A sunny day in the eye-catching surroundings of Belton Park inspired Pinchbeck to victory in South Lincs and Border League Division Two on Saturday.
Skipper Danny Jackson led from the front with a solid knock of 89 and then added two wickets with the ball as his side secured a 31-run win over Belton 2nd.
After choosing to bat, Jackson got into his stride quickly and, with vice -captain Nick Crook (38), laid the foundations for a good total with an opening stand of 118. Jackson passed 50 with his tenth boundary and despite the wicket of Crook, Pinchbeck continued to move along comfortably.
At 169-1 with the captain eyeing a ton, a huge total seemed on the cards. However, Jackson played on to his stumps, starting a slump in the team’s progress.
Belton’s Simon Martin cashed in with 5-41 to account for Pinchbeck’s middle order, but the tail ensured maximum batting points as the innings closed on 221-8.
Pinchbeck failed to make an early impact with the ball and couldn’t get through openers Offer and Taylor who grew in confidence with a stand of 85.
Offer was the aggressor and threatened to cause Pinchbeck problems but the introduction of veteran Tony Sheppard paid dividends. He made a welcome breakthrough with the wicket of Offer for 45 – well caught by Matt Kidd at mid-on.
This allowed Pinchbeck to seize some momentum and two further wickets for Sheppard (3-30) started to put pressure on the scoreboard for Belton.
Jackson and Crook weighed in with two wickets apiece but the hosts remained defiant with opener Taylor batting through and Pinchbeck were unable to close out the match with all ten wickets. With Taylor unbeaten on 66, Belton closed on 190 for 7.
