Willoughby travelled to their traditional bogey ground at Bugbrooke on Saturday in good spirits following a comfortable victory over Rushden the previous week.

Skipper Ben Hollis won the toss and, on a wicket that looked likely to offer assistance to the bowlers, elected to field first.

Mark Fell and Ryan Haynes opened the bowling, but fortune was certainly on Bugbrooke's side in the early stages. Haynes endured a frustrating spell as thick edges flew to the boundary, inside edges trickled away for four, and a chance went down in the field. At the other end, Fell found himself under immediate pressure as Bugbrooke raced to 39 runs from the opening four overs.

The breakthrough eventually came when A. Ahmed, having ridden his luck on several occasions, finally offered a chance which Hollis safely gathered with an excellent catch over his shoulder. Fell then struck in the following over to remove the other opener for a duck and bring Willoughby back into the contest.

Despite the early wickets, Bugbrooke continued to play aggressively and looked to score quickly throughout the innings. Dave Alcock produced an excellent spell during the middle overs, helping to stem the flow of runs and create further opportunities.

Hollis then led from the front with the ball, claiming two wickets in his opening over, one of which was brilliantly taken behind the stumps by James "Cheesecake" Andrews.

Bugbrooke punished anything loose and ran exceptionally well between the wickets, eventually posting a challenging 263 all out – a score that felt slightly above par on the Bugbrooke surface.

Bowling Figures:

Ben Hollis - 5 for 32 from 7.2 overs

Mark Fell - 2 for 33 from 7 overs

Dave Alcock - 1 for 34 from 8 overs

Stuart Bonthuys -1 for 52 from 10 overs

In reply, Willoughby's run chase never really got going. Nawaz, Kurusala, Alcock and Andrews managed just five runs between them as the visitors struggled to build any meaningful partnerships.

Hanks 19 and Reddy 34* showed some resistance and fought hard to restore respectability to the innings, but wickets continued to fall at regular intervals. Ultimately, Willoughby were bowled out for 81, suffering a disappointing defeat.

Cricket can be a cruel game at times, and this was simply one of those days where nothing seemed to click. It is rare for an entire side to have an off day together, but that's the nature of the sport and one that the team will quickly look to move on from.

Attention now turns to next weekend as Willoughby welcome Mears Ashby to The Green. With the club celebrating its 125th anniversary, there is only one result the team will be aiming for — a return to winning ways.