Lancashire League: Records fall at Todmorden (28 June 1999)

28 June 1999

Lancashire League: Records fall at Todmorden

The Lancashire Evening Telegraph

A clutch of run-scoring records were shattered at Centre Vale on Saturday as Rambsottom successfully chased over 300 to beat Todmorden in a remarkable EW Cartons Lancashire League game.

Todmorden's batsmen set two club records with professional Brendan Nash hitting a best-ever 176 not out and sharing a record 252-run partnership with captain Richard Baigent, who made 94.

But Ramsbottom then made the highest-ever winning second innings score when they overhauled the home side's 301-3 to win by three wickets with seven balls to spare.

And their 303-7, in which Tommy Read made 84 and skipper Brian Taylor 82, resulted in the highest aggregate in a limited-overs game in the league - surpassing the total of 584 runs Rawtenstall and Lowerhouse posted in 1993.

Nash's score was only two short of the league limited-overs record set by West Indian Phil Simmons, who hit 178 for Haslingden against Nelson in 1991.

It surpassed the 159 not out scored by Todmorden professional Franz Cronje against Rishton in August 1997, when he put on a club record 230 for the second wicket with Brian Heywood.

However, that mark also bit the dust thanks to Nash and Baigent, who took the Todmorden total from 5-1 to 257-2 but incredibly finished on the losing side .

"I don't think anybody has played in, or will play in, a game like that," said Taylor, who led from the front as Ramsbottom achieved the seemingly impossible.

"We went out to enjoy it, bat as we normally do and see where we were at half-way.

"We were going along at six-an-over and everybody started believing we could do it.

"Even when wickets were going down people were going out with a positive attitude and playing their shots. Nobody in the dressing room thought we were going to get beat."

Source :: Lancashire Evening Telegraph (https://www.reednews.co.uk/let/)