Firwood Bootle concluded their 2018 season in the best possible fashion by lifting the Ray Digman Trophy (Liverpool Competition Knockout Cup) last Sunday September 16th for the eighteenth time in its various incarnations, thereby adding a second piece of silverware to the Echo Cup which they had already won last month.
Rain delayed the start at Rainford by an hour or more and the match was reduced from 45 to 43 overs per side, our acting captain, Neil Williams, opting to field when he won the toss. It immediately became obvious that the wicket was not an easy one on which to bat, and when the home side slumped to 76-7 they were struggling even to reach triple figures. A dogged 33 not out from their Australian import, Comrey Edgeworth, assisted by tail-enders Dan Houghton (19) and Andrew Davies (12), eventually took them to 134 all out with seven balls of their allocation unused.
Bootle openers Will Hale and Michael Farrell provided a solid start to our reply with a partnership of 48, though Rainford sensed an opportunity when both were dismissed at the same total. The batsmen who followed refused to panic and a patient 37 by Sam Kershaw was instrumental in Bootle chiseling out the runs to win by 5 wickets with 5.3 overs to spare. Danny Davies was named Man of the Match for his economical bowling stint of 3-28 from his nine overs. So, two cups and 4th place in the Premier League for our season’s labours – could have been a lot worse!
