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Title race wide open after Sandiacre fall to Ockbrook
Ockbrook and Borrowash put themselves firmly back in the title chase with a four-wicket win at local rivals Sandiacre Town.
The Longmoor Lane outfit had built up a substantial lead at the top of the table after six wins on the bounce coincided with a streak of five games without a win for Ockbrook, so it was a must-win game for the visitors if they were to remain in the hunt for their fifth Premier League crown.
Ockbrook got off to the best possible start when Kevin Dean won the toss and chose to bowl.
Although Dean struggled with his lines to start with, bowling a succession of wides, Sandiacre found runs difficult to come by, and it was this early pressure that brought Ockbrook their first wicket.
John Trueman dropped a delivery from Trev Smith at his feet in the fourth over and set off for a single. Smith gathered the ball in his follow-through and a direct hit saw James Chapman well short of his ground.
With the ball seaming around for the experienced opening attack of Dean and Smith, it was no real surprise to see 8-1 become 16-2 when Dean had Trueman trapped in front. Ant Woolley and Dave Jordison tried to be more positive.
Smith, having conceded just a solitary run from his opening three overs, was driven for four three overs in succession, twice by Woolley and once by Jordison. This prompted the introduction of young Dan Corcoran to the attack. The move brought him a wicket in his second over, with Jordison driving straight to Dan Tucker at mid-off.
The new batsman was Lloyd Hobson and he became Dean's second victim, looking to work Dean into the legside but managing only to get a leading edge and finding the safe hands of Steve Attenborough at point, leaving Sandiacre in trouble at 39-4. John Jordison came in and played quite nicely with drives off both Dean and Corcoran but was bowled in Dean's final over.
Gaz Young replaced him and struck straight away thanks to some sharp work by Jonnie Guthrie stumping Dan Wheeldon for nought.
Curtley Read and Woolley survived the next eight overs from Young and Attenborough before a double bowling change saw the demise of both batsmen.
Lian Wharton and Jake Needham were given a twirl and both struck in their first overs.
First Woolley picked out Attenborough on the square leg boundary off Wharton, ending his marathon 104-ball innings for 28. And in the following over Read was done in the flight and bowled by Needham for six, leaving Sandiacre 85-8.
Ryan McFadyean added an air of respectability to the score, hitting an unbeaten 25 off 19 balls, with boundaries off Needham and the returning Smith, but when he lost Matt Swann and Danny Green, he was left stranded with Sandiacre 120 all out.
120 was probably around 40 or 50 runs short of where Sandiacre would have liked to have been but with Ockbrook being the lightest on batting they have been in years, a few early wickets would have made things interesting.
After driving John Jordison through the covers and whipping him through midwicket for four, Matt Cassar was the first to go, Jordison exacting revenge as Trueman held a good catch at second slip in the fourth over.
Guthrie and Needham took Ockbrook to 29 before Wheeldon struck twice in an over. Trueman took another smart catch at second slip to remove Guthrie, bringing Smith to the crease. Wheeldon looked to have his man first ball, striking Smith on the toe but the umpire gave the benefit of the doubt to the batsman. Riled, Wheeldon's next ball was considerably quicker, too quick in fact for the Ockbrook batsman who heard it, if he didn't see it, crash into his stumps.
George Morgan joined Needham in the middle. Morgan survived an initial onslaught before crashing a couple of fours to settle the nerves.
He and Needham took their side to 80-3 at drinks by which time they had seen off ten-over spells from Wheeldon and Jordison and looked in no trouble against McFadyean and Chapman.
Sandiacre needed some magic and , as he has often done in the past, Jordison provided it. He came back into the attack for the first over after drinks and had Morgan caught behind for 31 and followed it up next ball trapping Young in front.
Dan Tucker is another of the young brigade in Ockbrook's ranks and he and Needham took Ockbrook past 100 before Needham became the final batsman to depart.
A keeping error enabled Needham to get back on strike, which seemed to anger Wheeldon but Needham drove loosely at the next ball, finding Chapman at gully. It was the only error Needham made all afternoon against his former club, and his 40 proved the match winning contribution Ockbrook needed.
Tucker finished the game fairly promptly from there, showing his potential by clipping McFadyean over square leg for four and wrapping the game up the following ball with a glorious straight drive
With the gap at the top now just 15 points and Sandiacre travelling to Lullington Parknext week, it promises to be an exciting climax to the Premier League campaign.
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Thursday 09 February 2012
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