u13 Reports 2010
11th August Away Against Albrighton
The last match of the 2010 season saw Lilleshall U13’s play at Albrighton and a break in the weather meant a relatively warm start with some cloud cover and a green track, but conditions were good and several parents who had seemingly decided that the cricket was a much better prospect for entertainment than staying in to watch the England football team.
The spectators were not disappointed, as a close and eagerly fought game between two good sides ensued however with the nights drawing in the available light was always a concern.
Lilleshall skipper Ryan Ball continued his good form by winning the toss and electing to bat first, and Ryan joined Thomas Mackriel to open the batting.  The Albrighton bowling proved to be accurate and challenging however Lilleshall started well and runs began to flow as Thomas cracked two boundaries in the third over and Ryan got off the mark with a quick single. However in the fifth over, Ryan was unlucky to get the faintest of edges off a swinging ball and was caught behind by the wicket keeper.
With the fall of the first wicket, Charlie Walsh joined Thomas at the crease and made an immediate impression playing with good technique and a straight bat. Charlie got off the mark with a boundary and soon after repeated the stroke for another boundary and the batsmen looked to have the upper hand, until back came Albrighton with another wicket as Charlie was clean bowled through the gate by an excellent delivery.
The second wicket saw Rory Cattermull join Thomas Mackriel and the two batsmen began to knock the ball around and accelerate the run rate. Thomas was soon asked to retire after a well judged innings which laid the foundations for the Lilleshall total, scoring 6 boundaries in a total of 33 runs with some excellent shots. Jacob Meeson-White replaced Thomas in the middle and he played very courageously to defend his wicket and ran well between the wickets as Rory took the lead role with some expansive scoring shots until whilst poised to retire on 29 runs he played a shot at a delivery which kept low and the Albrighton fielder took a brilliant one handed catch over his head just off the square to claim another wicket for the home side. This was one of Rory’s best innings and a great way to finish the season with his 29 runs including 4 boundaries.
For the last couple of overs, Talal Ahmad joined Jacob with instructions from the coaches to play freely and score some runs, and Talal did exactly that playing just 5 scoring shots to race to 17 not out at the close including 2 boundaries and a mighty 6. Jacob Meeson-White also carried his bat finishing with 2 runs holding down one end in dogged fashion.
Lilleshall posted a total of 124 runs for 3 wickets, setting Albrighton a competitive score to chase as the light began to close in and conditions became decidedly autumnal, as spectators added extra layers of clothing to keep out the cold.
Albrighton’s reply was bright and purposeful, but Lilleshall’s opening bowlers Rory Cattermull and Charlie Walsh kept things tight and runs were hard to come by, and Rory bowled a maiden first over and then made an early break through in the third over as Talal Ahmad took a neat catch off the gloves to dismiss the opening batsman. Rory bowled well and finished with figures of 1 maiden, 1 wicket for 20 runs off 4 overs. Charlie Walsh also bowled well and in his final over took a well deserved wicket with a swinging delivery which was played back by the batsman for Charlie to take a smart catch off his own bowling. Charlie finished with figures of 1 wicket for 19 runs off his 4 overs.
At this point in the match, the quality of light was decreasing all the time as the evening began to draw in, and skipper Ryan Ball elected to turn to spin and medium pace, and so Matthew Hornby and Callum Leech were bought into the attack.
Matthew Hornby bowled well and took a wicket in his first over with a swinging delivery which found the edge and Thomas Mackriel took an excellent low catch fielding at first slip. Matthew finished with figures of 1 wicket for just 10 runs off 3 overs, and Callum bowled a little too short and was duly punished by the Albrighton batsmen as he conceded 32 runs off 3 overs and Ryan Ball bowled just one over at the end conceding 5 runs.
The cloud cover over head was now a real concern and conditions could only be described as gloomy, so with only 15 overs completed and Albrighton on 85 runs for 3 wickets, the Umpires and coaches decided it was too dark and abandoned the match due to bad light in the interests of safety. Although its not the best way to finish the season, the game was well poised and the finish would probably have been pretty close in a well contested match, but safety of the children must always come first.
In summary, the Coaches were very pleased with the effort put in by all the players and with several players missing due to holiday commitments everyone who played should be proud of their performance. There were some great skills on show during the game, and over the season everyone has improved their individual performances and skill levels; but most importantly the Coaches have been impressed and proud to see how you have all come together as a team, working together and supporting one another.
Attitude is very important and the discipline within the team has been excellent – we all want to have fun and we have achieved a good balanced approach this year between enjoying being together and working hard to learn new skills.  Practice makes perfect, and much of this approach has come from our Coach, John Witty ably assisted by Rob Bagshaw and we would all like to thank them for all their help and guidance with the U13 squad this season; the results speak for themselves and hopefully we can continue to improve year on year. Special thanks also to our U13 manager Andrew Ball who’s tireless efforts go for the most part unrewarded, but everyone involved in running the club knows how hard he works behind the scenes to make our jobs easier and the club run smoother.
Finally, thanks also to all the parents who have helped out in any way and supported the team over the course of the season, and we look forward to seeing as many of you as possible at the presentation evening on Friday 10th September 2010 to celebrate the achievements of all our junior cricketers.
One Response
What a fantastic season’s cricket with some brilliant performances. Well done to all concerned and thanks once again to Simon for his superb match reports.
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