Morpeth CC continue title charge as Alnmouth and Lesbury CC secure victory

Morpeth CC retained their spot at the top of the Northumberland and Tyneside Cricket League Division One table with a three-wicket victory over Backworth CC on Saturday afternoon.

After winning the toss and electing to bat first, Backworth were bowled out for 121 by their hosts, with Michael Craigs leading the attack with a superb five-wicket haul. Jack Concannon and Callum Lawn both claimed two apiece, while Alex Senior mopped up the other. For Backworth, Calum Bickerton’s 35 proved to be the highlight of their innings, with Joel Langley also scoring 31.

At the crease, Morpeth started brightly enough, with opening pair Adam Lawn and Liam Day contributing 25 and 27 respectively, and the steady scoring would continue throughout the home side’s batting order as Jack Travers and Michael Craigs hit 18 and an unbeaten 23. Morpeth would eventually end their afternoon on 125/7 with 17 overs remaining.

Elsewhere in Division One, Alnmouth and Lesbury CC secured a six-wicket victory over Matfen CC. Away from home, Alnmouth and Lesbury won the toss and opted to field first, with Brian Brooks’ four-wicket turn providing a worthy counterpoint to some powerful scoring from the hosts. Opener Kamroon Mansour produced a stunning 109, including half a dozen sixes, while Abubakar Maqsood ended the innings on an unbeaten 46 as Matfen racked up a target of 234/9.

With the bat in hand, Archie Elder was Alnmouth and Lesbury’s star man by a distance, eclipsing Mansour’s knock with a sublime 120 of his own. Alongside him, Edward Brunton, Chalana De Silva, Tom Vickers, and Peter Smith all posted tallies in the 20s as the visitors reached 236/4 in the 43rd over to wrap up their victory.

And finally, Alnwick CC slipped to a four-wicket loss against Blagdon Park CC in Division Two. An eye-catching 69 from Joshua Wilson made up the backbone of the away side’s innings, which ended on 160 in the final over. From there, Blagdon Park set about their chase, and despite two wickets each from Chris Bowmer and Max Harrison, they would surpass their visitors in 40th over, ending the day on 163/6.