Fixtures and Results

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HICKLING LANE, KINOULTON, NOTTINGHAMSHIRE

President: David Richards

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Fixtures and Results

Gunn & Moore South Notts Cricket League

2011 Division P, Saturday fixtures 2nd XI. all 1.30pm starts.

SCROLL DOWN FOR MATCH REPORTS

2nd team

Date

Opposition

H/A

Result

Kinoulton score

Opposition Score

Pts

07/05/11

14/05/11

21/05/11

28/05/11

06/06/11

11/06/11

18/06/11

25/06/11

01/07/11

09/07/11

16/07/11

23/07/11

30/07/11

06/08/11

13/08/11

20/08/11

27/08/11

03/09/11

W Bford Legion II

Poplars

Great Dalby

Collingham III

Broad Street

Stanton by Dale II

Collingham III

Kirkby Portland III

Stanton by Dale II

W Bford Legion II

Gedling Colliery IV

Eastwood Town III

Gedling Colliery IV

Broad Street

Poplars

Great Dalby

Eastwood Town III

Kirkby Portland III

WIN

LOST

WON

CAN

WON

180-6

172-7

159-0

112-1

NOT

166-10

141-5

148-9

192-1

90-3

91-2

166-0

120-9

165-6

154-10

108-7

NOW IN

176-5

102-9

114-10

186-6

86-10

90-10

164-10

LEAGUE

Match Reports

Poplars were the opponents for the first home game of the season which saw us turn
out with a relatively unchanged side from last weeks win. With the outlook for rain
during the afternoon, and a ‘rock hard’ wicket, the team consensus was to field first to
work up an appetite for what promised to be a mammoth Cowlard tea. Of course,
Dave being Dave, the toss was lost and we were asked to bat by the opposition.
As per usual, Neil and Tom opened up, seeing off some high standard bowling from
the new ball bowlers. However, when a bad ball came along, it was dispatched,
mostly by Tom who tried his best to smash the windows of the pavilion with a tidy
uppercut off the bowling of Vinay. Neil was the first wicket to fall, after he got a
beauty of a delivery when on 6. Dave then joined Tom at the crease, but was soon
gone for the same score. Maj continued in the same form as his previous innings,
before departing for 18 as a sudden rush of blood saw him dance down the wicket
(must’ve been a touch excited about the cup final…) only to be stumped. Soon after,
Tom’s resistance was finally ended by a fast in-swinging Yorker from Vinay, just 2
short of his half century. With the score on 102-4 with 11 overs left, it was once again
up to Raza and Mo to lift the scoring, with them averaging out at 30 runs apiece. Mo
was trying his best as well to antagonise the opposition by standing out of his ground
for most of his innings and only just getting back in when they had a go at the stumps.
Closing on 172-7, this was a long way past our initial target, though we were aided by
the addition of 32 extras, and the small matter of 5 dropper catches.
The highlight of the day had to be Lyndon’s tea, which even included a vegetarian
section. However, marks were lost for no homemade cakes, but this was probably
balanced out with the excellent budgeting shown after a year’s worth of ribbing over
his maiden effort in last year’s season.
In defence of our total, Raza and Lyndon gave nothing away from the outset, with one
of the openers feeling the need to chance his arm at regular intervals. It was apparent
that the busy schedule was already taking its toll on out once again ‘youthful’ side, as
injuries became common place. To put into perspective, Tom was said to be “less
mobile than Dave or Bertie”. The latter of these two was soon introduced to the attack
by the prior, and with early success too, cleaning up the aggressive opener. This was
shortly followed by a successful LBW shout again off Bertie to get their number 3.
Mo came on at the other end in place of Lyndon, and quickly picked up 2 wickets,
leaving Poplars on 76-4. They offered some resistance for the 5th wicket, putting on
55 runs for it, before Raza and Umran both flattened the timber, so with only 4
wickets in hand they were 37 runs behind with more than enough time to get them in.
Luckily for us, some reckless stroke play and tight bowling meant they were restricted
to 165-6, meaning 2 victories from 2.
Once again, a super effort from everyone in a near faultless performance. One slight
mishap would be Lyndon’s attempt at a long barrier, which saw the ball somehow go
under his leg!! Must be karma for not doing any homemade cakes…..

The long harsh winter has brought about a fresh outlook for the season ahead, as we prepare our journey in the dizzy heights of Oval Property Finance Ltd Division P. Investments had been made to replace any old kit, including Lyndon proudly sporting a new shirt and Neil having spent big bucks on some new batting gloves and a shiny new grip for the Volcano. Evidently Dave had reconsidered the club’s ‘youth policy’, as we turned out with a side containing an average age very close to retirement age. Our ‘experienced’ side made the trip to West Park to face West Bridgford Legion II on what has to be one of the worse tracks ever.

Starting the season as we mean to go on, Dave promptly lost the toss and we were asked to bat first. Tom was the first to depart, as early as the second over, getting an absolute beauty from the young opening bowler, as he managed to find the only spot on the pitch where the ball would actually roll after its first bounce. The skipper then strode to the crease, and shortly did the same journey again, as he returned to the balcony without troubling the scorebook, keeping to his policy of never scoring a run at West Park. Maj joined Neil at the crease, and the two began to score fairly freely, before Maj got a touch excited just after the drinks break and was bowled for 47. Luckily, Raza came in and followed on in the same vein as Maj. Neil then tried to join the party, which ultimately ended up in a trip back to the balcony for a highly skilled 29. At 97-4 after 27 overs, Mo seemed like the right man for the job, producing an innings which included a wide array of shots, bats and gloves. Meanwhile, Raza was ticking over nicely, most memorably smashing a massive 6 in the direction of the on looking crowd, producing dance moves only normally seen on a Saturday night on BBC1. Eventually it was up to the reluctant middle order of Lyndon and Andy to see us through to the 40th over, eventually posting 180-6, a fair effort in the conditions.

In reply, WBL were very slow in their progress, as Raza and Lyndon posed numerous problems. Raza made the first in rode with a regulation knick that was snapped up by Neil at slip. Lyndon joined in in the next over, as he actually succeeded in hitting the stumps for a change instead of just “trying” to. The two WBL batsman at the crease then proceeded to build a steady partnership, until Bertie began to steam in, removing both in successive overs. This just about compensated for the two dropped catches, the first of which would fit into any circus act around the world. Mo was introduced, bowling a wide variety of anything, and eventually picking his only wicket by completely confusing the ‘overseas’ player for the opposition. It was left to Umran/Usain Bolt and Lyndon to try and mop up the tail, with the latter basically having a hat-trick were it not for a dubious decision on the hat-trick ball. Unfortunately, we were unable to bowl WBL out, with them finishing on 120-9.

This was a great way to start off the season, not just for the fact that we won the game, but also the fielding looked massively improved (somehow) on last year. Behind the sticks, Andy had managed to shell out for some very stylish gloves, which actually meant he was able to catch the odd delivery, Neil was only reported to have dropped one chance by Lyndon, and Mo even felt the need to take a catch one handed and virtually behind his back.

19 points, second in the table (even though it is early doors), and more of the same next week hopefully!!

********************************************************************

21ST MAY VS GREAT DALBY;

Looking to maintain the unbeaten start to the season, we made the trip out to Great Dalby (in the South Notts League?!?!?), who had also won both of their opening games. The only team change saw ‘Sideshow’ Mark Towle come in to assist the youth policy and bolster the batting line up, seeing as he’s now retired from bowling. The skipper was undecided on what he should do upon winning the toss, as infront of us was a rather small and very much undulating outfield along with a grassy wicket. A minor miracle occurred as Dave did actually call correctly, asking the opposition to bat first.

Raza took the first over, with a possible catching opportunity presenting itself straight away to Tom at cover which unfortunately just fell short/ was dropped in the eyes of Lyndon. Lyndon came on from the other end, operating into a slight breeze, and was very quick to pick up his first wicket, as their more experienced opener lofted it up to Tom at cover once more. Dalby were then free flowing in their run scoring for the second wicket, although there was a relatively easy chance offered up to Maj who let it slip from his grasp. Lyndon continued to struggle into the gentle wind, yet still managed to pick up a second wicket with a rank long-hop. He was replaced by Mo who bowled a superb spell of ‘fast’ bowling, into a howling gale, picking up 4 wickets in total, one of which included a sharp reaction catch from Neil close in on the off side. Bertie had replaced Raza (who managed to pick up 2 wickets including their number 3 who top scored with 38), but the club groundsman was fairly ineffective with the short boundary peppered frequently in his short spell. He did manage to pick up one wicket, with thanks to a towering catch from Lyndon patrolling the boundary near the ‘pavilion’. Lyndon picked up the last wicket, and his third, in the 37th over of the Dalby innings, with the score on 154.

In reply, Neil and Tom once more strode to middle, the latter immediately finding form once more with a couple of textbook off-side drives. Offering the odd chance, mainly being dropped on the boundary on 32, Tom continued to score at a steady rate. At the other end, Neil was battling along with the trusty Volcano, as some tight bowling kept him in check. The overall ground-fielding from Dalby was good; however they ended up giving us 33 extra runs, mainly in byes and wides. It wasn’t long before Tom reached his first half century of the season, hitting three fours on the trot to reach this landmark, which was greeted by the ‘traditional’ horn-blowing from the rest of the team. These two began to inch closer to the victory target, as Neil began to get his eye in more and more. With just the one run required, Neil tickled one of his legs and the pair scampered through for a single and the victory. However, the fielder felt the need to have a shy at the stumps for no real reason, missed by miles, and with no one backing it up, the ball raced off to the boundary, gifting Neil a 50 not out. Tom finished 76 not out, beating his previous best of 75 not out scored last season.

A well and truly comprehensive victory, with maximum points achieved for the first time this season, and a record partnership for the seconds of 159 between Neil and Tom, unfortunately meaning Mark had a nice little TFC.

*************************************************************

28TH MAY VS COLLINGHAM

Looking to build upon our dominant start to the season, Collingham thirds were the opponents for the second home game of the campaign. With Umran sitting out this game, it was a chance to bolster the youth policy with the inclusion of Tim to the starting line up. With a green wicket, spiced up by big downpours just before the start, and another toss won, Dave asked the visitors to bat.

Raza and Lyndon (much to his disgust) took the new ball, and it was as early as the third over for the first wicket to fall. The young Collingham openers thought it would be a good idea to take a quick single to Tom, described after the game as the “best fielder we’ve got” (which says a lot for our fielding…), who swooped and threw down the stumps with ease. Two overs later, Raza had his one and only wicket for the afternoon, getting the other opener to knick one behind, taken magnificently by Neil at slip, diving away one handed. At the other end, Lyndon bowled at least 50 times better than he did last week, without any of the success, possible due to the skipper dropping the easiest chance of the day when the ball was in his hands for a long period (must have been the shock of taking it made him put it down), completing his 10 overs straight through for just 15 runs conceded. Needing a breakthrough to the stubborn defence of the Collingham batsmen, Bertie and Mo were called for. For a change, Bertie bowled a few looseners, obviously just to lure the batsmen into a false sense of security, twice picking up wickets having just been hit for 6. This sudden aggressive batting meant Maj was sent out to the mid-wicket boundary, and only needed a pair of binoculars to go with his floppy hat to complete the safari look. Mo carried on from last weeks display, taking 2 wickets, both bowled middle stump. It became more and more apparent that Collingham were just looking to survive rather than score, but we couldn’t find a way of bowling them out. Bertie picked up his 3rd and final wicket from a plum LBW with the score on 80. With the intention of mopping the tail up, Raza and Tim bowled quick and tight, but this didn’t prove to be enough, with them closing on 108-7, a total we saw to be well below par.

It has to be mentioned that our fielding was superb today, with the high standard maintain throughout. The fielding placements weren’t going our way, as it seemed like every time Neil moved out of slip, an opportunity went through there. Its possible that maximum effort wasn’t shown all the time, due to ‘a slight graze on the knee’ of the vice captain, and there was the odd blemish as per usual, such as Tim not being able to make his mind up which end to throw at so chose to go down the middle, and Andy trying to play the cymbals every so often while keeping, along with Tom and Lyndon leaving a chance for each other when either one of them could’ve easily taken it.

Tea saw a Davies family effort, complete with homemade cakes for less than £40 (sorry Lyndon, had to mention it!!)

The reply saw Neil and Tom continue on in the same fashion as the previous 2 weeks, the later being the more aggressive, and more frustrated, of the two as is the norm. Some wayward, and extremely slow bowling (so slow it made Bertie look like Brett Lee and Mo look like Shoaib Akhtar), enabled them to just wait for the bad ball and dispatch it to the boundary. With the score on 78, and Tom approaching back to back half centuries, the returning opening bowler send down an absolute beauty, hitting the top of off stump. Mark Towle entered the arena, and him and Neil knocked off the rest of the runs in the 29th over of our innings, Neil finishing 42 not out….must be playing for his average already……

All in all, 4 wins from a possible 4, with only 6 points dropped all season, which is somehow more than the number of catches dropped!!

11TH JUNE VS STANTON

For the first time this season, we had to make more than one change in our line up for the visit of Stanton by Dale II. Andy decided that he was to take the role of Christopher Collumbus and go gallivanting around Portugal, so Bilal was drafted in for his debut. Bertie was the second to miss out due to an injured hip (common sign of getting old, sure nothing a bit of deep heat can’t fix), meaning Izzy got her first game of the season, much to Tom’s delight. Seems like the youth policy is on the slide.

With the usual ‘Bertie Road’ and healthy cloud cover, Dave somehow won another toss (surely a club record) and asked Stanton to bat first.

With much deliberation, Neil put on the gloves and kept wicket. Once again it was Raza and Lyndon sharing the new ball. Raza was the first to make a breakthrough, proving that bad balls do indeed get wickets when one of the openers edged a short wide one straight to Neil, who made no mistake. In all honesty, even Andy could have caught that one! Stanton the fought back, and even with the ball nibbling around, we were unable to break the second wicket partnership. Mo replaced Raza, and Mark, fresh out of his bowling retirement, replaced Lyndon. At one point, Mo appeared to have a stone cold LBW, which was turned down, with the batsman supposedly having hit it, a view not shared by those behind the stumps. For some reason, this decision seemed to rile Mo, who suddenly began to bowl as quick as he ever has previously. A slight rain break at drinks allowed us to regroup, leading to Sideshow removing both of the set batsman in the same over, but only after they put on 104 runs. Lyndon came back on to take his one and only wicket, aided by a neat stumping from Neil. Desperate for wickets, Dave turned to Umran, who managed to pick one up in his short 3-over spell. A late flurry of runs gave Stanton a total of 176 for the loss of just 5 wickets.

Following a great tea from the lads, Neil and Tom strode out to chase down the gettable target. Everything looked good in the early proceedings, Tom once more looking aggressive as he took a liking to the opposition skipper’s bowling, playing a couple of nice looking drives, both front and back foot. 50 runs were on the board when Neil became the first to go, playing anywhere but the right line of a straight ball. Mark came in at number three, and was watchful to begin with, possibly no aided by Tom getting himself out going big to reach his half century. It would appear this jug avoidance tactic operated by Tom is becoming just a bit too much of a regular occurrence, or maybe it was just the pressure of trying to perform his best in front of Izzy on this occasion. A flow of falling wickets followed, with Maj and Raza both departing with just one run between them. Mark managed to find a partner in Mo, as the pair were able to score with more freedom, one hitting a Derbyshire County Girls bowler for 26 from her first two overs and the other hitting his first maximum at Kinoulton which rearranged the roof tiles on the pavilion. Mark eventually holed out to the only fielder on the legside boundary for 28, Bilal came and went for 1, similarly Lyndon for 9. With the pressure on and 40+runs still needed, Dave promoted himself up the order, and managed to coax Mo along towards our target. But, with a sudden rush of blood, Mo tried to go for glory once more and only succeeded in finding long on for 48. Dave was bowled for 6 and Umran chipped one up for 0, leaving Izzy stranded on a well constructed 0 not out and the team just a mere 10 runs short of victory.

Overall a very disappointing performance, with us basically being out of the game for around 90% of it, so to fight back and still lose is annoying. The fielding for once was slack with at least 2 if not 3 dropped catches (and I’m afraid it was an actual drop this week Neil) and our composure seemed to have deserted us. Still, at least Izzy got to spend a whole afternoon with Tom.....

********************************************************************

18TH JUNE VS COLLINGHAM III

The lengthy trip up to the ploughed field which Collingham III call home was not aided in any way by the traffic, the weather, or the fact that Raza had pulled out at last minute, leaving the skipper and other team members trying to find available players to try and make a full quota. Bertie was once again unable to play, with the physio’s table on the horizon for him, and Lyndon was forced to miss his first game of the season. Luckily, TDH was promoted from the firsts to join us, Tim was recalled, and Veg and Simon made their season debuts. After a shower delayed the start, a 30-over per side game was agreed, and Dave, obviously feeling the pressure of winning so many tosses, managed to lose this one and we were asked to bat first.

After a couple of confident boundaries in the first couple of overs, Tom went for 10, somehow managing to pull a short ball back onto middle stump. Maj and Neil then rebuilt our innings, with Maj starting to once again look good, before skying a big shot which was easily caught. Mo selected one of six bats to use and started sending the Collingham bowlers all around the park, looking rather restrained for a change, until he got a faint edge to first slip when on 23. Enter Holmes, out to prove he could actually hold a bat. With Neil still there and happy to nudge to ball around, and 11 overs left to bat, TDH was given a free licence to bat in his usual way, which included taking apart one of the young female bowler of the opposition (must the same way he coaches them too). Neil’s resistance finally yielded as he was bowled for 29, his innings ideal for the situation. Tim came and went for 4, leaving Simon one ball to face at the end, which he managed to successfully see out, an instant improvement on last year. Holmes finished on 40 not out, something we’ll not hear the end of for some time. Totalling 141-5 was an impressive effort given the circumstances and the batting line up.

The defence of our total started well, with both Holmes and Tim bowling quick and tight. Tom was the first to strike, with Dave grasping a catch at mid off. The rain soon came again, which gave us a new outlook, Mo being introduced and removing the other girl in the opposition with his first ball, before talking his second a couple of overs later. This second wicket was the result of a one handed slip catch by Tom Davies, in which he couldn’t actually believe he’d caught it. In search of a fourth bowler, Dave turned to Maj who soon got his first wicket for the club. At this point the score was 33-4. All four bowlers continued to pile on pressure, helped along by solid fielding from the rest of the side which now included young Jamie who turned out to make up the numbers (could’ve at least worn an England shirt instead of an Argentinean one), and wickets continued to fall, until eventually 30 overs were complete with Collingham 9 down for 102 runs.

Back to winning ways in comfortable fashion, and only dropped the one point cementing 2nd place in the league.

25TH JUNE VS KIRKBY. KINOULTON WIN 148-9 BEAT KIRKBY 114-10

Bottom side Kirkby Portland II were the latest side to visit Kinoulton on a standard blustery Saturday afternoon. We were boosted by the returns of Sideshow and Lyndon, and with Raza unable to play once again, it was Katie who got the call up. With rain forecast and a very green track, winning the toss and bowling first would be the ideal result, which is exact what Kirkby did.

It wasn’t long before we were 22-3, 11 overs infact. Tom was first to go, as he was run out in a slight mix up/meet and greet halfway down the wicket. Mark was the second to go, out LBW with the travelling umpire having his finger up before the ball even struck Mark’s foot. Maj was the last of the early collapse without troubling the scorers. Not for the first time, it was up to Neil and Mo to rebuild our innings, putting on 56 for the 4th wicket before Neil was C&B for 19. Holmes came in at 6, and soon went for 7, bowled middle peg. Mo had obviously been paying too much attention to Tom’s jug avoidance tactics in previous games, as he went four runs short of his half century. A late flurry of wickets fell as we looked to push on, with Tim (12), Katie (3) and Umran (2) all selfishly gave their wickets away for the cause. We finished nine wickets down, leaving Dave not out on 4 and Lyndon just about into double figures. A reasonable total of 148-9 was amassed, which wasn’t a bad effort given the conditions, aided by the opposition giving away 39 extras.

Holmes and Tim once again took the ‘new’ ball, keeping things fairly tight from the get go. Tim took the first wicket in the 8th over, clean bowling the opening batsman. The two young opening bowlers from the opposition were now together in the middle and provided stubborn resistance. Holmes’ opening spell, although wicketless, gave us the control we needed, as his first 6 overs went for just 6 runs. Then came the Mark Towle show, starting with a run out off his own bowling, followed by 4 wickets in 19 deliveries. This effort just about makes up for the dropped catch at backward point earlier in the innings. From the other end, Lyndon was ineffective, and Maj, who probably didn’t bowl as well as last week, was still able to pick up a wicket in his first over. A brief period of no wickets, including what should possibly have been Mark’s 5-for, lead to Tim and TDH going into the pavilion and getting out the mop, taking the last 3 wickets in their first 14 balls back, bowling out Kirkby for 114.

Minus some dodgy batting up front, another solid win infront of what must be a record crowd for a Kinoulton 2nds game, with at least 5 home supporters staying for the majority of the game.

02/07/11 vs Stanton by Dale

notable performances; Raza Ul-Haq 81 no. Tom Davies 69 no. 2nd wicket partnership 137

A trip to what is possibly the most isolated ground in cricket could only mean we were playing at Stanton by Dale, looking to make amends for the defeat they handed us earlier on in the season. It didn’t seem like a Saturday at all as the sun actually shone and there was very little in the way of wind. Another first for the season was the return of Frenchy, who’d obviously been knocked out of Wimbledon early despite all his supposed preparation for SW19. Raza was back in the ranks, as was Simon, down to the fact that Sideshow was now parading himself around mainland Europe. With half the team still making the mountainous climb up to the ground, Tim took over responsibilities at the toss and won, asking Stanton to bat first on a pitch that made a Bertie special look like a bowler’s paradise, as this was hard, flat and dry.

TDH and Tim took the new ball once again, and could’ve had a handful of wickets between them if things had gone our way. LBW shouts, though looking extremely close at times, were given not out, balls were hit in the air but landed safe, and on the occasions it looked like going to hand, Neil came across Tom and put it down then Dave was flinging himself one handed at short midwicket but it didn’t stick either. Bowling changes didn’t bring us anymore luck, as Raza and Maj were unable to find some sort of break through. This was left to Mo, who served up a nice leg-stump half volley that was hit straight to Holmes at midwicket. Raza toiled away, and was finally rewarded, picking up his 2 wickets in the space of a couple of overs. Tim came back for a lengthy 1 over spell, picking up a wicket immediately. 2 annoying partnerships followed as our opening bowlers tried to retrieve their mops from the dressing room, but only managed 1 wicket each, leaving Stanton on 186 for 6. This could’ve been a lot less, but multiple catches were put down, or even just left alone in Holmes’ case, but to keep them to below 200 was ideal.

Tom and Neil opened up as usual, and began to see how easy it was to bat on this surface. Tom managed to push the field back very early on, so it was very easy for the pair to rotate the strike. It wasn’t until the 14th over that a wicket fell, Neil kindly offering the bowler some catching practice when he was on 17, the team score now 55-1. Raza was in at 3, and looked a bit shaky at the start, struggling to get the ball off the square (no mean feat seeing as we were on the end strip!) but soon found his stride, scoring quickly and freely, aided by both some very suspect bowling and the fact he was caught off of a wide ball and given not out. Tom at the other end was playing second fiddle, content with just pushing the ball around, playing up to the jeers with regards to a red-inker from the rest of the team. The winning runs came in the 31st over, Raza launching his second 6 of his innings, amassing 81 not out from just 54 balls, while Tom batted through for a more sedate 69 from 93 balls.

Another convincing and dominant performance, and even though there were many mistakes on our part, a win is a win, made more satisfying that it was against the only team to have beaten us this year.

Welcome back to cricket Adam France, ‘thanks for coming’!!!

**************************************************************

Following last week’s convincing victory, West Bridgford Legion were the visitors on a typically cloudy afternoon. The absence of messes Starr and France gave the opportunity for Andy to slot nicely back in, much to Neil’s relief, and, seeing as the firsts didn’t have a game, Tariq was the nominated ringer to make the step up. Becoming far too much of a regular occurrence, Dave won another toss and asked WBL to bat on a (very) green topped wicket.

As per usual, Holmes and Tim took the new ball, and as in previous weeks, bowled as tightly as possible, restricting any scoring opportunities. However, for a change, Tim was the one who toiled away with nothing to show for it, whilst TDH cashed in with 3 wickets in his first 7 over spell, the first a plum LBW and the other 2 faint edges through to Andy who it seemed hadn’t fully forgotten what a cricket ball looked like. Tom could’ve had a 4th wicket if Dave managed to hold on to a catch that was straight at him, meaning he now has a career record number of drops for this season. Raza and Mo took over, each bowling 10 overs straight through. Mo managed to take a wicket in his first over, knocking over off peg. He then took another 3 for just 24 runs, proving the age old theory of ‘bad balls get wickets’. Equally as economical, Raza just picked up the solitary wicket. With the opposition 8 wickets down, it was up to Tim to mop up the tail, taking wickets with consecutive deliveries, meaning he’ll be on a hat trick ball next time out (just a shame this wont be for a few weeks). WBL were bowled out for a poultry 86 from 37.2 overs, only really help by the 20 extras given to them by our bowlers.

Tom found himself with a new opening partner in the shape of Tariq, who initially struggled to get used to the lower standard of bowling than he is used to facing, but Tom was able to make up for it, piercing the offside regularly. Just as Tariq looked to be finding some form, he managed to hit the ball straight to midwicket for 22. Looking to repeat last week, Raza came in at 3, but soon went back for just 2, mistiming a drive straight up in the air. As Tom and Maj looked to be closing in on the target, Tom missed a complete straight ball and out LBW for 38 having not looked in danger of getting out at all. So it was left to Maj and Mo to knock of the remaining handful of runs, unfortunately just less than 4 an over so maximum point weren’t achieved, but nevertheless, a win is a win.

A totally dominant performance once again, with a high standard of fielding regained this week, although there were still 2 dropped catches, the ground fielding was exemplary, possibly helped by on field coaching from Holmes.

Thanks must go to Veg and Will for umpiring the whole game.

*********************************************************************

After last weeks match being rained off, everyone seemed eager to get back into the swing of things, even more so as the visitors were the only side above us in the league, Eastwood Town III. Bertie was finally back into the starting line up after an eternity on the physio’s table, as was Simon. Confusion made up the rest of the team, with TDH being told he was playing for the firsts, then later promoted back to the seconds, much to his liking. Umran had pulled out late Friday with a bad back, so Dave was unsure if we’d even have 11. Luckily, we drafted in Mo (as if having one Mo already wasn’t enough). Dave won yet another toss and asked Eastwood to bat first.

This decision was soon justified as Holmes struck with an absolute beauty with just his 5th ball. Holmes, along with Raza, continued to build pressure, and Eastwood should have really lost more wickets in the first few overs, however Andy thought he would give them a chance with three drops in quick succession (obviously those extra large gloves just aren’t big enough). The score was on 24 when Raza once again found the outside edge, however this time it went slightly wider, allowing Neil to just get his left hand under the ball, for a spectacular catch. This was the beginning of a precession of wickets for Raza, as he took 4 wickets in 14 balls, leaving Eastwood on 35 for 5 after 12 overs. They however fought back, until Bertie was introduced to the attack, getting 2 wickets in his second over. A few lusty blows from their skipper made the total slightly more respectable, but the returning Holmes was too good for him. The other 2 wickets were taken by new boy Mo, who completely out-foxed both the opposition and Andy behind the sticks with his variations. Eastwood were all out for 90 inside 30 overs, which isn’t bad seeing as the fielding was very hit and miss at times as basic errors were overshadowed by brief moments of brilliance.

Our reply began in much the same way as the rest of the season, with Tom and Neil getting the board ticking over quite regularly, mainly thanks to the early extras given to us. Tom seemed determined to give away his wicket, but was dropped 3 times and gave plenty of other half chances. Neil was the first to go for 11 as he edged one to their skipper at slip, who held on at the 4th time of asking. Maj was in at 3, and looked to score from the off. Tom departed when he managed to chip one straight back to the bowler for 52. Mo and Maj soon knocked off the remaining runs, giving us the easiest of 8 wicket victories. Not only was it a win, it means we switch places with them in the league, so are now top for the first time this season.

With only 5 more league games to go this season, we are perfectly placed, but as it gets towards holiday season, it may prove to be the toughest five games of the season for us.

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With the other three Gedling Colliery teams playing away, we were privileged enough to play on their first team pitch. Fresh from their conquering of Europe, Mark and Jamie were drafted straight into the starting line up. On one of the flattest and driest wickets we’ve ever witnessed, Dave managed to win the toss and asked Gedling to bat first, with the theory of we’d be better if we knew what we were chasing, hoping the pitch wouldn’t have any demons later on in the day.

Initially, this looked to have possibly been the wrong choice, as the opposition scored freely, using the short boundary on one side to their full advantage. Raza was taken out of the attack after just 2 overs, with Bertie being trusted to stop the flow. And it soon worked as he bowled one of the openers with a ball even Graeme Swann would’ve been proud of. This brought 13 year old Sam Brown to the crease. Mo soon had the other opener trapped LBW for 23. Then the fight back came from young Brown, who batted beautifully for his 64, before he was clean bowled by Maj, who continued to look threatening, picking up 4 wickets in the end. Raza came back on, and was very quick to pick up 3 wickets, maintaining his record of taking at least one wicket in every game. A daft little run out for the last wicket meant Gedling were all out for 164, probably about 100 runs short of where they should’ve been. In all honesty, we really should’ve had them out for a lot less if the fielding was up to scratch. There must’ve been at least 5 chances dropped (thankfully Lyndon wasn’t playing or he’d have had a field day), none of which were particularly difficult and on another day we would’ve taken them. However, seeing as half the team are crippled these days, it maybe wasn’t so bad after all. Injury list: Tom – finger; Andy – neck (somehow achieved during the game); Bertie & Dave – everything…..

There isn’t too much to say about the run chase, as Neil and Tom knocked if off without any sort of trouble. Playing ‘the best innings he’s ever played’, Tom finished 101 not out (obviously he thought Izzy was watching….), with Neil (32) being outscored by the extras (33). It did look towards the end like Tom wasn’t going to get chance to get to three figures. When on 97, and with just 7 more runs to win, Neil managed to get a thick outside edge for 4 down to third man, meaning Tom needed all 3 of the 3 runs required. With the mentality of an even number of runs or nothing, the returned opening bowler kindly offered up a half volley outside off stump that was powerfully driven to the cover boundary. Tom’s innings included 15 boundary 4s and one 6.

Another dominating victory, 20 more points, and still top of the table with just 4 more league games to play.

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