Aussie grabs eight as Malton storm clear (From Gazette & Herald)

Aussie grabs eight as Malton storm clear

York and District Senior League Division One - Malton & Old Malton 1st XI 224 for 6 beat Carlton Towers 1st XI 153 all out by 71 runs. MALTON have opened up a 42-point lead at the top of division one after crushing fourth-placed Carlton Towers by 71 runs.

Carlton won the toss and asked Malton to bat first. Malton's opening pair of Neil Johnson and Darren Wyrill found runs hard to come by in the face of testing early bowling.

But as the shine went off the ball, both players started to cash in on the flat pitch. Johnson looked well set before falling on 43.

Wyrill continued on his steady way, but Greg Johnson increased the run-rate - his 52 coming at less than a run a ball.

Wyrill was eventually out for 66, but Malton's middle order took over to push the score up to 224 for 6, Ryan Bulger the main contributor with 20.

Chris Hudson made sure Carlton got off to a bad start, clean bowling Paul Wright in the first over. Hudson then broke through again in his second over, as Malton turned the screw.

Carlton's skipper Lee Hanson counterattacked and looked in super touch as he raced along to 82, which turned out to account for more than half his side's runs.

Aussie Ryan Bulger, though, was slowly working his way through Hanson's partners, deceiving them with a wide variation of leg breaks.

Bulger then had Hanson caught in the covers and Carlton's run chase slowly dried up. Bulger helped himself to the final three wickets to finish with season-best figures of 8 for 51.

League round-up

Runs flowed at Sheriff Hutton Bridge where 525 runs were score for the loss of just six wickets as the home side triumphed over Woodhouse Grange. Grange's Nick Hadfield scored a ton for the second week in succession when he made an unbeaten 111, whilst Kamran Sajid made 87 in a huge total of 262 for 2. The home batsmen then picked up the gauntlet, with skipper Paul Oldfield pointing the way with 120. Steve Crowder weighed in with 73 and Paul Scaling 34 as the Bridge earned a six-wicket win which moved them into fourth place.

Hornsea dropped from second to third when they were soundly beaten at Duncombe Park. Brian Leckenby made 61 for the hosts whilst Peter Kent added 46 before Anthony Plowman (39no) plundered 23 off the final over to take Park to 239 for 9. Ty Shields took 5 for 86, but then saw his side lose four wickets for just five runs as Adam Raynor (5 for 41) had the east coast men all at sea. The main resistance came from Paul Johnstone (72no) before he ran out of partners as Hornsea fell for 160.

Bolton Percy recorded their sixth win of the season in division three when they beat Malton and Old Malton II by 81 runs. Dave Russell made 72 as Bolton warded off the threat posed by Shane Bonsor (4 for 44) to make 204 for 9. For Malton, Andy Tyres made 40, but lacked support as Jamie Snewin grabbed 5 for 34 and Rigby took 4 for 34 as Malton were dismissed for 123.

Bubwith's batsmen were in rampant form when they raced past Pickering II's total of 178 for 6 to record a five-wicket win in just 31 overs. Andy Hill just failed to register a three-figure score for the Pikes when he batted through for 95no, while Rob Aconley (31) and Ian Johnson (29) helped their side's cause. Johnson followed up with 3 for 31, but could do nothing to stem the flow of runs from Paul Van Dyke, who cracked 88 as Bubwith romped home with 14 overs to spare.

Londesbrough Park had by far the better of a draw against a cautious Sheriff Hutton Bridge II side, who opted for safety first. John Williamson top-scored for Park with 106 as his side declared at 215 for 5 after 43 overs. Faced with a big target and 47 overs, Bridge opted for a draw as Dave Kiernan made 42 and Dave Ellis 42no in their total of 116 for 2.

Mike Harah was the star turn for Hornsea II, who gained a two-wicket home win over Sheriff Hutton. Harah captured 5 for 48, but still saw the visitors reach 178 for 9, thanks to an unbeaten 64 from Ed Taylor, backed by Craig Dodsworth's 31 and Andy Franks 35. Hornsea found Richard Armitage (3 for 45) troublesome, but Harah saw his side to an eight-wicket win with an undefeated 70.

Updated: 13:17 Wednesday, June 16, 2004