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Shrewsbury Cruise Through To Finals Day

Shrewsbury Cruise Through To Finals Day

Will Parton18 Jun 2015 - 13:36
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By Stuart Dunn at the Shrewsbury Chronicle

An unbeaten half century from Ed Foster helped Shrewsbury book their place in the area finals days of the ECB's National Club T20 competition later this month.
A Shrewsbury side featuring former Glamorgan, Warwickshire and Northamptonshire star Adam Shantry for the first time proved too strong for Walmley in the third round at London Road last Sunday, the county towners easing through by 45 runs.
Shrewsbury will now head to Walsall for the area finals day on Sunday, June 28.
Hosts Walsall will face Barnards Green in the day's opening semi with Shrewsbury then up against Moseley before the two winners contest the final later the same day.
Skipper Rob Foster insisted he was pleased with his side's display against Walmley.
The team selected showed a host of changes from the one which had been due to meet Wolverhampton in the Birmingham League premier division a day earlier.
But that match, just like all the other top-flight fixtures last Saturday, was a victim of the weather with the game washed out without a ball bowled.
It means Shrewsbury will resume their quest for a fourth successive league win at Barnt Green on Saturday.
Foster was just pleased with the timing of the Walmley fixture which kept his confident side ticking over nicely.
"It was nice to get a bit of cricket, good to get a game in," said Foster, pleased to be able to include former professional cricketer Shantry, the club's coach, in his side for the first time this season on a day when several regulars were unavailable.
There was also a first team debut for Glamorgan Academy prospect Ryan Harman, recruited over the winter, who quickly hinted at his potential as Shrewsbury's strength in depth once more came into its own.
Shrewsbury, having opted to bat first, posted 122-4 from their 20 overs, the highlight an unbeaten 64 from Ed Foster, batting at No 3. He faced 62 balls and hit three sixes and two fours, putting on 60 for the second wicket with Will Parton, who made 27.
"Ed assessed the situation perfectly really," said skipper Foster. "We were probably 10 runs light of where we wanted to be as we would have liked 130.
"It was a slow pitch but given the weather that was about on Saturday that was going to happen - but Ed played very well and he's having a good summer."
Sam Griffiths, who took 2-12, quickly undermined the Walmley reply, getting rid of both visiting openers to leave them reeling at 2-2.
Shantry (1-19), having earlier chipped in with a quickfire 15 with the bat, then grabbed his first wicket in a Shrewsbury shirt to leave Walmley really up against it.
The visitors were eventually removed for 77 off the penultimate ball of the 16th over, undone by a strong bowling and fielding display from Shrewsbury.
The promising Harman claimed 2-2 from his only over, Ed Foster picked up 2-6 from 11 balls, Tim Dean bowled sharply for 2-19 and there was also a wicket for spinner Charlie Morris, who bowled four tidy overs for 1-15.
"Walmley lost a couple of wickets quickly at the end but they were always in the game because we didn't get a massive score," said Foster.
"It would only have taken someone to come in and club 20 or 30 quickly and the game would have swung right back in their favour to be honest."
Meanwhile, SHREWSBURY II, washed out at Walsall II last weekend, have a home game against lowly Old Hill II in reserve division one of the Birmingham League on Saturday.
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