Week 22: Sat 13th & Sun 14th September
Match Reports
1st XI: 75-2 (T Boyd 29)
Woodley: 74 (B Evans 3-10, R Renforth 3-24)
After two years of heartache and back-to-back relegations, Stretford 1st XI completed their redemption arc in storybook fashion, sealing promotion back to Division 1 of the GMCL at the first time of asking. A season’s worth of pressure, hope, and hard graft came down to one final day — and Les Bleus didn’t just rise to the occasion, they stormed it.
The build-up had been fraught with tension. Too many variables threatened to derail the dream: a Woodley side still in the promotion hunt, the looming threat of rain wiping away play, and the absence of Stretford’s big hitting talisman, Syed Haider. None of it mattered. As the 1st XI marched onto The Boundary, there was a steel in their eyes. Promotion was in touching distance, and nothing — or no one — was going to take it away.
Skipper Adam Saynor won the toss and stuck with the formula that had carried Stretford all year: unleash the bowlers, squeeze the opposition, and choke the scoreboard. Even as the rain delayed the start, reducing the contest to 38 overs a side, the Stretford attack hit their stride immediately.
The “swing kings” Benjy Evans and Rob Renforth were relentless. Disciplined lines, movement through the air, and not a single freebie for the batters. Woodley eked their way to 23 without loss before the dam burst. In a devastating spell of seam bowling, Evans and Renforth ripped the heart out of the visitors’ top order, sharing six wickets between them in a devastating collapse to 30-6.
Evans: 12-7-10-3 & Renforth: 12-3-24-3
The spin duo of Ramesh Perera (2-15) and Niall Heyes (2-13) applied the finishing touches, ensuring no late resistance. Woodley, battered, broken, and bowled out for just 74.
Then came the chase. Just 75 runs stood between Stretford and promotion. Just 75 runs to define an entire season. But the nervous tension of a modest target quickly showed when Ali Raza Butt fell third ball of the innings. Silence. Sharp intakes of breath. This was not the time for old ghosts to return.
Enter Tim Boyd. The leading run-scorer shouldered the weight of expectation and sent a message: dot, dot, dot… four. The balcony exhaled. With Ramesh Perera alongside him, Boyd began to chip away at the total, striking 29 runs before holing out at deep midwicket — a dismissal eerily reminiscent of the reverse fixture.
At 43-2, nerves flickered again. The clouds rolled back in, rain threatened, and Woodley sniffed a miracle. But Perera, calm and assured, found a willing ally in Ollie Barrett. Together, they steered Stretford to the brink, the runs ticking over in careful but confident fashion.
And then it came. As the heavens opened above The Boundary, a no ball was bowled. The winning run. The balcony erupted. Cries of joy echoed along Lesley Road and across the meadows. The pouring rain washed away the shadows of relegation, leaving only the glow of triumph.
Stretford had done it. An eighth successful chase under 150 this season, a feat unthinkable in 1st XI years gone by. A promotion sealed. Joining the 2nd XI in a double-promotion. A club reborn.
Feel the magic in the air — the Strets are going up!
Wythenshawe: 111 (P Aqeel 87*, A Rohra 67, J Hepple 25)
2nd XI: 114-8 (B Crawshaw 26, U Hasan 26)
Stretford 2nd XI Sign Off 2025 with Final-Day Win
With promotion already safely in the bag, Stretford 2nd XI travelled to bottom side Wythenshawe for their last outing of the season. For captain Connor Bliss and his promotion heroes, this was less about pressure and more about pride, camaraderie, and finishing a superb campaign with one final flourish.
In a light-hearted twist, the roles were reversed: batters bowled, bowlers batted. The result? Entertainment all around.
Wythenshawe elected to bat first, and up stepped the 2nd XI’s leading run-scorer, Hamza Arif, to try his hand with the ball. Far from a part-time experiment, he delivered a spell to remember — 2-19 from 11 overs — surely staking his claim for more with the ball in 2026. He was ably supported by Bilal Siddqui (2-6) and Bliss himself (3-14) as the home side were bundled out for 111.
The chase began with promise as Pares Malindi (19), Blake Crawshaw (26) and Usman Hasan (26) set the foundation. At 93-5, the game looked sewn up, but a wobble saw Stretford slip to eight down with two runs still required. Brief nerves, but no drama — Hamza, the star of the ball earlier, strode in and cracked the winning runs to seal victory.
And so, the curtain closed on a season to remember: a final-day win, a haul of 93 points, and promotion secured in style.
For captain Bliss, it also marked a temporary farewell, as he returns to New Zealand before coming back refreshed and ready to lead the charge through Division 5 West in 2026.
One club, two promotions. The future is bright at Stretford.
SUNDAY
Friends Sporting v 3rd XI: 23-1 – Match Abandoned
4th XI v Edenfield – No play
Rain was the play of the day for the Sunday sides as both games fell to the wet September weather.
The 3rd XI finish their season on a wet note. But Captain Paddy Lambton reflects on what was a hugely enjoyable, challenging and encouraging first season in the GMCL Sunday league pyramid, finishing in mid-table of Division 2C.
There was a lot learnt for the second year skipper and plenty of positives to take into 2026 with an abundance of talent rising through the ranks. Next season’s aims for the Cumbrian: ”Challenge for a trophy? Why the hell not?” For the 4th XI one final fixture remains away at Springhead on Sunday 21st
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