The rain was the winner on Saturday with the third interruption of the day being the killer blow just as Reed had begun their reply to Datchworth’s 167 for 8. Inserted on the damp-ish pitch, Datchworth’s openers had set-off cautiously and even as their innings progressed their subsequent batsmen never looked that they would overpower the Reed attack.
George Garrott took one wicket in his opening spell and Chris Marshall bowled a tight line recording 0 for 22. Bernie Morss, in the country for a flying visit, then used his experience to close down one end and bowled 14.5 overs returning 4 for 35.
Young spinners, Rhodri Hughes and Reece Fitzgerald bowled well in their contrasting styles but by taking 1 for 39, Fitzgerald became Reed Fourth’s leading wicket-taker in the League this season. Garrott had an excellent day in the field and safely pouched 3 well-judged catches before returning to remove one more batsman at the end of the innings to produce bowling figures of 2 for 32.
Garrott and Peter Baker opened the batting for Reed but a downpour after just 2 overs meant the players left the field again at 4 for no wicket. Once the sun shone again, Datchworth wanted to continue as they needed the points to remain in contention for a promotion place, but the pitch had become too slippery.
The match was abandoned with 10 points awarded to each team. Considering that just 4 weeks ago, Reed were in 17th position and in the relegation zone, this result plus the intervening four straight maximum pointers left them in a much improved and safe 9th position with just one match left to play.
