Hucknall Cricket Club begin Nottinghamshire Premier League campaign with impressive six wicket win over Attenborough

Hucknall Cricket Club got their Nottinghamshire Premier League season off to a great start with a six wicket victory over Attenborough at The New Gatehouse Ground last Saturday (22 April).

The hosts won the toss and elected to field. Attenborough impressed with the bat as they made 284-5 from their 50 overs. Opener Savin Perera starred with a knock of 137 from 134 deliveries whilst Mat Roberts was the pick of the Hucknall bowlers recording figures of 2-31.

Hucknall's reply got off to a slightly shaky start when Nolan Benson was dismissed at the start of the fourth over for 18, leaving them 26-1.

However, the arrival of Roberts at the crease alongside the other opener Ben Martindale saw a crucial partnership formed which swung the game back in the hosts' favour.

The duo put on a superb 144 run partnership before Martindale was eventually dismissed for 73.

Roberts then formed another vital partnership with Namibia international Nicol Loftie-Eaton. Their 88 run stand all but ended Attenborough's hopes of getting a result.

Despite a couple of late wickets Roberts finished 100 not out and Hucknall hit the winning runs with three overs to spare.

Reflecting on the result, captain Sam Johnson was pleased with his side's start to the season.

Speaking exclusively to Hucknall Nub News, he said: "It was a really important game for us to be honest. The result is obviously the most important in the grand scheme of things but I was really happy with how we played, our disciplines, it was a really tricky start against Attenborough who've got some really good players, so absolutely thrilled to get the win.

"At halfway we were obviously disappointed with how many runs they'd got but we were really bullish there was a firm belief that actually we'd done well to restrict them to what they did on what was a really good wicket. We were really confident. As batters we spoke and said it needs two of us to stand up and put in match winning contributions and Mat Roberts and Ben Martindale did that to great aplomb, it was a fantastically constructed run chase, and we were fully deserving of the victory.

"We all know as cricketers that when you get a good score on the board early wickets are really what give you that momentum, dominating the first ten overs. Even though we lost one wicket in the first ten overs the way the lads batted was really really special to be honest and we kind of wrestled momentum away from them. We really punished the bad ball and ran really well between the wickets which set the platform then for the rest of the innings which ended up being a resounding victory in the end."

On Roberts' match winning performance, Johnson added: "He is an excellent cricketer at this level. He was outstanding with bat and ball. We're indebted to him really, he's a quality performer and he's proved that time and time again. If he keeps his feet on the floor and makes sure that he's really disciplined in tomorrow's game, and moving forward, I see no reason why he can't have a really fruitful year."

Hucknall's next match sees them travel to Wollaton later today (29 April). Unlike Hucknall, Wollaton didn't play last week as the weather claimed their scheduled fixture against Plumtree.

Ahead of the match Johnson said: "It'll be a really tough game, it's a tricky proposition at any time. I think we've got to try and catch them a bit ring rusty because they haven't bowled or faced a competitive ball yet this season, so I think we've got to use that to our advantage really. It's one of the toughest away games in the league I'd say."