Sublime Shrey skittles Firle as Saints finish on a high

Firle 102 (all out, 25.1 overs) lost to Lewes St Michaels 157 (all out, 35.4 overs)

Lewes St Michaels finished their season with a win away at Firle, cementing a fourth place finish in the league.

Firle captain Joe Wakley put the visiting Lewesians in to bat on a warm, pleasant day in the Sussex sunshine. It looked an astute decision, as Wakley and fellow opening bowler Mubashar Manzoor put Saints under immediate pressure. Guy Patton (12) hit three good-looking boundaries before being trapped LBW by the probing left arm of Manzoor (2-21), who had Rob Patterson (0) caught behind from an unfortunate miscue shortly after. Captain Wakley (3-18) bowled with great control and dismissed Naimat Zafary (4) and counterpart Captain Pratik Patel (1) with two unplayable swinging yorkers.

Brother George (3-60) contributed three further Wakley wickets; removing James Sale (0) with his first ball and had Raj Kaushal (2) caught on the ropes by Tol Christie. Opener Richard Arnold (52) once again was the rock of the Saints innings, as his batting partners crashed around him. He hit eight boundaries to bring up his fourth half-ton of the season and pass 500 runs in the league in 2026; another excellent season for Saints' top-scorer. He was eventually undone when he drove George Wakley straight to the grateful grasp of Ben Porter.

Shrey Nilvarna (16) added some vital runs, including a sweetly-struck six, as did Simon Bomford, who also made 16. Nilvarna was stumped off the bowling of Neil 'Treacle' Peakall (1-27) and Bomford holed out to Eddie Cartwright from a Tol Christie (1-24) delivery.

At 120-9, it was looking a tad bleak for the visitors, but tailenders Barry South (6 not out) and Matt Piller (29) added vital runs; the latter striking four 4s and a 6 to boost the LSM total to a slightly more respectable 157, before being bowled by another Joe Wakley jaffa.

Lewes St Michaels didn't have many runs to play with in their pursuit of ten wickets for the win and got off to the perfect start by dismissing both Firle openers for no score. For the first, Naimat Zafary reacted quickly at square leg to brilliantly throw down the stumps to run out Sachin Sharma, with just one pole to aim at. A special mention must go to Naimat Zafary, who finished as top wicket taker in the division for the third season running with 35 scalps. Shrey Nilvarna then bowled out Eddie Cartwright. Andre Samuel (11) found the ropes four times in quick succession, before finding Rob Patterson at cow corner, who ran across to take a fine catch, as Nilvarna claimed a second.

James Harrington (33) looked in great touch, smashing seven boundaries including a maximum over the pavilion roof. However, Nilvarna also had the wind in his sails and bowled a beauty that nipped back to take Harrington's middle stump. The excellent Nilvarna continued to rattle through the hosts' lineup, almost single-handedly. Andy Bird (bowled for 6), Ben Porter (bowled for 0) and Joe Wakley (lbw for 0) were his next victims, as he finished his superlative spell of 6-36.

Skipper Pratik Patel's mystery spin caused problems as soon as he took over the shift at the A27 end; bowling George Wakley (10) and Mubashar Manzoor (6) with delightful deliveries for just 6 runs. Shrey Nilvarna, not content to rest on the laurels of his bowling performance, ran out Tol Christie (17) after a calamitous calling mix-up to take him to ten fielding wickets contributions for the season to add to his twenty bowling wickets.

The victory gave Lewes St Michaels a positive finish to the season, finishing in a respectable 4th position with nine wins, although a late season slump scuppered their promotion hopes this year.

A thoroughly enjoyable season nonetheless and capped off with a delectable feast of Carribbean food served up by Firle's all rounder and chef Andre Samuels, shared by both teams post-match.

Report by Matthew Piller