Molesey take 24 as batting troubles continue

Well, the rain fell. And so did the wickets, with all 20 claimed at Woodfield Lane as the Ashtead Stags ended with a 98-run defeat against East Molesey in Round 5 of the 2022 Surrey Championship Premier League.

Rain overnight and on the morning of the match delayed the start by an hour, but when the first innings did get going, it was a steady if unspectacular start for the visitors as Sean Hunt and Aaron Rose kept the bowling extremely tight. The pressure was building, and eventually it told, as skipper Nick Stevens found the edge and departed for 4.

The combination that followed, which included overseas talent Mac Wright, found the going marginally easier and together the partnership built. The introduction of Ben Sidwell and Matthew Breetzke to the attack saw no breakthrough, despite more tight bowling, and as lunch loomed, a wicket was dearly sought after.

And it came. Twice. First up Sean Hunt, switching ends to bowl down the slope, snared his first wicket, Jevan Kher the man with the gloves to clean up. Then Ben Sidwell snared a crucial wicket, as Cole Campbell slapped a straightforward catch to point without scoring. 69-3 at lunch looked much better.

Two more wickets would go straight after the break, both to Sean Hunt (including a spectacular slip catch for Breetzke) and East Molesey were reeling at 79-5. Yet, their batting order ran deep, and it would be Sam Burge, a name so often heard when the Stags play the Moles, that spearheaded the fightback. After more overs of seam couldn’t find the chinks in the armour (even with run out chances aplenty), the spinners finally came to play – just one, Tom Homes. But his impact was immediate, snaring Burge’s partner LBW for 19 and then getting the man himself, caught by Jevan again, for 38.

The tail wagged a little, including a cameo 13 for tailender Frank Knight, but Hunt and rose would combine to bowl out East Molesey for 174. Ashtead would have 44 overs to try and chase that down.

The innings got off to the worst possible start with a wicket in the first over, but the batting powerhouse of Ben Geddes and the aforementioned Breetzke steadied the ship and appeared to be going well at 37-1 after 9 overs.

That, sadly, was as good as it got. As with the lunch interval, two wickets would fall either side, with Breetzke edging to slip for 18 and Geddes given out LBW for 17. The tide had turned, and Westphal proceeded to tear through the Stags’ middle order to leave the hosts reeling on 51-7.

The damage was down, and despite a cameo unbeaten 21 from Sean Hunt, the end was nigh. Tom Deighton pulled the final curtain as Westphal claimed the slip catch. 76 all out.

That rather chastening defeat means that Ashtead remain in 8th place in the league table, but within touching distance of 5th after results elsewhere. Next week sees the Stags travel to Esher for the next round of declaration matches. Esher sit 7th in the table, and also faced a tough day after being bowled out for 63 in their opening timed fixture. The last long game between the two sides was rained out, but the limited over fixture last year saw an easy victory for Ashtead. Let’s see if history can repeat itself.

A reminder that you can follow Ashtead CC’s 1st XI matches via our Twitter (@ashteadcc), live on our website (www.ashtead.play-cricket.com) or at our YouTube channel (Ashtead Cricket Club Live). We look forward to next week! Join us then.