Cockbill Street County Championship Season 2

The second season of the County Championship in Cockbill Street was a part of the second season of Cockbill Street county cricket. It was another season of batting paradises around the nation, as 22 of 56 matches were drawn and six batsmen passed 1000 runs. Tara Heighes became top-scorer, despite a spot of poor form near the end of the season, which indeed became the fate of the entire Wynshire side. They had fought in the top for most of the season, but their unexperienced skipper Geoff Sandiford struggled to get his declarations right, and that cost them two matches. Before the last round, however, Wynshire had an eight-point lead over Jotneheim, who had recovered from a woeful start to the season after five matches without a win.

Indeed, Jotneheim had been very close to beating Wynshire on matchday 12, leading by 103 runs on first innings and having over 100 overs to bowl the opposition out, but they'd settled for a draw in the end. However, on the last matchday, Wynshire lost their ruthless streak. Batting first, they imploded to 191 against a weak bowling attack, and eventually lost by seven wickets without gaining a single point - while Jotneheim bowled out Northset for 134 and recorded a thumping 257-run victory to go top of the table and take their second County Championship in two years.

Matchday One

Matt Brown and Will Mason ensured that Woodshire led the league after the first matchday, bowling Jotneheim out for 109 as Woodshire won by an innings. Wynshire were second, thanks to good declaration tactics and a double century from Michael Harris.

Northset v Rothershire

Rothershire 372 ao & 408 ao drew with Northset 599 ao & 96-1
Points: Northset 7, Rothershire 5

Jotneheim v Woodshire

Woodshire 545 ao beat Jotneheim 340 ao & 109 ao (f/o) by an innings and 96 runs
Points: Jotneheim 2, Woodshire 16

Ayreshire v CSCT

CSCT 300 ao & 324-7d drew with Ayreshire 386 ao & 213-6
Points: Ayreshire 7, CSCT 4

Wynshire v B'zugda'hiara

Wynshire 446-7d & 229-6d beat B'zugda'hiara 374 ao & 209 ao by 92 runs
Points: Wynshire 14, B'zugda'hiara 3

Matchday Two

Woodshire came to regret having put Northset in to bat, as they made 586 for 7, but Cecilia Craig and Carl Nicholson at least saved some face as Woodshire salvaged a draw. Despite match figures of nine for 157 from Harmotome, Rothershire survived 131.5 overs in the second innings, to set a tricky target of 290 - which Jotneheim were never near chasing. Ayreshire were undone by Petter Stonelover, whose spell of seven for 35 bowled them out for 91, and Petteri Goldthrower took six for 60 in the second innings as the dwarves won by 120 runs. Wynshire lost a match they should have won, declaring in an attempt to get the extra points but instead conceding the required runs to George Bradley, who made 94 in CSCT's 291 for 5. Yet, due to Woodshire's loss, they were still tied for the lead.

Northset v Woodshire

Northset 586-7d drew with Woodshire 270 ao & 380-9 (f/o)
Points: Northset 9, Woodshire 3

Jotneheim v Rothershire

Rothershire 248 ao & 317 ao beat Jotneheim 276 ao & 205 ao by 84 runs
Points: Jotneheim 4, Rothershire 12

Ayreshire v B'zugda'hiara

B'zugda'hiara 171 ao & 305 ao beat Ayreshire 91 ao & 265 ao by 120 runs
Points: Ayreshire 4, B'zugda'hiara 15

Wynshire v CSCT

Wynshire 502 ao & 219-4d lost to CSCT 432 ao & 291-5 by five wickets
Points: Wynshire 5, CSCT 14

Matchday Three

Wynshire outclassed Northset to go top of the table, Joanna Hales taking eight wickets and Eric Crosse six as Wynshire recorded a win by an innings and 76 runs. That enabled them to take a 14-point lead, as the other three matches all were drawn, Jotneheim, Ayreshire and B'zugda'hiara all failing to ram home the advantage. Jotneheim languished at the bottom.

Northset v Wynshire

Northset 184 ao & 245 ao lost to Wynshire 505 ao by an innings and 76 runs
Points: Northset 0, Wynshire 19

Jotneheim v CSCT

Jotneheim 267 ao & 431-7d drew with CSCT 344 ao & 258-7
Points: Jotneheim 4, CSCT 6

Ayreshire v Woodshire

Woodshire 327 ao & 293 ao drew with Ayreshire 502 ao & 95-1
Points: Ayreshire 8, Woodshire 4

Rothershire v B'zugda'hiara

B'zugda'hiara 287 ao & 401-7d drew with Rothershire 262 ao & 284-6
Points: Rothershire 5, B'zugda'hiara 5

Matchday Four

Vic Cornford's 232 was the only notable event as CSCT drew with Northset in a high-scoring game. The dwarves' batting finally clicked as they made 496 against Jotneheim, yet the match was drawn as they failed to get the bite with the ball in the second innings. Ayreshire thought they had a chance of beating Rothershire when Stephen Potts and Pavel Narmonov reduced them to 31 for 5 chasing 236, but they recovered well, saving the draw. Woodshire surprised many with a win over league-leaders Wynshire, James Powys taking five for 51 as Wynshire subsided for 146 in the first innings, and Matt Brown took four for 60 in the second dig as Woodshire bowled them out 106 runs short of the winning target. Suddenly, there was only one point between the teams.

Northset v CSCT

Northset 522 ao & 148-2 drew with CSCT 652 ao
Points: Northset 7, CSCT 7

Jotneheim v B'zugda'hiara

Jotneheim 315 ao & 346-8d drew with B'zugda'hiara 496 ao & 140-3
Points: Jotneheim 4, B'zugda'hiara 8

Ayreshire v Rothershire

Ayreshire 380 ao & 295-3 drew with Rothershire 440 ao & 184-6
Points: Ayreshire 5, Rothershire 6

Wynshire v Woodshire

Woodshire 279 ao & 263 ao beat Wynshire 146 ao & 291 ao by 105 runs
Points: Woodshire 16, Wynshire 2

Matchday Five

Northset made their fourth 400+ score in their first innings, which ensured nine points, but only a draw against Ayreshire, as both teams looked to be staying in the mire. Wynshire had Tara Heighes to thank in a high-scoring draw against Jotneheim, as she made 171 to lift them to a first-innings lead. Tony Thompson took five for 27 as Rothershire slumped to 54 for 9 in their match with CSCT, needing 160 to field again. They recovered to 113 but still lost by an innings and 46 runs, allowing CSCT to catch up with Wynshire. A valiant effort from William Mason, who took seven for 71, kept the dwarves' lead down to 93 after Woodshire had imploded with the bat in the first innings. Gail Albers made 91 to set a target of 210, but Mason was nowhere near as threatening and the dwarves ran off with a surprise victory to go up to third place in the table, one point off the leaders CSCT and Wynshire.

Northset v Ayreshire

Northset 407 ao & 242-6 drew with Ayreshire 229 ao & 597 ao (f/o)
Points: Northset 9, Ayreshire 2

Jotneheim v Wynshire

Jotneheim 505 ao & 297 ao drew with Wynshire 566-9d & 24-1
Points: Jotneheim 7, Wynshire 7

Rothershire v CSCT

Rothershire 311 ao & 113 ao lost to CSCT 470 ao by an innings and 46 runs
Points: Rothershire 2, CSCT 16

Woodshire v B'zugda'hiara

Woodshire 144 ao & 302 ao lost to B'zugda'hiara 237 ao & 211-4 by six wickets
Points: Woodshire 3, B'zugda'hiara 15

Matchday Six

Andri Bjornsson, a dwarf all-rounder, took centre stage with seven wickets and 69 runs as B'zugda'hiara overcame Northset to keep up the challenge for the title. Jotneheim recorded their first win of the season after a stunning display of left-arm bowling from Sarah McLachlan - she took five for 31 as Ayreshire crumbled to 186, losing by 99 runs. Eric Crosse and Joanna Hales - the off-spinners have matured, sharing 18 wickets - Crosse taking 11 and Hales 7 - as Wynshire eased to a six-wicket win over Rothershire, grabbing 16 points in the process, but still trailing the dwarves by one solitary point. Woodshire needed a win over CSCT, but got both openers removed for ducks, yet fought back to set a target of 349. Victoria Goulding and Dave Blenerhassett set the capital city to 315 for 7, but the off-spin of Warwick Douglas wrapped up the innings and sent Woodshire into jubilation after a 27-run win - oh, and third place in the table.

Northset v B'zugda'hiara

Northset 237 ao & 355 ao lost to B'zugda'hiara 464 ao & 129-1 by nine wickets
Points: Northset 0, B'zugda'hiara 18

Jotneheim v Ayreshire

Jotneheim 299 ao & 256 ao beat Ayreshire 270 ao & 186 ao by 99 runs
Points: Jotneheim 13, Ayreshire 3

Wynshire v Rothershire

Wynshire 349 ao & 154-4 beat Rothershire 188 ao & 313 ao (f/o) by six wickets
Points: Wynshire 16, Rothershire 1

Woodshire v CSCT

Woodshire 318 ao & 249 ao beat CSCT 219 ao & 321 ao by 27 runs
Points: Woodshire 15, CSCT 1

Matchday Seven

Neither Jotneheim nor Northset seemed to have any chance of bowling the other team out, and a draw was a fair result at Chesham. Eric Crosse kept up his stunning form, finishing with match figures of 12 for 106 - a league record - and taking his seasonal wicket-tally to 51 as Wynshire escaped a scare at Ayreshire, winning by six wickets, which gave them the league lead. A nightmare finish for Woodshire away at Rothershire, where they had the hosts on the rack at 200 for 9 thanks to three wickets each from Anna Benning and William Mason. However, Mike Dobson and Richard Dutton twisted the match Rothershire's way with an unbeaten last-wicket partnership of 59. In the absence of George Bradley, CSCT had another bowler who could take wickets regularly. The league leaders B'zugda'hiara were reduced to 195 thanks to 5-58 from Keith Carmody, and the capital city team cruised home by ten wickets, jumping up to second place in the process.

Northset v Jotneheim

Jotneheim 454 ao & 372-6 drew with Northset 533-9d
Points: Northset 7, Jotneheim 7

Ayreshire v Wynshire

Ayreshire 308 ao & 174 ao lost to Wynshire 285 ao & 201-4 by six wickets
Points: Ayreshire 4, Wynshire 12

Rothershire v Woodshire

Woodshire 255 ao & 249 ao lost to Rothershire 249 ao & 259-9 by one wicket
Points: Rothershire 12, Woodshire 4

CSCT v B'zugda'hiara

B'zugda'hiara 195 ao & 294 ao lost to CSCT 480 ao & 12-0 by ten wickets
Points: CSCT 19, B'zugda'hiara 0

Matchday Eight

The normally strong Northset batting whimpered to 159 against Rothershire, but the hosts failed to ram home a 380-run advantage and ended up with a draw. Jotneheim's opener Leucite set a Championship record with his 265 to lift Jotneheim to their second win in three games, while Ayreshire thumped CSCT by an innings and 55 runs to take their first win of the season. Wynshire's aggressive declaration cost them another match, this time against the dwarves, who were thoroughly outplayed but scampered the winning runs thanks to centuries from Durin Nulukkizdin and Richard Silton. Bonus points meant that Wynshire were still top of the table, however.

Rothershire v Northset

Northset 159 ao & 535 ao drew with Rothershire 539 ao & 98-0
Points: Rothershire 11, Northset 2

Woodshire v Jotneheim

Woodshire 330 ao & 281 ao lost to Jotneheim 557 ao & 56-1 by nine wickets
Points: Woodshire 2, Jotneheim 16

CSCT v Ayreshire

Ayreshire 573-5d beat CSCT 191 ao & 327 ao by an innings and 55 runs
Points: CSCT 0, Ayreshire 19

B'zugda'hiara v Wynshire

Wynshire 409 ao & 225-1d lost to B'zugda'hiara 299 ao & 337-8 by two wickets
Points: B'zugda'hiara 11, Wynshire 6

Matchday Nine

Another big century from Phil Turner saved the draw for Woodshire, who were 143 for 6 against Northset's first-innings score of 485. B'zugda'hiara struggled to keep up in the title fight, going down agianst in-form Ayreshire, who were lifted to the winning target of 295 by a century from Robin Shaw, his fourth of the season. Jotneheim were incredibly close to the victory against Rothershire, but wide bowling at the end frustrated them, as Rothershire escaped with a draw. The same result occurred at the VCG, a war of attrition ending in an anticlimax as Wynshire batted out 69 overs against CSCT to increase their lead to seven points.

Woodshire v Northset

Northset 454 ao & 297 ao drew with Woodshire 485 ao & 59-0
Points: Woodshire 7, Northset 7

Rothershire v Jotneheim

Jotneheim 371 ao & 242-5 drew with Rothershire 218 ao & 396 ao (f/o)
Points: Jotneheim 8, Rothershire 2

B'zugda'hiara v Ayreshire

B'zugda'hiara 236 ao & 224 ao lost to Ayreshire 167 ao & 295-5 by five wickets
Points: B'zugda'hiara 4, Ayreshire 13

CSCT v Wynshire

CSCT 323 ao & 269-4d drew with Wynshire 318 ao & 215-3
Points: CSCT 5, Wynshire 5

Matchday Ten

Jotneheim continued on their rampaging form, defying Duroth Mornerzabar of CSCT who made 186 with a thoroughly solid team display as they beat the capital city by nine wickets to go second in the table. Tara Heighes hit a spot of poor form for Wynshire, making only 16 and 0, but her three wickets were crucial - Eric Crosse picked up six, however, as Wynshire became the third team to beat Northset this season. Woodshire saw their title hopes dwindle as Ayreshire survived 108 overs to draw their game, while Bjorn Spearthrower hit an unbeaten century as B'zugda'hiara escaped with a draw against Rothershire.

Wynshire v Northset

Northset 178 ao & 414 ao lost to Wynshire 348 ao & 247-3 by seven wickets
Points: Northset 1, Wynshire 16

CSCT v Jotneheim

CSCT 206 ao & 403 ao lost to Jotneheim 534 ao & 78-1 by nine wickets
Points: CSCT 0, Jotneheim 18

Woodshire v Ayreshire

Woodshire 400 ao & 240-6d drew with Ayreshire 263 ao & 314-6
Points: Woodshire 8, Ayreshire 3

B'zugda'hiara v Rothershire

Rothershire 391 ao & 318-9d drew with B'zugda'hiara 281 ao & 262-8
Points: Rothershire 7, B'zugda'hiara 3

Matchday Eleven

CSCT continued their free fall, bowled out by Adam Kidner who took five for 37 as Northset eked out a six-wicket win at the VCG, their first of the season. Jotneheim, who were one point ahead of B'zugda'hiara before their game, showed who would be challenging for the title as Azurite and Goethite lifted them to 536 first up, then Azurite wrapped up the tail with four for 15 and Betafite grabbed three for 71 as the dwarves crumbled to a 403-run deficit. They fought into the fourth day, but still went from the game without any points. The two bottom teams Rothershire and Ayreshire drew, while Gail Albers smacked 149 and Warwick Douglas took four for 12 as Woodshire beat Wynshire, reducing Wynshire's lead to two points over Jotneheim.

CSCT v Northset

CSCT 417 ao & 258 ao lost to Northset 474-5d & 202-4 by six wickets
Points: CSCT 4, Northset 15

B'zugda'hiara v Jotneheim

Jotneheim 536 ao & 52-1 beat B'zugda'hiara 133 ao & 453 ao (f/o) by nine wickets
Points: B'zugda'hiara 0, Jotneheim 20

Rothershire v Ayreshire

Rothershire 407 ao & 302-5 drew with Ayreshire 683-8d
Points: Rothershire 6, Ayreshire 7

Woodshire v Wynshire

Wynshire 366 ao & 170 ao lost to Woodshire 495 ao & 43-1 by nine wickets
Points: Woodshire 15, Wynshire 3

Matchday Twelve

Northset finally converted their batting talents into wins, John Cortez and Adam Kidner taking seven and eight wickets as Northset was beaten by an innings. Meanwhile, in the top-battle between Jotneheim and Wynshire, Jotneheim secured a 103-run first innings lead, but Tara Heighes made 99 in the second innings as well as in the first, and Wynshire limited their point-loss to four - but Jotneheim still took over the lead. Rothershire endured their eighth draw of the season, surviving against a weak CSCT bowling attack, while B'zugda'hiara fought off the menacing pace bowling of William Mason - which yielded eleven for 157 - to beat Woodshire by four wickets.

Ayreshire v Northset

Northset 583 ao beat Ayreshire 367 ao & 131 ao (f/o) by an innings and 85 runs
Points: Ayreshire 3, Northset 15

Wynshire v Jotneheim

Jotneheim 349 ao & 269-9d drew with Wynshire 246 ao & 334-7
Points: Wynshire 3, Jotneheim 7

CSCT v Rothershire

CSCT 494 ao & 58-1 drew with Rothershire 340 ao & 300 ao (f/o)
Points: CSCT 8, Rothershire 4

B'zugda'hiara v Woodshire

Woodshire 305 ao & 279 ao lost to B'zugda'hiara 413 ao & 172-6 by four wickets
Points: Woodshire 2, B'zugda'hiara 15

Matchday Thirteen

B'zugda'hiara kept up their minute chances of a title after a nine-wicket win over Northset, despite John Cortezs taking six wickets. Jotneheim fell back to old crimes, Chad Wakely being allowed to score 241 as Ayreshire drew with Jotneheim, while Wynshire took the lead after trouncing Ayreshire, Andrew Thessman and Jim Elliott pairing up for 202 for the first wicket in an eight-wicket win. George Bradley was back to his brilliant best for CSCT, scoring 172 and taking seven wickets as CSCT won by an innings and 157 runs.

B'zugda'hiara v Northset

Northset 284 ao & 152 ao lost to B'zugda'hiara 271 ao & 169-1 by nine wickets
Points: B'zugda'hiara 13, Northset 3

Ayreshire v Jotneheim

Ayreshire 515 ao & 444-8 drew with Jotneheim 410 ao
Points: Ayreshire 7, Jotneheim 6

Rothershire v Wynshire

Wynshire 435 ao & 70-2 beat Rothershire 264 ao & 240 ao (f/o) by eight wickets
Points: Wynshire 16, Rothershire 1

CSCT v Woodshire

CSCT 545-6d beat Woodshire 216 ao & 172 ao by an innings and 157 runs
Points: CSCT 18, Woodshire 0

Matchday Fourteen

Jotneheim rounded off their season in style, Goethite smacking 99 and an unbeaten century while Dravite took nine wickets with his pace bowling as they beat Northset by 257 runs, which eventually was enough to win the title by six points. Chad Wakely became the hero again as Ayreshire beat Wynshire to dent their title hopes, making 92 not out as Ayreshire chased down the target with ease. William Mason took eight wickets as Woodshire beat Rothershire by four wickets, Rabindra Ol-wairain scoring 63 in the second innings. And in the final match, CSCT beat B'zugda'hiara to take third place in the Championship.

Jotneheim v Northset

Jotneheim 374 ao & 334-4d beat Northset 317 ao & 134 ao by 257 runs
Points: Jotneheim 14, Northset 2

Wynshire v Ayreshire

Wynshire 191 ao & 341 ao lost to Ayreshire 362 ao & 173-3 by seven wickets
Points: Wynshire 0, Ayreshire 17

Woodshire v Rothershire

Rothershire 162 ao & 289 ao lost to Woodshire 261 ao & 194-6 by four wickets
Points: Woodshire 15, Rothershire 2

B'zugda'hiara v CSCT

CSCT 385 ao & 238 ao beat B'zugda'hiara 312 ao & 291 ao by 20 runs
Points: B'zugda'hiara 4, CSCT 12

Final table

Most runs in the season

Most wickets in the season