Semi woe for county bowlers

Shropshire's bowlers suffered heartbreak in the prestigious Endsleigh County Championship as they lost a thrilling semi-final with Greater Manchester.

The county players won the home leg at Greenfields No 2 in Shrewsbury yesterday, but went down at Crompton in Oldham to lose out by just nine shots overall.

That means their long wait to get their hands back on the Crosfield Cup will have to continue for at least another year.

Shropshire won the title back in 1974 but have reached the final just once since then - losing to Yorkshire in 1998.

Hopes were high that they could end that run this year, having beaten defending champions Warwick & Worcester and much-fancied Cheshire in their qualifying group.

"We're absolutely devastated," said team manager Dennis Lewis.

"It was an excellent match and I'd have been feeling confident if we'd won because I think we would have stood a good chance against Derbyshire (who won the other semi-final)."

By Chris Hudson