Burghley Park CC made the trip to Castor & Ailsworth CC and, after winning the toss and choosing to bowl first, put in a spirited performance in the field before falling short in the chase.

The hosts posted 237 for 6 from their 45 overs, with Burghley working hard to keep things under control across the innings. There were important contributions throughout the Castor & Ailsworth order, most notably from Blake Blumeris, who struck an excellent 88, while Sean McMullan (44) and Reece Smith-York (38) also ensured the scoreboard kept moving. Despite that, Burghley produced key moments with the ball, led by a superb spell from Josh Gallimore. He was the standout performer, claiming 4 wickets — including a memorable hat-trick that broke the backbone of the innings and dragged things back in Burghley’s favour during the middle overs. He was supported by make-shift opening bowler Harry Sorensen, who bowled some very tidy lines in his first spell, picking up the wicket of Josh Weaver. J. Biggs, A. Azhar and H. Armstrong all bowled tidy spells but came away from the match wicketless.

Chasing 238, Burghley needed a strong start but found themselves under early pressure. David Platt anchored the innings with a composed 40 (60). After a watchful start, he was able to free his hands and looked to be on for a big score before being caught off the bowling of Ryan Evans. Bradley Hurn faced the toughest conditions of the chase with Stuart Dockeril showing his class again with the ball, and his opening partner Shaun Dunn providing relentless pressure at the other end. As a result, Hurn departed for 1 (11), before Ahsan Azhar came and went for a golden duck – both falling to Dunn. Harry Armstrong was in at 4, swiftly follwed by Matt Davies at 5. Unfortunately for Davies, he became the second owner of a golden duck in the Burghley chase, ensuring a spicy September awaits him. James Biggs added 30 (40) to keep the chase alive through the middle stages. Once Armstrong departed for 10 (59), this brought Josh Gallimore to the crease. Once again, Gallimore was at the heart of things, producing a fine 66 from 65 balls, striking 11 boundaries in an innings that blended control with attacking intent. Biggs and Gallimore were able to put on a partnership of 71, but unfortunately the low scoring in the first half of the innings meant the mountain became too high to climb. Biggs departed by giving Smith-York a caught and bowled. Harry Sorensen also contributed an unbeaten 15, but regular wickets made it difficult for Burghley to build the sustained partnerships required.

Castor & Ailsworth’s bowlers shared the workload effectively, with Reece Smith-York and Blake Blumeris both claiming two wickets, and crucial breakthroughs coming at key times to halt Burghley’s momentum. Despite battling throughout, Burghley were only able to score 180 in their 45 overs, falling 58 runs short of the target.

While the result didn’t go our way, there were plenty of positives for Burghley Park to take from the game, not least Josh Gallimore’s outstanding all-round performance — a superb 66 with the bat to go alongside his four-wicket haul and hat-trick — which stood out as the defining individual contribution of the match.

This match was sponsored by RTK.