Frome fall to back to back defeats

Winterbourne 1st XI win by 54 runs. 

Winterbourne 221-9 (45 overs). Frome 1st XI 167 all out (41.5 overs) 

FROME 1st XI fell to a second defeat in two weeks after a disappointing defeat to bottom side Winterbourne.

Frome elected to bowl first on a cold and cloudy afternoon, however the Winterbourne openers came flying out the blocks scoring 33 off the first 4 overs leaving Frome stunned. Kislingbury and Lingard batted excellently together putting on a partnership of 77 for the third wicket and left Frome needing to fight back to stop the hosts producing a huge first innings total.  

The introduction of Ross Jenkins and Mark Sanger brought Frome back into the game with Jenkins removing Kislingbury for 56 and Sanger picking up three wickets in his first 4 overs, leaving the hosts 136-6. However the excellent Lingard batted well with the tail, guiding the hosts to an impressive 221-9 with himself being dismissed for 76.  

In reply, Frome got off to the worst possible start with Paul Sanger being given L.B.W first ball. Opener Reece Croker and younger brother Sam Croker quickly followed leaving Frome 11-3. This brought the Jenkins brothers together and they both batted superbly to get Frome back into the game with a partnership of 78 for the 4th wicket. Will Jenkins was surprisingly given L.B.W for 47 and eventually turned out to be the decision which killed the Frome chase. Ross Jenkins soon followed for 38 and Frome were left 112-5 needing something special if they were going to chase Winterbourne’s total.  

The host fielded superbly all afternoon and along with their excellent bowling, they finally dismissed Frome for 167 and taking a very important win to move themselves of the bottom of the table.  

Frome overpowered in Norton derby defeat

Frome 1st XI lost to Midsomer Norton 1st XI by 7 wickets. Frome 1st XI: 109 all out (40.3 overs). Midsomer Norton 1st XI: 113-3 (13.4 overs) 

A DEPLETED Frome 1st XI suffered a difficult day on Saturday, losing convincingly to a well-drilled Midsomer Norton side. 

Right from the start, the Showmen were outplayed in all facets of the game and ended up with only 1-point to show for their efforts on a chastening afternoon. 

On a hot and sunny afternoon, the day started well with Frome winning an important toss and choosing to bat first. However, the top order soon ran into difficulties as the accuracy of the Midsomer Norton bowlers kept a tight lid on scoring opportunities.  

After Filer (2-17) had seen off both openers, the left-arm spin of Jake Rowe (3-27) worked through the middle-order as Frome crawled to 53-5. Reece Croker (26) and Barton attempted a recovery, of sorts with a battling 6th wicket stand of 31, however both fell in quick succession and Sutton (2-7) saw off the tail as the Showmen just crept past the hundred mark to post 109 all out at the interval. 

The Midsomer Norton response was in stark contrast to Frome’s struggles with the bat, with opener Pang (44 from 20 balls) launching an early assault to bring up the visitors 50 inside the first 6 overs. Barton (2-36) stuck to the task and snared a few wickets to grab the home side a point, however further powerful striking from Jake Rowe (30* from 15 balls) saw Norton to a comfortable victory in double-quick time. 

Next fixture: 

Saturday 26th June, Taunton Saint Andrews 1st XI (home), 12.30pm start