Skelly bowls Men’s 1XI to Win & League Champions
7 min read
Part one of Bangor’s potentially golden weekend was successfully completed after their 7 Wicket victory in the T20 Bowl Final on Friday evening. A little over 12 hours later the squad returned to Upritchard Park on Saturday morning for one of the biggest games in recent memory for the side and the club. What unfolded was beyond anyone’s wildest dreams.
The team was largely the same from the night before with just the one change with regular captain Johnny Parker back in after just about arriving in the country in time for today’s game from his holiday, with Gareth McCullough making way.
The coin at the toss landed in favour of Bangor and they fancied a chase with Dundrum inserted into bat first on a fairly fresh wicket still with it only used for the first time on Friday night. Robbie van Harte as he has done all season long was tasked to bowl up the hill with young pacer Michael Skelly coming down the hill. A typical maiden over from van Harte to start and then just with his second ball Skelly got one just to hold a fraction on a length to take a routine caught & bowled chance, removing the potentially dangerous Phillips who scored 75 when the sides last met in the league in May.
Van Harte & Skelly continued to keep things tight, as Dundrum struggled to get any runs on the board with the score only 9-1 after 6 overs. Pressure was building and eventually Bangor were rewarded with their second wicket as some trademark away swing from van Harte found the edge of Hutley and George Prince at slip took a routine catch. Bangor sensed the match was already at a pivotal stage early on with Dundrum’s two best batters in Campbell and the dangerous overseas professional Swanepoel now at the crease. Van Harte rising to the big occasion and bowling to his fellow country-man, setup Swanepoel beautifully with two dot balls, before pushing in a quicker delivery which swung away and caught the edge of Swanepoel as he tried to drive through the covers but this time agonisingly, Prince at slip could only get his fingertips to it diving to his right. Was this to be a crucial chance missed, Bangor have certainly been haunted in the past by dropped chances of overseas professionals in previous years who have gone on to make big scores.
It certainly seemed that might have well been the case as Swanepoel crunched Skelly through the covers for four in the following over. Next ball however and similar to his first wicket, Skelly bowled one back of a length which again just held a fraction finding the leading edge of Swanepoel. The ball hung in the air for what felt an eternity as a sprawling Skelly (which is quite the sight) dove forward and to his right to take a great catch just inches above the ground. Celebrations ensued on the outfield from all those in blue, with Swanepoel dejected as he slowly made his way of the pitch, Bangor knew what a huge moment this was for not just today but for their season.
The other batter of concern for Bangor was Campbell who was the other top run scorer for the visitors this season behind Swanepoel the next target for Bangor to remove. Van Harte and his crafty setups bowled his first two fairly full with Campbell unable to score of them before his third ball was just a fraction shorter on a good length, certainly a risky shot to drive which Campbell attempted at. Van Harte though again with his trademark away swing found the edge and this time a diving Prince at slip was able to get both hands to the ball and wasn’t dropping this one. More celebrations on the field as a sense of déjà vu started settling in for Bangor after the previous week’s demolition job of Cooke Collegians with the score at a scarcely believable 15-4 off 9 overs.
The fifth wicket followed quickly in behind as minutes later Skelly rearranged the furniture of Symington with an absolute beauty of a delivery clipping the top of off stump for a duck with the score now 15-5. Skelly in his 6th over picked up wicket number six and his fourth, finding the edge of McNerlin and Kirkpatrick doing the rest taking a routine catch behind the stumps and the score now 23-6 in the 12th over.
With the bar starting to open up for the day at the ground, the expectant large crowd were starting to turn up. Some aware of what was unfolding and others in shock at the carnage they arrived to, unaware of what had transpired in the opening 45 minutes of the match so far. As they had all fallen previously like dominoes, the seventh wicket fell not long after the sixth, with van Harte picking up his third wicket bowled with the Dundrum batters throwing the kitchen sink, trying to get to any sort of half decent score knowing the end was nigh.
Usually the evergreen & skilled van Harte bowls his 8 overs straight through with the first change bowler on from the other end by the time van Harte is done. However, such was the high quality of bowling coming from Skelly, he had to battle through tiredness and bowl straight through not only his quota of 8 overs but also the Dundrum batting order. The fact that Skelly was on the verge of his fifer would certainly help energy levels as he started his 7th over and skipper Parker going all-out attack with a 7-2 field. Skelly delivered two dot balls before again bowling one back of a length but this time finding the edge of Biddle. The ball sailing through the air to the grateful hands of Prince for his third catch at slip and Skelly wheeled away like an uncontrollable gazelle in the wild in celebration, picking up his maiden 1XI fifer. The score now a ridiculous 25-8 in the 14th over.
Van Harte bowled his last over at Upritchard Park this season to finish on figures of 8-3-11-3. A brilliant spell of bowling and probably his best this season using his craftiness to build pressure as a tandem with Skelly to draw out the Dundrum mistakes. Skelly also began his final over chasing a 6th wicket which would give him an NCU award and on his third delivery he once again found the edge of the bat and Kirkpatrick taking another routine catch behind the stumps. A spell of bowling that will go down in the annals of Bangor CC history for not only winning the match but ensuring Bangor are on the brink of a return to Section 1 as champions. Skelly’s eventual figures were 8-1-22-6.
The only rare piece of positivity from the Dundrum innings was the knock of Donnell as he raced to 17 from 14 balls trying to boost the visitors total by as much as possible. First change bowler Will Simpson though brought Dundrum’s batting innings to an eventual close bowling Shilliday for a duck. Dundrum all out for 42 from 17.3 overs, a surreal hour and 9 minutes at Upritchard Park as Michael Skelly led the hosts off to acclaim from the Dundrum players and those able to make it down to the ground in time!
Like last week there won’t be much to report on today from the batting innings, but special mention must go Sam McMillan & Mark Hutchinson’s efforts this season. What a brilliant opening partnership they have been for the 1XI in the league this season, our top two run scorers. Sam has really come on leaps and bounds in his third season now as a regular in the side and the 18 year old has cemented his place as the opening batter and like Skelly someone to build the team around for the future. His partner in crime Mark Hutchinson, making his full return to Cricket in many years and despite many niggly injuries, has been a true tour de force for not only what he has done on the pitch with or without a bat in hand but off the field as well for the side and indeed the club.
Both men strode out to Upritchard Park for one final time in 2024 and confidently knocked off the visitors total of 42 in just under 30 minutes with McMillan, rightfully hitting the winning runs and leading the side back to Section 1 and the club into a new era. Bangor the winners by 10 Wickets and champions of Section 2.
It’s hard to put into words the amount of thanks and appreciation to everyone involved in this effort as it truly is not just a players effort but a whole club effort. The side really were in the doldrums when eventually relegated to Section 2 in 2022 despite several near misses in the preceding years. That was further compounded last year where Bangor cruelly missed out on the top 6 promotion playoffs mainly through bad luck with the weather. It has taken a big effort from all involved to make sure that this was the year led by skipper Johnny Parker, Chairman Peter Mcitwaine and head of selectors Patrick McMillan to ensure that everything was in place for the side to succeed this season. From the players, a massive thank you as always to head groundsman Stephen Burns aka Barney, without him we simply wouldn’t function as a club, Upritchard Park really is one of the finest grounds in the country. A final thank you to family members & partners who dedicate a lot of time during the season to ensure players are ready to go on a matchday with what they do behind the scenes and at the ground with their unwavering support. The side have one final game to go down in Downpatrick on Saturday before they can lift the Section 2 trophy aloft and begin to reflect on a season unlike any other.
Dundrum 42 (17.3 overs, R Van Harte 3-11, M Skelly 6-22, W Simpson 1-1)
Bangor 43-0 (7.4 overs, S McMillan 29*, M Hutchinson 9*)
Bangor beat Dundrum by 10 wickets
Some Match Photos and Celebrations
