Glapwell back on top
by Paul Barker, 29th August 2005

After another day of close matches, Glapwell by taking maximum points against Cuckney moved back to the top of the table, but it is still oh so very tight and absolutely anything could happen. This is without question the most exciting chase for honours that has been seen in the league for many years and whilst Edwinstowe are still in with a good chance it would seem that after this weekends results, Farnsfield and definitely Cutthorpe have fallen by the wayside.

Glapwell simply played with Cuckney who were beaten heavily by eight wickets. Cuckney have dropped to bits since leading the table at the half way stage and were bowled out for a pathetic 109. None of their batsmen could cope with Kiwi test ace Iain O’Brien who bowled with his usual hostile pace and accuracy to take 6 for 30. Matt Hall who certainly laid claim to the man of the match title with 3 for 31and a later effort with the bat, gave excellent support.

In reply Glapwell easily coasted to victory on 110 for 2 with Matt Hall showing his all round prowess with a tremendous unbeaten knock of 61. Hall has certainly had a good season with both bat and ball and is still young enough for even further improvement which bodes well for Glapwell for a long time in the future.

Thoresby Colliery who went into the weekend at the head of affairs managed a winning draw in a thriller with Farnsfield which just about kills off the latter’s hopes of snatching the title. Batting first Thoresby built up a substantial total of 234 for 8 with Martin Cheshire (42), Nigel Burkitt (43) and the Zimbabwean David Irvine (71 n.o.) leading the run chase. Irvine has come on extremely strongly over the last few weeks after a steady start and has proved extremely useful to the Thoresby side.

Mark Silcock bowled his usual tidy spell for Farnsfield, bagging 3 for 75 from 21 very tidy overs. This target looked a good one but Farnsfield have the batting strength to chase any total successfully and are often triumphant in their quest.

This time however they finished a mere four runs short. Paul Franks again smashed a tremendous century finishing on 125 n.o. and with his skipper Andy Edwards (59), looked extremely capable of winning the match for their side. However when Edwards was out it put a whole new perspective on the game, and some clever captaincy by Martin Cheshire kept the dangerous Franks away from the strike.

In the meantime Shailesh Patel captured three wickets in one over to change things totally, and frustratingly for Franks he couldn’t get down to the end that Farnsfield needed him to be at, as they finished on 230 for 7. Patel took 5 for 28 and certainly re-shaped the whole course of the game and Thoresby are without question now in with a massive chance of lifting the title.

Don’t rule Edwinstowe out of the equation though. They totally demolished Cutthorpe with some style at Forest Corner by 75 runs and are still very much in the race. Strangely enough most of the early batting failed as Cutthorpe applied the pressure but skipper John Garnham (44), Nigel Jackson (34 n.o.) and Richard Gombos (31) helped them reach a reasonable total of 196 for 8 which was much more than they looked capable of getting at one time.

This target proved much too much for Cutthorpe who flopped horribly to 121 all out with only John McCollum (42) doing much to exercise the scorers pens. Asif Zakir (4 for 37) and Shaun Bullin (3 for 10) did the majority of the damage and Edwinstowe continue to keep the pressure on the top two. Don’t rule them out, they are far from being out of the race yet!

Killamarsh did their hopes of survival a power of good when they beat Worksop by four wickets at Sheffield Road . Batting first, Worksop made 179 for 8 with the elegant Glenn Pym (75) batting at his brilliant best and putting the Killamarsh attack to the sword. Excellent support came from Ramesh Sanjay (38) but then a fine spell of bowling by Killamarsh skipper Parmindar Mudhar (4 for 36) turned the game his side’s way.

Wickets continued to fall as Killamarsh made an uncertain start in their reply. However Paul Burdett (47) and a punishing knock by Pete Allen (48 n.o.) saw them reach 180 for 6 and victory. Allen has not had the most productive season of his career with the bat, but when he gets in he is an extremely dangerous hitter as Worksop found out to their cost in this match. Sanjay (3 for 37) was the best of the Worksop bowling attack and he must have felt a little aggrieved that he was on the losing side after such a good all round display.

Kiveton Park arrested their alarming slump with a 23 run win over Bridon who it seems the bell is now tolling for. Batting first Kiveton reached 180 for 8 in their fifty overs with Australian Peter Coleborne (41), Dean Walker (34) and Richard Spurr (36) leading the charge. Justin Miller (3 for 59) and Darren Spooner (4 for 40) bowled well for Bridon and at the half way stage they must have thought they were in with a semblance of a chance.

It was not to be however, and despite brave efforts from youngster Will Lee (52) and Simon Davison (35), Bridon finished on 157 all out and slumped to another defeat that keeps them firmly entrenched at the foot of the table with games beginning to run out. Kiveton with this victory now look to be safe, but Bridon’s future is looking more and more dependent on the final game of the season against fellow strugglers Marshalls at Ordsall on September 10 th.

Notts. & Arnold easily withstood the challenge of Marshalls to register a winning draw over their relegation haunted rivals. Batting first Notts. & Arnold racked up a useful looking 205 for 9 with David Evans (53) and Phil Allcock (32) both batting well for their side. Gary Andrews (3 for 50) was the pick of the Marshalls attack but at no time did the Gainsborough side look to be confident enough to cause an upset.

And so it happened with none of the Marshalls batsmen really settling in against a miserly Notts. & Arnold attack. As the overs ran out Marshalls reached 154 for 8 with Paul Murphy taking 3 for 24 in an extremely tidy spell of bowling. Whilst it is very easy to be wrong if only one side is relegated as two teams look like being exiting from the Premier League back into the South Notts . League, it would be a major surprise if it was anyone other than Marshalls or Bridon. We will have to wait and see.

Bolsover clinched the second division title with a narrow winning draw over Everton who did their hopes of survival a power of good with a great whole hearted display. Batting first Bolsover got off to a good start before Mark Bull (31) was caught at slip, but Usman Saeed (60) and Steve Wooley (50) carried on in style always carrying the attack to the Everton bowlers.

The introduction of skipper John Mimms into the attack made a huge difference and he took 6 for 30 in a tremendous stint which included three wickets in the last over as Bolsover were bowled out for a disappointing 204.

Everton’s reply started at snail pace but a superb stand between John Mimms and Mark Anthony (36) more than gave them a chance of pulling off a surprise win. Mimms in particular was quite brilliant and handled all the bowlers including the dangerous Usman Saeed who was ‘turning it square’ with ease. He had at one time worried Bolsover so much that every fielder except the bowler and wicket-keeper were stationed on the boundary.

However he was out caught on the boundary by Andy Rogers for a magnificent 91 but if ever a player deserved a century it was Mimms. This was a classic innings full of fine strokes and a perfect captain’s example for his side. You will go a long way to see anything much better than this, yes it was that good! Everton finally closed their innings on 181 for 6 but they had given Bolsover one heck of a fright and the ten points they gleaned from the draw should ensure their safety for another season.

Bolsover are now champions of the section and deservedly so. They have played good strong attacking cricket all the way throughout the season and Usman Saeed their young Pakistani has been a great find with both bat and ball. In this match he took 5 for 57 and added to his performance with the bat it was a great all round show. Another point worthy of mention was three stumpings by veteran wicket-keeper Jim Cowley who showed he is still as sharp as ever.

Eckington kept their outside chance of promotion firmly on the front light with a comfortable win by 57 runs over a badly outgunned Whitwell side who have perfected inconsistency down to a fine art. They are more than capable of beating the best on their good days, but on their bad ones they are simply awful.

Batting first, Eckington reached an all out total of 189 with Andy Burns (69), and John Daniel (37) top scoring. There was always something there for the bowlers however and this was exploited to the full by Nathan Morris (4 for 46) and Ryan Coalwood (4 for 22) but this total must have given Whitwell some thoughts of pulling off a victory.

However the Whitwell batting was undergoing one of its bad days and had it not been for Dave Jessop (34) the score would have been much worse than the 132 all out that they achieved. Dave Barton (3 for 31) and Simon West (5 for 64) were the main problems for the Whitwell batsman who slumped alarmingly under pressure. They may well have left matters a fraction too late, but Eckington are a side who will fight all the way to the line and if anyone is foolish enough to write them off they may well be in for a rather rude awakening.

Papplewick & Linby 2 nd are another side who have surged up the table in the second half of the season and are certainly a threat to the better sides. There latest success was a winning draw against North Wheatley with Leverton who put up a good challenge before failing by just 12 runs to pull off a surprise win.

Batting first Papplewick made a rather laboured 160 for 8 with Michael Henley (42) and Ian Hardy (30) top scoring. Jamie Bovill (4 for 25) rolled back the years for North Wheatley with a vintage spell and James Blackwell (3 for 30) gave excellent support to limit Papplewick to such a modest total.

The North Wheatley reply however never got away to the start they needed and only Martin Pring with 32 made much impact. Pring must have been yearning for some support but it was the very talented youngster Ian Hardy (5 for 39) who did the damage to complete a superb personal all round display that finally saw North Wheatley close on 148 for 7.

Notts. & Arnold 2 nd who have been anchored to the foot of the table for nearly all the season pulled off a sensational six wicket win over Anston who have dropped to pieces over the last few weeks. Batting first, Anston didn’t do a lot wrong reaching a competitive 211 for 4 when the overs ran out. Jonathan Geary (34), John Lyne (45), Michael Norbury (39) and Andrew Ruczenczyn (34 n.o.) all made major contributions and they must have gone in for tea feeling quite pleased with their efforts.

This Notts. & Arnold side have always looked to have better players than their results have suggested and at last that theory was proved as they came out with all guns blazing and knocked off the required runs with some panache. Sam Pallister (63), Harvey Burton (81) and Mark North (36 n.o.) all got amongst the runs and Anston must have been staggered the way their attack was treated as Notts. & Arnold raced to only there third win of the season. They still have a mountain to climb however and safety looks virtually impossible but they might just have set a few hearts fluttering amongst those who thought that they were safe.

And finally, they always say ‘save the best till last’ and if you are talking on these terms Saeed Bin Nasir’s name must always come into the equation. On a typical Farnsfield ‘shirt-front’ Pilsley made the enormous total of 278 for 3 with the brilliant Bin Nasir contributing 165 of them. This incredible batsmen cannot be far short of 2000 runs this season which is a true testimony to his phenomenal ability.

Andy Keighley added 61 and Dave Wright was 31 n.o. when the overs finally ran out much to the delight of the wilting Fansfield fielders. Left arm slow bowler Keith Miller took all three wickets to fall at a cost of 84 runs which was a major success after such a mauling of their attack.

It must be said that Farnsfield 2 nd certainly battled in reply and the highlight was a richly deserved unbeaten 101 by Tom Corbyn which was compiled with real excellence. Phil Tyler made 34 and Farnsfield closed on 187 for 3 which was a fair reply when facing such a huge total.