Devon Cricket Board - Devon pay for first-day lapses

Devon pay for first-day lapses

TUESDAY, JULY 6

Conrad Sutcliffe's podcast

DEVON’S first-day lapses came back to haunt them as they went down by five wickets to Herefordshire in the grounds of Eastnor Castle.
   Steve Adshead, the former Gloucestershire staffer back in Minor Counties cricket with Herefordshire hit an unbeaten ton in the final session on Sunday to keep his current club in the game.
   Spinners Chris Metters and Chris Bradley were both lashed all round the picturesque ground just outside Ledbury as Herefordshire made a 156-run dent in Devon’s 343-run first innings total.
   Although Devon recovered on day two – they bowled Herefordshire out shortly after lunch to lead by 77 overall, the time-bomb was ticking away.
   “The big difference between the two teams was that knock by Adshead,” said Devon’s technical director Roger Newman.
   “We didn’t set a great field to him and good batsmen like him will exploit the gaps, which is exactly what he did.
   “Herefordshire ended up a lot closer than they should have been and we have to learn from what we got wrong to make sure it does not happen again in a hurry.”
   Devon compounded the problem by being bowled out for 156 second time around, which left Herefordshire an entire day plus an hour to knock off 234 to win. The first 50 were chalked off on Monday night for the loss of two wickets.
   Herefordshire had to work for their win – it took them 63 overs – and they took very few chances on the way there.
   Herefordshire have only won one Minor Counties game in the last five years – a rain-ruined affair against Cornwall at St Austell in 2008 – and were not going to let this one get away.
   Atiq Chishti added six to his four not out then launched a Josh Bess half-tracker down the throat of Trevor Anning at deep square-leg.
   Adshead, 24 not out overnight, proceeded to 86 and seemed on course for a second ton in the match when he was given out lbw against Metters.
   The long stare at the bat and slow traipse off told everyone on the ground what Adshead thought of the decision.
   With 14 needed to win the game Faisal Shahid, who had put on 70 with Jamie Ralph, went after another Bess short ball and hit it high over his shoulder. Keeper Sandy Allen took the catch at short fine leg.
   Next man in Tim Austwick didn’t hang about after that and won the game by launching Metters over mid-wicket into a cornfield for six.
   Newman said there were positives to take from the match and build on for the next game, which is against Wiltshire at Exmouth in two weeks time.
   “The big plus for us was Matt Thompson scoring 122 in the first innings – and the mature way in which he got it,” said Newman.
   “I felt we did all we could to attack Herefordshire in the last innings and made them work almost up to the end, It was only with about 40 runs to go that we could see the game had gone.”
   Devon 343 (M W Thompson 122, A P W Allen 53, I E Bishop 55, J J Bess 34; C T Griffiths 6-77) & 156 (N D Hancock 32, J J Bess 31no; C T Griffiths 5-40), Herefordshire 266 (S J Adshead 110no, A Chrshti 80; T S Anning 5-28, N D Hancock 3-24) & 234-5 (S J Adshead 86, F H Shahid 64, J T Ralph 35no; J J Bess 2-57, I E Bishop 2-44) Herefordshire (22pts) bt Devon (8) by 5 wkts.

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