Lacking against Leyland

A LIMP display with the bat but the brakes on Lancaster's bright start
to the season.
Table toppers Leyland arguably scored 20 runs too many on an even-
paced Lune Road pitch despite an impressive six-wicket haul from
Callum East.
But it was the hosts' batting which offered little resistance against
the swing of Karl Cross and the guile of David Makinson.
Lancaster skipper Ben Simm inserted Leyland and East found early joy
when Chris Parkinson miscued a cut straight to Charlie Swarbrick at
backward point.
Liam Moffat offered control from the Atherton Road end but Richardt
Frenz and Karl Cross fed off half volleys and the odd full toss.
Professional Frenz never looked completely comfortable against East
and the young quick got his man when the South African nicked to the
safe hands of Abhimanyu Khod at slip.
Cross couldn't capitalise on an early reprieve when Alex Metcalfe
spilled a simple chance at cover – the opener pinned by a Moffat in-
swinger for 19.
Despite the odd bad ball, East kept taking wickets from the River End
– first castling Nathan McDonnell after ungainly swipe before making
Andrew Makinson his fourth of the afternoon with a ball the right-
hander did well to get bat on.
Lancaster had their foot in the door with Leyland five down but the
languid Henry Thompson slammed it shut.
Thompson was decisive with his footwork and, crucially, played straight.
He found assistance in the shape of Ross Bretherton who struggled
early on but stayed at the crease.
Simm and leg-spinner Rajat Agarwal bowled tight spells but their good
deliveries just couldn't find the edge of either Thompson or
Bretherton's bat.
The spin duo were not helped by some sloppiness in the field as the
hosts drifted off in the middle overs.

Thompson continued to punish the loose ball but the right-hander lost momentum after reaching 50 and a smart catch by Moffat at mid-wicket gave Simm his first scalp.

Bretherton branched out before Moffat returned to extract the number seven for a handy 38.

Cameos from Dale Vardy and James Rounding moved the visitors beyond 180 as Moffat and the returning East mopped up the rest of the innings.

Openers Jamie Heywood and Alex Metcalfe carried on from where they started the previous week.

Heywood was strong on the drive to negate the swing of Cross while Metcalfe made the most of some loose early overs from James Rounding.

But Makinson introduced himself early and removed a prodding Metcalfe with the second ball of his spell at 32 for 1.

Cross began to find a rhythm and stemmed the flow of runs, an early edged boundary from Charlie Swarbrick didn’t settle the number three’s nerves as a second edge gave McDonnell a simple chance at slip which he gladly took – 50 for 2.

Lancaster were still in a strong position but Makinson and Cross continued to squeeze.

Heywood began to get frustrated and looked to take the aerial route on the now wearing pitch but it was a classic good length delivery which saw the back of the opener as Heywood could do little but nick a Cross outswinger.

Pro Khod’s debut performance was not to be a match-winning one. The tall left-hander hit Makinson off his length and rotated the strike with Agarwal but the swing of Cross would prove his undoing.

After surviving a couple of appeals, Khod attempting a big drive and nicked off for 17 to give Cross his third and leave Lancaster in a hole at 60 for 4.

University student Agarwal followed soon after in similar fashion, he flashed away from his body at a wide one and subsequently saw the umpire’s index finger to leave the hosts five down.

Brendan Hetherington and Stuart Phillips have won Lancashire cups between them and the experienced heads stopped to rot to see off a familiar foe in Makinson.

Just as Hetherington was beginning to find his stride Cross struck again – a towering leading edge found the bowler underneath it to give the seamer five wicket and leave Lancaster’s chances slipping away.

When a Thompson off-break got through a wild swipe from Phillips it was all over bar the shouting at 85 for 7.

Lee Sparks couldn’t pull off any late order heroics, holing out to deep long-on and a Simm leading edge gave Bretherton a chance to chip in with the ball to leave Lancaster on the brink.

East’s day had a sweet start but a bitter finish – the tailender was the last man to go, cutting Thompson to Parkinson at slip to cap off a sorry innings that failed to reach three figures.