Deluge too late to save Marden

10:50am Friday 22nd August 2008

FOR the second successive week rain severely curtailed the league programme with matches either being abandoned before the start or teams giving up the ghost in mid afternoon.

In Division 2, Strollers won an important toss against third-placed Marden at The Volunteer under glowering skies and a fine bowling performance enabled them to capitalise on the inactivity of other teams.

After clean bowling both openers, left-arm seamer Simon Allbright returned a seasonal best of 6 for 18.

Andrew Gardner weighed in with 3 for 11 and a superb run out engineered by Jonny Powell enabled Strollers to steamroller the innings for just 29 inside 21 overs.

For the home side only Allan Davies mustered double figures with ten. In wrapping up an eight wicket victory in the eighth over Strollers were able to leap-frog Marden into third place in the division.

At Berryfield, Woolhope might have fancied their chances of further consolidating their second place, but after removing Hereford City for 104, they were unable to commence their reply.

There was no doubting that the day’s outstanding individual performance was in the Division 5 Cup clash at Weobley School where Ben Boswell led Shirebulls to a 45 run victory over Weobley 2nd.

Remarkably Boswell, with 16 fours and a six in his 82, led the seven-man visitors to a total of 119 in 25.3 overs.

The ebullient Boswell then went to work with the ball and, in clean bowling all of his victims, finished with figures of 7 for 26. Simon Hall made 25 for Weobley 2nd in their total of 74.

There were only two positive results and none of the other matches entered the second innings.

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