Alderley Edge 131
Birkenhead Park 106
Alderley Edge won by 25 runs
ALDERLEY Edge moved up to fourth in the table after securing their second successive win in a low-scoring contest against Birkenhead Park in the CD Bramall Trucks Cheshire County League Premier division.
When the sides turned around at the interval, Park looked odds-on favourites at tea after the visitors' score of 131 looked at least 30 runs short of a match-winning total.
But Edge's overseas player Sohail Rauf, who only arrived in the country three weeks' ago, bowled superbly to seal an impressive victory.
The Indian seamer took 6-36 in 21 overs, bowling unchanged, apart from a change of ends throughout the home side's innings, as Birkenhead were skittled for 106.
Edge only used just three bowlers in 44 overs, Mark Walker and Phil Kay also bowling well and sharing four wickets between them, as tehy secured an extremely useful 22 points.
Earlier, Alderley had lost the toss and found themselves batting first on a wet track that made scoring difficult throughout the day for both sides.
Edge struggled against an attack that used both swing and spin to make it a searching examination for the away side's batsmen.
Opener Alan Day scored a valuable 22, while Rauf top-scored with 28 in Edge's modest 131 all out.
But a fine bowling display from the visitors helped Edge's surge up the table continue.
Alderley entertain Nantwich on Saturday (1pm), and another good performance would lift confidence further.
