3rd XI end of season report 2012.
Overall a very pleasing season we managed to finish 5th just behind 4th and 3rd and only a couple of wins away from seriously competing for promotion something which would probably be achieved with a regular amount of availability throughout the ranks.
To finish above the likes of Orpington, Sidcup and Old Elthamians is great news for us though and we’ll look forward to competing in the same division next season.
One regular feature of our side though has been Neville Bailey who as always has umpired expertly throughout the season so a big shout out goes to him.
Season highlights include the breakthrough into adult teams for Abhishek Patel and Jake Owen. As well as other colts that played in the 3s for a few games before moving on up to the 2s, these include Jake and Iestyn Caddy, Billy Rouse and James Alvey.
The 3s wouldn’t be what they are without the old timers of Andy Parker, Andy Rouse, Brian North and Steve Smith though, who continually put in performances to help the team.
Steve finished the season as highest run scorer on 229 with Rousey just behind on 214. In the bowling Northy finished at the top for the team easily with 33 wickets, this was enough for him to be leading wicket taker for our division as well, so congratulations to him. He also finished at the top of the pile for the number of catches with 7 too.
Highest scorer was Marc Woods with a breath taking 68 on the final day of the season, Will Berry’s match winning 66* not out at Dulwich was another highlight as well as Will Sanders’ 56 at Sidcup, Rowan Clapp’s 53* against Orpington and Andy Rouse’s 51 in the away fixture to them.
Bowling wise Brian picked up 3 fivers in his 33 wickets with his best coming against Old Wilsonians with 7-29. Iestyn’s 5-25 away to Old Elthamians helped us win that game while Rohan Patel in his only game for us picked up 4-8 against Old Colfes.
Thanks have to go to Grace too who supplied fantastic teas throughout the season and to the boys who helped chipping in with umpiring/scoring. Steve Smith won’t be happy unless his putting out of the boundary and stumps for every home game is mentioned so there you are Steve.
All in all a fairly decent season as said, in what was captain Luke Hunter’s 3rd and final season in charge, although the same was said last year!! A highlight for him was top scoring in the Old Elthamian game as we recovered from a poor position to ultimately successfully chase down 150.
With other teams in the club deservedly taking the headlines this season the 3s are happy to sit back and allow them to, but will be keen to make some headlines for themselves next year…… You have been warned.
To finish above the likes of Orpington, Sidcup and Old Elthamians is great news for us though and we’ll look forward to competing in the same division next season.
One regular feature of our side though has been Neville Bailey who as always has umpired expertly throughout the season so a big shout out goes to him.
Season highlights include the breakthrough into adult teams for Abhishek Patel and Jake Owen. As well as other colts that played in the 3s for a few games before moving on up to the 2s, these include Jake and Iestyn Caddy, Billy Rouse and James Alvey.
The 3s wouldn’t be what they are without the old timers of Andy Parker, Andy Rouse, Brian North and Steve Smith though, who continually put in performances to help the team.
Steve finished the season as highest run scorer on 229 with Rousey just behind on 214. In the bowling Northy finished at the top for the team easily with 33 wickets, this was enough for him to be leading wicket taker for our division as well, so congratulations to him. He also finished at the top of the pile for the number of catches with 7 too.
Highest scorer was Marc Woods with a breath taking 68 on the final day of the season, Will Berry’s match winning 66* not out at Dulwich was another highlight as well as Will Sanders’ 56 at Sidcup, Rowan Clapp’s 53* against Orpington and Andy Rouse’s 51 in the away fixture to them.
Bowling wise Brian picked up 3 fivers in his 33 wickets with his best coming against Old Wilsonians with 7-29. Iestyn’s 5-25 away to Old Elthamians helped us win that game while Rohan Patel in his only game for us picked up 4-8 against Old Colfes.
Thanks have to go to Grace too who supplied fantastic teas throughout the season and to the boys who helped chipping in with umpiring/scoring. Steve Smith won’t be happy unless his putting out of the boundary and stumps for every home game is mentioned so there you are Steve.
All in all a fairly decent season as said, in what was captain Luke Hunter’s 3rd and final season in charge, although the same was said last year!! A highlight for him was top scoring in the Old Elthamian game as we recovered from a poor position to ultimately successfully chase down 150.
With other teams in the club deservedly taking the headlines this season the 3s are happy to sit back and allow them to, but will be keen to make some headlines for themselves next year…… You have been warned.
OD Cuaco 3rd XI vs. Blackheath 7th XI September 1st
Blackheath 199-9 46 overs
OD CUACO 200-6 38.3 overs
This time last year the OD’s 3rd XI were fighting for survival in the final game of the season. 12 months on and progress has clearly been made as we headed into the final game of the season knowing that we were secure in mid-tableness.
After losing the toss we were asked to field, which is what skipper Luke Hunter wanted, apparently. Marc Woods (12-2-56-0) took the new ball, he obviously took a dislike to it as he dropped the first one short and was appropriately dispatched through square leg for four, the ball ended up being irretrievable from wherever its final resting place was.
We recovered briefly from this shaky start as Billy Rouse (11-2-53-2) claimed our first wicket, thanks to Andy Parker showing the youngsters how not to take a slip catch – by using just one hand and without moving his feet. However this wicket seemed to motivate Blackheath more than ourselves and the runs started to flow with a bugle being blown by the delighted oppo for every boundary scored.
The entry of Brian North (12-1-39-3) and Cameron Sanders (11-1-47-3) had the desired effect as the run rate slowed and the wickets picked up largely thanks to some absolutely fantastic catches. First Will Berry caught out their opener as he held onto a stinger at cover, though had he not taken the catch then his self-induced (one too many ‘cokes’ on Friday night) headache would have increased even more so.
A few overs later he found himself in the action once again as a ball was hit high in the air, it looked destined to fall to the ground in between Will and Billy but Will did excellently turning around and running to take a decent catch over his shoulder, much to the teams’ delight.
Cam picked up his second wicket when Sam Fishlock held on to another good catch to leave the oppo at 80-4 at drinks.
This soon became 5 and then 6 as first their number 5 bat took an ugly swipe at Northy and was comprehensively bowled, and then Cam picked up his 3rd as Northy took an inspiring diving one handed catch at 2nd slip. Reports that Andy Rouse as keeper had to push Brian are unfounded at the minute.
Things were looking pretty rosy at this point, however their Aussie/South African number 8 had different ideas and batted very well taking his time and hitting the bad balls to amass a decent 58 not out. This marked the return of the oppo’s bugle which had been muted for the previous 15 overs. Their mini revival was halted as Will took his 3rd great catch of the game out at long-on off Northy’s bowling. The openers then returned, but unfortunately couldn’t quite finish Blackheath off as the skipper had hoped. Billy managed to pick up his 2nd of the game as their skipper hit one into the air, about 3 times the height of the Shard, underneath it was the captain, who was circling under the ball unable to control his feet, with the ball in the air almost as long as one of H Smith’s speeches he eventually managed to steady himself long enough to take a clean catch, much to most people’s surprise.
A sharp run out by Parkerman ended their innings on the final ball as they started to run extremely quick singles. A score of 199-9 seemed far too much given the position they had been in, though despite our poorish ground fielding and a couple of dropped catches, we were delighted with the ones we took as well as the small amount of extras we’d given the oppo just 4% of their total.
After another great home tea, we set out on our task knowing that to win we would have to score 200 for the first time this season. Our innings got off to a very bad start as first Abhishek and then Parkerman were both dismissed for ducks. This brought together Rouse senior (44) and Woodsy (68), who’d been promoted to 4 as he was pumped up after being in an annoyed mood throughout tea.
This proved to be an inspiring decision as they batted extremely well together, running the quick singles and punishing the bad balls in big style. It was now our turn to play the bugle, which was not frowned upon by the oppo at all but encouraged!!
As drinks were reached we had amassed to 90-2, as Marc past his 50. The skipper duly reminded him in the break that he still had to score a couple more runs to be par for the match however.
Blackheath continued to tinker with their bowling attack attempting to find a breakthrough.
After some more big hitting from the boys in the middle Blackheath eventually got the wicket which broke the partnership of 130 runs as Rouse senior was LBW playing a tired looking shot. Will Berry (29) picked up the mantle as he soon lost Woodsy to a dodgy looking stumping. Marc returned to great cheers from the support and team mates who let him know that if he worked on his bowling a bit he’d be a superb all rounder!!
The rhyming youngsters Will and Bill (32) batted intelligently as the required run rate was under 4, they continued to hit boundaries, however after trying to repeat one big shot which had landed for 6 Bill was caught on the boundary.
Sam Fishlock helped Will bring the scores level, before Will was well caught. Will claimed later he had got out on purpose as he knew that Luke was playing his last game as captain and wanted to let him hit the winning runs.
Luke duly did 2nd ball he faced as he cracked one through the off side to bring up the victory by 4 wickets and the 3s 6th win of the season and a finishing place of 5th – not quite in the 1s or 2s class but decent enough all the same.
A quick check of the rule book and some calculations confirmed Blackheath had got enough points to stay up which is great news as they’re a good bunch of lads – with any luck though their bugle will go missing over the winter!!
Thanks to Neville for umpiring and Grace for the teas and the boys who scored.
OD CUACO 200-6 38.3 overs
This time last year the OD’s 3rd XI were fighting for survival in the final game of the season. 12 months on and progress has clearly been made as we headed into the final game of the season knowing that we were secure in mid-tableness.
After losing the toss we were asked to field, which is what skipper Luke Hunter wanted, apparently. Marc Woods (12-2-56-0) took the new ball, he obviously took a dislike to it as he dropped the first one short and was appropriately dispatched through square leg for four, the ball ended up being irretrievable from wherever its final resting place was.
We recovered briefly from this shaky start as Billy Rouse (11-2-53-2) claimed our first wicket, thanks to Andy Parker showing the youngsters how not to take a slip catch – by using just one hand and without moving his feet. However this wicket seemed to motivate Blackheath more than ourselves and the runs started to flow with a bugle being blown by the delighted oppo for every boundary scored.
The entry of Brian North (12-1-39-3) and Cameron Sanders (11-1-47-3) had the desired effect as the run rate slowed and the wickets picked up largely thanks to some absolutely fantastic catches. First Will Berry caught out their opener as he held onto a stinger at cover, though had he not taken the catch then his self-induced (one too many ‘cokes’ on Friday night) headache would have increased even more so.
A few overs later he found himself in the action once again as a ball was hit high in the air, it looked destined to fall to the ground in between Will and Billy but Will did excellently turning around and running to take a decent catch over his shoulder, much to the teams’ delight.
Cam picked up his second wicket when Sam Fishlock held on to another good catch to leave the oppo at 80-4 at drinks.
This soon became 5 and then 6 as first their number 5 bat took an ugly swipe at Northy and was comprehensively bowled, and then Cam picked up his 3rd as Northy took an inspiring diving one handed catch at 2nd slip. Reports that Andy Rouse as keeper had to push Brian are unfounded at the minute.
Things were looking pretty rosy at this point, however their Aussie/South African number 8 had different ideas and batted very well taking his time and hitting the bad balls to amass a decent 58 not out. This marked the return of the oppo’s bugle which had been muted for the previous 15 overs. Their mini revival was halted as Will took his 3rd great catch of the game out at long-on off Northy’s bowling. The openers then returned, but unfortunately couldn’t quite finish Blackheath off as the skipper had hoped. Billy managed to pick up his 2nd of the game as their skipper hit one into the air, about 3 times the height of the Shard, underneath it was the captain, who was circling under the ball unable to control his feet, with the ball in the air almost as long as one of H Smith’s speeches he eventually managed to steady himself long enough to take a clean catch, much to most people’s surprise.
A sharp run out by Parkerman ended their innings on the final ball as they started to run extremely quick singles. A score of 199-9 seemed far too much given the position they had been in, though despite our poorish ground fielding and a couple of dropped catches, we were delighted with the ones we took as well as the small amount of extras we’d given the oppo just 4% of their total.
After another great home tea, we set out on our task knowing that to win we would have to score 200 for the first time this season. Our innings got off to a very bad start as first Abhishek and then Parkerman were both dismissed for ducks. This brought together Rouse senior (44) and Woodsy (68), who’d been promoted to 4 as he was pumped up after being in an annoyed mood throughout tea.
This proved to be an inspiring decision as they batted extremely well together, running the quick singles and punishing the bad balls in big style. It was now our turn to play the bugle, which was not frowned upon by the oppo at all but encouraged!!
As drinks were reached we had amassed to 90-2, as Marc past his 50. The skipper duly reminded him in the break that he still had to score a couple more runs to be par for the match however.
Blackheath continued to tinker with their bowling attack attempting to find a breakthrough.
After some more big hitting from the boys in the middle Blackheath eventually got the wicket which broke the partnership of 130 runs as Rouse senior was LBW playing a tired looking shot. Will Berry (29) picked up the mantle as he soon lost Woodsy to a dodgy looking stumping. Marc returned to great cheers from the support and team mates who let him know that if he worked on his bowling a bit he’d be a superb all rounder!!
The rhyming youngsters Will and Bill (32) batted intelligently as the required run rate was under 4, they continued to hit boundaries, however after trying to repeat one big shot which had landed for 6 Bill was caught on the boundary.
Sam Fishlock helped Will bring the scores level, before Will was well caught. Will claimed later he had got out on purpose as he knew that Luke was playing his last game as captain and wanted to let him hit the winning runs.
Luke duly did 2nd ball he faced as he cracked one through the off side to bring up the victory by 4 wickets and the 3s 6th win of the season and a finishing place of 5th – not quite in the 1s or 2s class but decent enough all the same.
A quick check of the rule book and some calculations confirmed Blackheath had got enough points to stay up which is great news as they’re a good bunch of lads – with any luck though their bugle will go missing over the winter!!
Thanks to Neville for umpiring and Grace for the teas and the boys who scored.
3rd XI at Bromley Common
25th August Away
BC 213-7
OD 101-2 A. Patel 40 not out
Match abandoned due to bad light.
We started our final away game for the season in the safe knowledge that we would be competing in the 1B Metropolitan division once again next season, which was the team’s main objective at the start of the season.
With neither side having an umpire, after Neville had to pull out due to illness, Luke Hunter called correctly, for once, selecting to field first. Marc Woods (12-2-39-1) and Calum Hider (9-0-49-0) took the new ball and after taking an over to get use to the slope gave the opposition batters something to think about. We did not get our first breakthrough however until Brian North (11-5-30-2) came on to bowl and his first delivery which was short and wide was tapped in the air straight to Jake Owen at point.
The introduction of the youngsters Jake (5-0-18-2) and Abhishek (3-0-28-1) brought us 3 quick wickets as we made in roads through the Bromley Common line up, including their number 2 batsman who had managed to score 52 runs. The re-introduction of Andy Parker (6-0-34-1) brought us another wicket as we started to slow the run rate down. However the comeback of openers Calum and Marc didn’t quite have the impact we had hoped as Bromley got the score past 200, Marc managed to pick up 1 wicket thanks to a sharp catch at square leg by Brendon Jessup.
After the 46 overs Bromley Common finished on 213-7 with the help of 36 extras.
After a very long delay due to rain after tea, Steve Smith and Abhishek gave us the steady start we needed. After Steve and Andy Parker fell, Andy Rouse (17*) and Abhishek (40*) carried on doing a superb job, with 10 overs remaining Bromley Common made the decision to bring their quick opening bowler back, Abhishek coped bravely against him until Parkerman, in his umpire role now, had a word with the opposition captain. This resulted in their quick bowler coming off a 4 step run up which did little to slow his pace down.
After 1 more over, at ten to eight, the two umpires discussed the light again as it was now too dark to be considered safe for play. While the batsmen may be protected by slower bowling, the fielders are not and the laws of cricket state that the umpires are responsible for the safety of every player. So the match had to come to an unfortunate end with us on 101-2 after 38 overs. There was no chance of a further eight overs being bowled without undue risk to the players.
Bromley Common were frustrated with the situation, more so because they are pushing for promotion and the title, but several of their players agreed that it was the correct decision to abandon the match. They are a talented side and deserve to be promoted, let us just hope that the six points on which they missed out are not significant at the end of the season.
It was good to see we had managed to bat out so many overs with the loss of only 2 wickets and had the light been better we would have undoubtedly scored enough runs to gain several bonus points, maybe even being in with a chance of reaching the target of 214.
So, one more game to go next week against Blackheath, where a win with other results falling in our favour could see us finish 4th.
Thanks to all for scoring and umpiring.
BC 213-7
OD 101-2 A. Patel 40 not out
Match abandoned due to bad light.
We started our final away game for the season in the safe knowledge that we would be competing in the 1B Metropolitan division once again next season, which was the team’s main objective at the start of the season.
With neither side having an umpire, after Neville had to pull out due to illness, Luke Hunter called correctly, for once, selecting to field first. Marc Woods (12-2-39-1) and Calum Hider (9-0-49-0) took the new ball and after taking an over to get use to the slope gave the opposition batters something to think about. We did not get our first breakthrough however until Brian North (11-5-30-2) came on to bowl and his first delivery which was short and wide was tapped in the air straight to Jake Owen at point.
The introduction of the youngsters Jake (5-0-18-2) and Abhishek (3-0-28-1) brought us 3 quick wickets as we made in roads through the Bromley Common line up, including their number 2 batsman who had managed to score 52 runs. The re-introduction of Andy Parker (6-0-34-1) brought us another wicket as we started to slow the run rate down. However the comeback of openers Calum and Marc didn’t quite have the impact we had hoped as Bromley got the score past 200, Marc managed to pick up 1 wicket thanks to a sharp catch at square leg by Brendon Jessup.
After the 46 overs Bromley Common finished on 213-7 with the help of 36 extras.
After a very long delay due to rain after tea, Steve Smith and Abhishek gave us the steady start we needed. After Steve and Andy Parker fell, Andy Rouse (17*) and Abhishek (40*) carried on doing a superb job, with 10 overs remaining Bromley Common made the decision to bring their quick opening bowler back, Abhishek coped bravely against him until Parkerman, in his umpire role now, had a word with the opposition captain. This resulted in their quick bowler coming off a 4 step run up which did little to slow his pace down.
After 1 more over, at ten to eight, the two umpires discussed the light again as it was now too dark to be considered safe for play. While the batsmen may be protected by slower bowling, the fielders are not and the laws of cricket state that the umpires are responsible for the safety of every player. So the match had to come to an unfortunate end with us on 101-2 after 38 overs. There was no chance of a further eight overs being bowled without undue risk to the players.
Bromley Common were frustrated with the situation, more so because they are pushing for promotion and the title, but several of their players agreed that it was the correct decision to abandon the match. They are a talented side and deserve to be promoted, let us just hope that the six points on which they missed out are not significant at the end of the season.
It was good to see we had managed to bat out so many overs with the loss of only 2 wickets and had the light been better we would have undoubtedly scored enough runs to gain several bonus points, maybe even being in with a chance of reaching the target of 214.
So, one more game to go next week against Blackheath, where a win with other results falling in our favour could see us finish 4th.
Thanks to all for scoring and umpiring.
3rd XI v Old Elthamians
Once again we failed to score enough runs batting first on a slow wicket at the Warren. Openers Steve Smith (15) and Andy Parker (20) were the only two batsmen to reach double figures. Although extras managed to rack up an impressive 38, this along with OE’s willingness to drop catches in the field, particularly the wicketkeeper, meant we were able to bat into the 46th over and reach 112.
After tea we took to the field and although there were times when we looked like we may cause an upset, this never came to be. Ben Stuart finished with figures of 7-0-28-3 as too often the ball went into the air but not near a fielder.
In contrast to their bowling efforts we only gave away four extras, as H D Smith kept wicket allowing no byes to go past him. (Is this a first??) NO!
In the end OE’s made the target relatively comfortably thanks to their opening bat who scored 57 as well as claiming 4-22 earlier on.
Credit must be given to Sam Fishlock and Brendan Jessup who fielded for a good number of over’s after one of the oppo had injured themselves. Brendan took full advantage of the extra fielding practice to catch out Brian North.
Thanks to Grace for teas, once again, and to Neville for umpiring and the boys who scored and umpired. Also to Mr. and Mrs Alvey, who collected and served the juice at drinks.
After tea we took to the field and although there were times when we looked like we may cause an upset, this never came to be. Ben Stuart finished with figures of 7-0-28-3 as too often the ball went into the air but not near a fielder.
In contrast to their bowling efforts we only gave away four extras, as H D Smith kept wicket allowing no byes to go past him. (Is this a first??) NO!
In the end OE’s made the target relatively comfortably thanks to their opening bat who scored 57 as well as claiming 4-22 earlier on.
Credit must be given to Sam Fishlock and Brendan Jessup who fielded for a good number of over’s after one of the oppo had injured themselves. Brendan took full advantage of the extra fielding practice to catch out Brian North.
Thanks to Grace for teas, once again, and to Neville for umpiring and the boys who scored and umpired. Also to Mr. and Mrs Alvey, who collected and served the juice at drinks.
OD Cuaco 3rd XI vs. Sidcup 5th XI
OD Cuaco 132 all out 42.2 overs S. Smith 45
Sidcup 135-6 42 overs
Having lost the toss, we were asked to bat first. After losing Parkerman, Steve Smith (45) and Taylor Emblen (26) set about kick starting the innings, between them they hit 10 boundaries including a six over fine leg’s head by Steve. Unfortunately Taylor fell for a run per ball 26. Brendon Jessop on his return kept Steve company for a while and saw the team towards drinks with a healthy looking 88-2.
There must have been something in those drinks as we lost 5 wickets for only 3 runs as the entire middle order came and went as Sidcup’s off spinner and one of their young colts collected some ‘cheap’ wickets. This brought Cameron Sanders (29) to the crease much earlier than he had probably anticipated, yet he showed the previous five bats how it should be done, as he helped Steve get the score over 100. With 9 overs of the innings left Steve fell as Sidcup’s opening bowlers returned. Ben Stuart batted sensibly to use up some of our remaining overs, before Cameron was caught and bowled after trying to increase our score. Having finished with 132 we were disappointed given the start we had, but counted ourselves lucky that it wasn’t anything lower.
After tea we set about bowling Sidcup out, Cameron (8-2-16-0) and Calum Hider (12-1-39-0) bowled extremely well early on and limited Sidcup to very few runs. As they tired the youngsters of Jake Owen (5-0-12-1), Ben Stuart (9-1-34-3) and Abhishek Patel (5-0-20-1) came on to try and find the breakthrough. It worked as Jake picked up the wicket of their opener thanks to a well taken catch by Cameron. Ben then picked up 3 quick wickets, two of which were due to decent catches by Brendon. And when Abhishek claimed his first wicket after Ben took an excellent catch we thought we had a chance to go on and win the game, with the oppo needing 30 odd still with 4 wickets in hand. Sidcup’s skipper’s daughter joined him at the crease and showed some resistance as catches went down in the field. Andy Parker (3-0-8-1) tempted her with a floaty delivery which Abhishek caught. 20 runs now needed 3 wickets in hand. Calum and Cameron both returned but unfortunately neither could find a breakthrough as Sidcup reached the target with 7 overs remaining, largely thanks to their skipper who batted throughout for 40.
Once again it was a proper team effort with every player giving their all for the team, especially when we were down to just 9 players for the majority of Sidcup’s innings.
Thanks to Neville for umpiring, Grace for the teas and the boys for scoring/umpiring.
Sidcup 135-6 42 overs
Having lost the toss, we were asked to bat first. After losing Parkerman, Steve Smith (45) and Taylor Emblen (26) set about kick starting the innings, between them they hit 10 boundaries including a six over fine leg’s head by Steve. Unfortunately Taylor fell for a run per ball 26. Brendon Jessop on his return kept Steve company for a while and saw the team towards drinks with a healthy looking 88-2.
There must have been something in those drinks as we lost 5 wickets for only 3 runs as the entire middle order came and went as Sidcup’s off spinner and one of their young colts collected some ‘cheap’ wickets. This brought Cameron Sanders (29) to the crease much earlier than he had probably anticipated, yet he showed the previous five bats how it should be done, as he helped Steve get the score over 100. With 9 overs of the innings left Steve fell as Sidcup’s opening bowlers returned. Ben Stuart batted sensibly to use up some of our remaining overs, before Cameron was caught and bowled after trying to increase our score. Having finished with 132 we were disappointed given the start we had, but counted ourselves lucky that it wasn’t anything lower.
After tea we set about bowling Sidcup out, Cameron (8-2-16-0) and Calum Hider (12-1-39-0) bowled extremely well early on and limited Sidcup to very few runs. As they tired the youngsters of Jake Owen (5-0-12-1), Ben Stuart (9-1-34-3) and Abhishek Patel (5-0-20-1) came on to try and find the breakthrough. It worked as Jake picked up the wicket of their opener thanks to a well taken catch by Cameron. Ben then picked up 3 quick wickets, two of which were due to decent catches by Brendon. And when Abhishek claimed his first wicket after Ben took an excellent catch we thought we had a chance to go on and win the game, with the oppo needing 30 odd still with 4 wickets in hand. Sidcup’s skipper’s daughter joined him at the crease and showed some resistance as catches went down in the field. Andy Parker (3-0-8-1) tempted her with a floaty delivery which Abhishek caught. 20 runs now needed 3 wickets in hand. Calum and Cameron both returned but unfortunately neither could find a breakthrough as Sidcup reached the target with 7 overs remaining, largely thanks to their skipper who batted throughout for 40.
Once again it was a proper team effort with every player giving their all for the team, especially when we were down to just 9 players for the majority of Sidcup’s innings.
Thanks to Neville for umpiring, Grace for the teas and the boys for scoring/umpiring.
OD Cuaco 3rd XI vs. Dulwich 5th XI Away
OD CUACO 155-7 W Berry 66* A Parker 35
Dulwich 147all out B North 12-5-31-6
3rd XI skipper Luke Hunter returned to the side having been away for a month. During the time the 3s have managed two league wins, with their other league game being washed out, so he knew the pressure was on to continue this good form. Despite learning how to count cards in Vegas he hadn’t learnt how to call correctly at the toss and the 3s found themselves batting on a dampish green track.
The skipper and Steve Smith made an unspectacular start as Dulwich bowled tidily. It was not until the first change bowlers came on that Dulwich made the breakthrough however when they did they took 3 quick wickets and with the score struggling to be reach 2 an over, we were in a bit of a hole.
Andy Parker (35) and Will Berry (66*) took on the challenge of building up our score, at first this was done steadily and then as Dulwich’s 2nd change bowlers came on they accelerated the run rate, Will hitting four 4s in a row as he scored his first 50 in adult cricket. A few late wickets fell which disrupted our final push and we ended on 155-7 in the 46 overs.
Marc Woods (8-1-24-0) and Dan Smedley (6-1-37-0) took the new ball and were it not for a couple of dropped catches and the ball dropping short on fielders they would have picked up a couple of early wickets. As they came off after 16 overs Dulwich were 70-0 and looked like they were easing their way through to victory. Change bowlers Brian North (12-5-31-6) and James Alvey (7.4-1-32-3) had other ideas however as they removed both openers in their first over as Marc showed the fielders how to take a catch.
Further wickets fell at regular intervals as Calum Hider took a great catch inches from the boundary and the skipper took a sharp catch behind the stumps.
Cameron Sanders (8-3-15-1) was brought on and kept the pressure on the oppo and deserved more than just the one wicket he took. With 20 runs needed Dulwich had 3 wickets in hand; Cameron then took a good catch in the slips off Northy’s bowling before their number 9 decided to lob one straight to Parkerman who made no mistake.
With just one wicket required James Alvey returned for the bowled out Brian. 4 chances came and went including a possible run out where Smedley’s throw was unfortunate to hit Dulwich’s skipper on it’s way to the stumps.
Then James stormed in and struck their number 11 on the pads plumb in front and the fight back was competed. We had won by 8 runs!!
The tremendous team spirit shown during the 2nd innings was immense and was a key factor in our victory. With four games of the season remaining we are setting our sights as high as possible with promotion still a possibility.
Thanks to Neville for umpiring and the guys for scoring and well done Will on your 50.
3s lose a friendly at Linton Park
3rd team friendly vs Linton park … with a few guys missing from last week … we decided to reduce to a 40 over match , and lost the toss on what looked like an OK wicket , and the oppo chose to bat .
The wicket had a surprising bit of bounce to it, and Calum and Rowan got to work exploiting it …. Unfortunately the edges fell into gaps , and occasionally we tried a bit too hard , bowling a few bad balls which were punished . Abhishek teased them with a few good overs , after a shaky start , and Billy bowled a really good line and length , with movement … but somehow when we looked up they were 100/1 off 20 ….Abhishek ,Jon and Billy picked up a wicket a piece … North got in on the action and Calum and Rowan almost finished the tail … but too many loose balls and wides , meant they managed to get to 200 … which looked a par score … we took 6 catches , and none dropped … but 34 extras , meant we had let ourselves down a bit .
Will got us off to a good start , but went a bit too early for us chasing that target …Smith was steady but missing some loose balls .Andy joined and hit the ball hard , as well as getting Smithy running plenty of 1s 2s and 3s …andy was out for 38 and sadly Laurence went for a duck .Billy kept the run rate going ,and having played some cracking shots holed out in the deep , with shot selection to blame .Rowan was hitting the ball really well , but the oppo went totally defensive with five on the boundary and runs started to dry up … after a few more wickets the dream team of Calum and Rowan were at the crease … but it was a mission to far as they began to club it about , ending on 20 and 38 not out respectively … 176/8 after 40… a good effort … but the extras were the difference .
A nice trip to Linton Park , friendly and hospitable opposition , lovely ground, lovely tea , first senior matches for Abhishek and Jon Edwards …a good day out considering we had no league game …. Well done everyone.
The wicket had a surprising bit of bounce to it, and Calum and Rowan got to work exploiting it …. Unfortunately the edges fell into gaps , and occasionally we tried a bit too hard , bowling a few bad balls which were punished . Abhishek teased them with a few good overs , after a shaky start , and Billy bowled a really good line and length , with movement … but somehow when we looked up they were 100/1 off 20 ….Abhishek ,Jon and Billy picked up a wicket a piece … North got in on the action and Calum and Rowan almost finished the tail … but too many loose balls and wides , meant they managed to get to 200 … which looked a par score … we took 6 catches , and none dropped … but 34 extras , meant we had let ourselves down a bit .
Will got us off to a good start , but went a bit too early for us chasing that target …Smith was steady but missing some loose balls .Andy joined and hit the ball hard , as well as getting Smithy running plenty of 1s 2s and 3s …andy was out for 38 and sadly Laurence went for a duck .Billy kept the run rate going ,and having played some cracking shots holed out in the deep , with shot selection to blame .Rowan was hitting the ball really well , but the oppo went totally defensive with five on the boundary and runs started to dry up … after a few more wickets the dream team of Calum and Rowan were at the crease … but it was a mission to far as they began to club it about , ending on 20 and 38 not out respectively … 176/8 after 40… a good effort … but the extras were the difference .
A nice trip to Linton Park , friendly and hospitable opposition , lovely ground, lovely tea , first senior matches for Abhishek and Jon Edwards …a good day out considering we had no league game …. Well done everyone.
3rd XI home to Orpington
Top of the table Orpington chose to bat on a soggy wicket, which suited us nicely, with 7 bowlers lining up for the chance to skittle them over. Dave(mad dog) and Billy started well … with Dave looking very aggressive from the top end , getting a few to rise up … and quickly got their skipper , caught of his glove, a good catch by Rowan , and a very dangerous batter , Gone .
The next 2 batsmen played very sensibly , had a couple of lucky escapes , while we permutated the bowling … and took the score up to 70/1…..Calum eventually making the breakthrough and taking care of both of them .
From then on, the Orpington batsmen started to give their wickets away, with a mixture of bad shots and a few charges down the wicket, which Rousey gratefully accepted. This shouldn’t deflect from the fact that the bowling was very good , all the bowlers showing good figures and the wickets spread around .NOTE J Caddy 3overs 3 maidens 2 wickets… Orpington all out 119 in the 42nd over.
Will Sanders gave us an upbeat start.. punching the bad balls over the top of the field … and even hitting a few on the ground .Scott was out after a while ,and Smith came in , hitting the first ball for four , and smashing the next back over the bowlers head .Will was out for 26 and Rowan, on his first match back after injury starting to hit the ball with great timing (not easy on that pitch) he hit quite a few in the air as well (which were all dropped ) ….Orpington’s heads were down and after Smith was out Rousey came in , a supporting roll , while Rowan knocked it about , and finished it off .
Orpington beaten by 7 wickets with 12 overs to spare.
Well done everyone .. A great team effort … we Bowled ,Fielded and Batted a lot better than the oppo….. No panic … we got on with the job in hand.
The next 2 batsmen played very sensibly , had a couple of lucky escapes , while we permutated the bowling … and took the score up to 70/1…..Calum eventually making the breakthrough and taking care of both of them .
From then on, the Orpington batsmen started to give their wickets away, with a mixture of bad shots and a few charges down the wicket, which Rousey gratefully accepted. This shouldn’t deflect from the fact that the bowling was very good , all the bowlers showing good figures and the wickets spread around .NOTE J Caddy 3overs 3 maidens 2 wickets… Orpington all out 119 in the 42nd over.
Will Sanders gave us an upbeat start.. punching the bad balls over the top of the field … and even hitting a few on the ground .Scott was out after a while ,and Smith came in , hitting the first ball for four , and smashing the next back over the bowlers head .Will was out for 26 and Rowan, on his first match back after injury starting to hit the ball with great timing (not easy on that pitch) he hit quite a few in the air as well (which were all dropped ) ….Orpington’s heads were down and after Smith was out Rousey came in , a supporting roll , while Rowan knocked it about , and finished it off .
Orpington beaten by 7 wickets with 12 overs to spare.
Well done everyone .. A great team effort … we Bowled ,Fielded and Batted a lot better than the oppo….. No panic … we got on with the job in hand.
Saturday 7/7/12 OD 3rd XI Vs Old Colfeians’
A great win for the 3rds against top of the league colfeians’ ,which has lifted us away from the bottom of the table for the time being.
Turning up with a balanced side , with 6 bowlers and a team full of batting , we were quietly confident that we might cause an upset ,on the Warren wicket.
Due to the dodgy weather the oppo suggested reducing the game to 40 overs a side , which Rousey quickly accepted, as we had been struggling to bat much past that mark over the last few weeks ... they were falling into our trap!
A good toss to lose , we were put into bat , but quickly lost Smith for nought .Eashan and Scott then steadied the ship , but got bogged down in defensive mode , forgetting to push the singles , Scott tried to open up , but was done by a straight one ,Jakes’ great week with the bat came to a quick end ..but Eashan has started to tick over nicely.
Rousey came in at about 30 for 3 of 20 overs , joining Eashan and they changed the pace of the game , running quick singles and some hefty blows over the top. Eashan had batted beautifully but got a good one , Rousey , going big early departed, followed by Sam . Trouble .No ..In came the Cavalry, Rohan ,Dan Ollie and Calum ,all smashing boundaries , scoring at 10 an over for 3 or 4 and got us up to 130 in the 50th over .Special mention of Ollie Fishlock who smashed 2 consecutive 6s in the penultimate over , the first of which was dropped over the line by their fielder... taking us from 118 to 130 in 2 balls ... we wondered again , if it might just be our day.
130 was defendable , we were helped along the way by a string of dropped catches including 3 from their skipper!
Dan and Ollie had the new ball and they both bowled a tight line and both struck quickly , and a change of bowling got Calum in on the act also.Wickets were falling regularly and Rousey was winning the game of chess with their batsmen ,juggling the bowlers and shuffling the field. Stands came and went , but we couldn't get rid of their no.4 Thomas , who was batting sensibly , although he gave up 3 half chances that we couldn't quite get hold of .Brian had no luck tossing the ball up ,although they had no idea how to play him , and was very unlucky not to pick up a few .But Rohan came on , left arm round , and immediately we knew we were back in the game. An LBW and a solid catch from Scott and we were getting close .. 8 down .. but they only needed 20 or so . Dan and Calum tried to finish it off from the other end , but ran out of overs ... and their no 4 decided to get on with it , having been hit on the chin by Calum.
Having batted sensibly for an hour, a rush of blood saw their no4 try to slog Rohan , up in the air to a recently placed Ollie , who took a great pressure catch. The batsmen crossed , Rohan kept his nerve , still flighting the ball beautifully ,the batsman played all round it ...and a memorable win by 5 runs for the 3rds was achieved.
Lots of mentions above .. but this was a team effort with everybody contributing in one way or another .
A massive desire to win and play for each other , was the deciding factor!
Well done.
Many thanks to Neville for scoring .. and a wonderful tea , as usual.
Turning up with a balanced side , with 6 bowlers and a team full of batting , we were quietly confident that we might cause an upset ,on the Warren wicket.
Due to the dodgy weather the oppo suggested reducing the game to 40 overs a side , which Rousey quickly accepted, as we had been struggling to bat much past that mark over the last few weeks ... they were falling into our trap!
A good toss to lose , we were put into bat , but quickly lost Smith for nought .Eashan and Scott then steadied the ship , but got bogged down in defensive mode , forgetting to push the singles , Scott tried to open up , but was done by a straight one ,Jakes’ great week with the bat came to a quick end ..but Eashan has started to tick over nicely.
Rousey came in at about 30 for 3 of 20 overs , joining Eashan and they changed the pace of the game , running quick singles and some hefty blows over the top. Eashan had batted beautifully but got a good one , Rousey , going big early departed, followed by Sam . Trouble .No ..In came the Cavalry, Rohan ,Dan Ollie and Calum ,all smashing boundaries , scoring at 10 an over for 3 or 4 and got us up to 130 in the 50th over .Special mention of Ollie Fishlock who smashed 2 consecutive 6s in the penultimate over , the first of which was dropped over the line by their fielder... taking us from 118 to 130 in 2 balls ... we wondered again , if it might just be our day.
130 was defendable , we were helped along the way by a string of dropped catches including 3 from their skipper!
Dan and Ollie had the new ball and they both bowled a tight line and both struck quickly , and a change of bowling got Calum in on the act also.Wickets were falling regularly and Rousey was winning the game of chess with their batsmen ,juggling the bowlers and shuffling the field. Stands came and went , but we couldn't get rid of their no.4 Thomas , who was batting sensibly , although he gave up 3 half chances that we couldn't quite get hold of .Brian had no luck tossing the ball up ,although they had no idea how to play him , and was very unlucky not to pick up a few .But Rohan came on , left arm round , and immediately we knew we were back in the game. An LBW and a solid catch from Scott and we were getting close .. 8 down .. but they only needed 20 or so . Dan and Calum tried to finish it off from the other end , but ran out of overs ... and their no 4 decided to get on with it , having been hit on the chin by Calum.
Having batted sensibly for an hour, a rush of blood saw their no4 try to slog Rohan , up in the air to a recently placed Ollie , who took a great pressure catch. The batsmen crossed , Rohan kept his nerve , still flighting the ball beautifully ,the batsman played all round it ...and a memorable win by 5 runs for the 3rds was achieved.
Lots of mentions above .. but this was a team effort with everybody contributing in one way or another .
A massive desire to win and play for each other , was the deciding factor!
Well done.
Many thanks to Neville for scoring .. and a wonderful tea , as usual.
Blackheath 7th XI vs. OD Cuaco 3rd XI 30th June 2012 Away.
Blackheath 221 all out B. North 12-3-28-5
OD Cuaco 55 all out
Catches win matches or so the saying goes and that was exactly what happened on a warm June afternoon on Saturday in Charlton Park. Well that and the lack of a few bowlers and the fact that the batsmen we did have failed to score many runs.
When we were asked to field we knew it would be tough especially as the pitch looked a fairly decent one, the outfield was quick and the boundary not excessively large.
Dave Caddy who stepped in to open the bowling picked up an early wicket caught at deep gully by the returning Tom Rathborn, after 23 months away. Unfortunately for Dave he soon tore his hamstring as a stray throw was returned to the bowlers end.
This saw the early introduction of two spinners in Brian North (12-3-28-5) and Ben Stuart (12-1-70-3). Both bowled well but the opposition who seemed to have a surprisingly large amount of Australians in their side hit the bad balls and seemed to survive the better ones.
Wickets did come at irregular intervals largely thanks to some excellent fielding in the deep by Scott Williams who took two splendid catches. Part time bowlers Phil Anthony, the skipper and Sam Fishlock who gave it a go with the ball during the innings as options were limited before Brian North and Ben Stuart returned at the end to finish off the Blackheath innings thanks to some tight bowling, a sharp return catch by Brian and a neat stumping by Andy Rouse off Ben’s bowling.
All in all a very decent effort was made by the side in the field and if a few of the chances we were given had stayed in hands we would have been chasing a far less total, that being said we were fortunate to only be going after 221 with the bowling resources we had.
Unfortunately our batting never really took off, largely thanks to Blackheath excelling in the field, they took all four chances they were given and those four catches all belonged to divisions well above the one we are in.
The skipper is now away for the next few weeks so hopefully fortunes will change in what will be 3 potential winnable games, so I expect the side to be pushing for promotion on my return!!
Thanks for those who scored and umpired and to Neville for his umpiring.
OD Cuaco 55 all out
Catches win matches or so the saying goes and that was exactly what happened on a warm June afternoon on Saturday in Charlton Park. Well that and the lack of a few bowlers and the fact that the batsmen we did have failed to score many runs.
When we were asked to field we knew it would be tough especially as the pitch looked a fairly decent one, the outfield was quick and the boundary not excessively large.
Dave Caddy who stepped in to open the bowling picked up an early wicket caught at deep gully by the returning Tom Rathborn, after 23 months away. Unfortunately for Dave he soon tore his hamstring as a stray throw was returned to the bowlers end.
This saw the early introduction of two spinners in Brian North (12-3-28-5) and Ben Stuart (12-1-70-3). Both bowled well but the opposition who seemed to have a surprisingly large amount of Australians in their side hit the bad balls and seemed to survive the better ones.
Wickets did come at irregular intervals largely thanks to some excellent fielding in the deep by Scott Williams who took two splendid catches. Part time bowlers Phil Anthony, the skipper and Sam Fishlock who gave it a go with the ball during the innings as options were limited before Brian North and Ben Stuart returned at the end to finish off the Blackheath innings thanks to some tight bowling, a sharp return catch by Brian and a neat stumping by Andy Rouse off Ben’s bowling.
All in all a very decent effort was made by the side in the field and if a few of the chances we were given had stayed in hands we would have been chasing a far less total, that being said we were fortunate to only be going after 221 with the bowling resources we had.
Unfortunately our batting never really took off, largely thanks to Blackheath excelling in the field, they took all four chances they were given and those four catches all belonged to divisions well above the one we are in.
The skipper is now away for the next few weeks so hopefully fortunes will change in what will be 3 potential winnable games, so I expect the side to be pushing for promotion on my return!!
Thanks for those who scored and umpired and to Neville for his umpiring.
OD CUACO 3rd XI v Bromley Common 3rd XI 23rd June
B.C 152 all out J.Alvey 3-25. J Caddy 3-49
OD CUACO 98 all out J Alvey 34.
After two away games in a row we were back to playing at the Warren ground. The pitch looked damp and similar to the outfield so after another toss went our way due to the opposition not supplying an umpire we fielded first.
Ollie Fishlock (7-0-22-0) and James Alvey (10.3-1-25-3) started the bowling and despite bowling well were unable to pick up an early wicket. The change bowlers of David Caddy (8-1-29-1) and Brian North (12-2-24-1) came one and kept the run rate below 3 an over as well as picking up the first two wickets. Jake Caddy (8-0-49-3) then came on and picked up the important wicket of their opening batsman who had scored a decent 60.
James Alvey returned to good use as he swept through the last couple of Bromley Common bats. This was aided by a superb direct hit from Jake.
Bromley Common’s innings ended on a bit of an unfortunate note as their captain had to retire hurt due to popping his hip out of position. This led to their innings finishing in the final over on 152. Our effort in the field was excellent and the determination to stop everything hit at us was emulated by John McLaughlin who took blows to his knees and cuts to his arms in his efforts.
Unfortunately Bromley Common’s opening bowlers used the pitch to their advantage after tea and ripped through our top order with ease. Skipper Luke Hunter (17) and James Alvey (34) went about trying to rebuild the innings from 22-5 and between them faced out 26 overs while trying to keep the scoreboard ticking over. However our run of victories finished as our tail did not last long thanks to some unfortunate and needless run outs.
Thanks to Neville for umpiring and the team for helping with scoring/umpiring.
Our league position is ok at the minute though a much needed win against bottom of the table Blackheath next Saturday is imperative to keep us going.
OD CUACO 98 all out J Alvey 34.
After two away games in a row we were back to playing at the Warren ground. The pitch looked damp and similar to the outfield so after another toss went our way due to the opposition not supplying an umpire we fielded first.
Ollie Fishlock (7-0-22-0) and James Alvey (10.3-1-25-3) started the bowling and despite bowling well were unable to pick up an early wicket. The change bowlers of David Caddy (8-1-29-1) and Brian North (12-2-24-1) came one and kept the run rate below 3 an over as well as picking up the first two wickets. Jake Caddy (8-0-49-3) then came on and picked up the important wicket of their opening batsman who had scored a decent 60.
James Alvey returned to good use as he swept through the last couple of Bromley Common bats. This was aided by a superb direct hit from Jake.
Bromley Common’s innings ended on a bit of an unfortunate note as their captain had to retire hurt due to popping his hip out of position. This led to their innings finishing in the final over on 152. Our effort in the field was excellent and the determination to stop everything hit at us was emulated by John McLaughlin who took blows to his knees and cuts to his arms in his efforts.
Unfortunately Bromley Common’s opening bowlers used the pitch to their advantage after tea and ripped through our top order with ease. Skipper Luke Hunter (17) and James Alvey (34) went about trying to rebuild the innings from 22-5 and between them faced out 26 overs while trying to keep the scoreboard ticking over. However our run of victories finished as our tail did not last long thanks to some unfortunate and needless run outs.
Thanks to Neville for umpiring and the team for helping with scoring/umpiring.
Our league position is ok at the minute though a much needed win against bottom of the table Blackheath next Saturday is imperative to keep us going.
Old Elthamians 3rd XI vs. OD Cuaco 3rd XI. 16th June.
OE 148-10 45.3 overs I Caddy 10.3-2-25-5
OD 149-8 46.3 overs L Hunter 31, S Fishlock 27.
Again facing an umpire-less opposition the toss was ours and this week we fielded first. As in the last couple of weeks Jake (10-0-39-1) and Iestyn Caddy (10.3-2-25-5) opened the bowling for us and as usual bowled fairly tightly giving the opening batsmen little chance to score many runs. The slowness of the outfield aided the low scoring rate.
Iestyn managed to trap their number 2 batsman in front and we claimed our first wicket. Old Elthamians skipper (a certain Mr. Gordon Coles’ son) and their number 3 then went about putting on a long partnership, this felt even longer due to the left hand/right hand combo and then the introduction of a runner.
David Caddy (12-0-49-2) and Brian North (12-1-31-2) were introduced as the run rate stayed low and Brian especially continued to bamboozle their right hander. Eventually we found a breakthrough as Andy Rouse took a sharp catch behind the stumps, after we had put down 2 decent chances.
After this breakthrough Old Elthamians attempted to up the run rate and for a while succeeded until Coles jnr was bowled by Dave for 47. Regular wickets continued to fall as Iestyn and Jake, now bowling spin, returned. Iestyn clean bowled OE’s final 4 batters to claim his first 5 wicket haul in adult cricket. OE’s finished up on 148 all out.
After a mixed tea Steve Smith and Laurence Sanders started our run rate. Like the hosts we struggled with the slow outfield and accurate bowling, and soon found ourselves 3 wickets down with not many on the board.
Sam Fishlock (27) and skipper Luke Hunter (31) went about showing a rearguard action to the bowling and decided to try and hang around for as long as possible.
12 overs passed with no further wickets falling while enough runs were scored to ensure the required run rate never ascended much over 4.
After drinks Sam went to up the run rate but was bowled in the returning over of their opening bowler. Brenden Jessop (18) helped Luke to get the score over 100 before being caught.
John McLaughlin came in at number 7, having originally been down to come in at number 5 only for an incident involving his car keys somehow making their way from his trouser pocket into a cricket bag belonging to a player from another game.
Luke eventually fell with the team 30 runs short. Jake and then Dave didn’t last long and suddenly hopes of victory seemed to disappear.
However Iestyn provided the perfect anchor role for John as the pair took their time to pick off the runs. At the start of the 47th and final over we required 2 more runs. These arrived from 2 byes to great cheers from our team as we picked up a deserved and hard fought for win. Bowling the opposition out in the 45th over proved incredibly important as that gave us the extra over to score the runs in.
Thanks to Neville for umpiring and the players who helped out with scoring/umpiring.
OD 149-8 46.3 overs L Hunter 31, S Fishlock 27.
Again facing an umpire-less opposition the toss was ours and this week we fielded first. As in the last couple of weeks Jake (10-0-39-1) and Iestyn Caddy (10.3-2-25-5) opened the bowling for us and as usual bowled fairly tightly giving the opening batsmen little chance to score many runs. The slowness of the outfield aided the low scoring rate.
Iestyn managed to trap their number 2 batsman in front and we claimed our first wicket. Old Elthamians skipper (a certain Mr. Gordon Coles’ son) and their number 3 then went about putting on a long partnership, this felt even longer due to the left hand/right hand combo and then the introduction of a runner.
David Caddy (12-0-49-2) and Brian North (12-1-31-2) were introduced as the run rate stayed low and Brian especially continued to bamboozle their right hander. Eventually we found a breakthrough as Andy Rouse took a sharp catch behind the stumps, after we had put down 2 decent chances.
After this breakthrough Old Elthamians attempted to up the run rate and for a while succeeded until Coles jnr was bowled by Dave for 47. Regular wickets continued to fall as Iestyn and Jake, now bowling spin, returned. Iestyn clean bowled OE’s final 4 batters to claim his first 5 wicket haul in adult cricket. OE’s finished up on 148 all out.
After a mixed tea Steve Smith and Laurence Sanders started our run rate. Like the hosts we struggled with the slow outfield and accurate bowling, and soon found ourselves 3 wickets down with not many on the board.
Sam Fishlock (27) and skipper Luke Hunter (31) went about showing a rearguard action to the bowling and decided to try and hang around for as long as possible.
12 overs passed with no further wickets falling while enough runs were scored to ensure the required run rate never ascended much over 4.
After drinks Sam went to up the run rate but was bowled in the returning over of their opening bowler. Brenden Jessop (18) helped Luke to get the score over 100 before being caught.
John McLaughlin came in at number 7, having originally been down to come in at number 5 only for an incident involving his car keys somehow making their way from his trouser pocket into a cricket bag belonging to a player from another game.
Luke eventually fell with the team 30 runs short. Jake and then Dave didn’t last long and suddenly hopes of victory seemed to disappear.
However Iestyn provided the perfect anchor role for John as the pair took their time to pick off the runs. At the start of the 47th and final over we required 2 more runs. These arrived from 2 byes to great cheers from our team as we picked up a deserved and hard fought for win. Bowling the opposition out in the 45th over proved incredibly important as that gave us the extra over to score the runs in.
Thanks to Neville for umpiring and the players who helped out with scoring/umpiring.
OD Cuaco 3rd XI v Blue Star 1st XI Home May 26th
Blue Star 107 all out
OD CUACO 108-2 D. Caddy 43*
After a heavy delay in the start time due to the lack of numbers in the opposition’s team, this match eventually started after 2pm with the visitors batting first. Due to the hold-up the game was reduced to 40 overs aside. Iestyn (10-2-20-2) and Jake Caddy (7-0-25-2) opened the bowling and started extremely well picking up 2 wickets apiece in their 6 over spells. Blue Star’s middle order tried to show some resistance however they did not look like they would hang about for long as Brian North (10-3-17-2) at first and then Ariez Mehta (1.2-0-4-1) on his debut bowled extremely well. Northy picked up 2 more wickets for the season thanks to a catch from Iestyn and then to a superbly held one handed catch at mid-on by Ariez. Jake Caddy played a fine part in their penultimate wicket as he first fielded brilliantly off his own bowling and then had the sharp thinking skills to run out the non-striker who had backed up too far. Ariez finished off Blue Star with a straight ball that their final bat played all round.
With 44 overs to chase 107 the side felt fairly confident. Ariez and Dave Caddy started well knocking the ball about well without taking too many risks. After going at 4 an over for 9 overs though we then lost Ariez to a catch behind after he prodded at one outside the off stump. Skipper Luke Hunter then joined Dave and the both of them first saw off the openers and watched the new slower bowlers carefully, as well as hitting well timed boundaries and taking quick singles when possible.
Luke fell for 25, with the score on 80 leg before. Youngster Sam Fishlock came to the wicket and continued his good form with the bat for the 3s hitting some nice shots to help Dave get the team over the finish line with almost 20 overs to spare. Sam finished on 13 with Dave on 43.
A big congratulations to all the team, as everyone played their part on this important win which has lifted us up the table to 6th. Thanks to Neville for umpiring and all the players who helped out with scoring, umpiring, getting drinks and assembling/dissembling everything for the match, it’s much appreciated.
OD CUACO 108-2 D. Caddy 43*
After a heavy delay in the start time due to the lack of numbers in the opposition’s team, this match eventually started after 2pm with the visitors batting first. Due to the hold-up the game was reduced to 40 overs aside. Iestyn (10-2-20-2) and Jake Caddy (7-0-25-2) opened the bowling and started extremely well picking up 2 wickets apiece in their 6 over spells. Blue Star’s middle order tried to show some resistance however they did not look like they would hang about for long as Brian North (10-3-17-2) at first and then Ariez Mehta (1.2-0-4-1) on his debut bowled extremely well. Northy picked up 2 more wickets for the season thanks to a catch from Iestyn and then to a superbly held one handed catch at mid-on by Ariez. Jake Caddy played a fine part in their penultimate wicket as he first fielded brilliantly off his own bowling and then had the sharp thinking skills to run out the non-striker who had backed up too far. Ariez finished off Blue Star with a straight ball that their final bat played all round.
With 44 overs to chase 107 the side felt fairly confident. Ariez and Dave Caddy started well knocking the ball about well without taking too many risks. After going at 4 an over for 9 overs though we then lost Ariez to a catch behind after he prodded at one outside the off stump. Skipper Luke Hunter then joined Dave and the both of them first saw off the openers and watched the new slower bowlers carefully, as well as hitting well timed boundaries and taking quick singles when possible.
Luke fell for 25, with the score on 80 leg before. Youngster Sam Fishlock came to the wicket and continued his good form with the bat for the 3s hitting some nice shots to help Dave get the team over the finish line with almost 20 overs to spare. Sam finished on 13 with Dave on 43.
A big congratulations to all the team, as everyone played their part on this important win which has lifted us up the table to 6th. Thanks to Neville for umpiring and all the players who helped out with scoring, umpiring, getting drinks and assembling/dissembling everything for the match, it’s much appreciated.
3RD XI vs. Orpington 3rd XI Away Saturday 19th May.
OD CUACO 131 all out A. Rouse 51.
Orpington 133-4
With the opposition lacking an umpire, we automatically won the toss and decided to bat first.
The two Andy’s opened the batting and despite losing Parkerman early on we made a solid start thanks to Andy Rouse and Bob Lake. Bob was caught behind shortly before drinks and shortly after skipper Luke Hunter was bowled and our position looked slightly precarious at 55-3 after 25 overs. Andy and Sam Fishlock steadied the ship a little and upped the run rate, one rare boundary bringing up Andy Rouse’s 50. Some late hitting from Marc Woods and Ollie Fishlock got us over and beyond the 100 mark. In the 44th over we were bowled out for 131.
A target we were fairly hopeful of defending, if we could take some early wickets.
After tea the oppo got off to a decent start as their opener was able to find the boundary on more than one occasion. Woods grabbed our first wicket bowling their number 2 before Ollie clean bowled their number 1. Their number 3 picked up where their openers left off scoring runs freely. Ollie grabbed another with an LBW, unfortunately though Orpington had scored a few runs too many by the time the spinners Ben Stuart and Brian North came on. Despite claiming one wicket, no other wickets came our way and Orpington ended up winning the game in the 24th over only 4 wickets down.
Orpington 133-4
With the opposition lacking an umpire, we automatically won the toss and decided to bat first.
The two Andy’s opened the batting and despite losing Parkerman early on we made a solid start thanks to Andy Rouse and Bob Lake. Bob was caught behind shortly before drinks and shortly after skipper Luke Hunter was bowled and our position looked slightly precarious at 55-3 after 25 overs. Andy and Sam Fishlock steadied the ship a little and upped the run rate, one rare boundary bringing up Andy Rouse’s 50. Some late hitting from Marc Woods and Ollie Fishlock got us over and beyond the 100 mark. In the 44th over we were bowled out for 131.
A target we were fairly hopeful of defending, if we could take some early wickets.
After tea the oppo got off to a decent start as their opener was able to find the boundary on more than one occasion. Woods grabbed our first wicket bowling their number 2 before Ollie clean bowled their number 1. Their number 3 picked up where their openers left off scoring runs freely. Ollie grabbed another with an LBW, unfortunately though Orpington had scored a few runs too many by the time the spinners Ben Stuart and Brian North came on. Despite claiming one wicket, no other wickets came our way and Orpington ended up winning the game in the 24th over only 4 wickets down.
3rd XI home to Old Wilsonians 3rd XI
We finally played our first game of the season on the Warren Annexe. With the captaincy changing hands at least four times before the start, Andy Parker walked out to win the toss with his new lucky £2 coin conforming to tails theory. Excellent work has been done on the square both before the season and at the last minute to ensure the game went ahead. Did not stop the skipper from immediately inserting Old Wilsonians, though.
Ollie Fishlock and Billy Rouse shared the new ball and bowled very well keeping the opposition down to under two an over. As expected, the pitch played quite slowly with the occasional variable bounce, but on the whole it played very true. An inspired bit of captaincy moved debut man Jon love from the redundant extra cover position to a shortish mid wicket only for the opener to hit the ball in the air straight to him. As we have come to expect from rugby players, the catch was taken very easily and Billy had his first wicket. The second opener followed soon after, snaffled by his Dad off Billy's bowling.
OWs 3 and 4 then batted very sensibly and took the total past fifty before Dave Minette took an exceptional catch at short midwicket off Northy's bowling to remove a disbelieving Andrew Steel. Andy Rouse took his second catch of the innings to remove Neil Treacher, this time off Northy. Luckily the skipper had remembered the old tenet of putting the best fielders at cow corner and long on when Northy bowls. This paid dividends when Billy held on to a high one to put Northy on a hat trick. On his return to the attack Billy then picked up his third wicket when he yorked Daniel Robbins on the second bounce. Another catch behind then left OWs on 60-8 when Josh Holland and Swapnil Wipat came to the crease.
Josh played very aggressively taking full benefit of any short balls and scored a good 25 at almost a run a ball. Eventually he got a little too ambitious and holed out to our tallest fielder on the long on boundary off the old fella, Ollie making a very good catch look ridiculously easy. Eventually Northy got his seventh wicket with the last ball of his final over to leave us with a target of 137 in 55 overs.
To be fair, OWs opening three bowlers all bowled very well, keeping excellent line and length throughout their first spells. So well that Steve Smith and Andy Rouse were only able to score at just over a run a ball for the first twenty overs or so. Steve was eventually out when he caught off the third straightforward chance he gave. Andy followed soon after but unfortunately we kept losing wickets at quite regular intervals although the skipper and Dave Caddy did take advantage of the few poor balls bowled in our innings, gratefully biffing a few long hops into the river before Dave fell to the only LBW of the day and the skipper did his old trick of smashing a long hop to cover.
That was about it really. Laki Kasturiratne changed ends and was a completely different bowler up the hill and with David Smith returning to mop up the tail with another good spell down the hill we perished for 88. It is fair to say that the team who bowled the best line and length won the day and deservedly so. This may be a good time to remind everyone that Senior nets are held every Wednesday from 18:30 where we can all practice bowling line and length and, just as important, practice batting against good deliveries. Northy is excused nets after his 7/29 has staked an early claim for the bowling award.
OWs 136 all out
OD Cuaco 88 all out
Ollie Fishlock and Billy Rouse shared the new ball and bowled very well keeping the opposition down to under two an over. As expected, the pitch played quite slowly with the occasional variable bounce, but on the whole it played very true. An inspired bit of captaincy moved debut man Jon love from the redundant extra cover position to a shortish mid wicket only for the opener to hit the ball in the air straight to him. As we have come to expect from rugby players, the catch was taken very easily and Billy had his first wicket. The second opener followed soon after, snaffled by his Dad off Billy's bowling.
OWs 3 and 4 then batted very sensibly and took the total past fifty before Dave Minette took an exceptional catch at short midwicket off Northy's bowling to remove a disbelieving Andrew Steel. Andy Rouse took his second catch of the innings to remove Neil Treacher, this time off Northy. Luckily the skipper had remembered the old tenet of putting the best fielders at cow corner and long on when Northy bowls. This paid dividends when Billy held on to a high one to put Northy on a hat trick. On his return to the attack Billy then picked up his third wicket when he yorked Daniel Robbins on the second bounce. Another catch behind then left OWs on 60-8 when Josh Holland and Swapnil Wipat came to the crease.
Josh played very aggressively taking full benefit of any short balls and scored a good 25 at almost a run a ball. Eventually he got a little too ambitious and holed out to our tallest fielder on the long on boundary off the old fella, Ollie making a very good catch look ridiculously easy. Eventually Northy got his seventh wicket with the last ball of his final over to leave us with a target of 137 in 55 overs.
To be fair, OWs opening three bowlers all bowled very well, keeping excellent line and length throughout their first spells. So well that Steve Smith and Andy Rouse were only able to score at just over a run a ball for the first twenty overs or so. Steve was eventually out when he caught off the third straightforward chance he gave. Andy followed soon after but unfortunately we kept losing wickets at quite regular intervals although the skipper and Dave Caddy did take advantage of the few poor balls bowled in our innings, gratefully biffing a few long hops into the river before Dave fell to the only LBW of the day and the skipper did his old trick of smashing a long hop to cover.
That was about it really. Laki Kasturiratne changed ends and was a completely different bowler up the hill and with David Smith returning to mop up the tail with another good spell down the hill we perished for 88. It is fair to say that the team who bowled the best line and length won the day and deservedly so. This may be a good time to remind everyone that Senior nets are held every Wednesday from 18:30 where we can all practice bowling line and length and, just as important, practice batting against good deliveries. Northy is excused nets after his 7/29 has staked an early claim for the bowling award.
OWs 136 all out
OD Cuaco 88 all out