A RUN of six consecutive wins finally came to an end for Rugby after they were convincingly beaten away at title-chasing Handsworth by eight wickets in the Warwickshire League Premier Division.
Rugby had dragged their way out of mid-table and given themselves an outside chance of a promotion challenge, but Saturday’s limp display put an end to such aspirations.
Poor availability meant that Rugby fielded a depleted side and the visit to high-flying Handsworth was always going to be a tough challenge.
Owen Edwards won the toss and chose to bat first on a hot day, but his revamped top order started badly when Hugh Cochrane (0) edged Julius Benjamin behind in the second over.
Henry Parker was promoted to number three and underlined his potential with a hard-working 25 but, when he and Charlie Robards (10) were dismissed in quick succession, Rugby were struggling on 46 for three.
Edwards was joined by Steve Ward at the crease and the two naturally attacking players soon lifted the tempo and moved the score onto 83 for three before a rash shot saw Edwards caught for 26.
The captain’s dismissal sparked a procession of wickets and when top scorer Ward (41) was the eighth man out, Rugby’s chances of posting a challenging score ended as they finished on 130 all out.
Handsworth are renowned as an attacking batting side and lived up to their reputation in the early overs of their reply.
Henry Wilkins started with a maiden, but Matt Johnson felt the brunt of Handsworth’s powerful hitting, as 30 runs were plundered from the next three overs.
However, with the score on 36, Rugby struck a double blow when Wilkins bowled Renrick Hooper (20) and brother Tom accounted for Carby Dawkins (15) in the following over.
Rugby sensed an opening, but Mavarick Perry and Anton Johnson steadied the ship with some watchful batting and moved through gears to take the hosts over the finish line in the 23rd over with Perry hitting an unbeaten 50.
