Ed Foster faces Sri Lanka A tourists‏

By Stuart Dunn at the Shrewsbury Chronicle

Ed Foster, the consistent Shrewsbury opening batsman, hit 31 against international opposition after receiving a call up to play for Unicorns.

Foster had previously turned down the chance to play for Unicorns, the Minor Counties representative side which is effectively a team made up of the best amateur players in the country.

But he accepted the opportunity to play for them against the Sri Lanka A tourists in a one-day clash at Newcastle’s South Northumberlad Cricket Club.

Foster faced 45 balls for his 31 at the top of the Unicorns order, cracking three boundaries, as he helped his side, which also featured another Shropshire player in paceman Ben Sanderson, post 237.

But it was not quite enough as the Sri Lankans responded with 240-5 to seal a five-wicket victory.

Rod Foster, the Shrewsbury captain and Ed’s younger brother, said the Unicorns call was good recognition.

“They asked him to play for them a few years ago when he was Shropshire captain,” he said. “But too many of the games clashed with Shropshire fixtures and he wasn’t looking to get back into first class cricket which a lot of the players who play for Unicorns are.

“It’s a great achievement for Ed to have been picked to play against Sri Lanka A, a good experience for him to play against a side of their quality.”