Downes hits brilliant century for Over 50s
Mark Downes hit a brilliant century for Shropshire Over 50s when they made the long trip to Stockton CC to take on Durham in the knock-out stages of their national competition.
He hit 137 off 123 balls out of a Shropshire total of 257-6 from their 45 overs, helping his side recover from the early loss of both openers.
Mark Jones hit 62 and Bobby Gill 22 off 19 to help boost the Shropshire total.
Unfortunately it didn’t prove enough as the hosts knocked off the runs for the loss of three wickets – Phil Snape picking up all three to fall – as the Durham batters, and Andrew Pratt in particular, also enjoyed the batting conditions.
It marks the end of a much improved season for the Over 50s – finishing second in their group with four wins from seven games to qualify for the knockout stages of this year’s competition.
The Over 60s game against Worcestershire at Pershore CC ended with the hosts winning a rain-affected game.
Batting first, Shropshire made 187-6 from their 45 overs with John Foster hitting 70 before he was run out Peter Hayes 42 and Martin Chambers 20.
In the reply, Worcestershire were 150-4 in the 30th over when the game came to a halt with the hosts ahead of target on the D/L method.
