So far so good – that’s the verdict as Ludlow’s cricketers approach the halfway stage of the season in the Marston’s Shropshire Premier League.
The Burway men lie fifth in the table after nine games, despite the frustrations of last Saturday’s weather-shortened encounter with basement strugglers Much Wenlock.
And, with two games to go to the halfway mark, vice-captain Alex Robinson admitted there had been plenty of positives as Ludlow prepare to travel to second bottom Broseley tomorrow.
“It’s a good start to build on,” he said. “There have been a lot of positives with both bat and ball.
“We were a bit disappointed last week against Much Wenlock with the game reduced to 25 overs a side.
“Although we ended up with 12 points, we felt the weather stopped us from getting 20.
“Had we won the toss, we were confident of chasing down their total and getting the win.
“But in 25 overs it’s hard to put a big total on the board, and also hard to bowl a side out which is what happened as they didn’t even go for a losing draw.
“We couldn’t have done much more with bat or ball, but it was not to be. It was frustrating as a lot of the sides around us managed to play longer games and we’ve now lost ground.
“But there were plenty of positives from the game. Ryan Lockley batted really well while there was some good bowling from Pete Coote, Ali Raza and Will Sparrow.”
In a game reduced to 25 overs a side, Ludlow batted first after being put in and scored at around five an over as they posted 121-8.
The total was built on a first wicket stand of 51 between youngster Lockley and wicketkeeper Gareth Parker.
Lockley batted throughout to register an unbeaten 68, a knock that included five boundaries, while Parker contributed a handy 22.
But, in the pursuit of quick runs, wickets fell at regular intervals after that with no other player getting into double figures while three were dismissed for ducks. Extras was the next highest contributor with 16.
Wenlock’s batsmen, however, fell well short in reply as they laboured to 87-7 in their 25 overs, Stuart Walters top scoring on 29. Spinner Coote continued his good form by taking an impressive 5-24 while Sparrow bagged 2-18 as Ludlow notched 12 points from the game.
With a full squad available, Ludlow now head to lowly Broseley tomorrow looking to consolidate their top five position.
But Robinson has warned of the pitfalls despite their hosts languishing second from bottom.
“They can be a tricky side to play against,” he said. “On their day they can be a good side, while at other times they can be quite average.
“We need to go there with the same attitude we’ve shown in our last games.”
Robinson is again turning out for the second team this weekend as he looks to get runs under his belt following an ankle injury.
