Hyde travelled to Macclesfield with a 56 point lead at the top. Macclesfield tends to be a seamers paradise, but the Hyde team didn’t include the two opening bowlers who would have surely revelled at the chance to bowl on the Macc wicket.

As expected, upon winning the toss, Moores decided that Macclesfield were going to bowl first.

In the absence of usual opener George Balderson, Ben Allcock came out to open the Hyde innings with Partridge. The pair looked to be handling conditions quite well. The wicket wasn’t the easiest for batting, and many a shot that would have gone for a boundary in previous weeks, slowed to a halt before getting to the fence. Partridge was the first to depart, after an ill judged leave on length saw Melrose clip the top of the stumps. Fitzsimmons joined Allcock at the crease, and continued to keep Hyde’s run rate at a decent level, even crunching an early 6 over the covers. Allcock was the next to go, after a skying Palmes for an easy catch on the edge of the circle. Duffy came to the wicket, looking to continue his good form. With the score on 80 Fitzsimmons became Palmes second victim, clean bowled. Hyde’s skipper joined Duffy, and the pair were slightly tied down by the combination of Melrose and Palmes, who were making good use of the conditions. Melrose had his second wicket when he caught the glove of Berry, and the wicketkeeper took a good catch with the ball dying on him. Young joined Duffy, and was attacking from the start, thumping the ball to the boundary on a number of occasions, while at the other end Duffy edged toward his 50. Young went at more than a run a ball, before coming down the track to Porter, and receiving a high full toss, skying it for a simple catch for the keeper. Cranmer was the next in to bat, and he and Duffy shared Hyde’s biggest partnership of the day, seeing Duffy past his 50, his 5th of the year. Duffy was the man out though, when he was also bowled by Palmes for a brilliant 68. Peacock came in and tried to give some support to Cranmer, who by now looked comfortable and producing the best innings I have seen from him. Peacock became Palmes 4thvictim when he was adjudged to be LBW, a decision that Peacock was furious with, as he felt he had hit it. Dawber tried to rotate the strike to allow Cranmer to continue scoring. Alas, Dawber couldn’t resist a seemingly over pitched Porter delivery, with which he managed to find the hands of Isherwood. Hewitt came in, throwing the bat at everything, succeeding only in wrapping up Palmes’ 5fer. 215/9, and the Hyde innings looked to be winding down, but Cranmer kept plugging away and Baker used his solitary delivery on strike to get a leg bye and Cranmer back on strike. Cranmer raised the bat for the first time in his second stint with Hyde, as he finished 55 not out and Hyde finished 237/9.

At the end of Hyde’s innings, Macclesfield’s scorer declared Hyde’s total “too many for us”, something of an understatement. Lacking any full time seamers, Hyde opened with Cranmer and Berry. Porter and Jim Melrose opened up the Macc innings and looked to settle in. Cranmer was truning and beating the bat, so the pair looked to score on any looser balls from Berry. It was Berry who won this contest however, finding the Melrose’s edge for a regulation catch for Allcock. Cranmer got the next wicket, sliding in a quicker ball, which castled Thompson. Porter was the next to depart, playing the ball right back to Berry for his second. Barron and Bradshaw temporarily stopped the rot, but it was a great piece of keeping from Allcock that put that broke the partnership before it got going. Cranmer sprayed a delivery down the leg side, and a great take by Allcock, coupled with quick hands to whip the bails off, found Bradshaw just out of his crease. Barron went sweeping after Cranmer not too long after, missing and finding the Umpires digit raised for an LBW. 35/5 and Macclesfield were in big trouble. And things only got worse, when Berry produced an absolute Jaffa to remove Isherwood, clean bowled. France became Berry’s 4th victim shortly afterward, caught by Cranmer at slip. 42/7. Cranmer completed his 5fer in quick succession, having Thompson caught at slip by Dawber, and then trapping Palmes in front for a 2nd ball duck. 45/9 and Macclesfield were looking like they were going to collapse to less than 50. Enter Craig Melrose. With a draw out of the question, and a defeat almost certain, Melrose started to play some shots, scoring at nearly 2 a ball. In this endeavour, he was dropped by Dawber, to deny Berry his first 5fer in 5 years, and his first as a seamer. Melrose also got lucky when an aerial shot of his wasn’t picked by Duffy in the deep and fell safe. Melrose passed 50, and the pair added 67 for the last wicket, the largest partnership in the game. After seeming immovable by Berry and Cranmer, it took Young 1 ball to get the wicket of Melrose, finding Peacock in the deep, 112 all out.

After a disappointing loss to Urmston and having a weakened squad, Hyde persevered well and got a needed 25 points. Cranners put in one of the best all-round performance that I have seen by a Hyde player, and seemingly trumping his 55 and 6/130 against Chester in 2013. Bez was unlucky to miss out on a 5fer as his bowling thoroughly deserved it. It is my opinion that he should bowl himself as a front line seamer, and not just when we are short. Hyde host Oxton next weekend, and win will be enough to crown Hyde as champions and secure promotion, which we will want to do, as we don’t want to go to Widnes needing anything.

James Howe