The First XI Have a Setback as the 2s March On

It wasn't all glory and happiness this weekend at Mill Hill Road as both front and back pitches suffered defeats to their respective visitors. Meanwhile debutants impress on the road for the 2nd XI

Photo Provided by Robert Shaw

It was Never Going to be Plain Sailing

The First XI host Prescott and Odyssey, their closest competitors in the league as it stood, with both sides sharing the top spot in the table. Whoever the victor would supersede the other, claiming the number one spot and setting the course for the rest of the season. Just the week before, the Irby lads excelled with the bat after a slow start with the ball, dominating the Burscough side and chasing a mighty 207 for the loss of just one wicket.

 It was looking like a nice day, the clouds had parted and the stand-in skipper Tom Crawford had a decision on his hands, for he had rarely won the toss. He stuck Prescott in to have a bat, perhaps he had an idea of starting quickly with the ball and chasing down a low score would be greatly beneficial for the side. The 1st XI started well, Ollie and James keeping impeccably tight lines with the ball and penning the openers down. Very few runs past and it appeared the openers couldn't get it off the square, perhaps the first time they had been truly challenged this season. The first breakthrough came from Geen, edging off to Casey. Then next spinner Mallon takes the top edge of the other opener and the game seemingly cracked wide open. This was until a huge partnership from batters three and four built. The ball was flying to all boundaries and the Irby side were run ragged. Bowlers changed hands but nothing was headed the Viking's way, batter number three surpassing 50 then 100, number four surging past his 50 as well. The pair had steadied the Prescott ship, which sailed past 200. Their wickets finally fell, Afridi with an excellent catch on the boundary to dismiss the centurion whilst an LBW took the scalp of the other from Mallon. The visitors scrambled to 221 and the game was on.

Perhaps a large total on a pitch that wasn't as easy as it first looked, Irby found themselves in to bat and they quickly got to their work. This was until a lapse in concentration resulted in a bizarre dismissal of opener Umer, caught wandering back to his crease in a run out not too dissimilar to Johnny Bairstow in the Ashes series of last year. The visitors were fired up and wickets began to fall quicker than the hosts would have hoped. A great stand from Hussain, the only standout bat for the Irby side with 62 runs to his name, but it wasn't to be on this day. Irby fell short by 81 runs, missing out on any bonus points due to the elective 'field first' earlier in the day. Will it prove a costly mistake in the long run?

Irby CC 1st XI drop to third place, below Burscough, who achieved their bonus points even in heavy defeat the week before. The race is on for the Vikings to climb back to the top to secure promotion back into the L&DCC.

Irby 2s are on Top

Another stellar display from the 2nd XI sees them secure their position at the top of Division 2. The Vikings embraced the long travel up to Churchtown to face up against their 1st XI which saw them win the toss and elect to field. It was a trademark excellent start with the ball, Ben Wilson and Oscar Wilkes keeping the openers busy with excellent economies. With two wickets apiece it was time for 2nd XI star with the ball Delaney and debutant McGuinness to break the game open. Delaney with 2 and McGuinness with 3, the hosts were in trouble. With excellent catching and two great runouts, Churchtown fell to a low score of 75.

Irby came out with the bat, keen to capitalise on the great performances of the previous few weeks. De Silva and Bennett to open the batting, who did most of the damage before Bennett was trapped LBW. Gareth Jones came next, smartly finishing things off and allowing the 2nd XI to cruise to another strong victory in their new division.

It's a home game next week for the 2s as they face Prescott & Odyssey's 2nd XI. Can they look to continue their reign at the top of the leaderboard?

Irby 4s Face an Overseas

Another set of bizarre circumstances saw the Irby 4th XI have to deal with an overseas player in their league when tackling Formby's 3rd XI this weekend. Skipper Bough lost the toss and were stuck in to field on a tough Irby back pitch. The visitors made a good start but Irby kept strong, with juniors Miles and Thompson claiming the openers. It was a good day with the ball for Thompson, as he continued to impress taking a further 2 wickets to take his tally to 3 for the day. In came the Formby overseas at 6 (due to league rules) and bludgeoned his team to 127 before Formby declared after 45 overs.

Arguably a little steep due to the nature of the track, the Irby lads set to work on knocking off the score. Simon Delaney and Jack Edwards with excellent stands with the bat unfortunately proved futile. The hosts collapsing to 60 all out and Formby claiming a strong victory by 67 runs. It's not the end of the world for the 4th XI, as the average points system has only lowered the 4th XI total by a small amount. They sit comfortably in the centre of the table, just two places below the 3rd XI.

The 3s had a gap in their playing schedule this week, but look to improve on their poor form next weekend as they travel away to Maghull.