Cricket: Slick Flixton capitalise to beat Heywood

Heywood Cricket Club’s first game back in the Greater Manchester Premier League ended in a comprehensive seven-wicket home defeat to champions Flixton.

Crucial key lapses in the game by the home side contributed to what was a slick display by the well-drilled visitors.

The first and arguably decisive setback for Heywood was the toss of the coin. Both sides clearly wanted to get in the field on a wicket expected to be bowler friendly after the ground had suffered from the constant wet weather at the beginning of April, and Flixton had no hesitation in putting Heywood in to bat.

It soon became obvious that it was far from an easy track underlined by the fact that opener Andy Kerr, after seeing Bobby Cross and captain Travis Townsend perish to Kamran Basharat, was so watchful that it took him until the tenth over to score his first run with the total just 15-2.

Kerr went for 14 with the score 47, bowled by South African Johan Wessels, after a third-wicket stand of 32 with Danny Pawson – the latter proving to be the one Heywood batsman to really get on top of the bowling.

Sean Burrill also fell to Wessels.

The major setback came when the impressive Pawson, who had moved smoothly to 31 and was threatening to lead Heywood to a competitive total, drove a catch to short mid-off from the bowling of visiting professional Usman Tariq.

It was not long before the next key phase of the game.

At 90-5, and Heywood probably believing they were well in the game, Andy Dawson was bowled by Tariq trying to chop a straight ball off his stumps after contributing a promising 13 on his first outing following a serious hand injury at Woodhouses in July 2017.

Riley Paterson – the Australian making a welcome to return to Crimble – followed first ball to a catch at slip.

The collapse continued as Jack Morley was run out going for a second run-up after a mix-up with Dale Latham.  Latham soon followed in the same fashion.

Paterson’s fellow Australian Tom McQuinn marked his debut with a single before being trapped lbw by Tariq, whose 4-18 haul from seven overs and one ball of off-spin had wrecked the Heywood middle order and tail.

Heywood’s biggest regret was that they had not used up almost 11 of the 50 overs.

A total of 107 hardly looked good enough, although expectations were raised when Simon Dawson got rid of Tariq for a second ball duck courtesy of a stunning catch over his head by Pawson at first slip.

Dawson also bowled Ash Perry with a yorker to leave Flixton on 24-2, and when Luke Perry became McQuinn’s first wicket for the club – caught behind by Latham – it was 49-3 and Heywood hopes were raised of pulling the game out of the fire.

Wessels, who had survived a ferocious caught behind appeal off McQuinn supported by virtually all Heywood’s close-in fielders, made sure that did not happen. He attacked the Heywood bowling constantly, well supported by Alex Heaton, and the duo put together an unbroken stand of 60 to get Flixton home with almost half the overs to spare.

There were some good signs for Heywood. Pawson stood out with the bat, Simon Dawson did his job with the new ball, and McQuinn put in a whole-hearted nine-over stint, but Heywood were reminded that they cannot afford to drop their guard in the Premier League.

Heywood
R Cross c Wessels b Kamran 9
A Kerr b Wessels 14
T Townsend lbw b Kamran 0
D Pawson c Hammond b Tariq 31
S Burrill b Wessels 9
J Morley run out 9
A Dawson b Tariq 13
R Paterson c Beckford b Tariq 0
D Latham run out 3
S Dawson not out 7
T McQuinn lbw b Tariq 1
Extras 12
Total (39.1 overs) 106
Fall of wickets: 1-14, 2-15, 3-47, 4-65, 5-75, 6-90, 7-90, 8-99, 9-106, 10-107
Bowling: Kamran Basharat 8-1-31-2, S Hammond 7-2-10-0, J Wessels 5-1-7-2, A Beckford 12-2-39-0, U Tariq 7.1-2-18-4

Flixton
U Tariq c Pawson b S Dawson 0
L Perry c Latham b McQuinn 21
A Perry b S Dawson 7
J Wessels not out 35
A Heaton not out 31
Extras 15
Total (for 3 wkts, 25.2 overs) 109
Fall of wickets: 1-0, 2-20, 3-49
Bowling: S Dawson 6-1-24-2, T McQuinn 9-2-27-1, J Morley 7-2-27-0, R Paterson 2-0-18-0, D Pawson 1.2-0-12-0