Penzance through to Lord's Final
Penzance Cricket Club are through to a Lord's final for the first time after the most spectacular of semi-final home wins in the ECB National Club Championship.
After being put in, they hammered a mammoth 410 for 6 in 40 overs against Wanstead & Snaresbrook from Essex.
Christian Purchase led the way with a magnificent 143, with Brad Wadlan, Tommy Sturgess, and Josh Croom all hitting quickfire half-centuries. Opener Jack Paull set the tone with 43 in an opening stand of 183 in just 18 overs.
24 sixes and 42 fours were hit in the innings.
Partnerships - Purchase /Paull (1st wkt) 183 in 18 overs and Sturgess/Croom (6th wkt) 91 off 32 balls.
Christian Purchase 16 fours and 11 sixes off 63 balls - remarkable! In earlier rounds, 153no at Golden Hill (Bristol) and 103 against Bridgwater at home.
Wanstead & Snaresbrook were dismissed for 231 in 32 overs to leave Penzance winners by 179 runs.
Penzance Club Secretary Kim Pentecost reflected: "So nice to see people from so many different clubs, from St Just to Callington."
"Hundreds and hundreds of people there. I think someone counted 500 at one point. No seat or blade of grass left available to sit on."
"Incredible scenes. I was on the balcony with the boys after the game, just looking at everyone around us. It was insane."
Penzance will meet Lancashire's Ormskirk in the final at Lord's on Saturday, 20th September.
Penzance are the first Cornish Club to win a semi-final in the competition after defeats for Camborne (1982), Truro (1990), St Just (2006 & 2007).
Previous Cornish Lord's Finalists were all in the National Village Competition - Troon in the inaugural year of 1972 (w), 1973 (w), 1976 (w), 1983 and Werrington 1994.
Rothesay National Club Championship Semi-Final YouTube Scorecard
Penzance – Penzance 410-6 (40) (C Purchase 143, B Wadlan 68, T Sturgess 50, J Croom 50no, J Paull 43; H Wajid 2-47, Z Shahzad 2-82) beat
Wanstead & Snaresbrook 231 (32) (Y Odedra 79, A Zeb 43, J Ellis-Grewal 40no; M Sanwal 3-45, B Wadlan 3-61, T Sturgess 2-38, T Dinnis 2-62) by 179 runs
Ormskirk Semi-Final - a two-wicket win with four balls to spare over Knowle & Dorridge (Warwickshire)
