Due to a couple of matches being forfeited in the Premier Division, the match was officiated by a league and home umpire.  The visitors lost the toss and Russell determined to bat first.

Castlethorpe lost three wickets pretty early in their runs accumulation but a fourth wicket stand between Mark Currell and Atif Mushtaq of 98 runs in just fifteen overs gave a great platform for the remainder of the team, which they built on.  Mark remained at the crease until the 28th over, grinding out 37 runs in support of Atif's 57 runs.  Stuart Walding secured 23 not out and Aaron Day achieved 13 not out as Castlethorpe batted out the full 40 overs achieving a total of 186-8 which meant that James Chantry did not need to bat.

After tea, provided by Ollie Hughes (thank you), the visitors set about their run chase.  They lost two early wickets, one to Atif and one to Russell, before the third wicket pair moved the score along from four to 67 in 15 overs - a steadying partnership.  Runs were not easy to come by though, and nor were wickets.  In the end Evenley also batted out their 40 overs though they finished 77 runs short of the Castlethorpe total.

Though the match did not affect the league position of either club, the match was full and enjoyable, taking us happily in to the end of the league season.  (If anyone is wondering, Castlethorpe finished in sixth position out of ten - solidly mid-table - finishing with 193 points.)

In spite of weather forecasts to the contrary, we arrived as the heavens opened, resulting in a delayed start and a reduction in overs to 38 per side.  Castlethorpe lost the toss and were put in to field.

The bowling was tight making scoring progress difficult for the home side but they stuck at it doggedly, with the opening stand putting on 38 and not being broken until the 16th having seen off the opening bowlers.  Whilst Castlethorpe took wickets every few overs, Dunchurch & Bilton kept the strike rotating and taking opportunities to score runs when they could and ultimately scored 167-6 from their allocation of overs.  It should be said that the damp conditions, as play continued through the intermittent showers, made keeping the ball dry and not losing footing whilst fielding pretty tricky.
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After tea, Castlethorpe set out to bat, again with dampness in the air that became intermittent showers.  The scoring rate was quicker for the visitors but too, sadly, was the rate at which Dunchurch took wickets.  Russell was out in the first over for nought and Aaron for nought in the second, which was a hard position to come back from.  Ollie Hughes was at the crease for all but ten balls of the innings, a valiant effort, but it was not Castlethorpe's day.  It was only possible to accumulate 75 runs in total.  Fortunately, our league position was not dependent on the result so though it was disappointing, there was ultimately no consequence to it.

As Russell was on holiday, Garry captained the side.  The home side were put in to bat by the visitors when they won the toss.

The opening stand between Alex and Ali got Castlethorpe off to a good start but this innings evidenced the saying "one wicket brings two" in triplicate, with the first and second, fourth and fifth and eighth and ninth wicket stands.  It was strange but true.  There were however stands of 57 (Alex and Ali) and 61 (Syed and Atif) which, with the couple of stands of over twenty saw Castlethorpe bat out all forty overs and reach a total of 187-9, with Ian hitting his second career six.

After tea, the visitors set about chasing down the total in a bid to keep their promotion hopes alive.  However, in spite of their third wicket stand of 89 they were unable to secure the required total, finishing on 164-9.

Whilst Castlethorpe cannot make a promotion spot this season, they definitely will not be relegated.  The match next Saturday against Dunchurch & Bilton will be interesting as just a few points separate the teams in the table.

The weather forecast had again been doom and gloom but we arrived with the weather holding.  Radway won the toss and elected to field.

The home side got off to a cracking start, taking two wickets in two overs for just one run, the first falling with the first delivery.  It was a day where Castlethorpe's batsmen would have to block or play their shots knowing there would be a ball with their name on it.  Garry and Matt played their shots and made a fifth wicket stand of 77, taking the Castlethorpe score from 41 in the seventh over to 118 in the seventeenth over.  Both played some great shots, including losing a ball with one of Garry's sixes.  Garry finished with 62 and Matt with 38 from the final Castlethorpe total of 140 all out in 21.3 overs.

The Radway innings was delayed by a passing shower.  Though we saw two forks of lightning at the end of the Castlethorpe innings and heard one clap of thunder, the storm missed us and Radway started their innings before tea.  The opening batsmen played their shots against the four bowlers used in those twelve overs and pushed the score on to 58 at the tea interval.  After tea they continued to score steadily with Radway reaching the required total in the 27th over for the loss of just one wicket.

The rain stayed away allowing a full match to be played.  It was disappointing for Castlethorpe not to secure more points but it was a good match and it was excellent to watch Garry and Matt scoring with such fluidity.

Match report by Sharron Jones

It's that time of the month again, and this month's Fantasy League update sees a change at the toop of the leaderboard. After out-performing the teams around them in the Bugbrooke and Croughton games, The Bear Monsters have leapfrogged Sharron's Second XI into the lead. The Second XI slipped into third place and is in danger of losing that too, as The Mighty Kickers and Sharron's First XI continue to score strongly. One outside bet to join the battle for the lead is Hear Comes The Boom, who have climbed from ninth to fifth in July.

The Woodentops continue their improbably poor form and continue to seem impregnable in the wooden spoon slot, while the MVP standings continue to be led by Atif Mushtaq, who became the first player this year to break the 1000-point barrier.

You will notice some small changes in previous weeks' scores - this is because of a formatting error in the spreadsheet being fixed and slightly altering some scores.