South Staffordshire County League round-up: Milford targeting play-off victory
David Smith says Milford Hall have got to stick to the principles which have made them successful as they head into the Birmingham League play-offs.
Milford were crowned champions of the South Staffordshire County League at the weekend, as a rain-affected weekend saw all but one game completely washed out.
The weather meant they finished 19 points ahead of second-placed Hammerwich after they edged in front of their title rivals the week before with a dramatic three-wicket victory.
“It was quite a relaxed week leading up to it by the fact we had built a 15-point cushion,” Smith, the Milford chairman, said. “Which meant destiny was in our own hands.
“Everyone knew what we had to do, and that was to go out and play cricket in the way that we had done all season and be positive.
“It was just a shame having had such a good summer, that we finished it with a wet weekend, which is quite sad really to finish it like that.
“It has been nip and tuck all campaign. Hammerwich have had a terrific season. They are a good club. They are very well-run, and it is great to see them having success the way they are.
“We were chasing them for a long time, but we always knew that if we got to that game and we were in touching distance, it was seriously game on. To be level on points heading into that match was quite unique to be fair.
“We played so well that day. The intensity, the fielding, and we bowled extremely well. That set the platform for the batters to go and do their job, which of course they did.”
Milford now have three matches against Stourport, Wellington and Attock as they bid to book their place in the Birmingham League Division Two.
“We will be quietly confident,” Smith continued. “We will believe in our own abilities and play on the front foot. There are three good teams in this.
“We have just got to go and play our way, play our cricket and be really positive.
“It would be a tremendous landmark in the history of the club to be quite honest with you, if we could get into the Birmingham League. While we have been in the league before, that was when it was in a different structure.
“Now there is a two-division structure to get into it would be a credit to the club and the members. It would be a momentous moment in the club’s history.”
Elsewhere in the Staffordshire County League, Fordhouses finished third, with Wombourne 18 points behind them in fourth.
Penkridge played the only full game of the weekend and they recorded a 54-run over Tamworth Seconds. Penkridge finished fifth while Tamworth came in ninth. Beacon, Walsall and Pelsall made it sixth, seventh and eighth respectively.
Wolverhampton Seconds and Lichfield were both relegated, with Cannock being the team that narrowly avoided the drop in 10th.
