Mediterranean CC in important win


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Mediterranean CC win crucial contest.

Mediterranean CC [formerly UKCCC] won a crucial Benrimoj/Wiggins contest on Saturday at the Victoria Stadium against holders and current league leaders GCC Bwin to place them in a strong position to take this season’s title.

GCC Bwin falter after flying start.

Mediterranean CC won the toss and inserted their opponents, who lost the wicket of Ian Farrell to a fine diving catch in the covers by Steve Cary off the bowling of Ross Harkins with the total on 26. However, runs continued to flow from the bat as GCC Bwin raced to fifty in only the fifth over of the innings. Harkins then struck another vital blow for his side claiming the scalp of Steven Gonzalez who had at that stage hit 30 runs off just eighteen balls, and Cary then got into the act again bowling Adrian Hewitt first ball to send the total tumbling to 55/3. Kieron Ferrary and Christian Rocca then set about adding some stability to the innings before Cary had the former caught behind and Wahid claimed the important wicket of Rocca in the last ball of the fifteenth over, at which stage the total stood on a precarious 88/5.

Dropped catches cost GCC Bwin dear.

Mediterranean CC lost the early wicket of Shaun Ainsworth, bowled by Gonzalez and should have had the scalp of Sam Russell when the batsman was on 16, Gary De’Ath putting down a difficult chance at mid wicket; it was a missed chance GCC Bwin were to rue! Russell and Ashan Alwis then batted steadily, putting on 37 runs for the second wicket before De’Ath made up for his earlier miss by trapping Alwis leg before, much to the relief of Farrell who had just dropped the batsman in what was a dolly at square leg. At the fifteen overs stage, the Mediterranean total had move on to 72/2.

GCC Bwin fight back but go down.

When GCC Bwin resumed their innings, Chris Allan and De’Ath fought a rearguard action, putting on 57 runs for the sixth wicket before young Joss Hatcher accounted for the latter. This heralded a collapse of the GCC Bwin late order, only a fighting 40 from Allan enabling them to reach a final total of 173/9. For Mediterranean CC there were two wickets each for Harkins, Cary and Alwis.

On their resumption, Mediterranean CC were indebted to a fine batting display from Russell and Chris Watkins who took the total along to 151 before being parted; their third wicket match-winning partnership yielded 89 runs. Russell departed with just 23 runs required for victory, well caught by Gonzalez on the mid-wicket boundary for 71, but Watkins remained undefeated on 44 as his side romped home with fourteen balls to spare. Mediterranean CC took sixteen points to GCC Bwin’s two.