One of the closest games that did finish was the match between Woodborough and Epperstone in division 1F. Grey skies at the start of the game led the captains to agree to reduce play to 32 overs a side; a decision that was justified by four rain breaks during the course of the match. Epperstone’s top scoring batsman was Peter Foster with 30 as tight bowling from Woodborough’s Bob Hallam (4/13) and Chris Bovey (2/8) helped keep Epperstone’s total below triple figures at 96/7. Woodborough then chased until the last ball of their innings, when John Gadsby was run out on 31 leaving them three short of victory on 94/8.

In 1B Nottingham, entertaining Newstead Abbey & Village, saw 17 year old Adam Gilbert rip through their batsmen taking 5/9. Rob Howe provided strongest resistance, scoring 43, but the total of 98 was not enough as Newstead won with 7 wickets to spare.

In 1E, Ruddington (195/5) bounced back from two consecutive losses with a 27 run victory over Willoughby-on-the-Wolds (168/8). Zeeshan Manawar’s 112 was the league’s top score of the day and, along with contributions of 51 from James Thorne and 5 wickets from bowler Imran Jalil, put the match beyond Willoughby’s reach.

1F team Kinoulton came up against East Bridgford player Neil Foster in fine form as he made 68 runs and took 5/42 with the ball. However, Kinoulton (150/8) secured victory, with Gary Baker’s (6/26) a valuable contribution to the win. Meanwhile, West Bridgford (104/5) beat Cotgrave (102) by 5 wickets, thanks largely to Andy McCafferty’s 5/22 and Colin Rowberry’s 32 not out.

The only other game to finish in the first division was Hoveringham’s (86/3) victory over Bingham (80). Bingham’s shortage of players proved costly as Hoveringham easily reached the target, with a six off the last ball and Mark Melbourne scoring 67*.

In 2A, the eagerly anticipated clash between winners and runners up of last season, Clifton Village II and Kimberley Institute II, fell victim to the rain without a ball being bowled.

Meanwhile, Attenborough II replaced Plumtree II at the top of the table after beating them by 2 wickets. Attenborough put on 122/9, with Jay Harrison on 38* at the end of their innings. Harrison then took 3 of Plumtree’s wickets, while Marc Oldham contributed 59 of his side’s reply (125/8).

In 2D, Belvoir II played host to Underwood II and made short work of Underwood’s 72/9 total, passing the mark in 17.1 overs with only 5 wickets down. Attenborough III emulated the seconds with a win over Willoughby-on-the-Wolds II. Graham Holly’s 5/15 helped restrict visitors Willoughby to 65, a total which the home side passed with the loss of just 4 wickets.

An equally low-scoring match in 2E saw Whatton & Aslockton II’s total of 64/8 passed by Sawley & Long Eaton Park III in 16 overs with 5 wickets down. In the same division, Kimberley Institute III racked up a creditable 135/8 in spite of Ruddington II’s Terry Bashir taking 4/18. However, 14 year old Usman Muzzaffa’s contribution of 49* helped steer Ruddington to a win with 3 wickets to spare.

In 2F, youngsters Stephen Wilson (14 years) and Andrew Stash (15 years) were among the wickets, taking 2/18 and 3/3 respectively for Caythorpe IV in their victory over Farndon II. Radcliffe on Trent III travelled to West Bridgford Legion and were all out for 135, with Will Torr (37) top scoring as Andrew Walters (6/27) whittled their wickets away. In reply, West Bridgford managed just 45/6 from their 40 overs. East Leake II (178/7) gained maximum points, beating Newstead Abbey & Village III (108). Top performances in the match were Keith Manning (66) for East Leake and N Gearing (4/32) for Newstead.

In 2G, Cotgrave II’s Robert Sedgwick (5/9) helped confine Edingley II to a total of 65, which his side passed for the loss of 2 wickets. Newcomers to the league Plumtree III maintained their 100% winning start, beating Lowdham II by 7 wickets. Saleem Youseen (35) had helped Lowdham to amass 97 runs but Plumtree passed the total with a boundary as Ross Crombie was left on 34 not out.