Click Here to view match report archives from season 2006 (Non For 2007)

Mottram 116 FOR 3      Hadfield 115 FOR 9

WINNING BECOMING A NICE HABIT

On yet another thoroughly miserable day the two’s recorded yet another win over second from bottom placed Hadfield in a game reduced to 82 overs as a result of there being a late start. Yes, the forecasters got it wrong as per usual and we were left cursing our luck and shivering in temperatures barely reaching 11˚c and with the threat of rain never far away.

Captain John Marsden won the toss and had no hesitation in asking the home side to bat on a wet track and his bowlers quickly got amongst the Hadfield top order with three early wickets, two for Phil Mellor and one for the evergreen Mike Hawkin who bowled 14 overs and conceded just 22 runs. When Callus Danaher replaced the former he clearly struggled with the damp conditions underfoot and he too was replaced by the inform Harry Moores who quickly settled into a good rhythm and on the day was probably the pick of the bowlers. Indeed it was he who removed Hadfield’s best batsman by a long way, Simon Turnbull, who’s 45 included some classy shots. Only Paul Barlow provided any other resistance with a hard hitting 29.

Spinner Adam Hilton was introduced into the attack and his haul of 4 for 22 from 7 overs ensured that the home side would not set Mottram too imposing a total to chase and Moores collected 2 for 15 for his efforts as the home side closed on 115 for 9.

A very welcome hot meal of potato hash was awaiting the players during the interval and was just what the doctor ordered on such an inhospitable day.

Suitably sated, openers John Birch (20) and Adam Hilton (23) provided the perfect platform for their side as the two lefties had 47 on the board before the senior partner Birch was cleverly stumped after a schoolboy error. Mr dependable, Ryan Nixon, survived a hugely confident appeal for a catch at the wicket from the first ball he received and was dropped off return catches to the bowler on three occasions but went on to score an invaluable 30. Duncan Bennett with 15 not out and Chris Bowen with 3 not out saw Mottram home with 10 overs to spare as Hadfield tried in vain to make in roads using a total of eight bowlers in all.

This winning mullarky really is becoming a hard habit to break but Mottram face a stern test against age old rivals Broadbottom on Saturday followed by a visit to the fabulously refurbished facilities at Charlesworth on Sunday and things will have really taken shape if they can gain some success from both games,

John Birch 

Monday 28th June 2008

Mottram 122        Woodley 44

THE JUGGERNAUT ROLLS ON

Another depressingly overcast and breezy outlook was the backdrop for this encounter at Broadbottom Road on Saturday. The shirt front wicket of two weeks ago was but a distant memory and more than seven days of rainfall  had well and truly put paid to any semblance of compact firmness underfoot.

Mottram were asked to bat and lost yours truly for yet another splodger which made room for young Ryan Nixon who has been a model of consistency this season and once again he didn’t let the side down. His 48 for me was the best knock he has played so far as the conditions were far from conducive for stroke making. He and John Marsden (11) took the score past fifty and then with Fielding (19) he shared another useful  partnership. After their dismissals the innings rather fell away and but for Harry Moore’s 14 no at the end would have struggled to reach 100 but an all out 122 still looked competitive given Mottram’s past record with the ball.

Within six overs of Woodley’s reply the visitors were in tatters and reeling on 2 for 4! Ayrton Fielding with 2 for 12 from 9 overs was irresistible and but for the hapless wicket keeper Chris Bowen spilling 2 catches and a slip chance going down who knows what his figures would have been. It was Hounslow who survived all these indiscretions and he somehow went on to score 29. But for his contribution, Woodley’s final total of 44 would have been considerably less and to be brutally frank they were woeful. Mike Hawkin, who had enjoyed most of his long career at Woodley, gave them a taste of what they were now missing with 3 for 23. Callum Danaher demonstrated that he is rediscovering some form with 1 for 7 from 4 overs and then Harry Moore mopped up the tail with the amazing figures of 3 for 0 from 2.2 overs. Incredibly, Harry has now bowled just 2.5 overs and taken 4 for 0 in the last two matches and he is turning into a very useful all round cricketer after two fine knocks in the 15’s and 17’s during the week.

Mottram are now 42 points ahead of their nearest rivals and are looking for all the world like odds on title contenders.

John Birch

Saturday 21st June 2008

Mottram 167 For 5      Hazel Grove 82

BREATHING SPACE AT THE TOP

Mottram ensured that there was a significant points difference between themselves and Grove at the top of the table after an emphatic victory over their nearest rivals on Saturday.

Given the appalling weather forecast for the region it came as somewhat of a surprise that we were playing any cricket at all, let alone enjoying a completed match interrupted only once by a light two minute shower. Nevertheless, it was a pretty miserable day with temperatures barely reaching 12˚c and a chilly wind throughout, so enjoyment is probably the wrong word.

Taking first knock Mottram lost opener Birch in the first over to Brian Statham lookalike Alan Rogers and it was left to Andy Metcalfe(19) and Ryan Nixon(24)to rescue the situation with the former looking a class act before he became Rogers second victim. Adam Hilton hit a sweetly timed ball off is pads into the waiting hands of backward square leg and then Nixon was cleaned up by Rogers. All of a sudden, the visitors were 53 for 4.

Ayrton Fielding(61no) and Duncan Bennett(43) had other ideas though and their 95 run partnership was full of high energy and quality shots all round the wicket. They quite simply ran Grove, and themselves into the ground, stealing runs from everywhere and any which way. The wet outfield meant that batsmen were not getting full value for their shots and their  policy of running for virtually everything was vital to the cause. On another day a score of over 200 might have been realised but thanks to a little cameo of 14no at the death from Adam Le Fondre, Mottram closed on a highly competitive 167 for 5.

Callum Danaher made two early breakthroughs and despite  one or two very wayward deliveries he was also bowling a number of very good balls and looks to be returning to form. He was replaced by a very confident Ayrton Fielding who ripped the heart out of Grove’s middle order and with the help of wicket keeper Le Fondre’s excellent glove work, returned figures of 3 for 20 from 8 hostile overs.

Adam Hilton’s left arm spin mopped up the tail and he picked up the highly commendable figures of 4 for 14 from seven overs and schoolmate Harry Moore needed just three balls to claim the last wicket of the innings.

The two’s are on a roll now and their out cricket was testimony to this with every catch which went to hand being taken and the ground fielding a marked improvement on recent years. There’s a long way to go but if we continue to produce performances like this the third division is a realistic  goal I’m sure.

John Birch

Saturday 14th June 2008

Mottram 260 For 9       Buxton 156 all out

NEWCOMERS FEEL THE HEAT

The first ever visit of Buxton to Broadbottom Road proved to be a fruitless trip as  Mottram’s batsmen turned on the heat. Despite the fact that five matches had already been played on the designated wicket, captain and groundsman John Marsden had no hesitation electing to bat having won the toss.

Openers Park(72) and Birch(41) enjoyed a partnership of 99 for the first wicket with the former playing the senior role and a series of scorching cuts and pulls were a joy to watch. After his departure Ryan Nixon took over the mantle as he and Birch kept the momentum going. The youngster’s shot selection was an improvement on recent weeks and a maiden century looked on the cards as he demolished the visitors attack. He reached his 50 with a thumping straight six and should have gone on to the biggie but fell on his sword having amassed a brilliant 79. Slow bowler Bentley plugged away and was rewarded with a hat-trick and figures of 6 for 76 but it was hard work for the rest of the Buxton attack who, on a distinctly batsman friendly pitch, were subjected to a real mauling.

Quick bowler Andy Burke was making his debut for the home side and his two spells were lively and fruitful as he returned figures of 3 for 38 from 10 overs. What a great find he is! Mike Hawkin from the pavilion end was as miserly as ever and he picked up two wickets but this was Ryan Nixon’s day. He will bowl better and not pick up any reward but his amazing 5 for 16 included the second hat-trick of the game and his superb performances with both bat and ball made him my man of the match. For the visitors, captain Annison struck a hard hitting 56.

Mottram’s fielding proved to be a vital part of this win with Harry Moore taking two excellent catches, Birch holding on to a sharp drive at silly mid off and Hilton pouching one at second slip but for me, the most encouraging feature of this side’s successful campaign to date has been a fantastic team spirit and there really is a feel good factor around the club at the moment.

John Birch

Saturday 31st May 2008

Mottram 180 For 9          Hollingworth 115 For 8

THE FRENCH CONNECTION HELP SEAL FOURTH WIN

15 year olds Ryan Nixon and Adam Hilton, who had holidayed the previous week with the formers parents in Picardy, played pivotal roles in this emphatic victory over near neighbours Hollingworth at a sultry Broadbottom Road.  Ryan’s 50, typically a mixture of the extremely good and sometimes the ugly, was matched by a classic spell of left arm spin bowling by his mate Adam.

After Mottram had lost opener Birch in the first over Ryan Nixon and Mike Park (39) set about the visitor’s bowling with relish and no shortage of skill. The ball disappeared to all parts of the ground and one huge six over the pavilion cost the latter a £60 repair bill for his own car windscreen! These two shared a whirlwind partnership of 85 in double quick time.

Following the departure of Park, the innings lost impetuous and then just as young Nixon had reached a much deserved half century he gave it away with an unnecessary attempt to clear the Hattersley roundabout which just resulted in a skied catch at the wicket and Mottram were all of a sudden struggling to post a competitive score.  Chris Bowen however, had other ideas and it was his lively 31 and some excellent late order heroics from Harry Moore(16 no) and the evergreen Mike Hawkin which enabled Mottram to reach a fifth batting point off the final ball of the innings.

The metronomic Hawkin and the pace of Ayrton Fielding proved to be too much for Hollingworth to handle in their response with the latter bagging a brace and the former racking up dot ball after dot ball as the visitors fell behind the asking rate. When left arm spinner Adam Hilton was introduced from the pavilion end he and wicket keeper Bowen with three stumpings and a catch were a lethal combination and a series of classic dismissals were a joy to watch. Adam’s five for will be the first of many for the club and with our other 15 year old left arm spinner Ryan Fitton bagging four wickets in the 1^st XI’s away win we are truly blessed in this department.

JOHN BIRCH (A DUCK, TWO DROPPED CATCHES AND A BRUISED SHIN)

Saturday 17th May 2008

Mottram 66 For 3        High Lane 65all out

AND THAT MAKES THREE

The clear blue skies enjoyed by the north  west of England over the previous fortnight had been replaced by the leaden grey variety  for this division 4 encounter against a strongish looking High Lane at a chilly Broadbottom Road.

Buoyed by their success in the opening two matches Mottram’s youthful side were energetic and lively in the field as their seamers rattled through the visitors batting line up and dismissed them for a paltry 65.

Young Mike Hawkin with 6 for 28 and Callum Danaher 4 for 14 were relentless and emphatic on a pitch freshened up by steady overnight rain which gave the hitherto dry and benign deck some added bounce and zip.

Ayrton Fielding, although wicketless, had bowled with good pace and extracted disconcerting bounce for Lane’s openers to contend with. This, I’m sure, sowed the seeds of doubt in the minds of the batsmen in the shed.

Some good catches had been taken with one diving effort by Brad Wright the best of the bunch, vindicating this improving young cricketer’s selection.

Mottram’s batting response was positive and fruitful with Park(14) and Fielding (31) unruffled against the visitor’s opening attack, providing the perfect start and  enabling the home side with Duncan Bennett(12 no)  to coast to victory  at around 5.30pm.

A great start to the season for the two’s with three victories in a row which is in stark contrast to last season’s miserable showing and bodes well for the rest of the campaign.

John Birch