Reed III impressive start to the season was halted on Saturday after going down to a 3 wicket defeat to Knebworth Park V. Skipper Matt Bowles lost the toss and his side were asked to bat on what looked a very green and lively pitch. The in form William Heslam opened up with father John, and despite the excessive bounce the young Heslam looked in imperious form as he combined some excellent back foot shots with sensible leaves and a solid defence. The pair took the score to 20 before John Heslam was bowled by Mantle after attempting a drive. This brought about a collapse, as the Reed top order struggled to cope with the excessive bounce of the pitch. Paul and George Garrott both came and went to the impressive Mantle in quick succession, and they were followed by William Heslam (17), who was caught superbly off of the bowling of Johnson.
This left Reed in a perilous position at 24-4, with skipper Bowles and Richard Robertson now at the crease. The pair batted sensibly, protecting their wickets well and steering Reed away from a disastrous score. Bowles (31) was looking set for a long stay in the middle, but then fell foul of the pitch as a ball kept low and beat his defences. Two more wickets fell as Kallum Ward and Graham Hazard went cheaply to leave the visitors staring down the barrel once more, but the combination of sensible and stylish batting from Robertson (34) and the brutal Jim Allsopp (19) lifted Reed into the batting points. However, Mantle’s 5 wickets and the cleaning up of the Reed tail meant the final score for the innings was a lowly 136.
Knebworth had 50 Overs to chase the visitors’ total, but had to negotiate the tough pitch and a fired up Reed bowling attack. Julien Fynn tore into their top order, with reducing the home side to 2-2 in the 1st Over. Kallum Ward then joined the action, bowling another Knebworth batsman to leave the score on 6-3. Park’s skipper Inman then came to the crease, and along with Evans steered Knebworth away from the initial danger. However the introduction of Andrew Wholley and Jim Allsopp soon swung the game back in Reeds favour, as Inman was bounced out by the pacey Wholley, who also picked up another wicket soon after.
Allsopp bowled fantastically in a 10 over spell, and deservedly got a wicket, leaving the hosts 66-6. Evans (41) remained however, and some resolute if unspectacular batting, in conjunction with Jones saw Knebworth climb towards their target. Ward did finally bowl Evans, but it was too little too late for Reed as the hosts got over the line for the loss of 7 wickets. Reed were left to rue their low score, although did manage to pick up 11points even in defeat.
