IT was a fun Cricket for All day at Stanley Park on Saturday (May 30), the sun shone from a cloudless blue sky and the pitch looked tailor-made for plenty of runs.

All the ingredients were there for a day of calypso cricket.

But Blackpool badly misread the script in their Vaux Northern League Division One game against Fleetwood.

After Fleetwood had originally looked like making well over 200, they managed 192-7 from their 50 overs.

In reply, Blackpool made a solid start before losing wickets at regular intervals as nine went down with only 100 runs added and they collapsed to a most disappointing 147-9, just managing to hang on for a draw.

Stand-in skipper Paul Simmonite won the toss and Fleetwood batted.

Professional Shawn Nicholson looked completely out of touch and struggled to five before the persevering Cresswell had him caught and bowled with the total at 22.

Then followed the most productive partnership of the match as Nick Coultas and Michael Clinning added 76 in 66 minutes.

Coultas was dropped on seven by Moore at mid-off and again at 31 by the same fielder, this time at mid-on, but when he had made 46 Simmonite made no mistake catching a mis-hit off Danson, the off-spinner's first league wicket of the season.

Clinning struggled through the 40s and just when he should have been capitalising on his 51, from 78 balls with six fours, he carelessly threw his wicket away when aiming an airy drive at professional Marcus Sharp.

The ex-Blackpool partnership of Tony Poxon and Tony Hesketh took Fleetwood to 147 before both batsmen were dismissed within one run of each other.

Poxon, 11, was Simmonite's second catch off Sharp and Hesketh, missed by Pickles at square leg on 14, was caught by Danson off Cresswell for a quick-fire 29 made from 35 balls with one six and three fours.

Cresswell was hit for a boundary next ball but then bowled Clark, five, leaving Fleetwood at 152-6.

It became 152-7 when Cresswell took his fourth wicket for 70 runs when he bowled King for a duck.

Andy Cooper and Mark Booth then walloped 40 runs in the final 26 minutes to take Fleetwood to a defendable total of 192-7.

Simmonite and Pickles opened in style, plundering 47 runs in 51 minutes but then the rot set in.

Pickles was the first to go caught by Clinning off King for 22 and two runs later Simmonite, 23, got a leading edge which looped gently to Hesketh, once again off the bowling of Pat King. Cornall, four, only lasted a short time before he was bamboozled by Newman and offered a catch to Gregson at mid-off.

And 59-3 became 78-4 when Bracewell, 18, obligingly smashed Newman to long-on where Booth held a juggling catch.

Paul Danson and Michael Moore added 33 runs before Nicolson caught Danson, 18, plumb in front to secure a leg before wicket decision.

Pat Newell, in for the unavailable Gavin Wiggans, came and went in a flash, hitting Poxon straight to Nicolson as Blackpool seemed uncertain whether to maintain the attack of play for the draw.

Moore, having plundered two sixes and two fours in his 68 ball 30, fell for the sucker punch when he hit a full toss straight to Coultas on the extra cover boundary and Blackpool were in trouble at 135-7.

Sensing an unlikely victory, Fleetwood attacked and Manajee, one, was caught by King off Clinning to leave the home side struggling at 136-8.

Sharpe and Cresswell batted sensibly enough to arrive at the final over with only eight wickets down; Cresswell was then dropped by Newman but Sharpe was not so lucky as, with one ball remaining, he drove a return catch to Nicolson.

This brought in wicketkeeper Martin Hackett and for the second week in succession he had to survive to ensure Blackpool had a draw.

He did so with fielders all round the bat but Blackpool's two points left them firmly anchored next to bottom of the table, with only a poor Preston side below them.

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