NOTTS PREMIER LEAGUE SLIDESHOW: champions Cuckney begin new season in style

After putting the visitors in, Cuckney ripped the heart out of the visitors’ batting, reducing them to 93-7 and dismissing them for 138. Arosh Janoda (3-17) and Lewis Bramley (3-26) inflicted most of the damage, with the only batsman to hold up the home charge being Archie Moore, who struck 52. Cuckney’s reply was steered by Nick Langford (48) as they reached their target for the loss of five wickets.

A similarly pleasing start to the campaign was made by Mansfield Hosiery Mills, who are hoping to improve on last season’s creditable fifth-placed finish. They beat newly-promoted Bassetlaw League champions Farnsfield by 50 runs, despite a sub-par total of 191-8 in which Mark Smallwood to-scored with 46. Daniel Harris took 3-22 and Matt New 3-31 to dismiss the hosts for 141.

Fine batting by James Oldham (64) and Martin Dobson (40) was not enough to prevent a six-wicket defeat for Caythorpe at home to Notts CCC Academy. Few other batsmen made runs in a total of 186, which Amateurs eased past in the hands of Tom Keast (67no) and Lyndon James (44).

Meanwhile Radcliffe-on-Trent, inspired by Rob Sutton’s 112 and Caleb Mierkalns’s 85, posted the biggest total of the day (318-7) to hammer Hucknall by 177, and Attenborough (280-7), for whom Tom Moores hit 109, beat West Indian Cavaliers by 65 runs.

HOPES that Welbeck Colliery can make the most of their 11th-hour relegation reprieve in the Notts Premier League (NPL) were not boosted by the opening day of the new season.

For just as they did for most of last season, they struggled and could only grind their way to a losing draw in their opening fixture at home to Plumtree.

Long-standing NPL stalwarts Welbeck finished next to bottom in 2016, but were saved from the drop by the withdrawal from the league of Clifton Village. Despite three wickets for Tom Lungley and two apiece for skipper Jonathan Ball and Richie Bentley, they let last season’s runners-up Plumtree make 225-8, with ex-Notts CCC man Sam Wood firing 105. Welbeck then limped to 138-6 in reply.