IT’S do or die for Menai Bridge this Saturday as they head into a Premier Division title clash with holders Llandudno.
Unbeaten Tudno have been flying high once again in the league this term and with ten games played, sit 81 points ahead of the Anglesey side.
And, after sustaining a surprise 8 run defeat at struggling Pontblyddyn last weekend, Bridge know that only a win will do.
Bridge went to Pontblyddyn in good form, having kept on both Tudno and second placed Mold’s coat-tails after beating derby rivals Bangor a fortnight ago, but some solid bowling from the hosts saw Bridge lose ground on the top two.
The contest began reasonably well for the visitors as Pont opted to bat and struggled to pick up any real momentum, with only Mark Hughes (30) and Glenn Chambers (26) producing returns of note.
This was due to the efforts of Carl Thomas (4 for 35), Ashley Wood (3 for 30) and Anthony Caddy (3 for 31), who combined to limit Hughes and co to 166 all out.
However Bridge’s batsmen came up against some equally effective bowling when they stepped up to the crease, with opener Tahawar Khan out for just four as he was taken LBW.
Dion Holden (43) and the unbeaten Caddy (51) gave impetus to the fightback but Matthew Edwards (4 for 41), Rhys Jones (3 for 29) and Kevin Owen (3 for 36) had the visitors all out for 158.
As a result Bridge are once again in danger of being overtaken by Bangor in the league, and will be aware that Saturday’s match with the reigning champions is one they simply cannot afford to lose.
For their part, Bangor head into Saturday’s clash at relegation threatened Hawarden Park looking to leapfrog Bridge into third.
They do so off the back of a solid six wicket win against Chirk at Ty Newydd at the weekend, in which David Winter produced an outstanding bowling display.
With the visitors opting to bat after winning the toss, Winter took 6 for 62, with only opener Gareth Morris (32) and lower mid-order Jonathan Phillips (30) offering any serious resistance as Chirk stumbled to 129 all out in 37.3 overs.
Bangor’s reply was to total 132 for 4 in 37 overs, with unbeaten Gwilym Lloyd Jones (36) and Robert Marshall (41) the outstanding performers.