West of England Premier League Prem 2 Glos/Wilts division

Lechlade 174 ao lost to Thornbury 246 ao by 72 runs

THORNBURY continued their run at the top of the West of England Premier League Prem 2 Glos/Wilts division with victory over struggling Lechlade on Saturday.

Indeed, the first half of the season has got off to a very promising start, with captain Luke Davis’ men.

Their opponents were a Lechlade side that may be at the bottom of the table, but have some very dangerous batsman, including Gloucestershire’s Jack Taylor.

Captain Davis won the toss and elected to bat in scorching conditions, on a pitch that had more than a green tinge to it.

After his fifty against Rockhampton last week, Josh Riggs strolled out to bat with Dan Lezar, which was yet another new opening partnership for the first team.

Unfortunately, though, it wouldn’t last long. Riggs was trapped lbw for two runs, so out came Marcus Wormwell looking to make the most of his current good form, which includes a ton for the seconds last week.

However, he could only manage six runs before he departed caught behind off one of Lechlade’s five spinners, a decision that he certainly didn’t agree with.

Dan Davis, back after a one-week injury break, joined Dan Lezar, looking to swing control back Thornbury’s way.

But things went from bad to worse, when Dan Lezar was caught for 19 and then Dan Davis was run out from the boundary for 24, leaving Thornbury in all sorts of bother on 57-4.

Luke Davis and Danny Slade had a job on their hands to get Thornbury up to a defendable total.

The pair were starting to look comfortable, but then Davis slapped a half-tracker straight to the fielder after accumulating 19 runs, so Vishal Mamgai came out to try and save the day.

Lechlade’s spin at both ends didn’t seem to faze the pair as they notched up a comfortable fifty partnership, the first of the day.

Slade was cruising his way to fifty, but then a moment of hesitation saw him hit the ball straight back to the bowler, so he departed for 44 runs.

Both Sam Summerfield and Harry Wormwell could only manage one run each, which left Thornbury on 153-8 and in danger of suffering a shock defeat.

However, Lechlade would not have anticipated Thornbury’s deep batting line-up and a confident Tom Bradley would take the attack to them.

Vishal quietly worked his way to fifty and Bradley was doing his best to join him.

Bradley produced many eye-catching shots, including a lofted drive down the ground and some crunching drives through the covers as Thornbury raced past two hundred.

The pair continued to attack and had helped swing momentum Thornbury’s way for the first time.

Maximum batting points were secured, but they fell just short of 250 after both departing in the final over of the game. Vishal made 64 and Bradley made 42 to reach 246 all out in fifty overs.

The Thornbury bowlers have been on top form in recent weeks and they would be looking to continue that against a side that have a couple of more than handy batsman. Lechlade sent out two inexperienced openers, and they could only manage ten and six respectively, with Bradley and captain Davis taking the wickets.

Lechlade were 36-2, but with Jack Taylor and Bradley Dial at the crease, there was work still to do.

Other than a couple of loose drives that drew edges, the pair looked in control as they negated the threat of Thornbury’s bowlers.

Still, though, Luke Davis continued the freshen things up with frequent bowling changes. Thornbury were looking for one chance to change the game and it came when Dial was on 24.

Luke Franklin found the top edge of Dial and the ball went miles in the air, Bradley was underneath it but unfortunately for Thornbury, the catch went down.

It was a huge let-off for Lechlade, but Bradley would get his revenge. Dial again played a similarly loose shot of his bowling, but this time Dan Davis was under it and he made no mistake.

Lechlade were 126-3, but Taylor remained, and he still posed a sizeable threat.

However, the wicket of Dial proved to be a crucial one, because, after that, the floodgates opened.

Three quick wickets restricted the hosts to 146-3 and the required run-rate started to escalate.

The game sealing moment came when Taylor chipped to Dan Davis at point off Harry Wormwell’s bowling for 76 and the end was near.

The wickets continued to tumble and Lechlade were eventually all out for 174 in 47 overs.

The bowlers were excellent again and they were backed up by some very good fielding. Bradley and Harry Wormwell both ended with four wickets each and captain Davis picked up two or himself.

The winning margin was 72 runs, but that does not tell the tale of a game that Thornbury looked far from winning at certain points in the game.

Next for Thornbury is a trip to Burbage and Easton Royal on Saturday.