Match Report
FIRST WIN IN FINE STYLE
Gerry Wolstenholme
St Annes gained their first Northern Premier League win of the season at Vernon Road on Saturday in fine style as Fleetwood were beaten by 37 runs. St Annes' modest 109 all out on a low, slow track still looked a relatively easy target for the visitors but they could not manage it and, from a high point of 64-3, they were bowled out for just 72.
St Annes won the toss and batted but skipper Geoff Love may have rued his decision when he was fourth batsman out with the total only 31. Steve Hill and Dave Fish opened the Fleetwood attack with very tight spells and with the total on three, Adrian Darlington, two, lofted Fish to deep mid-on where Alex Laird juggled the catch and eventually held on. Gareth Evans, nine, followed him to the pavilion when the total had advanced to 24. He tried a quick single with partner Love only to see Michael Dewhurst throw down the stumps when he was still short of his ground.
Steve Twist could not continue his rich vein of form and trying to drive Hill, he only succeeded in offering a gentle return catch. He was gone for nought and St Annes were 25-3. Love, 12, was next to go when he fell leg before wicket to Fish with the total on 31 and the top order of the St Annes batting had gone. Andy Kellett's dismissal for six, bowled by Laird, left the home side struggling even more at 45-5.
Then came a couple of pieces of good luck for St Annes. Joe Davies had not got off the mark when he skied a ball from Love to extra cover where Paul Hague seemed to get under the swirling skier. However he lost the ball and if fell harmlessly to earth and Davies was reprieved. He was reprieved once more when Fleetwood professional Gulam Bodi shied at the stumps when the batsman was short of the crease only for the ball to miss narrowly and Davies escaped again.
Davies capitalised on his good fortune and stayed 65 balls from which he hit one huge six and four fours while compiling 34. His end came when he edged Laird to the ever-alert Keith Riley who snapped up the catch with St Annes then on 86-6. It was 92-7 when Taylor fell leg before wicket to Laird for one and 101-8 as Bodi had Roger Banks caught in the deep by Hill for two.
The later runs mainly came from the bat of Neil Bradley and his innings of 35, including six fours, was adorned with two exquisite drives through extra cover off Bodi. He survived for 84 balls before he was smartly stumped by Riley having just lifted his foot for an instance. That was 109-9 and when Laird had James Ellis leg before wicket for two, St Annes were all out for 109. Laird took the Fleetwood bowling honours with 4-22 from 14.1 overs while Fish had 2-23, Bodi 2-36 and Hill 1-22.
Fleetwood's reply began disastrously for opener Rob Clark failed to score and was back in the pavilion without a run on the board. Joe Davies was the bowler who had him leg before wicket. And it was Davies who struck the second blow for St Annes when, with the total advanced to 11, he had Dewhurst caught at slip by Kellett for six. A stand of 22 followed between Bodi and Michael Clinning and this was ended when Love produced a dream ball to dismiss his friend and fellow South African Bodi. The batsman had driven him for a boundary earlier in the over but the shot was not a convincing one and when Love pitched one on the leg stump Bodi went carefully forward to cover the ball. But the ball seemed to turn a good few inches, defeated the forward defensive stroke and removed the off stump. He had gone for 19 and Fleetwood were 33-3.
Clinning and John Wright, who looked in good form with some impressive sweeps off Love, ran well between the wickets and the pair added 31 to take Fleetwood to 64-3. At this point it looked as though the game was over but then the sensational events began. The final seven wickets went down for just eight runs in only eight overs.
It was the last ball of the 21st over when Darlington had Clinning superbly stumped by Ellis for 16 to leave Fleetwood at 64-4. Ellis was then instrumental in dismissing Nick Coultas as he and Wright went for a short single. Ellis dashed from behind the stumps, gathered the ball as he removed his glove and threw out the middle stump at the non-striker's end with Coultas well short of his ground. He had gone for nought and Fleetwood's hold on the game did not look as strong at 67-5.
Thereafter only Riley of the later batsmen troubled the scorers and he was left two not out at the end. Of the rest, Hague was comprehensively bowled by Darlington, 69-6, and Laird was bowled by Love, 70-7. Then Wright, a top score of 21, inexplicably hit a Darlington full toss straight at Ian Baldwin at mid-on, 70-8. Next to go was Hill, bowled by Love at 71-9 and when Fish was caught by Love at mid-off off Darlington, it was all over as Fleetwood capitulated for 72.
Darlington had impressive figures of 4-6 from 5.5 overs, Love took 3-30 and Davies, who started the whole thing off, had 2-19 as St Annes celebrated an astonishing 37-run victory.
Skipper Geoff Love commented afterwards, "It was an excellent game of cricket. With only 109 on the board you know it is going to be difficult. But we said at tea that if we kept the ball there and thereabouts we would be in with a chance. Joe and Banksie opened well and tightly so that set us off in a good frame of mind and the wicket was not an easy one." When asked how he felt when Fleetwood were seemingly in control at 64-3 he said, "You would always have favoured the batting side at that point but we were determined not to give up and we fielded well and kept it tight. And then on comes Dosser [Adrian Darlington], takes four for almost nothing and suddenly it is all over."
He failed to mention his part in the downfall with the crucial wicket of Gulam Bodi. When pressed he modestly commented "Gulam and I are good friends and have played together at the South African Academy and we have come up against each other on a number of occasions. And on this occasion it was my day. The ball was one of my better ones and with some rough at that end from Joe's follow through I had something to bowl at."
He was particularly pleased for young James Ellis who he rates as "an outstanding wicketkeeper for his age" and he compares him favourably with his friend, South African wicketkeeper Mark Boucher. "Over here it is not easy to take off-spin, especially down the leg side but he always takes the ball well and when I pitch it short and it goes leg side, it is not easy" he remarked. And as for the superb run out by Ellis, he added "In fairness we have practised such things at training as we believe that five or six run outs at crucial times throughout the season can mean the difference in finishing in or out of the top six in the table."
Finally his overall view was one of delight for the team who had achieved their first victory of the season. He said "I am particularly pleased for the boys as we have had some close finishes without ever coming out on top. Now we have done it and they deserve all the praise that is coming their way."
