CRICKET: Barby start season with comfortable friendly win

Friendly: Barby 192-4 in 40 overs

Hunningham 74-10 in 28.3 overs

Barby won by 118 runs

Barby started the 2018 season with a comprehensive win by 118 runs over Hunningham. After winning the toss Barby captain Matthew Beagley decided to bat first and sent in the youthful opening partnership of 16-year-old Joe Hardbattle and 13-year-old Joe Bramley, with a combined age of 29 between them, to face the first balls of the new season.

With a slow outfield runs were never going to come at a great rate and the youthful openers batted with great concentration and discipline to get Barby off to a solid start.

With Joe Hardbattle growing in confidence, the run rate started to increase as he reached a fine 50 out of the first 70 runs. He retired with his score on 52 to allow further batsmen to get some early season practice.

Fellow opener Joe Bramley was then dismissed for 16 as Anthony Franks then upped the run rate with a run-a-ball innings of 38 including three sixes, and with further contributions from Tom Gleghorn 31, Rob Field 14 and Matthew Beagley 13 not out Barby finished on 192-4 after 40 overs. In reply Hunningham soon found themselves losing early wickets as Adam Shay and 13-year-old Liam Franks both took two wickets a piece to leave Hunnigham on 31-4, 16-year-old Mathew Nobes then ripped out the middle order with his leg spin to take 4-17 from his eight overs and with Danny Scott and Chris Bramley taking a wicket a piece, Hunnigham were skittled out for just 74 as Barby completed a comfortable first win of the season.