Shrewsbury boss Barnt Green draw

On a weekend disrupted by the weather, Shrewsbury were hoping for a favour from Shropshire rivals Shifnal as they hosted they current leaders on Saturday.

In a match reduced to 40 overs per side after a delayed start, Berkswell restricted the hosts to 166-8 with Ross Aucott top scoring on 34.

Two early wickets from Jack Twigger gave Shifnal hope of an upset. But a third-wicket stand of 113 between Dan Mousley (68) and Chris Whittock (44 no) swung the game in favour of the title favourites

Shrewsbury play Berkswell on Saturday in a match that is likely to have a huge say on who wins the title. And they showed they mean business with a convincing performance against Barnt Green.

At London Road, the hosts scored 215-7 in 40 overs with George Panayi leading the way with 64. Matt Swift added 54.

A brief interruption for rain reduced the visitors’ reply to 38 overs.

But after a bright start from Ed Pollock (58) and George Hargrave (42), Barnt Green meandered to 165-7.

They then spent the rest of the game blocking out for a draw.

In Premier Division Two, the match between Bridgnorth and league leaders Harborne was reduced to 36 overs each.

An excellent knock of 86 from Simon Gregory guided the Shropshire side to a useful total of 178-9.

Swapnil Gugale then set Harborne on course for a victory after hitting 108 from 91 balls.

But his dismissal at 158-2 led to a collapse, with Harborne losing five wickets for 22 as they crawled to victory, with Bridgnorth’s Sam Baugh (5-39) the man who almost caused an upset.

The match between Ombersley and Oswestry proved to be an unbalanced affair, mainly due to the rain.

The hosts registered a significant total of 317-3 in 55 overs.

Oswestry ended on 52-4 with the poor weather thwarting any prospect of a win for either side.