Nye, Bridgen & Cole star as 1st XI defeat Weymouth

Weymouth 1st XI 173 all out lost to Wimborne & Colehill 1st XI 174 for 6 by 4 wickets.

The Minstermen registered their fourth win of the campaign against Weymouth yesterday that saw them move up to 5th place in the table, their highest position since the third week of the season.

Skipper Andy Hayward won the toss and inserted the opposition on a green wicket and with an outfield that had moisture on it from the early morning rain. Wimborne only had to wait till the 12th ball of the innings for left armer Rob Hatchard (1 for 32 off 8.2 overs) to nip one back to the dangerous Janaway (4) and clip the top of off stump with a fine delivery. The following over saw Gav Will (1 for 38 off 9 overs) have Womble (4) very well caught by a diving Bridgen at 2nd slip to leave Weymouth shell shocked at 10 for 2. Former Dorset batsman Ben Lawes however batted sensibly and pouched on anything loose and with stand in Weymouth skipper Tom England ensured they were scoring runs at 4 an over as the score reached 80 for 2 off 20 overs. The introduction of the spin of Ben Ratcliffe and debutant Stuart Nye however led to only 20 runs conceded from the following 10 overs and this economic slow bowling led to England (31) being bowled to represent Nye’s first Dorset Premier League wicket. Ratcliffe (1 for 22 off 10 overs) quickly followed by bagging McKay (5) by deceiving him with a well flighted delivery that re-arranged his stumps that left Weymouth 105 for 4 from 31 overs. Nye then got his 2nd victim with the vital wicket of Lawes (58) well caught by Bridgen at mid-wicket as Weymouth lost their 5th wicket with the score at 114. Nye (4 for 16 off 10 overs) was now dominating the Weymouth batters as Ulhaq (2) and Fitzgerald (13) were both bowled as they were deceived by the youngsters spin bowling as Weymouth reached 129 for 7. Weymouth’s tail wagged however as Doidge (16) helped progress the score to 150 prior to the returning quick bowler Tom Heyes (2 for 55 off 10 overs) yorking him with a fine delivery. Heyes then replicated the previous delivery with another fine yorker that saw Almond’s (0) stumps knocked back to leave Heyes on a hat-trick that Nobbs (13*) unfortunately kept out. Pearce (8) was the final wicket to go in the last over being run out after smart fielding by Ratcliffe to leave Weymouth 173 all out.

With the Weymouth tail wagging as it did, it proved the wicket was drying and after the morning rain the outfield was getting faster so as the sun came out the Minstermen were confident of chasing down the target.

Disaster struck however very first ball as Colin Randall (0) was bowled by Nobbs (3 for 37 off 10 overs). Ben Bridgen joined Hayward at the crease and both batted positively dispatching anything loose as the score reached 37 off 6 overs when Hayward (15) dragged on to his stumps from a Pearce (2 for 32 off 10 overs) delivery. With 137 left to win the match and last weeks mid-order collapse still fresh in the memory the next partnership was vital for the Minstermen and as Graham Cole joined Bridgen they both continued to dominate the opposition bowling. By hitting the bad ball to the fence with some classical cover drives, pulls and late cuts whilst also running well between the wickets they ensured the run rate remained above 4 an over with a fine display of batsmanship showing the importance of batting as a pair and Cole (51) reached a well deserved half-century, his first of the season for the 1st team. Soon after however Cole snicked to the keeper from the returning opener Pearce that ended a magnificent 97 run 3rd wicket partnership as Cole’s innings lasted 89 balls with 9 fours. With the score at 134 for 3 off 36 overs, disaster struck in the 39th over as Hatchard (2) was dismissed LBW from Nobbs that left Wimborne 137 for 4. With Bridgen the batsman ‘in’ it was vital he batted the Minstermen to victory and he reached his first half century for the club, which was no more than he deserved for a sensible innings. Grant Cormack (9) came in at 6 and we saw flashes of his talent with a two fine boundaries to ensure Weymouth remained on the back foot, however when he was smartly stumped by Fitzgerald off Nobbs, Wimborne & Colehill had lost their 5th wicket with 26 runs still required to win. 5 runs were added prior to Ratcliffe (1) misjudging the slog sweep and becoming Ulhaq’s (1 for 39 off 10 overs) only wicket of the day and suddenly nerves were jangling in the Minstermen camp. Bridgen however was sensibly standing firm at one end and as James Miller (8*) played his natural positive game the other the pair saw the Minstermen home in the 45th over for a fine 4 wicket victory. Bridgen batted the whole innings bar the 1st ball of the match that ensured a Minstermen victory and his score of 60 not out from 136 balls with 9 fours was pivotal in the run chase.

So 3 victories from the last 4 matches have seen Wimborne & Colehill climb to 5th in the Premier League ladder and skipper Hayward was delighted with the key performers after the match: “Despite his tender years Stuart Nye on debut was absolutely superb and Ratty was his usual economical self and their spell in the middle of Weymouth’s innings was pretty key for us with the pace off the ball. With the bat it was great to see a positive display and the attack taken to the opposition and Bridgen & Coley’s knocks were superb and showed a lot of character after last weeks events.”

Wimborne & Colehill travel to Dorchester next Saturday.

Category: 1sts