In the first half of a double header, the Men’s 1st XI travelled to Christleton where the hosts won the toss and elected to bat first. Matt Holland got the visitors off to a good start, with two wickets in the first seven overs to reduce the hosts to 22/2. The hosts’ third wicket partnership threatened a fightback, but the switch to Ethan Yeo (2/26) paid dividends as he took two wickets in two overs with Matt Worsdale adding one of his own to reduce Christleton to 62/5. A solid sixth wicket partnership put on nearly one hundred before Worsdale struck again in the 42nd over to make it 155/6. Holland (4/40) and Worsdale (4/38) then shared wickets to close out the innings as Christleton were bowled out for 197 in their final over.

James Norton got the chase off to a quick start, scoring 16 from just 12 balls before being trapped LBW and when Worsdale followed Oakmere found themselves at 33/2. Harry Poole added 16 before he was caught with the score on 66 in the 16th over. That dismissal brought together James Hodkinson and Ethan Yeo who struck a magnificent partnership worth 128 runs before Yeo (47) was bowled just before reaching his half century with only four runs required for victory. Fittingly, Hodkinson hit the winning runs as he finished an excellent knock unbeaten on 95 from just 99 balls to give Oakmere a solid wicket win against the side that lie second in the table.

Oakmere Men’s 2nd XI (120 all out) vs Christleton 2nd XI (121/8) – Christleton won by 2 wickets

At Overdale Lane, Christleton won the toss and asked Oakmere to bat first. Things got off to a fantastic start for the hosts as Dave Purcell and Nathan Gee saw Oakmere race to 60 without loss in the eleventh over before Purcell (24) and Gee (20) both were unlucky to fall in the space of three balls to deliveries that kept low off the pitch. Clusters of wickets became a theme of the innings as Oakmere were dismissed for 120 in the 33rd over with only Lewis Newall (17) and Mike Dodd (15*) reaching double figures.

The chase got off to a sedate affair with runs at a premium before Mathew Giles (6 overs, 4 maidens, 1/12) made the breakthrough at 14/1. Ethan Mackin’s introduction to the attack saw regular wickets fall as he bowled an excellent spell of 6/25 from his 13 overs, including six maidens. The end of his spell saw the visitors at 98/7 and when Sean McDonnell (1/16) struck with the score on 100, Oakmere had hope of pulling off a remarkable victory. Christleton’s number three stood firm however, guiding his side to their target without any further bumps in the road.

Oakmere Men’s 3rd XI (170/9) vs Maritime 4th XI (119 all out) – Oakmere won by 51 runs

The Men’s 3rd XI hosted Maritime on Sunday with the visitors electing to bowl first on winning the toss. Brandon Jones (15) and Will Hardie (14) started nicely for Oakmere but both fell in quick succession in the 10th and 12th overs to make it 41/2. Mathew Giles (11) looked confident, hitting a boundary and a maximum but was caught in the 16th over. A series of partnerships then threatened to get going but fell away. James Lewis and Ian Bett put on 32, and James Lewis and Jimmy Sidebottom put on 38. Finally there was a dad and lad partnership between James Lewis and son Corey worth 33 before James perished in the final over for an excellent 80 as Oakmere’s innings finished on 170/9.

Oakmere’s opening bowlers in Brandon Jones and Mathew Giles both worked hard and built pressure with Brandon reaping the rewards in the 6th over with the breakthrough. Several close shouts followed before Brandon (2/19) made it 41/2. Superb five over spells from Corey Lewis (3/10) and Roger Pickering (3/18) followed which saw Maritime in deep trouble at 72/8 at the halfway mark. Cameron Giles and Jimmy Sidebottom came into the attack to try and seal the game, but they were unable to break a stubborn ninth wicket partnership. It was Will Hardie’s 2/2 in 11 overs that did the job for Oakmere as the visitors were all out for 119.

James Lewis did a remarkable job behind the stumps after his long innings and it was great to see the team including three sets of dads and lads. The performance of the juniors was exceptional as always and shows what a good future the club has and just how hard it will be to pick teams in coming years due to the quality of batting and bowling coming through.

Didsbury 1st XI (164/7) vs Oakmere Women’s 1st XI (104/7) – Didsbury won by 60 runs

The Women’s 1st XI were on their travels again on Sunday, this time taking on Didsbury at Stockport Trinity where the hosts batted first. It was a solid start for Didsbury who made their way past 50 without loss before Sophie Connor (1/34) struck in the 19th over which was followed by an Emily Faulkner run out in the same over to make it 61/2. The Didsbury third wicket pair approached a fifty partnership before an Amy Jones run out broke the momentum. Madi Arhthur was next to strike, followed by Kate Skelhorn (1/16 from 8 overs), Rachel Warrenger (1/3) and a further Madi strike (2/32) saw Disbury finish their innings on 164/7.

Oakmere’s chase didn’t get off to the best of starts as they found themselves 16/3 early on. Sarah Worsdale (20) and Madi Arthur (18) threatened a fightback, but the loss of both of them in quick succession saw Oakmere struggling at 60/5. Emily Renshaw hit an unbeaten 21, but Didsbury’s bowling proved too economical as Oakmere finished their 40 overs on 104/7.