COOKHILL battled hard but were beaten by five wickets at Ombersley 3rds in Worcestershire League Division Six on Saturday.
The visitors were inserted on a pitch that certainly looked likely to offer some assistance to the bowlers early on.
Indeed, depending on the where the ball pitched, some balls stayed true while others rose sharply and it was the latter which did for Daniel Mills as the unexpected bounce saw him caught.
Stuart Griffiths was then run out, soon followed by the sheepish-looking Roger Smith (18).
However, Richard Biddle continued his good form alongside Brad Horsnall as the two batsmen set about building a target. Biddle and Horsnall attacked anything loose and ran hard, pinching quick singles where possible.
Biddle was first to fall for 40 before Horsnall (47) departed agonisingly short of a first half century of the season a few overs later.
Only Chris Pearsall (25no) offered any further resistance as Cookhill were dismissed for 171 in the 43rd over.
Simon Edmunds made an early breakthrough with the ball for Cookhill thanks to a diving catch by Kenny Hirst, but the hosts’ middle order all played straight and punished anything loose to steer their side to 173-5 in the 38th over.
Cookhill visit Barnards Green on Saturday.
