OXFORDSHIRE are still looking for their first win of the season after falling to a 56-run defeat to Shropshire in a rain-affected Western Division match, writes BRADLEY ROSE.

Luke Ryan’s side were bidding to bounce back from defeat to Cornwall in their Unicorns Counties Championship opener.

But Oxon were always up against it at Aston Rowant after a rain-curtailed first day saw them struggling at 42-3 after the visitors posted 264 all out.

Heavy and persistent showers led to no play on Monday.

But on resumption yesterday, Hugo Darby and Richard Kaufman took Oxon to 80-3, before they declared, trailing by 184.

A comical period of cricket then followed, with no Oxon frontline bowlers called upon as the visitors were allowed to smash 115 off ten overs, before declaring and leaving the home side chasing 300 off a minimum of 87 overs.

They got off to the worst possible start as Darby and Lloyd Sabin were dismissed in the space of two balls to leave them struggling on 2-2.

Alex Wyatt (5-83) then took the wicket of Harrison Ward as the hosts slipped to 37-3.

Michael Beard (66) and Kaufman (62) stabilised the ship as Oxon reached 65-3 at lunch.

But once their partnership of 119 ended with the dismissal of Beard, Oxon collapsed from 156-3 to 186-8.

Captain Ryan and Joe Thomas put on a ninth-wicket stand of 57 to boost the hosts’ hopes.

However, their challenge ended when Ryan finally fell and last man Will Rooney was dismissed first ball by David Wainwright.

A disappointed Ryan said: “I thought we rallied really well after a poor start to the second innings, but overall the batting wasn’t good enough.”