Housham claims six for seven as Lea & Roses win Bassetlaw Division Two title

Promotion was guaranteed coming into the game, however four points were needed to secure the championship.

Skipper Andrew West lost the toss and his Anston counterpart elected to bowl first.

On a green looking wicket a solid start was required for the Lea & Roses openers to set a platform for the chase to four points.

This is exactly what happened with Needham and Mardle settling quickly into a rhythm and picking up their runs at a comfortable rate.

Mardle nudged the ball into the gaps with Needham playing more aggressive, including a majestic 6 over long off. Unfortunately the partnership was broken on 36 when Mardle played the ball onto his own stumps, bringing Keightley to the crease.

Needham was still going well at the other end and moved the score onto 51 move he came down the pitch to one which moved away from him. The quick hands of the keeper behind the stumps whipped the bails off and the stranded Needham had to walk on 24.

The first ball of the next over brought another wicket as Keightley, who was looking frustrated, slashed at one outside his off stump only to edge it to first slip.

He was quickly followed by Snee who had a short but eventful innings where he survived a couple of run out opportunities only to be trapped LBW after adding six to the score.

Copper and Lane began the rebuild the innings taking the score from 59-4 to 106-4.

Both had played very well before Cooper who looked settled found the outside edge of his bat and the ball looped up to point who took the catch having made 34.

Dewick joined lane and looked to bludgeon some quick runs. Having been dropped early in his innings Dewick added 8 in quick fashion taking the score past the 120 mark giving the Lea & Roses side their first point of the day before he departed.

Lane, Smith, West, Housham and Orton all looked to add as many runs as possible in the final 10 overs with a score of 180 required to reach the four batting points which would clinch the title for Lea & Roses. With the overs running out everyone was on the attack.

The score moved past 140, and then 160 came and went giving the home side their second and third points of the day but unfortunately this was as good as it got as Lea & Roses finished the innings on 168 all out.

During the tea break news filtered through that scores elsewhere had meant that the three points from the first innings would be enough to be crowned champions. Knowing this the home side headed out to enjoy the final innings of the season.

Cooper and Dewick opened the bowling, restricting the Anston openers to very few run scoring chances early on.

There were a few chances dropped in slip off the bowling of Dewick but it was Cooper who made the breakthrough taking two quick wickets. This brought Roddis to the crease at 17-2. Roddis immediately looked to play his shots and score runs quickly for Anston.

Lane and Orton replaced the openers and struggled against the aggressive Roddis who looked to take on the slow bowlers. Lane was eventually rewarded with the wicket of the remaining opener, stumped thanks to the quick hands of Mardle.

Roddis in full flow now was despatching the bowlers to all areas of the ground, until the introduction of Housham into bowling attack. This was the beginning of one of the best spells of the season. In his first over Housham took the wicket of the dangerous Roddis, who made an impressive 76, and then followed that up by bagging his second wicket of the over with the score now on 120-5.

The last five wickets fell for only 43 runs as Housham mopped up the tail, with the help of Smith who took one. Anston finished on 143 all out, with Housham taking six wickets for seven runs from 5.3 overs.

Lea & Roses II finished the campaign in fourth position in Bassetlaw Division Six after a weather interrupted season.

Out of 20 matches, only 10 games were played to completion.

It was a season to be proud of nonetheless, the side only lost two matches all year and surely would have finished higher in the standings had the weather not affected the season so much.

The Lea & Roses III team finished their season runners up in Bassetlaw Division 8. A very good year for the side, who deservedly secure themselves promotion next season.