It was befitting of what a wonderful season it has been that the biggest crowd of the season (100+) witnessed an absolutely enthralling game on the front pitch as the 1st XI put local rivals Oxton to the sword. Going into the game with a chance of promotion, but relying on the result of the Barrow v Widnes fixture, Tom Marsland lost the toss and was invited to have a bat. Regular openers Owen & McArthur started in their usual style, registering another 50 wicket opening partnership before McArthur fell for 34 which brought skipper Marsland to the crease. The runs continued to flow as they put on 65 for the 2nd wicket before the skipper fell for a splendid 38 which set a solid platform at 123 for 2. Three quick wickets fell which made a big score look challenging, but some solid resilience from Chris Stowell-Smith (23*) saw the 1st innings close on 176 for 8. Nobody was quite sure what the bowlers had for tea but whatever it was it WILL be on the menu next year as they came out firing and Oxton found themselves in deep trouble at 8 for 5.Some middle order resilience from Breheny (40) dragged out proceedings but the innings closed on 106 in the 41st over with Liam Sundve bowling a sublime spell of 5 for 10 from 12.1 overs to clinch victory as they faced an agonising wait on the result of the game at Barrow. Shortly afterwards, the news came through that nobody wanted to hear as Barrow had failed to chase down Widnes’ lowly total of 136 and had been bowled out for 92 which secured promotion for Widnes. Either way, a splendid season all round which saw real progress with a 3rd place finish (7th in 2017) and 79 more points accumulated. There’s been some fine individual performances with Chris McArthur (931 runs) & Matt Owen (585 runs) leading the way with the bat, and Ross Dixon (59 wickets) & Liam Sundve (31 wickets) starring with the ball.

Up at Townfield Lane, Tom Maguire’s 2nd XI knew that victory would clinch them promotion and set about the task in hand batting first and looking to exploit the gaps with the home side starting the game with just nine men. Despite a couple of early wickets falling, Warburton (52) and Ingram (68) showed the pedigree as seasoned 1st teamers as they steadied the ship to allow the skipper to declare after 44 overs with 202 on the board. Now over to the bowlers to do the trick and they did just that with openers Ingram & Maguire in devastating form both picking up five wickets to see their hosts bowled out for just 64, with only two batsmen reaching double figures. Ingram in particular was the pick of the two as his five-fer included a hat-trick and 2 in 2 balls to clinch the last two wickets of the innings. A quick celebratory sing-song in the changing rooms was followed by a swift return to the UCG to jubilant applause and the chance to celebrate long in to the night for a well-deserved promotion. Luca DiStefano (349 runs) finished as top run scorer for the season, with Graeme Keenan (41 wickets) & Tom Maguire (37 wickets) starring with the ball.

On the back pitch, there was a high scoring affair as the 3rd XI welcomed Chester Boughton Hall. Batting first, openers Talbot (43) and McGowan (67) put on 115 for the first wicket which was complemented further by a beautiful 59 from Joe Green, promoted up the order and proving his worth in the number three slot. Gav Byrom (45) added some solid middle order runs to enable the hosts to close their innings on 246 for 5. After tea, the Chester batsmen manfully set about the task with captain Jim Gillson leading the way with a carefully crafted 52 but ten man Chester saw their innings close on 178 all out with Alex Jones picking up four wickets along the way. The win see’s the 3’s end their season a massive 70 points clear of second placed Barrow and will relish the opportunity in Division A next year.

Making the trip in the opposite direction, Ian Bruce’s 4th XI won the toss and elected to bat and once again posted a healthy score with 199 on the board thanks largely to Phil Wood (49), Rob Chapman (40) and ‘extras’ who contributed 43 to the total. As per the reverse fixture, the Chester batsmen made light work of chasing down the total and did so within 29 overs for the loss of just three wickets, two of which we claimed by Kevin Jackson. Reflecting back on these two fixtures between the sides, what a great advert for cricket lower down the league structure as they have yielded 999 runs. The result see’s the 4th XI finish in an extremely credible 7th position in a very competitive league with plenty to build on for next year.

On Sunday, Cath Williams Ladies XI concludes their season and finished things with another victory - albeit on run rate after the weather intervened. Batting first the ladies posted 120 for 1 with Lily Scudder carrying her bat for a magnificent 51 not out. Chester faced just 12.4 overs before the weather took over at which stage they were 28 for 4 so victory was claimed on run rate. A great first season for the ladies as they look forward to the league presentation dinner next Saturday where they will be presented with the league and cup trophies.

So there we have it, the final roundup of the 2018 season and what a season it’s been all the way through the club. Thanks to everybody for their support both on & off the pitch – what a great club we have.