CAISTOR MAINTAIN PROMOTION PUSH

By Andrew Richley, Market Rasen 2nds

Market Rasen Town Cricket Club 2nd XI made the short journey north to Caistor’s Brigg Road ground on Saturday on the back of three straight wins. However, Caistor lost no time in demonstrating to Rasen the work still to be done if they are to progress further. Both teams had a good blend of youth and experience, but it was Caistor’s players, young and old alike, who grabbed their chances as the home side eased to an 8 wicket victory.
Rasen won the toss and lost little time in choosing to bat on a track that, as one might expect following the weather of the last few weeks, was hard and true, with plenty of grass left on top to keep the bowlers interested. Caistor’s opening bowlers; Alex McKitton and Matthew Brown, found themselves ambushed by a brisk start from Richard Limmer who went off like a train. Unfortunately, as has often been the case this season, Limmer’s innings was cut short before it had really begun, caught and bowled by Brown for 18 with one ball of the second over left.
Shaun French and Andy Richley looked to retrench and found differing challenges from Caistor’s young openers; McKitton gave little away and found seam movement both into, and away from, the batsmen at a reasonable pace. Brown meanwhile offered the batsmen more opportunities, whilst getting some prodigious in-swing.
French mixed doughty defence with sudden bursts of savagery, with one swipe over wide long-on for four, off the bowling of Brown, standing out. However, once Caistor’s keeper stood up, French found himself rooted to the spot and inevitably fell for 17, edging a ball from Brown to first slip where an excellent low catch was held. Brown also dismissed Rob Chamberlin, caught off a high ball that the young batsman probably shouldn’t have tried to smear over the clubhouse and it was left to Richley to rebuild the innings with Tom Bradford.
Unfortunately for the visitors their skipper had to call for a runner, thanks to an injury to his hamstring and, as is often the case, the unfamiliar situation led to disaster for the batsman. Having looked in little trouble in accumulating 19, Richley called for a single and proceeded to wander out of the way, inadvertently leaving his crease as he did so. Not one to look a gift-horse in the mouth, Caistor’s ‘keeper whipped the bails off when the ball came back in with Richley still standing outside his crease.
On the back of this farcical dismissal, Rasen succumbed to the wiles of Ernie Allison and Terry McKitton as the veteran duo rolled up the rest of the line-up for a mere 25 runs to dismiss Rasen for 105, with Allison snaffling 4 for 12 in the process.
In the field Rasen’s performance was mixed, as a depleted attack created chances that they were unable, in the main, to take. With Nathan Davies bedding down at one end, Dave Gowshall and Andy Pearson felt free to crack on and whilst they flirted with danger on a number of occasions, Rasen’s fielders, Rob Chamberlin excepted, weren’t able to back their bowlers sufficiently to make the target a challenging one.
Two wickets for Paul Bett were the sole reward for Rasen’s efforts in the field as the home side eventually cantered to victory and left the Rase Park outfit with plenty to work on.