22 May 2018
Lancashire Cup Cricket
U15 v Stanley High School Southport
Kirkham won by 16 runs
Kirkham U15 cricket team progress through to the next stage of the Lancashire Schools’ Cup after another clinical performance led by skipper Fred . Kirkham won the toss and elected to bat. Hackett and Max opened the batting and established a good partnership of 59 runs before the fall of the first wicket. Pendergest hit 21 off 27 balls. Once again, middle order batsman Luca scored well hitting 22 runs not out off 12 balls. Hackett finished on 42 leaving Stanley school needing to hit 126 runs to win. Stanley looked strong in the batting department so Kirkham needed to place their fielders wisely and work hard to keep the Stanley run rate down. Kirkham’s Harry Snape took 3 wickets, 2 of which were caught by Joel and Luca . Snape's stats were 3 wickets off 3 overs for 14 runs. Other bowling stats included John who took 1 wicket off 4 overs for 29 runs and Harry who took 1 off 4 for 27. Kirkham won the game by 16 runs and face Blue Coat School Liverpool in the next round.
U15 cricket Vs AKS ( Luca 79 not out, George 5 wickets and Harry 56 )
The U15's enjoyed another successful match on Saturday beating AKS Lytham by 113 runs. Kirkham batted first and found themselves 3 wickets down after 3 overs. However, the Kirkham middle order batsmen Harry (56) and Luca (79) batted superbly giving AKS a tough target of 179 to chase in their 20 overs. Kirkham opening bowler John was in fine form taking 2 wickets for 8 runs off 3 overs. However ,it was definitely a wicket that aided spin as Kirkhams' George took 5 wickets for 6 runs off 3 overs and Johnny Latham also picked up a wicket.
1st XI Cricket Report
The 1st XI were involved in a thrilling finish at Sedbergh on Wednesday with the match ending in a tie as the hosts were dismissed after threatening to overhaul the below par Kirkham total. It was Kirkham who batted first with Wood and Wolff who struggled early on against the pace of the Sedbergh opening bowlers. Both batsmen were caught and bowled, Wood for 3 and Wolff for a watchful 19. Kirkham progressed to 65-2 which was mainly down to the positive batting of Joe Thompson, however it was on 65 that Kirkham lost Thompson and Charlie Partington, bowled by off spine Little for 12. After this Kirkham lost wickets at regular intervals, only Callum Doyle making double figures (19) from the remaining six batsmen. The Kirkham score of 114 looked on the low side, particularly as there were no demons in the Minor County Wicket at Sedbergh, however twice this year Kirkham have won after having to defend a low total.
The Sedbergh reply began well and after losing a wicket with the score on 22 and then 30 Sedbergh collapsed to 59-6, Ntsika Smayile and Nathan Wolff causing havoc with their respective pace and off spin. Sedbergh crept up to 82 before the next wicket fell as Partington got in on the act. The hosts were not going to lie down and as the score went into the 90s, a home win looked all the more likely. Wolff then claimed two more wickets to add to his earlier brace as Sedbergh tottered at 97-7, turning the game on its head and make a Kirkham win the more likely result. However the final pair nudged their way toward the 115 required to win, the atmosphere now very tense. When the scores were level and with the last ball of his over, Callum Doyle proved to be the hero for Kirkham as he clean bowled Haythornthwaite to spark celebrations from Kirkham who must surely have felt they had let the chance of victory slip away after coming back so well.
U14 Cricket v AKS Saturday 19th May 2018
AKS U14 : 78 all out (Aaron Pope 3 wickets for 18 runs)
KGS U14 : 59 all out (Alex Eastham 14 not out, Henry Smith 11)
AKS U14 won by 19 runs
On a lovely sunny morning, Kirkham U14 won the toss and inserted the opposition. Kirkham bowled with discipline and were rewarded with wickets on a regular basis. Harry Snape and Charlie Hodgson both claimed 2 wickets apiece, but Aaron Pope was the pick of the bowlers with 3 wickets, as well as a splendid run out with a quick pick up and bullet throw which splattered the stumps! The fielding from the whole team was excellent, including 5 good catches and was the best performance from them in the field this season.
Kirkham were very hopeful of victory when it was their turn to bat. However, when 3 of the top 5 batsmen returned to the pavilion with a duck each, the odds were hugely stacked against the team. With the score on 2-3 and then later 19-6, the lower order batsmen showed the top order how to bat on a decent wicket. Gregor Anderson, Yande Nkonge and particularly Henry Smith (11) and Alex Eastham (14 not out) batted sensibly watching the ball on to the bat, and brought the team close to a very unlikely victory. The top order batsmen must learn lessons in keeping their wickets intact for future matches this season if they are to win more games.