High Flying Warminster extend Westbury’s losing run

West of England League Wiltshire Division. Warminster vs Westbury at Sambourne Road, Warminster Saturday 26th June

WESTBURY travelled to local rivals Warminster in the latest West of England Wiltshire Division match hoping to put one over the highflying hosts and end Westbury’s losing run. 

Westbury made four changes from last week’s home defeat against Devizes with Michael Cooper, Daniel Gill, James Clack and Clark Evans coming in for Kane Scott, Steve Clare, Marcus Telford and James Dark. Warminster won the toss and decided that Westbury should bat first. 

Westbury opened with Chris Thompson and Michael Cooper. They made a bad start by losing two wickets with the total at 10 when Chris Thompson was out leg before off the bowling of Jake Small for 6 and the returning Dan Gill dismissed a couple of balls later for 0 caught by Coxon-Tenty also off the bowling of Jake Small. 

James Clack then joined Michael Cooper and they both used the bowling and the pitch to bring Westbury to some sort of stability. They started to score quickly and took the total to 90 before Warminster took the third wicket when James Clack was bowled by the Warminster captain Brad Parry for 35. Shortly after Jaden Edmund was dismissed for 0. 

After the loss of those quick wickets James Hudson  joined Cooper and they attacked the bowlers with Hudson the dominant party. They took the total to 165 when Warminster struck again when Hudson was bowled by the Warminster captain Brad Parry for a fine 55 – his first league 50 of the season.  

Shortly after Cooer, who opened the batting, was the next one out for a fine solid 67 which anchored the innings. Westbury lost a couple of quick wickets in search of quick runs and at the end of the allotted 45 overs, they ended on 181 for eight wickets. 

When Warminster batted, the opening pair of Mark Coxon-Tenty and Parry made a confident start by putting on 26 for the first wicket before Coxon-Tenty was out caught behind by Chris Thompson off the birthday boy Andy Carroll for 15. Jack Berrisford then arrived at the wicket and Warminster immediately stated to score very quickly reaching 101 before Westbury struck for the second time when the spinner Daniel Gill bowled Berrisford for 24. 

Gareth Schreuder, the Warminster wicketkeeper then came to the wicket and without any alarms took the home team to an eight wicket win strengthening their title ambitions. At the end of the innings Parry was unbeaten on 74 off 100 balls and Schreuder on 40 off 35 balls.