Barnard Castle CC
FOR a few years now, Barney and Richmond have been slugging it out at the top of the NYSD League. The contests between them have regularly been the highlights of the season, whichever side prevails.
The bragging rights for the moment are with Barney after they swept aside their opponents in the semi-final of the Kerridge Cup, the league’s premier knockout competition, on Sunday.
They had 58 balls and eight wickets to spare when the winning runs came in front of a packed house at Baliol Street. A highly respectable target of 202 in 40 overs had been made into a cake walk.
A blistering start from the revitalised Josh Bousfield, promoted to open, was embellished by a glorious innings from captain James Quinn and a more measured but important half century from James Clarkson.
It was a stylish and confident performance from the start. Barney took two early wickets, contained Richmond well in the middle overs after a third wicket stand of 86, and might have been slightly disappointed by the end when 39 runs came from the last three overs.
At the centre of proceedings, as so often, was Richmond’s professional, Gary Pratt, who went in at 24-2 and played a typically seamless innings in repairing the damage. He seems never to fail against Barney since spending a season at the club in 2011 as their first professional.
Pratt bided his time on a pitch which demanded caution but was always willing to put away the loose ball. Barney perhaps conceded too many extras through wides and no-balls but otherwise their fielding was again excellent.
When Pratt and Ajay Mandal looked as though they might take Richmond to a total well beyond 200, Barney responded well. The spin pairing of Karl Carver and Finn Usher did the trick.
Mandal was too ambitious in trying to attack Carver and Usher then struck twice in successive overs. It was left to Pratt to ensure the innings did not subside. He paced it well: his first 50 runs took 79 balls, his last 45 only 30 balls.
Chasing a score of 201-6 Barney knew there was plenty of work to do. With runs too hard to come by recently in the power plays at the start innings in cup competitions, they promoted Bousfield.
If it was a gamble, it was a calculated one. He has returned to form in the late middle order and he immediately repaid the faith. After a brief survey of the scene he played a series of bold but authentic attacking shots, timing the ball with ease. Three successive fours off Harvey Websdale took Barney to 51-0 after six overs.
By the time Bousfield was out, caught in the deep in the ninth over, Barney had reached 68 and were well on the way. It gave Quinn time to have a look at what was going on before he, too, began launching the ball in all directions. Clarkson meanwhile was rotating the strike, growing in confidence after his own lean trot and gradually ensuring the bad ball was put away.
It came as a surprise when Quinn swept to square leg having take 67 balls for his 65 which contained five sixes and four fours. But by then Barney were virtually home. Three overs later their fourth Kerridge final in eight seasons beckoned.
Richmond
R Carr c Borrowdale b Dixon 6, T Dowson c Merryweather b Dixon 4, A Mandal c Seth b Carver 62, G Pratt not out 95, M Cowling c Merryweather b Usher 2, M Layfield c Merryweather b Usher 3, S Wood b Bousfield 7, O Kelly not out 1, Extras 32 Total (40 overs) 201 for 6
Bowling: J Bousfield 8-1-41-1, R Dixon 8-1-27-2, R West 3-0-13-0, T Merryweather 5-0-25-0, K Carver 8-1-32-1, F Usher 8-1-43-2
Barney
J Clarkson not out 63, J Bousfield c Carr b Charlton 41, J Quinn c Marshall b Mandal 65, S Seth not out 9, Extras 24 Total (30.2 overs) 202 for 2
Bowling: S Charlton 7-1-40-1, H Websdale 3-0-32-0, A Mandal 7-0-44-1, C Marshall 6-0-33-0, S Wood 5.2-0-34-0, O Kelly 2-0-14-0
Barney won by 8 wkts
Barney v
Billingham Synthonia
BARNEY’S Premier Division match on Sunday was cancelled after their opponents were forced to withdraw because of Covid-19 cases and isolation. Barney stay second.
Blackhall v Barney II
AFTER a solid start, Barney lost their last seven wickets for 11 runs at Division 2 leaders Blackhall. The collapse was prompted with the loss of James Alderson for a neatly controlled 60 which contained 10 fours. Soon after Camron McKnight went and the rest followed. Oscar Usher worked up a head of steam as Blackhall made hard work of the reply but Barney simply did not have enough runs.
Barney 120 all out (29.2 overs, J Alderson 60, C McKnight 19, M Rose 5-49, D Robson 3-28); Blackhall 123-6 (36 overs, D Clark 38, P Moss 22, O Usher 3-21, P Stanwix 2-28)
Blackhall won by 4 wkts
Yarm III v Barney III
BARNEY pulled off a deserved victory after finding themselves in trouble at Yarm on Sunday. They had bowled well to dismiss their opponents barely into three figures. Oliver Welsby removed the top five opposing batsman in his best spell for the club before Yarm made a decent recovery from 27-6.
Theo Truss, who is in superb form in his last weeks at the club, made his ninth 50 of the season (two of which have become centuries) and made 52 of the 63 scored while he was at the crease.
When Barney then fell to 73-7 with three men out for ducks, it looked threatening for Barney. But Joe Toulson and Lee Jopling finished it with a flourish.
Yarm III 100 all out (38.3 overs, H Wilkinson 22, O Welsby 5-27, J Toulson 3-11); Barney III 101-7 (19.5 overs, T Truss 52, J Toulson 13no, L Jopling 13no).
Barney won by 3 wkts
Fixtures
Saturday, July 31: 1st XI v Saltburn (H) 1pm; 2nd XI v Northallerton (A) 1pm.
Sunday, August 1: 1st XI, National T20 Club Cup, area semi-final, South Northumberland v Barney (A) 10am Possible final at 4pm; 3rd XI v Billingham Synthonia (H) 2pm.
