Sale jumped up to fifth place in the Vivio Cheshire County Cricket League 1st XI Divison One, with an emphatic six-wicket victory over bottom-placed Tattenhall.
Electing to bowl first with rain around, Sale had almost instant vindication as opener Josh Harding was caught at 1st slip by Chris Canning off the bowling of Tyrone Lawrence for just seven. Henry Dobson – Tattenhall’s leading run scorer – and Dylan Reeves then tried to consolidate, aiming to keep wickets in hand for the later overs. The plan had worked for nearly twenty overs, but, with the score on 45, Reeves was bowled by Ali Barrowman for a patient thirteen.
Dobson was then joined by Koppack – forming arguably Tattenhall’s best batting pair – and the two had only been together for eight balls before Dobson hit the ball straight to Lawrence and called Koppack through for a single, but the throw to Guest was there well ahead of the Tattenhall man and he was run out without troubling the scores – Tattenhall now 45-3.
With the dot balls building and the thirty over mark approaching – just fifty-two runs had been scored – Dobson inexplicably hit the ball straight to Tyrone Lawrence and, despite looking relatively untroubled, was forced to depart for twenty-nine.
The next two wickets contributed only one run to the score, before Spraggs was bowled by Barrowman and overseas Siebert then chipped Richard Adams to Canning at midwicket, for one and a duck, respectively. This left the score 53-6, and only a further lone run was added before Ryan Spann was pinned LBW by Barrowman for a single.
Ali Barrowman was the pick of the Sale bowlers. Photo by George Franks.
At 54-7, Tattenhall were in danger of a tiny score, but captain Owen Williamson came to the rescue somewhat; his 26 (with three fours and two sixes) helped lift his team to 93, before he ballooned one high into the air, and was caught by Luke McCoy off the bowling of Tyrone Lawrence. Ben Gibbon then was stumped off Tyrone Lawrence for 13, and Alan Brock hit a four straight down the ground, but it only was enough to lift Tattenhall to 99 all out.
With rain in the air, Sale’s openers Mat Spells and Brooke Guest set about their task of scoring the runs required as quickly as possible – taking twenty-six runs off the first four overs.
The pair had added 58 in quick time, before Mat Spells walked down the pitch to Dave Shewring and was stumped for an excellent 33 (coming off just 35 balls, with five fours). Tyrone Lawrence was then pinned LBW very next ball by the same bowler, and, with storm clouds approaching, Sale were 58-2; forty-two away from their target.
Mat Spells helped to get Sale off to a quick start. Photo by George Franks.
Guest and McCoy briskly took Sale towards their target, and two successive fours from Guest took him to 46, needing a boundary to seal both his fifty and the Sale win… but he was bowled by Dobson, as the rain started to really fall.
McCoy then fell first ball of the next over, for 17 – caught by Henry Dobson after a brief juggle, as the rain came down even harder. Dixon, though, took Sale over the line as he pulled Siebert to the sqaure-leg boundary, taking Sale to a vital six-wicket victory with not a moment to spare!
Ian Dixon hit his first ball off Siebert for four, sending Sale to victory just seconds before the rain came down. Photo by George Franks.
Match highlights: A. Barrowman 10.0-6-7-3; T. Lawrence 10.0-3-15-3; M. Spells 33 (35); B. Guest 46 (54)
Match scorecard: http://bit.ly/29bJ5bh
Sale Cricket Club 