Ormskirk Crowned National Champions at Lord’s!
From 255 entrants in December, on a grey September afternoon at Lord’s, Ormskirk did what no Liverpool Competition side had ever managed before — they lifted the ECB National Club Championship, beating Penzance by 25 runs in front of hundreds of travelling supporters.
The scorecard will show Calum Turner’s hundred, Sam Holden’s five-for and Jamie Barnes’ perfect day for seam bowling. But the real story is told best by the players themselves.
Turner’s Big Day
“Pretty surreal really,” said Turner, still clutching his man of the match medal. “Unbelievable day out for Ormskirk because there are some lads that have played here a lot longer than I have, who have deserved this day so much. I just had to put a big performance in when it mattered.”
Turner made 111 — his sixth century of the season — on a pitch where nobody else passed 50. He even survived what he thought was dismissal on 95, bowled by Tommy Sturgess, only to be recalled after a no-ball call. “I’d made peace with it, it was a peach of a ball,” he laughed. “Then I get turned around and four balls later I’m punching Wadlan through mid-wicket to get to three figures. Outrageous.”
He admitted the occasion came with an extra twist: “My brother’s wedding was today. I’ve offered him my man of the match medal as a present. I don’t think I’d have been much use at the wedding anyway.”
Knight on Legacy
For captain Gary Knight, the win was the culmination of years of work. “Unbelievable, yeah just the legacy it leaves behind,” he said. “So many people have put so much effort in. To do it in front of 600–800 people from Ormskirk and to be the first Comp side to do it… just really special.”
Knight believed Turner’s knock was decisive. “I thought 220 was par on that wicket. If Purchase gets going, it makes that look silly, but 240 would have been a hell of a lot. Cal took it on, massively.”
He was quick to credit his bowlers too. “Barnesy, Marsh, Bulcock — they used the slope fantastically well. Holden obviously, he was dangerous even before today, but he got the big wickets. Purchase has been the bane of my life the last four weeks. Getting him early gave us the foothold.”
Holden and Barnes Deliver
Holden’s spell of 5 for 41 turned the game, including the final wicket that sparked wild celebrations in front of the Ormy Army. Knight revealed it hadn’t all gone smoothly: “He got a duck with the bat and was down at half-time. I just told him — you’ve got another chance. And he did.”
Jamie Barnes, who finished with 3 for 33, admitted the emotion got the better of him. His celebration after dismissing Wadlan involved a full knee-slide on the Lord’s outfield. “I’ve never done a knee-slide before and I’m fairly sure I won’t again,” he said. “But Wadlan is such a good player. As long as he was out there it was going to be tough. That wicket made us think, Christ, this could be happening.”
Penzance Reflect
For Penzance captain Brad Wadlan, the disappointment was obvious but so was the pride. “It’s almost the one that got away,” he admitted. “Turner batted really, really well — although we dropped him twice and bowled him off a no-ball. That’s cricket. Ultimately it was the way they bowled in the middle period. We were 80 for none, then 140 for seven. That’s where we lost it.”
Wadlan gave full credit to the opposition. “The two seamers were outstanding, bowled stump to stump with the slope, no freebies. Ormskirk were fantastic today. We’ll dust ourselves off, have a month or two off and regroup. We definitely will be back here.”
More Than a Trophy
As the day drew to a close, the significance of the achievement began to sink in. Toby Bulcock, the left-arm spinner who has won almost everything in his long career, called it “euphoric… like I’m floating, my feet haven’t yet touched the ground.”
Barnes put it in the context of a lifetime at Brook Lane. “I remember my mum dropping me off for my first under-11s game about 24 years ago. In the crowd at Lord’s were people who drove me to my first senior matches. That’s what made it so special — it was the club’s day, not just the eleven who happened to be on the pitch.”
Knight echoed the sentiment. “It’s about the volunteers, the supporters, everyone who makes this club what it is. We’ve got so many ways to win on the field, but it’s that off-field effort that makes us who we are. This will go down in history.”
A Day That Will Live On
Turner’s century, Holden’s wickets, Barnes’ emotion, Bulcock’s calm, Knight’s pride — they all fed into a performance that broke new ground for their club and their league.
“To win a trophy at Lord’s is something most international cricketers will never do,” Barnes said. “This is a moment I probably never thought would come.”
For Ormskirk, it did come — and it will be remembered forever.
Credit: Preview written and consolidated from various sources including our interviews with the players and further interviews by Tom Evans @ Merseyside Cricket Online
