Quartet of bowlers shine but batting lets threes down again

Bramshaw 3rd XI v Hythe & Dibden 4th XI, Match Report by Tom Mason

Cricket returned to Nomansland yesterday for the first time since late August as the threes hosted Hythe and Dibden 4s.

After winning the toss, we were in the field.

It all started brilliantly with Ollie Hensel (2-25) picking up an early wicket to put the visitors on the back foot.

However, after our strong start. The away side picked up some momentum, largely down to several dropped catches which let them race away a little.

Ritesh Ramachandra (0-33) checked their progress before Tom Mason (1-33) broke the 102-run stand for the third wicket with a plumb LBW.

Regular wickets continued to fall as we slowed down the away sides’ progress with George Fullerton (2-25) and Kev McCarthy (1-11) both bowling superbly.

Fullerton later took an incredible catch at mid-wicket as Hythe reached 200-7 after their 40 overs.

After the interval, Harry Burnham (4) and Andy Hodder opened up, sharing 16 for the first wicket. Once the first wicket went it was a collapse of epic precautions.

The next four wickets fell for just 14 runs including three in the space of four balls.

Wickets continued to fall at regular intervals until a 47-run partnership between a free-flowing Mason (27) and Fullerton (8) put a little bit of respectability on the score.

The final wicket fell with the side 94 all out. Another disappointing batting display, with plenty to work on ahead of the league opener at Sway on Saturday.

See the full scorecard here – https://bramshaw.play-cricket.com/website/results/6138642