Ben bullies old boys

Ben Irving carried his bat for a sparkling unbeaten 161 as Goresbrook racked up 296-2 on a belter of a pitch at Southchurch Park. Irving took apart an Old Southendians attack which included his old u13 teammate Chris Dove, playing a succession of his family's trademark drives on his way to a rare Goresbrook 150.

Skipper Danny Gillham weighed in with 67 before being stumped as the Brook opening partnership was worth 176 and then after Itihas Adama went for a duck, Andy Livett added 42* as Brook fell just short of the 300 mark as Irving tired in the heat.

The old boys reply was a good one and the top 4 batsmen all passed 40 as the hosts set off in pursuit of their target, however some accurate bowling in the middle overs, particularly from u13 George Sleight who took 3-31 ensured that the Brook total was never seriously threatened.

Gillham was able to use 9 bowlers, with only the old sea-dog Livett not rolling his arm over and u13's Krishnan Kumar and Ted Ivory also performed with distinction and kept Old Souths in check even if Keith Maund was slapped all over Southend in his 2 overs. The net result ensured that Gillham’s men picked up a win that took them back into third place, set fair for promotion if they can beat Burnham Sports in their final game.

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