Greenmount’s first eleven crashed out of the Worsley Cup at the semi-final stage during a weekend where the senior setup lost all four of their respective games writes SAM CHADWICK.
On Saturday, hopes were high as the villagers travelled to Todmorden in a bid to reach the final of the prestigious competition.
After choosing to bat, they lost opener Tom Heaton early, leaving them at 9 for 1. Jacques Snyman’s brisk 36 from 31 balls offered some hope, but his dismissal triggered a collapse from 47 for 1 to 57 for 4.
It was battling middle-order contributions from Dan Stevens (26 from 47 balls), Gav Nicholl (31 from 64), and Callum Hunter (21 from 37) that helped Greenmount reach a somewhat competitive total of 153 all out in 44.5 overs.
Harry Rickard was the standout bowler for Todmorden, taking 4 for 14 in seven overs. In response, Snyman removed opener Noah Priestley early, leaving Todmorden at 14 for 1. However, consistent scoring from Edward Moore and Rickard, who both scored unbeaten 50s, saw Todmorden comfortably chase the target in just 22 overs with eight wickets to spare.
Sunday brought another disappointment with a 67-run loss to local rivals Ramsbottom. Tom Parton starred with the bat for The Rams, hitting 84 from 139 balls to help his side to 195 for 6 in their 50 overs.
Snyman (3 for 56) and Hunter (2 for 42) took wickets to at least continue their wicket-taking form. Greenmount’s reply never really got going, especially after Heaton and Snyman were removed early, leaving the score at 9 for 2.
Wickets fell in chunks throughout, with Nicholl’s score of 23 from 55 balls being the highest. The result was a total of 128 all out.
Elsewhere on Saturday, the third team narrowly lost in a thrilling encounter against Middleton at The Log Cabin. Winning the toss and electing to bat, Ed Wackrill’s excellent 61 from 82 balls helped the home side to an imposing total of 177 for 7 in an innings shortened to 38 overs.
Despite a large target, Middleton chased it down in just 30.1 overs with three wickets in hand, largely thanks to an opening partnership of 84 that took away a significant chunk of their work.
Finally, Sunday saw a disappointing nine-wicket loss for the second team at home to Rochdale. Batting first on a bowler-friendly wicket, an incredible spell of nine maidens from the away side saw Greenmount fall from 19 for 1 to 19 for 6. Oliver Dixon (24 from 44 balls) and Sam Chadwick (28* from 75) helped their side recover slightly, with George Kenyon also adding an assured 21 from 35.
Those efforts saw them finish on 96 all out. However, an opening partnership of 63 between Rochdale youngsters Thomas Gilbertson and Haroon Kashmiri quashed any hopes of an unlikely home win.
Kashmiri fell to Gareth Williams, but Rochdale reached the target in 21.4 overs.
Results mean Ramsbottom now leapfrog the first team into second with a narrow four-point gap. The second team drop to a disappointing tenth in their division, while Middleton moved level on points with the third team in second place in theirs.