Hurricane Hurley gives MCC promising start

MCC 1st XI began their CCL Division 1 campaign with an away day at Cheadle Hulme, the setting of a heavy defeat in 2014.

Captain Nick Gill got off to a solid start with an important win at the toss and elected to field on what was predicted to be a surface offering support to the new ball bowlers. The South African recruit, LDT didn’t take long to introduce himself, removing a potential threat with the very first ball of the day, caught in spectacular fashion by veteran, Pat Hurley at mid off. After a minor recovery, James Cornford snicked off Cheadle’s captain with James Williams taking a simple catch at first slip. The home side went on to stage their comeback with some stubborn resistance from the number 3, supported by a counter attacking knock and half century from number 4.

With the new ball now not offering much assistance to the seam bowlers, captain Nick Gill opted for a change of pace, introducing slow bowlers Pat Hurley and Steve Bliss into the attack, stemming the run rate and breaking what was beginning to be a worrying partnership for the visitors as Hurley removed Jordan Potts, well caught by Leandro at backward point. The breakthrough increased the scoring pressure on the home side and soon brought a further hat trick of scalps for Hurley who returned impressive figures of 11 overs, 4-34. Cheadle Hulme’s recovery came from some selective late order hitting, pushing them to a competitive, yet gettable 190-8 from their allotted 50 overs.

Moment of the day:
Seasoned slipper Jamie ‘Jambo’ Williams produced a spectacular catch for Hurley’s 3rd wicket, diving sharply to his left to take the one handed grab, reminiscent of Chris Jordan’s in the recent test match played in the West Indies.

Middlewich’s chase was given a stubborn start from long time buddies James Williams (6) and Tom Shepherd (4), who were both removed early doors by Mo Ali, whose nagging line proved effective on a flat wicket, returning figures of 5-28. Promising starts came from Cornford (21), Clorley (28), Gill (37) and LDT (30), giving much needed encouragement for the new season, although unfortunately could not capitalise on this occasion. The visitors efforts were halted by regular wickets and were forced to settle for the draw with some lower order resistance from Steve Bliss (20*).

MCC take 6 points into their home tie with newly promoted, Tattenhall CC this weekend on the Haddon Field. First ball from 1pm, spectators welcome as always.

Captain Gill:
“After a solid start with the ball I thought we were in a great position to go on and win the game at Cheadle Hulme, there were many positives to take from our performance and we are certainly taking those forward with us into the game against Tattenhall”.