Glos / Wilts division 1st XI; Rockhampton (187-5) beat Gloucester City Winget (174 a.o) by 13 runs
GLOUCESTER City Winget were looking for revenge after a narrow defeat in the corresponding fixture earlier in the season, but fell just short once again.
After seeing Rockhampton chase down 302 in that game, opposition skipper Stuart Wilshaw decided that Rockhampton should set the target in this game deciding to field first after winning the toss.
Openers Will Tyler and Rowan Cartlidge started steadily enough in the face of some tight bowling, picking off the odd poor delivery and rotating the strike. However, with 35 on the board, Will Tyler (21) was the victim of some excellent wicket-keeping, being smartly stumped as Hooper was rewarded for an excellent opening spell.
After a couple of promising innings, Jack Spence was given a chance at number three but struggled to pick the gaps on this occasion.
Cartlidge was starting to accelerate, but just as he was threatening to cut loose, he was adjudged lbw off the bowling of Triboan for 29.
When Spence fell in similar fashion for a watchful 0, Rockhampton looked to be in danger of failing to post a competitive total.
However, the middle order pairing of Jeremy White and a rejuvenated Nigel Hopkins set about building an important partnership.
With trademark late cuts from White, and lusty straight hitting from Hopkins, the pair put on over 70 runs before Hopkins was bowled for 28.
White, allaying fears about his age, racked up another half century before perishing for an excellent 58.
This left time for some late hitting from the likes of Lane (10*) and Beale (6*) to take the score to 187-5.
A pumped-up Rockhampton team got the early breakthrough they desired in the second innings, when the fiery Will Cartlidge (11-2-55-1) sent the dangerous Tegg's off stump cart-wheeling in the eighth over.
With the miserly bowling of Jones (12-5-24-0) at the other end, runs were hard to come by for Gloucester.
When Spence (7-1-33-1) clean bowled the other opener Price for 22, Rockhampton may have felt they were in the driving seat.
However, aggressive batting from Steadman (36) and Howells (39) combined with some questionable fielding soon moved the score onto 133-2.
It took the 'golden arm' of Beale to dismiss Howells caught behind, to break the partnership, and when fellow spinner Hancox bowled Steadman with an arm ball, Rockhampton were back in the game.
Will Tyler (2-0-12-1) then cleaned out Little before some hard hitting from Hooper looked to edge Gloucester closer to victory until he too was bowled by Hancox.
It was left to Beale (3.1-0-15-3) and the ever-threatening Hancox (11-2-27-4) to clean up the tail as Gloucester City Winget were bowled out for 174 giving Rockhampton an important victory as they look to consolidate their position in the league.
Rockhampton would like to thank Chris Lynch for sponsoring the match ball.
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