A fine all-round display from Stuart Hole was the feature of the opening day of Oxfordshire's Minor Counties Western Divison match against Shropshire at Shrewsbury yesterday.

Hole helped Oxfordshire to recover from a poor start to reach 200, and then took both a wicket and a catch in Shropshire's reply of 181-4.

Oxon, fielding three debutants, were unlucky to lose the toss - and had to bat first on a greenish pitch.

They were soon 15-2 after losing Keith Mustow and Craig Haupt in successive balls to seamer Nick Clewley.

So Finchampstead's Andy Hobbs came in on a hat-trick on his debut. He survived the hat-trick ball, but soon departed to leave Oxon 37-3.

Bicester's Alex Jewell made just 11 in his first game for Oxon, before Jamie Hewitt and Chris Smith took them to 102-4 off 32 overs at lunch.

Smith reached his half-century shortly after lunch, but both he and Hewitt fell as Oxon slipped to 131-6.

Hole then dominated the rest of the innings, hitting eight fours in his 46 which came off 57 balls.

After Hole had dismissed Shropshire opener Ed Foster, both Chris Martin and Matthew Tilt were dropped off hard chances and went on to reach half-centuries.

The pair were threatening to take charge, before Keith Arnold dismissed Martin, and debutant off-spinner Dickon Morris was rewarded with the wicket of Tilt in a promising first spell for the county.

Arnold struck again before the close to leave Shropshire, 19 runs behind with six wickets in hand.

SCOREBOARD

OXFORDSHIRE

First Innings

K Mustow c Home b Clewley...9

C Smith c Foster b Whitney...58

C Haupt lbw Clewley...0

A Hobbs c Tilt b Catterall...6

A Jewell c Ralph b Catterall...11

J Hewitt c Tilt b Whitney...28

I Hawtin lbw O'Connor...13

St Hole c Robinson b O'Connor...46

R Lynch c Catterall b O'Connor...4

D Morris c Tilt b Catterall...5

K Arnold not out...0

Extras...20

Total (all out, 61.3 ovs)...200

Fall: 1-15, 2-15, 3-37, 4-65, 5-114, 6-131, 7-150, 8-170, 9-200.

Bowling: O'Connor 14-6-34-3, Clewley 19-5-71-2, Catterall 12.3-1-40-3, Whitney 8-0-32-2, Robinson 8-3-12-0.

SHROPSHIRE

First innings

E Foster lbw Hole...18

C Martin lbw Arnold...61

M Tilt c Hole b Morris...52

G Fellows lbw Arnold...15

D Catterall not out...19

J Ralph not out...10

Extras...6

Total (4 wkts, 487 ovs)...181

Fall: 1-21, 2-127, 3-141, 4-162.

Bowling: Arnold 14-0-42-2, Hole 8-1-31-1, Lynch 4-0-20-0, Hewitt 9-0-29-0, Morris 14-2-57-1,

Shropshire 5pts, Oxon 2