St Helens Town CC 106 all out (Gornall 29, West 20; Nathan Lawler 5-36, Amber Bowie 4-11)
Rainhill Academy XI 107-5 (Darren Tyms 53*, Tejas Sirikonda 25; West 3-22)
In a gripping encounter at Ruskin Drive, Rainhill CC Academy (4th XI) emerged victorious in a match played in great spirits against St Helens Town CC – 3rd XI, with Rainhill fielding ten U18 players.
Nathan Lawler was the standout performer for Rainhill, securing his second senior 5-wicket haul of the season. Lawler’s exceptional bowling figures of 5 for 36 in 12 overs were crucial in restricting St Helens to 106 all out. Despite three dropped catches off his bowling, Lawler’s impact was undiminished, and his efforts were well-complemented by Amber Bowie’s oustanding bowling performance, taking 4 wickets for just 11 runs. Both spinners capitalising on the pitch’s variable bounce to crucially distrupt St Helens Town’s batting line up.
The seamers had set the tone early in the innings, with Rainhill’s opening bowlers, Finn Millar and Jack Tyms applying pressure that St Helens struggled to counter. This strategic bowling restricted St Helens to a slow start, managing only 22 runs in the first 10 overs.
Rainhill’s bowler efforts were bolstered by their fielding, with exceptional catches from Harry Ball and Kieran Rose, and a sharp stumping from Freddie Foulkes, further demonstrating the team’s all-round capabilities.
St Helens Town were restricted to 106 runs off 39.4 overs.
Rainhill’s batting effort was initially wobbly, with the team reduced to 9-3 within the first three overs. However, Tejas Sirikonda played a stabilising innings, scoring 25 runs off 60 balls. His partnership with Darren Tyms, who finished on a crucial 53 not out, almost saw the team through to victory. The final push was provided by Freddie Foulkes, who joined Darren in the middle to see Rainhill over the line, ending the game at 107-5 after 25 overs.
As Rainhill prepares for their next game against New Brighton, they carry forward the momentum from this win and the lessons learned from the challenges of the Ruskin Drive pitch.
The focus in the coming week will be on harnessing the positives and refining skills during net practice, aiming to maintain their competitive edge.
