Walker hits unbeaten century to seal Herefordshire win
Ollie Walker strokes one of 13 boundaries in his impressive centuries (Image: Submitted)
OLLIE Walker's brilliant unbeaten 108 steered Herefordshire to their first NCCA Trophy 50 over competition success of the season with a five-wicket victory against Norfolk at Brockhampton.
Walker combined some of his trademark savage hitting with some graceful strokeplay and solid defence to hit five sixes and eight fours in his 97-ball innings.
Walker's innings completed an excellent day as he had returned 4-52 with the ball in Norfolk's innings.
Luke Tulacz hit a better than run-a-ball 29 in a fifth wicket stand of 65 with Walker. Meanwhile, Alex Hinkley was then an excellent foil for Walker as he compiled an unbeaten 40 in an unbroken county record sixth-wicket stand of 107 for the sixth wicket.
After Norfolk won the toss and elected to bat first, Benjamin Wilcox (59) and Alfie Cooper (55) posting half-centuries for the visitors, who posted a useful total.
But Taylor Cornall (2-45) and Imaad Mahmood (1-36) also took wickets as Herefordshire restricted their target to 247.
Although Herefordshire lost Ollie Cox early in their reply, Cornall (40), skipper Matt Pardoe (12) and Ben Chapman-Lilley (10) took the Herefordshire total to 76-4 before Walker, Tulacz and Hinley completed the run chase.
Earlier in the weekend Herefordshire went down by 60 runs to Staffordshire at West Bromwich Dartmouth in the NCCA Trophy 50-over competition.
But the defeat would have been far more comprehensive but for one of James Rudge's sparkling cameos which saw the all-rounder batter six sixes and four fours in a 38-ball 62.
Rudge was joined in a record-breaking last-wicket stand of 68 with Adam Hines who largely watched from the non-striker's end but also contributed an unbeaten four.
The previous record of 59, set by Nick Davies and Paul Humphries against Shropshire at Luctonians, had stood for 24 years since 2001.
Rudge's all-round efforts bookended the day as he picked up the first two Staffordshire wickets, bowling open Callum Hawkins and having Liam Banks caught behind by Luke Powell, after Herefordshire had won the toss and elected to bowl first.
But Staffordshire's strong middle order, led by skipper James Kettleborough (105), continued to rack up the runs.
The home side looked set for a very big score when they reached 227-4, but some fine spin bowling by Taylor Cornall (5-39), aided by a spectacular one-stump-to-aim-at run out by Ben Chapman-Lilley to remove the dangerous Matthew Morris for 49, helped to dismiss the hosts for
275.
Cornall (24) and Ollie Cox (21) scored quickly when Herefordshire got their reply under way.
With Chapman-Lilley (42) and Ollie Walker (27) well entrenched, Herefordshire reached the halfway mark in their innings past the 100-mark, with only three wickets down were and well in touch with the target.
But both were dismissed in quick succession and wickets tumbled to leave Herefordshire languishing on 147-9 before Rudge's late fireworks.
Herefordshire now head for Sudbury on Sunday to take on Suffolk in their final group game, but are unlikely to progress to the knockout stages.
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