Prestwich CC became the first-ever winners of the Under 11 GMCL Cup on Saturday.
The club’s Under 11 A team beat Clifton in a thrilling final, winning by a margin of 14 runs after being set a total of 263 to beat.
It was a brilliant team effort against a talented Clifton side and provided a spectacle fitting of any final.
Clifton got off to a flying start to reach 244 after the first pair’s allotted four overs, with Mason hitting a superb 39.
But Prestwich hit back with some excellent bowling and fielding to bring the score back to 240 at the end of the third pair, before a late surge saw the total rise to 263 after the full 16 overs.
In reply at the halfway stage, Prestwich had reached a satisfactory total of 219, but the third wicket partnership of Kyle Dawson and Luca White gave the score a real boost, and the scoreboard rattled up to 253. Kyle batted with great responsibility, mixing power with solid defence, while Luca batted out of his skin to make a top score of 22, by far his highest score of the season, and earning him the man-of-the-match award.
This left captain Finlay Lester and Luke Prescott with the challenge of needing 12 runs without losing any wickets, which they accomplished in mature and brilliant fashion, taking some exquisite singles and putting the bad ball away to the boundary, in an unbeaten partnership.
Daisy Hunt bowled superbly, as she has done all season, taking a wicket and conceding just six runs from her two overs. Another model of consistency was Alistair Reed who bowled and batted well, while Vivek Sojitra again showed he was developing well as a spin bowler and contributed vital runs with the bat.
Ben O’Connor had a fine all-round game, taking one wicket, running out two opposing batsmen with direct hits, and also cracking a classic square drive – a shot that could rarely be found in his dad’s locker!
The 12th man (or 9th man in under 11 cricket) was Thomas Prescott, who had played a key role in the quarter-final victory over Glossop.
Well done to @PrestwichSport and @CliftonCC https://t.co/NCowY9ujp1
— GtrMcr CricketLeague (@GtrMcrCricket) September 24, 2016
Team coach Steve Orrell said: “If you could ever give an example of what a team performance is all about it, this was it. Every member played their part, without which it could have been a different result, and I am very proud of them all.
“I want to thank the great support we had from family, friends, club members and older junior players who took the time to attend.
“Also, a big thanks to GMCL chairman Martin Kay, and Bob Hinchliffe, LCB chairman, who watched the whole game and rounded off the occasion with the presentation of trophies.”
