th April:

1^st XI Away: Bowdon Vale 176-8. Alderley Park 177-7. APCC wo= n by 3 wickets.

Following last weeks thrilling finish, the Vale’s first visit to the other newly promoted side Alderley Park ended in a sim= ilarly exciting finish. Only this time the spoils were taken by the home side. On winning the toss, the Vale chose to bat first and once again skipper John Ollier led from the front with another aggressive knock of 62. Ollier found support from Alex Faupel and Ian Johnson, whilst the experienced Nigel Hals= all and Mark Roylance safely saw the Vale past the 170 mark. Butterworth 4-56 b= eing the pick of the Alderley bowling. In reply Alderley were off to a steady st= art. As the run chase gained momentum, fine spells from Ian Willson 2-30 and Nig= el Halsall 2-36 aided by two run outs swung the balance in favour of the Vale. However, a superb hard hitting knock from Farmer (57 not out) took the home side to victory with 3 wickets and 10 balls to spare. A great finish to a good game of cr= icket in which the Vale with their combination of youth and experience more than played their part. Even though the game ended in defeat for the Vale they s= till returned home with 14 points in the bag.

2^nd XI Home: Bowdon Vale 95 all out. Wirral 97-3. WCC won by 7 wickets.

A low key affair saw the Vale 2nd XI lose out to a strong Wirral side. The Va= le were bowled out for 95, as they struggled to cope with the accuracy of Gray 5-34 and Bennett 3-10. In reply the visitors had little trouble knocking off the runs for the loss of 3 wickets.

Saturda= y 21^st April:

1^st XI Home: Over Peover 192-5. Bowdon Vale 194-9. BVCC won by 1 wicket.

The Vale entertained newly promoted Over Peover on the opening day of the seaso= n. Sensible batting by the visitor’s top order put them in the driving s= eat early on. The introduction of Nigel Halsall (4-33) into the attack applied = the brakes but some fine hitting late on enabled the visitors to post what look= ed like a par score on the day. In response, the new-look Vale batting line up= was looking to make use of the ideal conditions. Which suited skipper John Olli= er to a tee. Ollier blasted his = way to an exhilarating 97, smashing the Peover attack to all parts of the Priory. = Ollier was supported by Pete Willia= mson 20, Jack Halsall 17 and Neil = Baxter 23. However, in an enthralling finish, the Vale still required 3 runs for victory with the last pair Halsa= ll and Willson at the wicket. This situation held no fear for Willson has he d= espatched his first ball to the boundary for the winning runs.

2^nd XI Away: Offerton 94 all out. Bowdon Vale 97-3. BVCC won by 7 wickets.=

No such excitement at Offerton where the Vale 2nd XI strolled to a comfortable= 7 wicket victory. Syed Hussain was near unplayable early on as he reduced the home side to 15 for 6. Hussain finished with 7-17 on the day. In reply, a welcome return to form for Alex Faupel 38 and Tom Robinson with 17 saw the = Vale home to victory.