Star of the weekend was Rohann Aatif who scored a centuty at NBMS Denton Bank in an impressive win for the 2nd's over local rivals South North, unfortunately the 1st's lost out by 13 runs in a close game at promotion rivals Seaham Park, and another young 3rd's went down heavily at Newton in the NTCL DIvision 5 West fixture. Read on for all the info :
NEPL Division 1 - 1st XI v Seaham Park (a) - Lost by 13 runs - Match Report by Phil Haves
The hosts won the toss in the first of the final round of win/lose fixtures and decided to make first use of the wicket.
Max again led from the front with a fine opening spell of 2/42 from his 9 overs including the early wicket of opener Hopkins however this brought Park’s overseas McGilvray to the crease. The Aussie proceeded to play with aggression and power as he found the boundary on numerous occasions taking his toll on all the bowlers with the exception of Lee whose 9 overs yielded only 35 runs and included the wicket of McGilvray for a magnificent 97 off 70 balls. The lack of a regular front line 5th bowler hurt us badly as the 9 overs from Anthony and Abu cost 87 runs as the home side racked up 265 from their 45 overs. Winnie with 3, Max and Lee with 2 and TK with 1 were our wicket takers.
In reply our innings started of badly as Nicko was given out stumped for 4 in the second over by what can only be described as a guess at best and when Rory (13) was adjudged LBW we were 31/2. The experience of Adam and Pete began the rebuild adding 65 before they were both dismissed in quick succession for 30 and 21 respectively and when Mark was dismissed for 5 the target seemed along way off at 111/5. TK and Abu slowly built the total adding 102 and the momentum was in our favour until a stunning diving catch dismissed TK for 54 ensured another twist in the match. Abu completed his maiden first eleven half century, 61, however wickets then began to fall at regular intervals and we eventually fell 13 runs short.
A home game against a strong Whitburn side provides the next challenge on Saturday.
1st XI NEPL Scorecard v Seaham Park (a)
NEPL Division 2 - 2nd XI v South North (h) - Won by 21 runs - Match Report by Joe Fletcher
The 2nd's clinched a 21-run victory over South Northumberland CC 2nd XI in a close game, with Rohaan Aatif’s century and a disciplined bowling performance proving decisive.
Batting first, Benwell Hill posted a strong 244 for 8 from 45 overs. Highlights were:
* Rohaan Aatif was outstanding, scoring a chanceless 107 from 112 balls (12 fours, 3 sixes).
* Warren Poxon made a gutsy 45 off 71, though his innings will be remembered as much for comedy as runs as he hilariously retired hurt on around 20 after being struck in the crotch twice in three overs, before returning later to complete his knock.
* Joe Fletcher (33 off 37) added valuable middle-order runs, while late cameos pushed the total beyond 240.
Defending 245, Benwell Hill’s bowlers worked in partnerships to squeeze South Northumberland to 223 for 9 from 45 overs. Highlights were :
* Mohammed Khalid led the attack with 2 for 52 from 7.
* Safi produced an excellent spell of 2 for 27 from 7, keeping the run rate under control, and getting the key wicket of George McConnell just after his half-century.
* Jonesy with 2 for 31 from his 6 overs
* Gabriel Mellor bowled a miserly spell of 1 for 12 from 6 overs, which stopped any momentum from South Northumberland in the middle overs.
2nd XI NEPL Scorecard v South North (h)
NTCL Division 5 West - 3rd XI v Newton (a) - Lost by 111 runs
Unfortunately due to high unavailability and injuries the NTCL 3rd XI resembled a Benwell Hill junior side (with a couple of seniors in the side to guide them along), the good news however is that for the second week running the young team did the Hill proud and put in a battling performance against an experienced Newton team.
Newton batted first, scoring 236 for 6 off their 40 overs, opening bowlers Nicholas Walder (1 wicket) and Ibrahim Ahmed (2 wickets) both bowled well, the experienced Darsh helped in the middle overs with an impressive economy rate, leaving the remaining wickets for Haashir Khan (1 wicket) and Aaran Archibald (2 wickets).
In reply the Hill, were eventually all out for 137 in the 37th over, top scorer was Darsh with 38, however there were some excellent contributions from Thomas Hewson (28), Ibrahim Ahemd (21) and Amy Chapman (14).
3rd XI NTCL Scorecard v Newton (a)
