2009 Third XI
Pudsey Congs v Leeds Sikh
at Fulneck
Saturday September 12th, 2009
Match report by Dom Allen
Following the previous weekend’s debacle, Congs arrived at Fulneck safe in the knowledge that things could only get better. They were also playing their favourite team and one who provide highly competitive but extremely enjoyable matches but there was certainly no escaping the end of term feel to this particular game. Gary Lewsley won his final toss and decided to make first use of the brown looking track on a glorious September day where not a single cloud was exhibited in a bright blue sky. If Congs had felt the game might be played in an exhibition style, Kumar Kandasamy had other ideas and very quickly put his team on top by taking the first three wickets, two of them clean bowled by his deceptive pace. Gary Lewsley and Paul Slater steadied the ship and started to wrestle control of the game with some delightful and inventive stroke play only for Slater to fall for the five card trick with the score on 73, caught behind off a very wide ball. His irritation was plain for all to see.
The game changed tack at this stage with Lewsley seeming to lose his way after being joined by Jack Murgatroyd. If fact, Murgatroyd had earlier disturbed several of his colleagues by marching onto the veranda to sunbathe in little more than a pair of underpants and it is possible that Lewsley was still having distressing flashbacks of the incident when he jumped down the track to be stumped off Harcharan Seehra for a well compiled 38. Yet again, the remainder of the order fell like a set of nine-pins although Sam Mason did score an impressive 18. One point very much worthy of mention was the magnificent sportsmanship shown by Sikh when they recalled Murgatroyd after he was given LBW because he believed he had edged the ball onto his pad. There was no need for them to do this but it was a great gesture.
Pudsey Congs 136 all out (S.Kandasamy 6-31 ; G.Lewsley 38)
Pudsey felt they had a chance at tea time due to the slow and lifeless nature of the pitch but when Anand Cabirdassou was dropped twice in the space of two overs, it did not look like it would be their day. But Adam Patrick quickly got him LBW and with it his thirtieth wicket of the season, a remarkable achievement for the youngster and Congs were in the hunt. Despite severe confusion over the dismissal of Gurdeep Ryatt he eventually declined Lewsley’s invitation to return for a disputed caught behind and Sikh were wobbling at 24-2. This soon became 27-3 when Seehra could not resist the temptation to smash Dom Allen straight over long off and was superbly caught by Adam Patrick. Raghu Chandrasekaran played a typically dogged innings and moved his team to within 60 of the target before miscuing a Mason full toss up in the air to be brilliantly taken by keeper Murgatroyd.
Paul Slater kept Congs in the hunt with some very tight bowling, picking up two wickets in the process but runs were leaking from the other end. This was in essence, however because captain for the day Raj Pandian was playing a superb captain’s knock of 30 not out, looking just as awkward as ever but being as difficult to remove from the crease as a limpet. As wickets fell at the other end he saw his side home with the help of Singh and gave Sikh a completely deserved victory in view of the poor luck and misfortune they had suffered throughout the game.
A special mention of one individual has been saved until the end in view of this being his final game for Congs, although we hope this isn’t the case. John Patrick, playing for the first time since April, looked as though he had never been away and turned in the remarkable figures of 1-11 from 10 overs. He was given a guard of honour at the end, which he typically tried to shun but fully deserved nonetheless. He has been a legend in the Dales Council and for Congs in the past two seasons, a fantastic player’s player that will be missed by everyone if this really was his final game.
On behalf of the whole team and the club it would also be prudent to mention our extreme gratitude to Gary Lewsley for the conscientious work and commitment he has provided over the past two years in his role as skipper. It has not gone unnoticed and everyone is aware of the immense amount of Gary ’s spare time that has been given up, in order for him to function in his role as captain so well. Thank you for everything Gary .
Leeds Sikh 139-7 (R.Pandian 30 no)
Leeds Sikh win by 3 wickets
Pudsey Congs v Crompark
at Fulneck
Saturday September 5th, 2009
Match report by Dom Allen
As dead games go, with little resting on the outcome, this one was near the top of the unimportant pile. And it was all too evident in the approach of Congs and their seeming inability to even remotely get up for the game. After overnight rain, the pitch was still very wet at lunchtime and in view of this Gary Lewsley broke with normal tradition and inserted the opposition. Phil Cooper and Dave Robinson found things almost impossible to begin with as Imran Ahmed and Adam Patrick sought to bang the ball into the pudding of pitch. But the lack of bounce was also rendering much of the talented bowling somewhat toothless and the opening batsmen impressively fought their way to 38 without loss. It was second change bowler Sam Mason that acquired the breakthrough, somewhat fortuitously having his LBW shout answered in the affirmative but soon afterwards there could be no doubting the brilliance of the fielding by Adam Patrick when he removed Phil Cooper for 20, running in from extra cover and calmly under-arming at the stumps to leave Cooper about half way down the pitch. This was a high quality piece of fielding that would have graced any county ground. Crompark then stuttered to 76 –5 before the typically bellicose Khuram Rashid sought to increase the tempo and he was temporarily successful with the help of team mate Badar Munir. Skipper Lewsley acquired the vital breakthrough that signalled the end of the Crompark innings when he induced Rashid into one big shot too many and Jack Murgatroyd took a brilliant catch two thirds of the way back to the cow corner boundary. From 108-5, Crompark collapsed to 130 all out although the final pairing did add crucial runs during this time. It must be commented upon that some of the skipper’s bowling changes were somewhat unusual during the Crompark innings, including the removal from the attack of Steve Gunner when he was bowling exceptionally well. The captain later denied that his previous evening’s exploits had had any bearing on his thought processes but some players felt this matter was open to conjecture.
Crompark 130 all out (G.Lewsley 3-24)
The less said about the Pudsey response would be best for all concerned. By way of demonstrating their inability to get up for this game, they were 2-1, 16-3, 24-6, 32-8 and finally 48 all out to two bowlers that bowled with great temerity but in reality will be just as puzzled by their achievements as the procession of Congs batsmen appeared in their shot selection. The turning point was unquestionably the retirement of Alastair Goodchild and no less than eight wickets fell whilst he was nursing an injured back on the sidelines. But if any of the batsmen had some sort of plan as to how they would go about knocking off 131 on a difficult pitch it was not evident and as such they never looked like getting close.
Full marks to Crompark who displayed great spirit in the field and were more than worthy winners on the day. They wanted to win the game infinitely more than Congs and in truth the final margin possibly even flattered the home team a little.
Pudsey Congs 48 all out (K.Rashid 5-31 ; A.Saeed 4-13 ; A.Patrick 13 no)
Crompark win by 82 runs
Pudsey Congs v Hepworth & Idle
at Fulneck
Saturday August 29th, 2009
Match report by Dom Allen
Alastair Goodchild batted exceptionally well, ably assisted by Jack Murgatroyd and the pair put on 61 for the first wicket. Sadly Congs collapsed from that position to 114 all out.
Pudsey Congs 114 all out (A.Goodchild 38; J.Murgatroyd 28)
Adam Patrick bowled superbly well to record the excellent figures of 4-18 from 12 overs. Hepworth & Idle held on to reach their target, seven wickets down. Fortunately, this type of game is a rarity and Congs will be looking to get back to normality next Saturday.
Hepworth & Idle 117-7 (A. Patrick 4-18)
Hepworth & Idle win by 3 wickets
Farnley Hill v Pudsey Congs
at Tong Village
Saturday August 22nd, 2009
Match report by Dom Allen
First things first. This was a tremendous game of cricket with more ebb and flow than witnessed in the recent Ashes series. Pudsey had racked up almost 300 in the corresponding fixture last term before the weather intervened so when Gary Lewsley lost the toss he was in no way disappointed to be batting first on this postage stamp of a ground. Robin Kettlewell creamed a four through extra cover in the first over but with the score on 10, unusually allowed a ball straight through his defence and he was the first casualty of a two-paced wicket. Despite the early breakthrough and less than perfect track, Alastair Goodchild still looked like a dog with two tails, possibly because he knew that he would be trading almost exclusively in boundaries and therefore not having to perform any of that nasty running between the wickets that he so abhors! He put on 40 for the second wicket with Ashley Slater in no time at all and the pair looked more than capable of taking the game away from Farnley Hill before it had got going. But Chris Crampton managed to get a ball through to his back leg and a disconsolate looking Goodchild walked slowly from the field for 27. Slater at the other end had looked imperious, exquisitely timing the ball for 4 fours in one Richard Crampton over. But his youthful exuberance managed to get the better of him and after trying his favourite shot through mid-wicket once too often, top edged the ball high into the air and back down to the steady hands of Pankaj Rathore for 35.
So with the score on 68-3 after just 12 overs, the game moved into a much quieter period as the captain and Danny Cockin sought to stabilise matters. Cockin hit a wonderful on drive for six during this partnership and Lewsley wheeled out his favourite pull shot whenever he could. But after Cockin drove straight over the top of a Chris Crampton yorker and Lewsley received a ball that shot along the floor from Crampton’s son, Congs were once again in danger of not fulfilling their potential, or even registering a score that might be competitive. Matty Humpleby again looked like he belonged in this particular side and played some wonderful strokes in an innings of 20. Dom Allen struggled to get the ball off the square but did manage to hold the innings together when it appeared Pudsey might not fully utilise their over entitlement. When Allen got out it proved a great fillip for the side as both Adam Patrick and Nathan Dalton played some shots for the final five overs. Both were equally pleasant on the eye and impressive in the technique they demonstrated; Patrick showing everyone how a cut stroke should be played, Dalton at one stage marching down the track to hit Rathore back over his head for beautiful six. Congs marginally failed to score 200 but were deeply indebted to the two youngsters at the end for a score that was probably 30 higher than it had appeared to be heading toward just overs earlier.
Pudsey Congs 199 all out (A.Slater 35; G.Lewsley 30; R.Crampton 5-74)
Congs decided to attack from the word go with two men in close at short leg and silly mid off. The tactic immediately paid off when Richard Bedford edged the ball straight into the air and was comfortably caught by Allen, albeit a catch that he probably should have left to the man with the gloves. When Darren Gibbs turned a ball around the corner and straight into the hands of Goodchild, Pudsey were positively beaming at 23-2. The ultra-attacking Liam Walsh arrived at the crease and as is his way, tried to get down the track at every opportunity to the young Pudsey bowlers. Patrick, having taken both of the initial wickets, was unfortunate to have both Walsh and Carl Lister dropped in the gully in successive deliveries by the luckless Danny Cockin. Walsh also benefited from an enormous slice of luck when he hit a regulation catch between two young fielders but their inexperience led both of them to leave the catch for the other man. Walsh and ‘Legs’ Lister made the most of their pardons and jointly contributed almost half of Farnley’s total. But Walsh’s fortune completely deserted him with the total still showing 96 when he hit a short Allen delivery straight to Sam Mason at extra cover. Soon afterwards, Patrick bowled Dale Breakwell and Carl Best was caught & bowled by Allen and Pudsey had regained control of the match.
But Farnley Hill are scrapping for their lives at the foot of the table and they were in no mood to throw the match away without a fight. Garry Gatenby made the most of a huge slice of fortune when it appeared he had been stumped on zero only for an excitable Congs fielder to dance straight in front of the umpire and unsight him. Whilst he only made 12, he shared in a partnership with ‘Legs’ that gave Farnley renewed belief. When he was caught behind by the impressive stand in keeper Slater, his wicket merely brought Rathore to the crease who took the Congs bowling apart. He made 24, every one of them in boundaries and in double quick time. His wicket at first appeared controversial when he was caught by Kettlewell at long on and the Farnley players protested long and hard that Kettlewell had wandered back over the boundary. Fortunately for Congs, one of the nicest and fairest men in the entire Dales Council, Carl Best, happened to be stood inches away and confirmed to his team mates that the catch was indeed legal. After unleashing an unprecedented attack on Allen in which he hit three fours in one over, ‘Legs’ departed the scene again to a catch on the straight boundary, although this time without question and it was brilliantly held by young Dalton. Farnley owed a huge amount to Lister for his painstaking efforts and the guts and determination he demonstrated were admirable.
Nerves were jangling when Slater stumped the younger Crampton off the bowling of Allen and Farnley were nine down, still needing 18 for victory. James Entwistle batting at 11 played arguably the shot of the day, launching Lewsley straight back over his head and into the road for a towering six to reduce the target by a third. Scrambled singles and hard run twos were now the order of the day as Chris Crampton took up the majority of the strike. Coming into the last over, Farnley Hill needed two runs to win and the first three balls went nowhere. The fourth however was driven down the ground between extra cover and mid off by Crampton and Farnley Hill had got home in an epic contest that they probably just about deserved to win. At the end of the day their appetite for victory was slightly more voracious in view of their league position and they deserve much credit for fighting to the end to emerge with all six points.
Farnley Hill 202-9 (A.Patrick 4-59; D.Allen 3-39; C.Lister 50; L.Walsh 41)
Farnley Hill win by 1 wicket
Pudsey Congs v Baildon
at Fulneck
Saturday August 15th, 2009
Match report by Dom Allen
Pudsey went into this game with a strengthened team from the one that faced Hawksworth the previous weekend. However, the majority of that strengthening had come in the batting department with the final eleven boasting nine front line batsmen. Baildon on the other hand had arrived at Fulneck with a team full of bowlers and so it was always going to be interesting to see who would prevail. Gary Lewsley won the toss and decided to insert the opposition on the basis of the heavy shower that arrived 45 minutes before play was due to commence. He appreciated this was a high risk strategy, not only because the pitch had almost completely dried out at the start of play but also if the further expected rain came after the game commenced, it would be his team that lost overs.
Lewsley turned to Imran Ahmed to open the bowling and after a wild first ball, he slammed a sharp one into the pitch and straight at the body of opener Jonny Baines. His half pull, half fend off resulted in the ball going straight up in the air and Alastair Goodchild took a straight forward catch at square leg. This event really set the tone for Ahmed’s afternoon and he worked up a degree of pace rarely witnessed at Fulneck, so much so that Congs were confident enough to put a short leg in for any further tit bits fended off by the batsmen. And it didn’t take long for Ahmed to reduce Baildon to 23-3. After several short balls at Hopword, he pitched up a ball that seemed to veer toward the batsmen through the air only to nip away off the seam, taking the off stump with it. J.Ali showed his intentions by clouting Adam Patrick for four but despite his positive stroke play also found himself castled by Ahmed. Lewsley would have loved him to bowl all afternoon but projecting the ball at such a velocity requires no little amount of effort and after seven overs, Ahmed was ready for a well-earned breather.
Skipper Bailey and the highly impressive Brad Hinchliffe put on 37 for the fourth wicket before a recently introduced Dom Allen tempted Bailey to hit a poor ball straight to the snaffling hands of Callum Murgatroyd at extra cover. When Allen bowled Kash Malik leg stump it was clear that Baildon’s innings would be heavily reliant upon Hinchliffe’s contribution. Gary Orell supported him ably but got a leading edge to Callum Murgatroyd’s first ball and 87-6 became 94-7 when Allen trapped the left handed Robson in front of middle stump. Baildon’s innings took a nosedive when Ashley Slater caught Hinchliffe magnificently off the bowling of Murgatroyd for 55. The ball was swerving all over the place in a fairly ferocious wind but he didn’t panic, watched it closely and made the resultant catch look remarkably easy. Wildsmith and Herdson managed to get the score a smidgeon higher, Herdson hitting an outrageous six in the process and a contender for the ugliest shot ever to grace Fulneck but they all count in the scorebook. But Ahmed was brilliantly brought back by Lewsley to blow away the tail and the skipper had not missed a trick all afternoon. Last man out Metcalfe was forced to take cover behind his bat and caught by Cockin at slip. ‘Immy’ had finished with figures of 4-16 and when one considers nine of these were bowling extras, it demonstrates what a handful he had been all afternoon. The final total seemed disastrously below par and Congs sipped at their tea confidently during the break.
Baildon 115 all out (B.Hinchliffe 55; I.Ahmed 4-16; D.Allen 4-33)
But cricket is rarely predictable and never as straightforward as it appears. After his exploits with the bat, Hinchliffe removed two of Pudsey’s top three with excellent deliveries. Gary Orell caught Keegan Moodley at second slip with what represented a stunning, one handed catch. Moodley stared, scarcely able to believe Orell had held on but he had to go and in fairness the ball deserved a wicket, let alone the wonderful catch. Then when Jack Murgatroyd failed to get right in behind another brute from Hinchliffe, Congs were wobbling at 15-2. Goodchild and Slater had clawed the team back into the game with a dogged partnership when the first of three rain breaks descended. The first did hardly any damage despite its ferocity but the players were back off again after just another five balls. When the second batch looked to have cleared, the players took the field only to trudge back off again without bowling another ball. It was during this third delay when the face of the game changed and Lewsley was convinced the match would end two points apiece. With five overs and four balls still needing to be bowled for any result to stand it appeared all was lost. But without really brightening up, the rain ceased and Pudsey were declared to have lost only 10 overs.
Slater and Goodchild moved Congs ahead of the run rate in case of any further interruptions but when Slater defended a ball that rolled back towards his stumps he performed an excellent impression of a rabbit caught in the headlights and watched in horror as the leg bail dropped off. Congs were quickly four down when Ahmed’s over-positive intentions in tricky conditions resulted in him skying a ball from Orell to leave his team dangling at a precarious 56-4. Then, having looked so assured, Goodchild contrived to throw his wicket away for 41. He had been in good nick all afternoon and adjusted well to the different conditions served up by the wet weather. If he had run a little harder between the wickets he would surely have scored his fifth half-century of the season.
So, two new batsmen at the crease, still plenty of overs left despite the deduction but the match situation was hugely changed from tea and Baildon will have fancied their chances to take the remaining five wickets. That they didn’t was down to two superb innings, one from Danny Cockin batting at six and for all the world looking like a third team player, the other from Mr Dependable himself, do we even need to name him? Both batsmen were incredibly patient knowing they had only to score at two per over and they sat waiting for any less than perfect offerings. They were coasting when Cockin who had deserved to see things through was caught for a very important 21 and six runs were still required for victory. But Matty Humpleby competently concluded the game with Lewsley and the skipper struck the final two balls of the game for four.
A very good win for Pudsey and one earned as much against the elements as the opposition but a deserved victory nonetheless as they were in complete control until the rain arrived. The win will mathematically put the spectre of relegation behind the team and they can enjoy the remainder of the season in a quest to end as far up the tree as possible. Despite defeat, Baildon battled impressively in this game and at one point looked like they might run through the Congs line up. They played the game in the correct spirit and never once complained about the appalling conditions in which they had to field.
Pudsey Congs 118-6 (A.Goodchild 41; G.Orell 4-22)
Pudsey Congs win by 4 wickets
Hawksworth v Pudsey Congs
at Arthington CC
Saturday August 8th, 2009
Match report by Dom Allen
Congs went into this game severely depleted due to a number of late withdrawals both from this team and those further up the Britannia pecking order. As a result, only three of the side were regular, adult, third team players and no fewer than five had been borrowed from the fourth team. Then at the last moment, Jacques Allen, a member of Congs Under 11s team, was drafted in to replace the mysteriously absent Chris Brook. All of this preamble may sound like something of an excuse for an horrific defeat but not a bit of it. Gary Lewsley won the toss and did the decent thing on such a warm afternoon, making first use of a flat but tired looking deck. He promoted fourth team star Danny Cockin to open with stalwart Alastair Goodchild. After a glorious boundary from Cockin, the pair sadly suffered a dreadful mix up that spelt curtains for the young pretender. A series of yes, no interludes left both players somewhere near the middle of the pitch and Hawksworth the simple task of removing the bails at the keeper’s end. 10-1 became 49-2 when Goodchild, determined to make amends for the earlier misunderstanding, was caught at slip. Jack Murgatroyd joined skipper Lewsley at the crease and the pair grafted over a further partnership of 19 before Murgatroyd received his marching orders due to a blinding catch at mid-wicket.
Enter Matty Humpleby, batting at a more realistic number five spot rather than his previous forays as opener. Helped by his captain he went from strength to strength and the pair grafted and toiled and worked their socks off on a pitch that appeared to make things very easy to stay in but incredibly difficult to score runs on. They put on 72, Humpleby scoring 24 of these and it was noted that he strikes the ball as hard as most adults. Lewsley meanwhile stayed patient all afternoon, just hoping the Hawksworth bowlers would be kind enough to provide something for him to feast upon. Both departed in successive overs and it was instantly recognised how difficult things were in the middle when the remaining batsmen could only muster a further 14 runs from the final eight overs. The two opening Hawksworth bowlers had demonstrated exceptional control and when they came back, tied up the Pudsey Congs tail very effectively. Lewsley’s 59 was worth probably 70 or 80 more on the Fulneck wicket with a quick boundary. Therefore at tea, Pudsey felt they had set a fairly formidable total.
Pudsey Congs 154-8 (G.Lewsley 59; A.Sahadevan 4-31)
Steven Robinson opened the bowling for Congs and although occasionally erring toward the leg side, demonstrated that he amply has what it takes to make an impressive young cricketer. He acquired the first wicket as well, bowling Sachin Kumar and knocking his leg stump out of the ground in the process. Dom Allen opened the bowling at the other end and Pudsey were well aware this game could be won with tight, wicket to wicket bowling. After Robinson’s opening foray, Lewsley brought himself into the attack and if he was honest would probably not have chosen to do this so early, had the recognised third team attack been available. But this would have deprived the side and spectators of a Sobers-esque all round display from the big man and he almost immediately tied up Amal Nand, LBW, following that with the removal of the dangerous Kizhakkepallikkal, caught behind without troubling the scorers. There followed something of an impasse as Hawksworth realised they could not afford to lose any further wickets and at one point Lewsley and Allen bowled seven consecutive maiden overs. Then, as Lewsley was starting to feel the strain after his all round exploits he opted to take a breather and asked Robinson to return. This slightly loosened the leash for Hawksworth and for the first time they started to score freely. Lewsley brought himself back into the attack and induced Yannis Portel to dance down the track. Jack Murgatroyd did the rest and the remaining Hawksworth line up went down like a pack of cards. Dom Allen picked up two wickets during this period but his role was one of support; starving the batsmen of as few runs as possible whilst Lewsley weaved his magic. Each of the last three wickets of the day were bowled (off stump) by Lewsley and all three batsmen looked equally perplexed as to what had just happened.
An excellent win for Pudsey that opens up a near impregnable gap between themselves and the relegation threatened pack. They move into sixth place now and looking at the teams above and below them, it is probably an accurate reflection of the standard of the third team. They were of course, hugely indebted to their captain’s all round feats with bat and ball on this occasion but the rest of the side provided fantastic support and the younger members of the team (Callum Murgatroyd, Matty Humpleby, Jamie & Jacques Allen) all fielded brilliantly. A special thanks also goes out to Malcolm Robinson for turning out and providing superb support in the field.
Hawksworth 102 all out (G.Lewsley 7-27)
Pudsey Congs win by 52 runs
Adel v Pudsey Congs
at Memorial Ground
Saturday August 1st, 2009
report by Dom Allen
Skipper Gary Lewsley very kindly made the solo journey to Adel on Saturday morning to confirm something we already knew; that Adel’s pitch was not playable and the game would have to be abandoned without a ball being bowled. Due to torrential overnight and then early morning rain, the square was standing under a significant amount of water. The team’s gratitude to Gary for making the trip should be noted as this prevented the remainder of the team undertaking an unnecessary trip to North Leeds.
Frustratingly, this was the first fixture to fall victim to the weather all season and Congs will rue this missed opportunity to bolster their points tally. The opposition are firmly anchored to the foot of the table, having acquired only one win all season.
Match Abandoned – 2 points each
Pudsey Congs v Halifax Direct
at Fulneck
Saturday July 25th, 2009
Match report by Dom Allen
The glorious summer we were promised seems to have stalled of late, so in the most pleasant conditions for weeks, Pudsey welcomed Halifax Direct to Fulneck for what could have been termed a relegation battle. Having lost four matches on the spin, Congs had dropped to just two places above the relegation zone and knew a win was an absolute must. On a pristine looking pitch, Mick Kearman won the toss and surprised nobody by opting to bat first. Halifax were soon in trouble however through a combination of a much improved Chris Doey and the return from holiday of Adam Patrick. The pair contrived to leave Halifax teetering at 22-3; a superb catch from Jack Murgatroyd being the highlight of the opening stanza.
Naz and Farhan Khan had no option but to attempt to rebuild their innings and things did not look great to begin with. Both must have considered themselves extremely lucky to survive confident appeals and on two occasions Naz Khan advanced down the track, only to avoid being bowled by the excessive bounce of the ball. But the pair grew in confidence and began to increase the tempo. They had put on 58 for the fourth wicket when skipper Lewsley enticed Farhan Khan to hit upishly through straight mid-wicket and he was caught by Dom Allen. Then, after an outrageous three ball innings from Gully Mehmood where he attempted to send every delivery into orbit, the score became 84-5 as a result of a fantastic, second-time catch from Callum Murgatroyd. Soon Congs felt they were through the batting when Allen claimed his only wicket of the day to leave Halifax 105-6. But this was nowhere near the case and Sottam put on a further 45 runs with Khan. He was rather fortuitous to remain at the crease at one point and the incident led to some unwanted bad feeling between the two teams but he kept his cool and concentration to finish with an impressive 29. Naz Khan had earlier holed out for 67 to the long on boundary and whilst he will admit he rode his luck, some of the shots he played were real top-drawer stuff. When Mick Kearman came into bat at 11, he made what in hindsight was probably an error when he exclaimed to the fielders that he felt his team already had enough runs. Still, he and Khizar Hanif managed to promote the score still further to 188 before the tenth wicket fell. Adam Patrick had finished with the excellent figures of 4-18 and had bowled with great control.
Halifax Direct 188 all out (A.Patrick 4-18 ; C.Doey 3-47 ; N.Khan 67)
The Congs reply did not get off to the best of starts when first Alastair Goodchild lost his leg stump and then Robin Kettlewell was caught behind. With the scoreboard still showing 20-2, the 189 target looked a long way away, especially with the weakened tail. All of the concern however, did not take into account the determination and natural ability of both Jack Murgatroyd and Ashley Slater. Rarely looking in any kind of trouble, the partnership grew and grew and grew. They were merciless on both full and short-pitched bowling and it was not long before Kearman’s comments were coming back to haunt him, as the target of 189 did not look like anywhere near enough. Both batsmen passed 50, Slater particularly quickly and when he was finally bowled he had accumulated 70 very impressive runs to notch his fourth 50 of the season. Murgatroyd was determined to see things through to a conclusion and was still there at the end on 54 not out. He found time in the middle to enjoy Imran Ahmed’s wonderful cameo, including a six that went a long way over the trees and even further into a garden at the other side. His 21 not out was superb entertainment but both batsmen saved the best till the end. Needing three to win, Murgatroyd nudged a two into the off side. The return sailed over the keeper and square leg’s head for overthrows and after the completion of one more run the game was at an end. For some reason however, this did not seem to register with Murgatroyd and Ahmed and they kept running between the wickets, at the last count completing seven runs before agreeing to come in. It is difficult to find an explanation for their misunderstanding but it was immensely amusing for those watching on the sidelines.
In the end, a very comfortable win for Congs and this will hopefully see them start their long trek back up the table towards their previous best position of fourth place. It will be back to the drawing board for Halifax who will feel that having posted a reasonable total, they should never have lost so easily. At the time of going to press it has just been announced that Ashley Slater has been selected for the Yorkshire Schools squad, specifically as a result of his performances within the Dales Council First XI. The congratulations of everybody involved go out to him and we wish him well in his thoroughly justified venture.
Pudsey Congs 189-3 (A.Slater 70 ; J.Murgatroyd 54 no)
Pudsey Congs win by 7 wickets
New Wortley v Pudsey Congs
at Roundhay Oval
Saturday July 18th, 2009
Match report by Dom Allen
Most participants probably spent Friday assuming they would not be playing cricket the following day due to monsoon conditions in the Leeds area but Saturday morning was both warm and windy and this served to get the ground (just about) playable by 1.30pm . Congs won an important toss and put New Wortley into bat because the pitch was still saturated. After Chris Brook acquired an early breakthrough, removing the ever-smiling Ayaz Ali, keeper Bangash and Irfan Sadiq put on 63 for the second wicket. Sam Mason’s natural length was just too short on this pitch and he was despatched by the impressive pair on a number of occasions. Then came a huge turning point in the game, Simon Raistrick’s second over that contained three wickets and a boundary. Bangash pulled a ball high but towards Ashley Slater at deep square leg who safely pouched the catch, Usman Rasool left a ball that hit his middle stump and Rashid Khan (despite smashing the hat trick delivery for four) was bowled second ball. Allen was introduced at the other end and in his second over induced both opener Sadiq and the dangerous Ifty Hussain to chop the ball onto their stumps, having already had confident shouts for LBW against both batsmen turned down. The slide was in full swing at this stage for New Wortley and they collapsed from 82-1 to 89-7 and later 108-9, dramatic by any standards. Allen and Raistrick had cleaned up taking four apiece and were in a race to claim the one remaining wicket to commute their tally to a ‘five-fer’. Rafiq and Shafquat Rasool stood in their way and impressively added 28 runs for the last wicket before Allen received the nod of approval from umpire Lambert.
New Wortley 136 all out (D.Allen 5-30; S.Raistrick 4-36)
Imran Ahmed and Keegan Moodley got the Congs chase of 137 away to a decent start taking 13 from the first two overs before Ahmed received a delivery that left his off stump precariously hovering at a 45 degree angle. After the brilliance of his batting against Rodley, Ashley Slater showed that a week can be a long time in cricket as well as politics when he was bowled after having an ugly and totally unnecessary swing at a decent ball. James Lindley-Dawe impressed for his time at the crease and put on 24 with Moodley for the third wicket before he was caught at long on by Rajab Ali. He appeared to be unlucky because having initially misjudged the trajectory, at no stage did Ali ever look like catching the ball until it was firmly in his hands. Chris Doey promoted to number five sadly lasted only one delivery, bowled around his legs. When Moodley also failed to cover his stumps, the writing was firmly on the wall for Congs. The pugnacious skipper Lewsley arrived in the middle in typically determined mood but the mindset of his team was all wrong and it seemed likely he was fighting a losing battle. This was confirmed to be the case when Callum Murgatroyd and Raistrick departed the middle having done little to trouble the scorers. After two classic pulls for four and a further slightly more fortuitous boundary, Lewsley was given out LBW and the game was just about up at 68-8. Chris Brook lasted only three balls and a mood of despondency descended over the final pairing, Mason holing out to mid on to complete the rout.
For the first time this season, Lewsley closed the changing room door and questioned the players as to what on earth had just taken place. He proclaimed it was the worst batting performance he had been involved with during his time at the club and felt too many players had invented doubts about the pitch that were not borne out by the way it had played. He also felt that the disappearance of half of the team whilst the game was still in progress to purchase ice creams amply confirmed his suspicion that his chargers were not up for the game, though he accepted that the batting order he had set was not the correct one and had possibly contributed towards the disinterested attitude. The batting display in this game was not acceptable from any Pudsey Congs team. A club that is founded on competing to the best of everyone’s ability and demonstrating fight and resolve was left humiliated by the second half display here and nothing short of a total change in attitude will be accepted next time out.
Pudsey Congs 70 all out (R.Khan 6-15)
New Wortley win by 66 runs
Pudsey Congs v Rodley
at Fulneck
Saturday July 11th, 2009
Match report by Dom Allen
On a day that promised rain by the bucket full but delivered none at all, league leaders Rodley arrived at Fulneck for what constituted a warm up for their championship decider the following week. They were without both opening bowlers and with the threat of (non existent) rain later in the day, Gary Walton decided to field after calling correctly. Both Stuart Kirk and Simon Dickens bowled tightly to commence proceedings but the former appeared frustrated that 14 year old Keegan Moodley refused to be intimidated, either by the pace of the bowling or the verbal battering he was afforded. Although it appeared boring to some, the opening partnership of 46 with Alastair Goodchild had laid a very solid platform on a decent batting track. After the dismissal of Moodley and needless run out of Imran Ahmed, Goodchild decided to cut loose going past 50 for the third time this season. He was particularly harsh on the short ball, seemingly just helping it on its way and when he departed for 77 it could have been argued he had wasted a golden opportunity for a century. Ashley Slater arrived at the crease and soon afterwards so did his skipper Gary Lewsley. It was somewhat strange to see the skipper playing the supporting role to a 14 year old that was seeing it like a football but this is precisely what occurred; Lewsley pushing the ball into the gaps and Slater playing the more adventurous strokes. The partnership was going swimmingly until Lewsley suffered the horrific fate any batsman dreads, run out backing up. But on this occasion it appeared that rather than by fluke, Dickens had wilfully manoeuvred the ball in the direction of the stumps and this actually looked like a superb piece of fielding. Arriving in the middle, Chris Doey attempted to inject even more urgency into the batting of Slater and it seemed to work. Through a combination of scampered ones and twos and brutal swinging of the bat, the pair put on nearly 40 in just over five overs. It was some of the strokes of Slater that really caught the eye however, lofting Kirk into the trees and Dickens back over his head. One had to take stock and ask whether we were really witnessing such a young player smashing around some of the top bowlers in the league. There can be no doubt that he has a huge future ahead of him and if he concentrates and takes the correct advice, the sky is his limit.
Pudsey Congs 210-5 (A.Slater 84*; A.Goodchild 77)
Rodley got their chase of 211 away in the nastiest of circumstances when the first ball (bowled by Doey) reared up from nowhere and hit Gary Walton on the side of the head. Everyone was at a loss to explain how the ball had behaved in this way but Walton merely took 30 seconds, plenty of deep breaths and proclaimed himself fine to continue. Dave Sewards at the other end performed a remarkable impression of a right-handed Philip Hughes, cutting and scything his way to 41 impressive runs. He even had the audacity to hit Dom Allen’s dreadful loosener to the square leg boundary but two balls later Allen had his man. The pair had put on 74 though in double quick time and Walton’s first ball experience seemed decades ago. Mark Hobson batted number three for Rodley but in truth never really scaled the heights of some of his previous innings this term. For the most part he played second fiddle to Walton and he will have been disappointed to miss a further straight delivery from Allen. He had managed to put on a further 50 runs with Walton however and this was a grave concern for Congs, the runs coming far too easily. Kirk arrived at the crease and played a perfectly deliberate deft shot through the slips for four. He was not to last long however and Allen removed him to a curious dismissal. Kirk appeared to get either his spikes caught in the pitch or his bat tangled behind his pad (or even both) but either way the upshot was a kind of lurch forward that almost looked like he was kicking the ball away. Umpire Whiteley had no hesitation in raising the finger and at 155-3, Congs sensed they might just be in the game bearing in mind the Rodley tail. Stalwart Dave Fenton made 17 in no time before throwing his wicket away to a needless run out that kept Congs faint hopes alive. But the day in the end belonged firmly to Walton. He was out to a sucker punch right at the death, mistiming a looping pie from Lewsley but his 80 runs had been more than enough to see his side home. Walton’s superb knock (not for the first time this season) had been as solid as a rock and represented the difference between the two sides, though in fairness Pudsey will concede to gaping holes in their bowling attack currently.
Rodley 216-5 (G.Walton 80; D.Sewards 41; D.Allen 3-49)
Rodley win by 5 wickets
Shipley Providence v Pudsey Congs
at Salts Cricket Ground
Saturday July 4th, 2009
Match report by Dom Allen
Pudsey Congs visited the picturesque and historic village of Saltaire for their return fixture against Shipley Providence. The old Salts CC ground is one of the best in the Dales Council and a pleasant place to view or play the game, even on oppressively humid days of the type endured for this match. Captain Gary Lewsley was absent due to pressing engagements in Las Vegas as part of his World Poker Tour, so Dom Allen stepped into his shoes. He started well on two counts; first by winning the toss and then successfully promoting Robin Kettlewell back to his old opener’s role. After a shaky start from Kettlewell during which he was dropped on a couple of occasions, he went on to become the leading Congs run scorer of the day. His 56 runs from 94 deliveries was a hugely impressive innings and formed the foundations and backbone of the Pudsey innings.
Earlier, Kettlewell had opened with Alastair Goodchild and the pair had struggled against the excellent opening spells of Danny Ward and Nasir Qureshi. On an unusual pitch, both openers appeared to struggle initially with the excess bounce and two-paced nature of the wicket. Runs were very hard to come by in the first 15 overs and the situation was not aided by the dismissals of Goodchild and Imran Ahmed, both of whom will feel they might have grafted a little more. At 34-2, Kettlewell was joined by Paul Slater and at first things did not change. Qureshi finished his spell with the magnificent figures of 2-18 from eight overs and it was somewhat surprising that he did not return later for a further foray. Both Slater and Kettlewell finally got the scoreboard moving with the introduction of ‘Jonny’ Thompson and Saqib Mir into the Shipley attack. The pair by no means bowled poorly; they were merely unfortunate to come on after the openers and therefore the batsmen had to try something. The score moved onto 105 before any further loss and during this time Slater hit a powerful straight six toward the railway end of the ground. Kettlewell looked like he was seeing the ball early and the reintroduction of Danny Ward did little to stifle his scoring rate. Ward did gain his revenge however, inducing a thin nick through to Carl Ward and Kettlewell’s entertaining knock was at an end. At the time it was felt he had successfully shifted the momentum of the match in favour of Congs but this proved to be a false dawn. Ashley Slater ran himself out before scoring, his father tried to cut a ball that tickled his off stump and Dom Allen somewhat injudiciously attempted to charge Ward, yorking himself and getting bowled in the process. When Sam Mason and Chris Brook both followed him back to the pavilion, Congs were 129-8 (having been 105-2) and in grave danger of wasting the hard work. Fortunately for them, Chris Doey and Nathan Dalton added some useful runs at the end and Congs felt they were in with more than a sniff in asking Shipley to make 156 to win.
Scott Sladen and ‘Aidy’ Lazenby were determined to get Shipley off to good start and this they did, although they were indebted to some fairly ‘friendly’ bowling to get them on their way. The scoreboard had rocketed to 38 from just 5 overs when Paul Slater acquired a desperately needed breakthrough, bowling Lazenby when he went back to relatively pitched up delivery. Soon afterwards Congs sensed a wobble might be on the cards when Adam Patrick bowled Carl Ward around his legs and Shipley had to take stock at 45-2. But this was about as close as things got for Congs as the solid Sladen and Humare Amjad took the game away from them. It is difficult to think of any chances that the Congs bowlers created during this time as Allen desperately tried every bowler on the teamsheet to little avail. With 35 still needed, Sam Mason removed Amjad with a lifting delivery that was caught by Goodchild at square leg. But Sladen still continued on his merry way, totally unfazed by a nasty lifting delivery from Slater that got between his grill and helmet. His innings of 61 was match-clinching and contained a fair degree of skill. He would have seen his side home but for a brilliant catch by the injured, 14 year old Nathan Dalton fielding in the gully. Jonny Thompson and Danny Ward knocked off the remaining runs with relative ease and continued Shipley’s fine run in to a championship decider with Rodley in a couple of weeks. Congs slipped down to 6th spot in the table and the lack of cutting edge in the bowling attack was evident for all to see. What should have been a challenging total was picked off like taking candy from a baby (and with more than 12 overs to spare). All of the bowlers are better than this showing and they need to find a way to produce results that are commensurate with their abilities.
Leeds Sikh v Pudsey Congs
at Leeds YMCA Ground
Saturday June 27th, 2009
Match report by Dom Allen
Congs arrived at the YMCA Ground for the second meeting of the teams this term, after Sikh unceremoniously dumped them out of the Cup in late May. Despite that thrashing, the spirit between the two sides is excellent and this game was also played in a perfect spirit; hard but extremely fair.
Gary Lewsley won the toss and surprised Raghu by electing to bat first but on a hot afternoon this was virtually a given. Sikh achieved an immediate breakthrough when Jack Murgatroyd followed a ball that moved away and was effortlessly caught in the gully by the Sikh skipper. As a result of this dismissal, Imran Ahmed became suspicious of the wicket and decided to take matters into his own hands (and the pitch out of the equation) by advancing down the track whenever he could. He lofted a six over long on in only the second over. After a decent partnership, Ashley Slater was next to go, caught behind and Congs were reduced to 40-2. Ahmed was still scoring freely and moved onto 39 before being unfortunately caught and bowled by Kartar Ryatt. The ball was smashed back at an alarming velocity and hit Ryatt in the chest but he was quick enough to cup his hands around the ricochet and a disconsolate Ahmed trudged off wondering what might have been. Paul Slater then set about rebuilding the innings with skipper Lewsley and they put on 26 before Slater chopped on for 16. Robin Kettlewell then also scored 16 and helped to move the score to 127 before he tried to smash a straight ball from Harcharan Seehra and lost his middle stump. Amazingly, this was Seehra’s only wicket of the day. Dom Allen joined Lewsley at 127-5 and with plenty more overs and good batsmen in the hutch, they tried to push Congs up toward a competitive total. Through a combination of cautious stroke play and selective hitting, no more wickets fell and Congs finished with a defendable total of 181-5, Lewsley finishing on 57 not out (his second consecutive fifty) and Allen 30 not out.
Pudsey Congs 181-5 (G.Lewsley 57*, I.Ahmed 39, D.Allen 30*)
But the defendable total was not defended and this was largely down to every bowler (barring Paul Slater) seeming to be unable to put two balls in the same area of the pitch, a cardinal error on a wicket that rewards good bowling. Congs did get off to the best possible start when Allen trapped Arul Gobalasamy first ball of the innings LBW. But Anand Cabirdassou merely saw this as a reason to up his already attacking instincts and he tried to lace almost every ball received to the boundary. Whilst he rode his luck for most of the way, his innings of 36 off 36 balls was reward for the attacking intent he had been willing to show. He might have scored more but for two excellent pieces of fielding from Congs that saw Sikh slip to 61-3. Kartar Ryatt joined Seehra at the crease and Ryatt was a further batsman that was never going to die wondering. He took full advantage of the Congs poor offerings and inability to serve up a consistent line and length and blasted 9 fours and a six in his 60. Sikh had suffered two wobbles during Ryatt’s reign that could have changed the match had Congs been able to capitalise, first when Slater clean bowled Seehra for 21 and then when Raj Pandian was caught by Imran Ahmed, again off the bowling of Slater. It is difficult to imagine that a finer catch has ever been taken at this level of the game; Ahmed running away from the wicket with the ball coming over his head, he jumped full length and caught the ball one handed in mid air with his hand and wrist cocked as though he was bowling leg spin. Utterly brilliant. Skipper Chandrasekaran was never going to let this game slip away however and slowly ticked off the remaining runs, first with MOM Ryatt and then Pardhasaradhi Koduru. Leeds Sikh reached their target with almost 15 overs to spare and although the margin was only four wickets, it tended to feel like a bit of a thrashing. The Congs can only blame themselves for this as you simply cannot bowl as errantly and expect to win matches. But they did leave the ground in good spirits in view of the hospitality afforded by the Sikh team both at tea (a magnificent chick-pea curry and samosas, cooked by the multi-talented Seehra) and after the game.
Leeds Sikh 182-6 (K.Ryatt 60, A.V.Cabirdassou 36)
Leeds Sikh win by 4 wickets
Crompark v Pudsey Congs
at High Royds Field
Saturday June 20th, 2009
Match report by Dom Allen
With the weather not exactly set fair but gradually improving from the morning drizzle, Gary Lewsley won the toss at High Royds and resisted the temptation to insert Crompark. This was the result of some inspired advice from his vice-captain and proved the correct decision as early as the commencement of play, as the wicket had completely dried out. Crompark picked up the early wickets of both openers with Jack Murgatroyd particularly unlucky to fall to a stunning one-handed catch in the slips by Phil Cooper. Ashley Slater and James Lindley-Dawe set about rebuilding the innings from 15-2 and they looked to have done just that before Slater fell LBW. At 59-3, the Congs skipper arrived at the crease for the first of his MOM contributions of the day. He waited patiently for any less than perfect offerings from the Crompark attack and dispatched the majority of them in clinical fashion. He was particularly harsh on anything short and pulled the ball effortlessly to the mid-wicket boundary on a number of occasions. Lindley-Dawe at the other end was playing his usual game but after hitting two huge sixes, he holed out to long off, just when he appeared to be heading to consecutive fifties. After the premature departure of Robin Kettlewell for 5, the innings could have gone either way at 106-5 but some typically dogged batting from Lewsley and new partner Dom Allen, moved the score along to 142 before any further loss. Sadly it was that of Lewsley but only after he had acquired a very much deserved and impressive 53 runs. Allen quickly followed him back to the pavilion after needlessly trying to second-guess the talented Khuram Rashid and Pudsey were still short of a score with which they could feel comfortable. Chris Brook and Chris Doey ensured that a further 37 runs were added in the final five overs and this provided a greater level of confidence at tea.
Stalwarts Dave Robinson and Phil Cooper opened the batting for Crompark and looked to be coasting to victory at 45 without loss in just 10 overs. They were utilising the intelligent tactics that Lewsley demonstrated earlier, patiently waiting for poor deliveries and dispatching them accordingly. However, Lewsley played his joker at this point, introducing his own unique brand of spin bowling and he removed Robinson almost immediately. The breakthrough appeared to inspire Brook at the other end who removed Cooper and Qamar Abbass and with the extra turn of Lewsley accounting for Steve Thompson, Crompark were reeling at 61-4. Further trouble followed with the unnecessary run out of Amit Khullar, who appeared to be listening to some poor advice from the sidelines rather than relying on his own judgement. When Allen tempted Khuram Rashid into trying to hoist a line and length delivery into the trees, he too vacated the middle, as a result of tremendous catch from young Slater. Congs certainly felt they had the upper hand at this stage with Crompark teetering on 87-6, still needing almost 100 to win. When the seventh and eighth wickets fell with the score on 102, the game was just about up for Crompark, Asghar Ali contributing a fine 22 to compliment his four wickets earlier in the day. Amir Saeed blasted several further boundaries (including one magnificent straight six), combining orthodox shot-making with sheer agricultural belligerence. He was the last man to fall for 26.
A further six points for Congs and a total of 16 from the previous three weekends evidences that they have bounced back extremely well from the ignominious Cup weekend defeats. Sitting in a very respectable fourth spot behind much more fancied opposition, Pudsey can feel very proud of their achievements thus far. Sadly for Crompark, the defeat saw them slip to eighth in the table.
Pudsey Congs 185 for 9 – Lewsley 53, Lindley-Dawe 33
Crompark 138 all out – Lewsley 5 for 42
Hepworth & Idle v Pudsey Congs
at Westfield Lane
Saturday June 13th, 2009
Match report by Captain Gary Lewsley
Pudsey batted first and amassed 275 for 9 with James Lindley-Dawe scoring 87.
Hepworth replied with 240 for 6. Congs took the 4 points and revenge for last years cup final defeat.
Pudsey Congs v Farnley Hill
at Fulneck
Saturday June 6th, 2009
Farnley Hill 136 all out
Pudsey Congs 137 for 7
Match report by Captain Gary Lewsley not available
Baildon v Pudsey Congs
at Baildon School
Saturday May 30th, 2009
Pudsey Congs 204 for 8 – Alistair Goodchild 76
Baildon 207 for 7
Baildon won by 3 wickets
Match report by Captain Gary Lewsley not available
Pudsey Congs v Leeds Sikh
PPM CUP Round Two
at Fulneck
Sunday May 31st, 2009
Leeds Sikh won and progress in PPM Cup
Match report by Captain Gary Lewsley not available
Pudsey Congs v Hawksworth
at Fulneck
Saturday May 23rd, 2009
Match report by Captain Gary Lewsley
H awksworth won the toss and inserted the Congs on a damp slow pitch. The Congs set about building a total to defend and were once again indebted to a fantastic 57 from Ashley Slater, Lewsley supported with 33. We were eventually bowled out for an above par 161.
Hawksworth started their reply slowly thanks to tidy opening spells from Patrick and Doey. The Congs kept up the pressure and good spells from Allen and Mason restricted Hawksworth to survival rather than chasing the full 6 points. With 11 overs left, Hawksworth were looking to bat out for 2 points but 5 wickets in as many overs saw the Congs home. Patrick finishing with 3-27 and Lewsley 3-11. The last wicket fell with 5 overs to go. This was a great performance full of commitment and the fielding was much improved apart from the skipper who managed to put down 2 chances.
Pudsey Congs v Adel
at Fulneck
Saturday May 16th, 2009
Match report by Captain Gary Lewsley
After a recent upturn in form the Congs were looking to maintain a 3 game winning streak at a surprisingly playable Fulneck. Adel won the toss and had no hesitation in putting the young Congs side into bat. The Congs openers Ali Goodchild and Matt Humpleby started well and built a good opening partnership. The best score of the day came from Ashley Slater who batted intelligently to muster an excellent 53. This was supported by useful contributions from Allen, Lewsley and Royce. A massive rain shower with 1.3 overs to go in the Congs innings was swiftly followed by a declaration.
Congs 170-5
Adel’s reply began with the pitch extremely wet and the Congs spearhead Doey could only bowl 3 balls before slipping. This meant a rethink of tactics as only 3 bowlers were able to keep their feet sufficiently to bowl spells. Once again Adam Patrick bowled excellently and was well supported by Allen and Lewsley. Adel were really looking good to complete a great chase until a fine catch from a gazelle like Ali Goodchild and a fine over from Adam Florence Patrick ensured they were not going to reach their goal. The Congs taking 4 points for a winning draw.
Adel 158-5
Pudsey Congs v Farsley
PPM CUP Round one
at the Britannia Ground
Sunday May 10th, 2009
Match report by Captain Gary Lewsley
The Congs set about reaching their 3rd consecutive cup final with a home tie against local rivals Farsley. The pitch looked a belter and indeed was. Farsley managing 199-6 from their alloted overs. Ben tempest being the standout performer with an excellent 50. The star performer was in the field was undoubtedly Chris Doey, who displayed great commitment and fielded well throughout.
In reply, the Congs got off to a flyer and were in the driving seat thanks to Lindley-Dawe and Goodchild who hit 75 and 56 respectively. They both went and the Congs fell over the line due to Adam Patrick and his flashing blade. The Congs finished the game with 8 balls left and 1 wicket in hand on 201-9. The Congs now await Thursdays draw. A special mention also for the Farsley team and especially the skipper for his excellent behaviour and sportsmanship throughout the game.
Farsley 199 for 6
Pudsey Congs 201 for 9
Halifax Direct v Pudsey Congs
at Laisterdyke
Saturday May 9th, 2009
Match report by Captain Gary Lewsley
On a freezing cold and windy day in Bradford the Congs set about getting a result away from home. Halifax won the toss and decided to insert Pudsey on a green looking pitch. Pudsey opened up well with Lindley-Dawe smashing a belligerent 45. When he fell the Congs managed to slowly build an above par score of 176-9. Lewsley finishing with 60 not out. A special mention for Matt Humpleby who batted patiently with excellent technique.
Halifax set about chasing down the Congs total and were at several points in the match. The Congs did though keep taking wickets largely thanks to 2 excellent bowling performances. Adam Patrick was particularly frugal allowing only 17 runs form his 13 overs. This was superseded by debutant Sam baby face Mason taking a creditable 4-50 from 16 overs. Halifax ended their innings on 149-9.
Halifax Direct 149 for 9
Pudsey Congs 176 for 9
Pudsey Congs v New Wortley
at the Britannia Ground
Saturday May 2nd, 2009
Match report by Captain Gary Lewsley
Pudsey lost the toss and New Wortley strangely decided to bat first. They struggled throughout and eventually thanks to some great bowling by Mike Oldfield, they were all out for 90. The pitch eventually became easier to bat on and Rob Kettlewell with 28 and a nice little innings from Ash Slater, saw the Congs home. The victory was crowned with a massive 6 from Slater. Hopefully this victory can see the Congs go on a run.
New Wortley 90 , M Oldfield 7 for 16
Pudsey Congs 92 for 6 , R Kettlewell 28
Pudsey Congs won by 4 wickets
Rodley v Pudsey Congs
at Canal Bank
Saturday April 25th, 2009
Match report by Captain Gary Lewsley
The Congs won the toss and decided to field and had Chris Doey to thankfor a couple of early wickets. Rodley however battled well and managed to put up a creditable score of 180 All Out. The Congs reply stuttered and never really looked like achieving the victory target eventually being rolled out for 96. The congs will look to get the first victory on the board very soon.
Rodley 180, Pudsey Congs 96
Pudsey Congs v Shipley Providence (Season Opener)
at Fulneck
Saturday April 18th, 2009
Match report by Captain Gary Lewsley
Pudsey Congs started their season against last seasons runners up on a bright dry day at Fulneck. After losing the toss we were inserted and useful contributions from Kettlewell, the Goodchild brothers (Alistair and Joe), Lewsley and Allen we managed to post a total of 170 All Out (44.3 Overs)
Shipley began their innings poorly and Doey and Patrick took early wickets to give the Congs a sniff of victory. A great catch from Lindley-Dawe seemed to have the Congs in the driving seat but sadly we were unable to finish Shipley off and they scored the winning runs with 7 balls left. 172-8 (43.5 Overs).
A special mention for Joe Goodchild for a fine run out and also a massive 6.
Pudsey 170 all out. Shipley 172 for 8