"the voice of Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire cricket" in association with
Pure Cricket, - 'supplying cricket equipment to the professional amateur'
Pure Cricket, - 'supplying cricket equipment to the professional amateur'
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"the voice of Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire cricket" in association with Pure Cricket, - 'supplying cricket equipment to the professional amateur' |
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National club champions start 2004 season in style National Club Cricket champions Sandiacre Town started their 2004 Derbyshire Premier League season in convincing style at Longmoor Lane with a 122 run success over a young Chesterfield side. The 2003 runners-up were never in danger and strolled to an easy victory despite Chesterfield skipper Simon Lacey's valiant attempts with bat and ball.
Sandiacre batted first and were off to a flying start with skipper John Trueman (pictured) contributing a stylish 78. Over 80 runs were on the board before the first wicket fell, but the visitors were able to peg back the home side thanks to Lacey's five wicket haul. The former Derbyshire spinner, who takes over the Chesterfield captaincy from Dave Adams in 2004, produced figures of 5 for 65 at a time when the home side were looking to push on. As the teams went in for tea, the general feeling amongst the visitors was that 219 was a gettable score, but shrewd locals knew that, at this time of the season, 200 can often be a very good score at the ground. The locals were to be proved correct.
Sandiacre have one of the best opening bowling attacks in the League in Akhtar and Irfan Ul Haq, ably assisted by John Jordison at first change. The pace men soon had Chesterfield in trouble at 31 for 5, and when Patel was introduced into the attack, the game was beyond Chesterfield's reach. Patel mopped up the tail taking 4 for 15 to leave Sandiacre victors by 122 runs, sending out a warning to the rest of the League that the National Club Championship success was no fluke. Chesterfield were left to make the journey back up the M1 with a lot of thinking to do if they are to improve on last season's mid-table position. Scores: 
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CHARLIE FRENCH BATS  |
Chesterfield start their 2004 season without Derbyshire CCC contracted player Neil Gunter, who is injured, and Zimbabwean Ryan Bennett, who is caught up in the internal wranglings in his home country. Sandiacre had no such problems and were able to field Nottinghamshire CCC and England Under 19 star Samit Patel, as well as Pakistani overseas Naeem Akhtar.
