RASEN FIRSTS OFF AND RUNNING

Wickets, sunshine and 20 Points
By Andrew Richley


The Brains Trust at tea: Adam Holvey,Gary Bierlein and Simon Bunn.


Market Rasen Town Cricket Club 1st XI’s Lincs League 2 campaign got off to the best possible start as Nettleham 2nds were brushed aside on an unseasonably warm afternoon at Rase Park. Relegated into Division Two in 2010, Nettleham got off to false start last week; losing to Haxey and their talented, but young, line-up were unable to make much of an impression on a clinical Rasen performance.
The balmy weather brought out a bumper crowd and the home supporters were treated to a dominating performance by the men in green. Close-season signing, Graeme Bell, took the new ball from the River Rase end and started the season with an anguished, but unsuccessful, LBW appeal against Dave Lea. This was the precursor to a hostile and accurate spell from Bell that would see him take 1 for 8 from seven overs. Will Bradford took the new cherry from the Gallamore Lane end and having loosened up with a leg stump half volley, that Mark Thornton clipped for one, Lea found his stumps splayed by a Jaffa and Rasen were up and running.
Bradford’s second over saw the stumps spread again, this time Thornton perishing, playing on as he tried to cut a ball that was too straight for the shot. With Nettleham 4 for 2, shaggy-haired youngster Joe Naughton set about repairing the damage. Unafraid to play his shots, Naughton needed some luck to get going, but he was rewarded for his confidence with a string of boundaries and Bradford came in for some punishment. Naughton was particularly strong on his legs; his strong wrists flicking anything even remotely short into the on-side. It wasn’t until he was joined by Alex Willerton that he was joined by a batsman able to master the conditions and Rasen’s new-ball attack. Willerton showed some glimpses of class, particularly with his straight driving, but with the young pair keen to cash in on anything loose it was not surprising when Karl Bierlein – on for his first bowl of the summer – castled the left-handed Willerton on the stroke of drinks for 14. The fourth wicket pair had added 30 in 8 overs, but Bierlein’s breakthrough left Nettleham a perilous 47 for 4 after 15 overs.
With their tails up from the wicket before the drinks break an invigorated Karl Bierlein quickly picked up two more scalps in the overs following the break. Naughton was the first to go, caught and bowled for an aggressive 27. Nettleham Skipper, Martin Strawson, also prodded back to Bierlein in his next over and then Danny Lea fell to a slick catch by Ian Williams at first slip off the bowling of Gary Bierlein Rasen had reduced their opponents to 53 for 8 and a swift denouement seemed certain. However, Rasen had figured without the red-cloth cap, and broad bat, of Chris Dobbs who set about righting the innings with a mixture of idiosyncratic clips to leg and some cover drives which were far more pleasing to the eye.
The ninth wicket pair had put on 29 before Will Bradford was brought back into the attack and his impact was instant, prompting Dobbs’ partner to pop a catch up to Luke Richards at point. There was still time for Jack Neil to clear his front leg and cleanly smite a delivery from Karl Bierlein into the River Rase; however, this was simply the tail raging against the dying of the light. Bradford dismissed Dobbs for a determined 21 in the 32nd over to end the innings with Nettleham on 90. Bradford had led the way for the home side with 4 for 29 from 8.1 overs, backed up by Karl Bierlein (3 for 31 from 9 overs), Gary Bierlein (2 for 19 from 8 overs) and Graeme Bell.
Rasen’s reply began rapidly, with Graeme Bell and Jon Stephenson putting on 24 before they saw the need to take a single, in the fourth over. Bell was particularly keen to crack on, unfurling a number of crunching drives through the off-side, whilst Stephenson (27 not out) was more than happy to wait for the short ball and punish it. After six overs, Rasen had 48 on the board already and, the odd Jaffa excepted, the Nettleham was looking understandably ragged.
Determined not to go down without a fight, Strawson got his reward in the seventh over, as Bell played on, looking to smear the ball over deep mid-wicket. The all-rounder’s brisk cameo of 27 contained 6 fours, as well as a ‘2’ and a solitary single. George Fussey, making his 1st XI debut, carried on in the same vein, pulling and cutting two fours in his first couple of overs. Unfortunately the Lincs U16 batsman’s afternoon was cut short as Stephenson called for a sharp single that was, by the time both players had ‘ummed’ and ‘aahed’, simply not there. The brief flurry of wickets left Rasen 64 for 2 and lifted Nettleham’s spirits; however these were crushed mercilessly by Ian Williams, whose brutal cameo of 22 not out sealed the deal for the home side. Williams put the icing on the cake with a straight six that scattered the veterans watching at the long-off boundary.
One match does not make a summer and Nettleham’s team was talented, but rather young for this level, but if Rasen can turn in consistent performances in the same vein this summer then they must surely have a good chance of being in the frame for promotion.
Will Bradford.