Busy fortnight for County Age Groups
Charlie Ward hit a century as Shropshire Under 18 Boys had the better of a two-day game against Herefordshire at Worfield CC.
He hit 121 off 133 balls in the first innings as Shropshire batted first and made 307-4 from 64 overs before they declared.
He shared in an opening stand of 207 with Arjun Cherukuri (70), and Harry Parton chipped in with 45 and Harrison Vaughan was unbeaten on 34 when the declaration came.
In the reply, Vaughan then claimed 3-37, Griff Davies 2-44 and Ralph Davies 2-37 as the visitors were bowled out for 227.
In their second innings, Harry Parton hit an unbeaten half century, Vaughan 39 and Max Ferrington 25 as Shropshire declared on 150-5.
Alex Heath then bowled a devastating opening spell of 4-2 off seven overs as the visitors were reduced to 25-5 before batting out the rest of the overs to finished on 40-5 – Ralph Davies bowling eight overs without conceding a run.
Cricket Shropshire’s Under 14 Boys enjoyed their trip to Corby to take on Northamptonshire, returning with a 43-run victory.
Batting first, opener Dylan Barkley hit 53, and with Harry Dillion (31), Jake Adams (24) and George Jenkins (39) all chipping in, Shropshire were bowled out for 227 with a ball remaining in the 45th over.
In the reply, Shropshire used seven bowlers and all picked up at least one wicket, with Mark Coleman claiming 2-20 and Ralph Davies 2-32 as the hosts were bowled out for 184.
The Under 16 Boys nearly blew the chance of victory against Staffordshire at Caverswall CC after a batting collapse when they were in a dominant position
Staffordshire won the toss and posted 249-7, Harmilan Grover claiming two wickets and fielders chipping in with two sharp run outs.
Coach Tyler Ibbotson said: “The chase began perfectly, openers Finn Jones (41) and Will Parkinson Witte (44) adding 72, before Morgan Ward lit up the ground with a blistering 74 off 60 balls.
“At 180-3, only 70 were needed from 20 overs… job done? Not quite. A flurry of wickets turned calm into chaos. With nine down and nerves jangling, Hugo Lowther (23 not out) held his nerve, steering us home with 10 balls to spare.
“We showed real fight. Even when it got tense, the lads believed and that belief got us over the line.”
The Under 11 Girls (pictured above) enjoyed their trip to Ombersley CC to take on Worcestershire despite slipping to defeat with Esme Barton stepping in to make her county debut as a late call up.
The hosts batted first, with Gianna Filippi claiming three wickets as they finished their innings on 213-6 from their 30 overs with wickets also for Phoebe Preston and Nilasha Patel thanks to a fine catch from Sophia Davis.
All the Shropshire girls were given the chance to turn their arms over during the innings and there was some excellent fielding from Esme B and Nilasha.
In their reply, Shropshire finished on 118 with a partnership between with Esme Smith and Sennen McEwan the highlight.
Cricket Shropshire’s Director of Schools Cricket Lisa Preston said: “They didn’t win but they have continued to show up consistently all season with spirit and enthusiasm.
“They had a great day and supported each other tremendously, as they have done throughout all their fixtures this Summer.”
Mills Jones hit a brilliant unbeaten century for the Under 13 Girls when they took on Staffordshire at Fordhouses CC.
In a game reduced to 10 overs-a-side due to the weather, she hit 103 off just 42 balls including 14 boundaries and five maximums to make 103 out of Shropshire’s total of 132-2. In reply, Shropshire restricted their hosts to 56-6.
In a second 12-over game, Staffordshire batted first and finished on 84-4, Shropshire replying with 54-8.
The Under 18 Girls enjoyed a productive couple of days as they beat Northumberland in two T20s and then Warwickshire in a 50-over game.
Batting first against Warwickshire, they were bowled out for 255 at the end of the 49th over with contributions all the way down the order – including 41 off 55 balls from Sophia Parton at No 10.
Rebecca Mullard-Wilson hit 27, Amy Connelly 21, Millie Parry 21, Anusha Sing 20 and Isabelle Crann 30.
In the reply, the hosts were dismissed for 233 with Connelly, Parry and Crann all picking up two wickets apiece.
In their first T20 against Northumberland at Whitchurch CC, Connelly hit 35 off 25 balls and skipper Parry 76 off 48 as Shropshire made 161-7 in their innings.
Crann then claimed 2-18 with the other wickets shared around as the visitors were restricted to 110-6 in the reply.
In the second game the visitors batted first and were bowled out for 93 with Amy Griffiths claiming 3-11 and Crann 3-12. Erin Newey (22 not out) and Simran Chandi (50 not out) saw Shropshire to the win without losing a wicket.
The Under 12 Boys claimed two victories over Staffordshire at Fordhouses CC, although the rain did play a part.
The one game was reduced to 10 overs per side and batting first, the hosts made 58-6 with Jamie Chambers claiming 2-4. In reply, Shropshire reached their victory target with three balls to spare with James Scattergood hitting an unbeaten 22 off just 14 balls.
The other 20 over game was also a thriller, Shropshire claiming victory by one run.
Batting first, Shropshire made 104-5 from their allocation, with George Lowther hitting 36 and Elliott Weaver 44 off 33 balls.
But a stubborn last wicket partnership nearly saw them to victory, finishing on 103-9.
Chambers was again in fine form with the ball, claiming 4-15 from his four overs with the other wickets shared around as the hosts were reduced to 68-9.
The Under 15 girls found themselves on the back foot when they took on Staffordshire at Leek CC. Batting first, the hosts racked up 276-5 from their 40 overs with Rebecca Mullard-Wilson claiming 2-31.
In reply, Sophia Bell hit 29 and Mullard-Wilson 31, but they were dismissed for 143.
They were also beaten in their two games in the West Midlands CAG U15s competition at Moddershall CC.
In their first game against Warwickshire, Anna Hurford claimed all three wickets as the Bears hit 130-3 in reply to Shropshire’s 67.
Shropshire also struggled with the bat against Worcestershire, hitting 58-7 from their 15 overs. The Pears claimed the victory in the 13th over for the loss of three wickets.
The Under 13 Boys struggled with the bat when they hosted Staffordshire at Lilleshall CC as they were bowled out for 89 despite Lucas Lane hitting 43. The visitors reached their victory target for the loss of just one wicket.
They also took on North Wales in two T20 games at Whittington, but slipped to defeat in both.
In the first game, they were bowled out for 94 despite Daniel Ball hitting 40 at the top of the innings.
Louis Van Custem and Lucas Lane both picked up two wickets in the reply, but the visitors hit the winning runs in the 18th over.
In the second game, the visitors batted first and hit 142-6 from their 20 overs, Rufus Davies claiming 2-12 from his four overs. In reply, Shropshire were restricted to 86-8 with Ali Khan top scoring with 20.
Cricket Shropshire’s Under 11 Boys were involved in a thriller against Worcestershire at Alveley CC – claiming the victory by one wicket.
Batting first, Worcestershire finished their 40 overs on 185-9 with Finley Barkley the pick of the Shropshire attack with 4-19 off six overs, Jacob Pembleton claiming 2-22 from eight.
Opener Kyle Rudge hit 51 in the reply, and James Quinn (30) and Frederick Bebb (20) chipped in with important lower order runs, but Shropshire were still six runs short of victory when the last pair came together.
Tom Bowdler and Barkley held their nerve to knock off the runs and see Shropshire to victory.