York End 37-Year Wait With Kingfisher Beer Cup Win

York Cricket Club won the Kingfisher Beer Cup Final at Derbyshire CCC on Sunday 16th September with a convincing 8-wicket victory over Wanstead and Snaresbrook Cricket Club.

York, who were last in the National Club final in 1975, restricted Wanstead & Snaresbrook, in their first ever final, to a modest total thanks to some excellent spin bowling and reach their target with some impressive hitting to get home with 15 overs to spare.
 
Wanstead & Snaresbrook, the Essex Premier League champions in 2012, won the toss and elected to bat in overcast conditions and it was captain Arfan Akram who was first to fall, lobbing a catch back to bowler Glen Richmond after being surprised by a steeply rising delivery for 8. Duncan Snell soon got into the action as he removed Rehan Hassan for a duck, trapped LBW with the score on 18-2.

It was then left to John Chambers and Kishen Velani to rebuild the innings and they put on 53 for the third wicket before Chambers became the second caught and bowled dismissal of the Wanstead & Snaresbrook innings, falling to York captain Daniel Woods for 21. It was then the bowling of Tom Pringle that swung the game heavily in York’s favour, first removing Adnan Akram for 1 before Velani, straight after reaching his half century, gave an easy chance to Oliver Hairs who didn’t turn down the chance to catch the Wanstead & Snaresbrook dangerman.

Pringle then took two more wickets to finish with ‘man of the match’ figures of 4-22 to leave the Essex side on 123-7. Despite some late resistance, Wanstead and Snaresbrook struggled to find the boundary and finished with an under par 162-9 from their 45 overs.
 
York, who won the Yorkshire Premier League title for the sixth time in a row in 2012, started well thanks to a partnership of 62 by Liam McKendry and Snell. Both were ticking along nicely before Snell was surprisingly caught by Petrus Hattingh off the bowling of Velani.

McKendry was then joined by Hairs, who hit an explosive 56 in 40 balls in York’s semi final win, and these two put on a further 56 to take control of the game, McKendry being bowled by Joe Ellis-Grewal just short of his half century for 47.

Alex Cousins joined Hairs but it was Hairs who went through the gears and produced a similar performance to that of the semi final, hitting 10 fours and 1 six in his 45-ball 68 as York reached their target for the loss of only two wickets and with 15.1 overs to spare to become Kingfisher Beer Cup 2012 champions and take the title back to York for the first time in 37 years.