Shropshire Academy’s final game of the season ended in defeat by 105 runs against a MCC Select XI featuring a number of local cricketers at Oswestry Cricket Club.
It was the academy side’s fifth match of the campaign, with Ryan Lockley, coach of the team along with James Wojda, pleased with his young side’s effort during the season.
“We’ve seen a lot of regulars feature over the five games,” said Lockley. “We’ve had a fairly youthful side this season.
“We have given quite a few debuts to players from different clubs in the county that have enjoyed good seasons, so it’s been very positive in that regard.
“We are hoping that we can provide a pathway to National Counties cricket, which is what the future holds for some of the up and coming players and some more experienced cricketers who may feature at some point throughout the next few years.”
The MCC Select XI was captained by Shifnal’s Shaun Lorimer, one of four players in the team, along with Matt Lamb, Bradley Thornton and Will Jenkins, who have played NCCA cricket for Shropshire.
Quatt’s Alex Biddle added to the county contingent in the MCC side.
Batting first, the MCC Select XI totalled 256-7 declared from 48.5 overs, with opener Ethan Berlusconi top scoring with 66.
Leading contributors
Biddle (55), Alexander Woods (51) and Matty Humphreys (44no) were the other leading contributors, with off-spinner Gursimrat Singh, who took 4-49, the pick of the Shropshire Academy bowlers.
In reply, Shifnal’s Harry Parton hit 46 and Harry Turley-Salmons added 28 as Shropshire Academy were bowled out for 151 inside 39 overs, with Jenkins (2-22), Lamb (2-27) and C. Mitchell (2-33) among the wickets.
Reflecting on the day and the match, Lockley said: “It’s the first time we’ve hosted the MCC in the time I’ve been involved with the team, so it was nice of their players to travel from different parts of the country to Oswestry.
“They had a fairly experienced side and it was nice to see five Shropshire lads included in their team.
“The MCC got off to a decent start and batted quite positively at the top. We then introduced Gursimrat Singh who picked up four wickets as we took five fairly quick wickets.
“We felt we were in a good position at lunch with them 167-6, but afterwards we didn’t quite get the right plans and we let them back into the game.
“They had a good partnership involving Alex Biddle and they eventually got up to 256 before declaring.
“We got off to a really good start when we batted and were 72-2 at tea. We then lost wickets in clusters and never managed to rebuild from there.
“Harry Parton made 46 and Harry Turley-Salmons 28, but it wasn’t quite enough in a chase of 256.”
Thank you to Oswestry Cricket Club for kindly hosting the game.
Pictured: Oswestry Cricket Club hosted Shropshire Academy’s final match of the season against a MCC Select XI.