Owls on top at halfway stage

The Wrecclesham Owls comprehensively beat a youthful Frensham 2nd XI by 8 wickets and further increased their margin at the top of the table as a result.

The Mighty Wreccers, who were plying their trade in Division IV only as long ago as 2008, now comfortably occupy first place in Division II as the season passes the halfway stage.

It has been a remarkable few seasons for this young Wrecclesham side who now find themselves in prime position to gain a third automatic promotion to Division 1 and enter this format of the elite league of I'anson cricket for the first time in their history.

Saturday's game was once again played out in wonderful cricketing conditions, the visitors winning the toss and electing to bat on a firm grassy looking track which has yielded many runs this season.

Oli 'Bondi Beach' Caston, a former Frensham player for many years, opened up and proceeded to take 2 wickets with his first 2 deliveries.

Fisher-Pratt showing tremendous Spooner like sportsmanship to walk first up after gloving to Parkinson and Gardener, who had been a Wrecclesham stalwart for many years, could only edge a fantastic delivery straight to Wright who showed a safe pair of hands in the slips.

At 0-2 Wrecclesham could have been forgiven for thinking it was going to be a short afternoon but Allison had other ideas as he settled in and steadied the Frensham ship very well.

Catson plugged away but couldn't quite reach the heights of his first two balls and anything wayward was expertly punished by Allison who was in ruthless mood.

Chris '1000 runs' Spooner found some lateral movement which he backed up with a good line and length to cause the visitors consistent problems and restrict the run rate, as a result he dismissed Hughes for 18 as the Owls tightened their grip at 50 odd for 3.

Allison proved a thorn in Wrecclesham's side however as he continued to bat well as he and Seb Grundy (54) put on a big partnership to set a decent base for Frensham to push on.

Frensham went on the attack and Allison reached a fine century (102) supported well by Breddy who made a nice 50 in fairly quick time.

Larby (10-1-50-1) was charged with halting the run rate as he replaced Caston and did so to good effect bowling Grundy and barring one over which Allison carted for 14, kept things tight to excerpt some pressure for the home side which was crucial given the batting friendly conditions.

Spooner, who once again had been afforded little luck, was replaced by Dan 'Bionic Man' Vasey as the Wreccers switched up their attack.

Vasey again bowled with good energy and a decent economy, barring one over and helped keep the game in the balance for the Owls.

Caston (4-78) and Spooner (2-64) both came on for late cameos to take 3 wickets between them as Frensham, with wickets in hand, tried to cash in.

Whilst singles were plentiful Wrecclesham crucially protected the boundaries well with a very good display of ground fielding which included 0 byes to restrict the visitors to 236-7 from their full allocation of 48 overs.

After taking the season's finest tea, prepared by Henry 'Granny Basher' Bate with no little assistance from mother Bate and the family butler no doubt (see comment of the week!).

A far cry from the days of old where a target of 200 plus would be considered a very tall order (to say the least!), the new Owls set about their task in confident mood.

With a fast outfield and pretty consistent track the home side knew that the target was always within reach if they managed to apply themselves properly and bat positively.

James 'Graham' Napier Wight was promoted to open alongside the ever reliable Spooner in a bid to start the Wrecclesham innings on the front foot.

The pair seemed to relish the challenge, doing everything they were asked of, setting a fantastic platform for victory with a stand of 80 plus by seeing off the new ball and keeping up with the required run rate.

When Wright was bowled for 45 attempting an ill advised sweep the home side were well in control, the incoming Chris 'The Arm' Board supported Spooner well as the pair shared a 40 run partnership to ensure there was no sign of a collapse.

Spooner, still undoubtedly the divisions prize scalp, made yet another excellent contribution to underline his quality before departing for a well made 60 as the hosts reached 129-2.

Matt 'MB is he on E?' slotted in slightly lower down the order at 4, stepped up next as he Board put Frensham's total into perspective with some glorious stroke play.

Whilst Parkinson (31*) was back to his explosive best destroying anything over pitched or short it was Board (83*) who caught the eye with a display which oozed pure class.

The experienced campaigner, 32, on home debut, eased his way into his innings before accelerating in wonderful fashion as he struck plentiful and lengthy boundaries to all corners of the ground with pure timing.

What seemed a competitive score at one stage was chased down by the run hungry pair in what seemed like no time as the Wrecceers romped to a deserved victory in just 30.3 overs.

Next up for Wrecclesham is a trip to Thursley as they look to cement their position at the top of the table.

Afterword by Joe Boniface

Well done gents, another excellent performance to add to the back catalogue!

I thought despite dropping a couple of difficult chances we fielded pretty well, an excellent keeping display by Henry and some clean ground fielding that was key in restricting them to an achievable total.

It was also good to see Larbs and Dan chipping in with a decent spell apiece to prove that we have plenty in the locker when things aren't quite working, although that has been the exception rather than the rule of late.

Our batting line up has to be up there with the best in the league and the performance on Saturday underlined that perfectly.

Spooner and Wrighty you did a great job at the top of the order and Parky it was great to see you dominate in the way that you did, I think you can definitely do a job in that number 4 slot.

Boardy, I am encouraged by the way you have come seamlessly into the team (even if you are a bit worried by the shower time banter!) and it was a pleasure to see you showcase your quality with what turned out to be a top class knock.

To add a player of your ability to an already established and successful side is what helps teams push on to the next level and I feel we are doing that.

To be top at the halfway stage is excellent but now that we have played everyone barring Thursley I think we are in a position where we are more than capable of winning this division.

10 more victories guarantees that we do just that.

Bring on next week.

Up the Owls!