Hoppers claim Championship Challenge Cup honours
Grasshoppers claimed the inaugural Shropshire T20 Mid-Week Championship Challenge Cup with a professional seven-wicket victory over St Georges at Allscott Heath CC.
The showcase game featured the champions of the Shrewsbury and District Evening League (SDCL) taking on the winners of the Furrows East Shropshire Mid-Week League which was launched this Summer.
St Georges won the toss and elected to bat first, but were soon on the back foot thanks to an opening salvo from Jacob Binnersley who claimed the wickets of both openers.
A run out also dented the early momentum as the Dragons slipped to 18-3 in the third over of a contest reduced to 16 overs-a-side to ensure it was completed before the light started to fade.
Faizan Khan then threatened to take the game by the scruff of the neck hitting 35 off 23 balls before he became the first of Harry Thomas’s two victims.
The innings then subsided, not helped by two more run outs, as St Georges were dismissed for 95 with one ball left in the innings, Binnersley returning impressive figures of 3-10 from 2.5 overs.
In the reply, Connor Glendenning ensured the Hoppers got off to a flyer in the power play, hitting seven boundaries in the first three overs to get his side ahead of the rate.
He was eventually fell for 37 off 24 to a sharp catch at backward point from Raja Janga off the bowling of Muhammad Raheel Khattak.
Big-hitting Craig Heath then took centre stage, launching one big massive maximum towards the new housing estate and another towards the bowling green to keep up the Hoppers momentum going.
He holed out at deep long on for 34 off 28 balls attempting to get his side over the line with another maximum.
That job was left to Dan Walker, who hit a six off the last ball of the 12th over to see Hoppers to victory and claim the trophy.
Jacob Binnersley was named player-of-the-match by umpires Dave Nock and Colin Wetherley-Mein for his three wickets and a run out in the St Georges innings.
He holed out at deep long on for 34 off 28 balls attempting to get his side over the line with another maximum.
That job was left to Dan Walker, who hit a six off the last ball of the 12th over to see Hoppers to victory and claim the trophy.
Jacob Binnersley was named player-of-the-match by umpires Dave Nock and Colin Wetherley-Mein for his three wickets and a run out in the St Georges innings.
SDCL Chair Ray Collins was delighted with both the spectacle and the outcome of the game.
He said: “It was a really good showcase of the evening league game and to see a big crowd at Allscott was brilliant – it was great to see people not involved with the two teams interested in the outcome.”
The SDCL was formed in 1978 and Ray has been involved with the league since the early days – and he welcomed the arrival of the new Furrows East Shropshire Evening League.
“It is great there is an opportunity for cricketers in the east of Shropshire to get involved in evening league cricket without having to travel too far – the more people playing the game the better.
“We have 28 teams involved in the SDCL this season and have been able to offer competition at different skill levels from the top division down to teams who want to play as development sides with lads and dads together or girls involved.
“Hopefully we will see the development of the East Shropshire league over the coming seasons with more teams involved to give that range of levels on offer.
“And I think the idea of this Championship Challenge Cup is an excellent one bringing the leading teams from both leagues for one night.”
Cricket Shropshire Lead Officer Steve Reese said he was delighted to see the showpiece game take place in front of a big crowd.
“The idea for the game came out of a discussion I had with Ray a couple of weeks ago.
“The Shrewsbury League has been running for nearly 50 years now and Ray has been involved for every single one of those years which is a magnificent achievement.
“We launched the Furrows East Shropshire League this year to give clubs in the east of the county the chance to play some mid-week cricket without having to travel long distances for fixtures, and it has proved a big success.
“The evening leagues in Shropshire give people a great opportunity to get involved in and enjoy the game beyond the confines of the weekend league fixtures that are played.
“Huge thanks to Chloe Walmsley and Becki White for scoring, and Dave and Colin for umpiring.
“Also big thanks to Jason Allen and the team at Allscott Heath for agreeing to host this showcase game and preparing the wicket in what has been a challenging Summer for ground staff around the county.”
