First Eleven Frustrated by the Weather at Centre Vale
It was a hugely frustrating afternoon for the First Eleven as the weather denied Lowerhouse what looked set to be a comfortable victory at Centre Vale against Todmorden.
On a landmark day for Joe Martin, who was making his 350th consecutive Lancashire League appearance, skipper Ben Heap won the toss and elected to bowl first under threatening skies.
The decision looked inspired almost immediately.
After an early rain interruption, Tom Walker ripped through the Todmorden top order in devastating fashion. Bowling with pace and accuracy, Walker claimed two wickets in two balls twice, as the hosts collapsed spectacularly to 27 for 6.
At the other end, Paddy Martin applied relentless pressure, tying the batsmen down and allowing Walker to attack throughout. The pair worked superbly in tandem as Lowerhouse completely dominated proceedings despite the difficult conditions.
Todmorden briefly steadied themselves lower down the order, but wickets continued to fall regularly. Walker finished with outstanding figures of 5 for 24 from 8 overs, while Martin’s miserly spell returned 2 for 25 from 14 overs. Dan Salpietro also chipped in with 2 for 15 from 6 overs.
With Todmorden struggling on 66 for 9 after 28 overs, Lowerhouse were firmly in control and on course for what appeared to be an almost certain 12-point haul.
Unfortunately, the weather had the final say.
Another heavy spell of rain arrived before the innings could be completed and, despite hopes of a restart, the players were unable to return to the field. The abandonment left the visitors understandably frustrated after such a dominant bowling performance.
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Rain Denies Second Eleven After Strong Start
The weather also intervened in the Second Eleven clash against Todmorden, with Lowerhouse well placed before rain brought proceedings to an early end.
Batting first, Lowerhouse had progressed impressively to 156 for 3 from 30 overs when the rain eventually forced the players from the field.
Keagan De Vries led the way superbly and remained unbeaten on 66, playing fluently throughout the innings and anchoring the Lowerhouse total. Alongside him, Shaukat Ali was also unbeaten on 36, with the pair looking increasingly comfortable as the innings developed.
Earlier contributions had laid a solid platform, allowing Lowerhouse to accelerate through the middle overs and place themselves in a strong position before the weather intervened.
With wickets in hand and momentum building nicely, Lowerhouse would have fancied their chances of posting a sizeable total, but persistent rain eventually ended hopes of any further play.
It completed a frustrating day all round for the club, with both senior sides denied the opportunity to press home strong positions by the weather.
#UTH 💛💙