Match Report
THE THREE-BOWLER TRICK!
Barrow 175
St Annes 178-5
Gerry Wolstenholme
St Annes perhaps surprising use of only three bowlers against Barrow at Vernon Road on Saturday paid rich dividends as Stephen Twist, Richard Thomas and Jimmy Adams bowled the visitors out for just 175 on a track that looked as though there were plenty of runs to be had. St Annes proved that to be so for in reply they made 178-5 in 36.5 overs to win comfortably by five wickets.
Ian Allington won the toss for Barrow, elected to bat and opened with Shaun Miller. The skipper put one or two airy drives over extra cover before he tried one lofted shot too many. Striking Thomas down the ground, Adams ran from long-off to long-on to take a breathtaking catch that he held as he fell and Allington was out for 14 at 24-1.
It was quickly 32-2 as Duncan Whalley held onto an edge off James Riley from the bowling of Twist and the number three had gone without scoring. Professional Rawl Lewis came in, bludgeoned one six and then Twist trapped him leg before wicket for seven at 40-3.
The best stand of the innings followed as Miller and Paul Wilcock consolidated and put on 79 runs in an untroubled fashion. Wilcock, the livelier of the pair, struck five fours in his 71-ball 33 but then he carved at a widish ball from Thomas and Danny Hagen took the catch running to extra cover. Thereafter most of the runs came from Miller who was eighth out at 164 when Adams bowled him for a grafting 78 from 148 balls with seven fours.
In between Thomas bowled Stephen Glasgow for three at 130-5, Adams induced Ray Mowat, two, to leave his crease and Whalley completed the stumping to make it 139-6 and Dean Williams was a tad unlucky when, backing up and not having received a ball, he was run out when a diving Thomas deflected a ball onto the stumps and that was 139-7.
After Miller's departure, Todd Bamber made 19 before he returned a catch to Twist and when Adams bowled Daryl Wearing for four that left Peter Lawson not out two and Barrow vanquished for 175. Twist took 3-43, Thomas 3-62 and Adams 3-64.
The St Annes reply began very well as Charles Boucher and Hagen had no difficulty dealing with the Barrow bowling and, despite Allington rotating his bowlers, the score mounted steadily. It had reached 65 when a disappointed Boucher drove Lewis to Lawson at mid-on and he was gone for 43 made from only 36 balls with six fours. Adams made 18 before he rather lamely drove Riley to Wearing at extra cover and that was 91-2. A third wicket was quickly lost when Twist, four, chopped a ball from Lewis to backward point where the agile Wilcock dived to take the catch and that was 97-3.
Hagen went on to make 40 from 85 balls with seven fours before Lewis bowled him at 123-4 and just after the drinks break Russell Bradley fell leg before wicket to Riley for 10. But that was the end of the Barrow success as Joe Davies, a powerful 43 not out from 53 balls with one six and eight fours, and Whalley, a quick-fire 12 not out from just 10 balls, saw their side home by five wickets at 178-5 with 16 overs and one ball of the final 20 overs unused.
