Market Rasen Cricket Club sides make progress in cups

Market Rasen CC First XI moved into the next round of the George Marshall Trophy after a bowl-out win on Bank Holiday Monday.
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They went into the game fresh after the Lincolnshire County League game at Hartsholme was washed out on Saturday without a ball being bowled.

But the rain returned to blight another afternoon’s cricket as Rasen headed to Haxey to begin their cup campaign.

After the visitors had won the toss and elected to bat, David Papworth was bowled without scoring before the rain intervened just five overs into the ininngs with Rasen 9-1.

Will Bradford (25 not out) Ian Williams (30 not out) had moved the score along to 66-1 for one after 22 overs when rain wiped out the game for good.

Faced with a bowl-out, cricket’s equivalent of a penalty shoot-out, Rasen came through 3-2 to set up a quarter-final with Hartsholme on Monday, May 27.

Rasen’s Second XI also made progress in the Bob Welton Cup after edging out Clee Town Laportes with just three balls to spare in a thrilling chase on Saturday.

Openers Mathew Thompson and Inderjeet Sandhu (23) got the hosts off to a good start with a 50-run first wicket stand before Gary Bierlein took two quick wickets.

Rasen kept chipping away through James Quinlan (3 for 41), but Laportes still looked well set to post a big total at 137-4.

But Bierlein (4 for 17) returned to remove key man Thompson for 75, and Charlie Scales weighed in with two late wickets as the home side were bowled out for 170.

David Papworth and Dan Quinlan (36) proved the bedrock of the Rasen reply with a 73-run second-wicket stand, guiding the visitors past the 100 mark before Quinlan fell soon after.

A middle order wobble put the game back in the balance as Rasen lost three wickets for four runs to slip to 129-5.

But Dale Chambers made a well-paced 19 and Papworth (76) took his side close to the target until he was seventh wicket to fall, with seven runs required.

Aaron Navin then held his nerve, hitting eight runs from seven balls to help Rasen across the line midway through the final over, with two wickets to spare.