After winning a negotiated toss and electing to bat first, captain Josh Weller and David Platt walked out to open the innings. However, the visitors made the worst possible start as Weller was trapped LBW by what could only be described as a pea roller in just the second over. John Barker followed soon after without troubling the scorers, leaving Burghley in early trouble.

New Zealand overseas player Pete Ruffell joined Platt at the crease and the pair began to rebuild sensibly, putting together an important partnership. Platt looked in good touch before taking one in the midriff and being dismissed shortly after, while another wicket quickly followed to leave Burghley wobbling at 55-4.

From there, the lower order showed great resilience to drag the innings back into life. Running between the wickets was sharp, boundaries came regularly and momentum slowly shifted back towards Burghley. Valuable contributions came from James Biggs (34), Pete Ruffell (32) and Harry Armstrong (20), but the standout performance belonged to Ryan Gilmour, who produced a superb 72 at better than a run a ball to steer Burghley to a competitive 215 all out.

Defending a total they would have gladly taken after their difficult start, Burghley struck immediately with James Biggs taking a wicket in the opening over. City CC responded well though, building an impressive partnership and racing to 88 before losing their second wicket, with Ella showing the side exactly how catching should be done with a sharp take in the field.

Captain Josh Weller, blood soaked but still battling, then removed the dangerous Taha Shahid for 52 just as the batter was beginning to motor and take the game away from Burghley.

City continued to lose wickets at regular intervals and Burghley sensed an opening, but Malik steadied the chase and looked to have guided the visitors towards victory. A late twist arrived when James Biggs returned to claim two wickets in three balls, briefly reigniting hopes of an unlikely comeback, but it proved too little too late as City CC reached their target with three wickets remaining and three overs to spare.

There were plenty of positives for Burghley to take from the game, particularly the fight shown with both bat and ball after difficult moments throughout the day. Dropped catches ultimately proved costly, but lessons will be learned as they go again next week at home to Ufford Park CC.

This match was sponsored by Stamford Schools.