The clubhouse was buzzing on Saturday night following some great Saturday fixtures, and the visit of Yash Jaiswal, off the back of his incredible IPL and call up to the Indian squad for the upcoming World Test Championship Final at the Oval this week.
Match Reports:
1st XI v Bickley Park
After another comprehensive defeat against Bromley OD’s lined up against the top of the pile and recently relegated Premier Division club Bickley Park. The squad worked hard in the week to try and turn our luck.
Skipper Ainger won the toss and elected to bat (4 from 4 this year) sending Murrell (0 from 6) and Koot. Murrell was quickly removed by the erratic opening bowler following a flurry of wides. Koot (44 from 46) continued to dig deep and played within himself, trying to maximise time in the middle and balance his natural aggressive style. He was eventually removed trying to take the attack to their spinner. Dan Webster (32 from 75) continued with his usual anchor role in the innings. Running well with Koot and his brother Chris (16 from 16), Dan began to set a solid platform for the team to bounce from. Dan was eventually dismissed with an attempted sweep shop, which lead to Nick announcing “the sweep shot is banned”. Response from the skipper was “more sweeps”… a nice summary do the two mindsets. The middle order stuttered but Jamie Batten (32 from 41) did well to continue the upward trajectory of the innings. After he got caught on the rope, Pip France (49* from 34) lead the charge with the lower order Ollie Jasper (15 from 24) and Andrew Ainger (10* from 11) by running aggressively and putting the bowlers on the back foot with some lusty blows. ODs ended on 247-8 with a massive six over long on to finish the innings.
With a solid score set, the boys strode out with quiet confidence in the second innings. Despite the skipper forgetting the scorers teas (my bad) and causing much distress Jamie and Chris took the new ball for the first time as a pair this year. J eased himself in pushing through a side strain and Chris looking to find rhythm after a hamstring issue. J opened his account this year by blasting through the openers defence with an in ducker and Chris removed the Bickley number 2 with the old one two (out-swinger, in-swinger). Chris (2-33) and J (1-31) continued their spell through the power plan and were eventually replaced by Dan (2-31) and Andrew (0-42) who looked to control the middle overs. Dan did a superb job at doing just that allowing us to take control of the game, also picking up two massive wickets in one over. The game was well poised- Bickley still very much in the game but 5 down, lots of cricket to be played. Pip France (2-33) bowled is typical tidy spell shifting the run rate up and up. Koot (2-25) doing the same bowling with clear plans and executing well. All this combined with a gun run out from the skipper (quoted from Pip) meant Bickley fell short of the 248 required. You can see the winning moment below:
Huge performance from all involved, a true team performance with bat, ball and in the field. Roll on The Mote next week!
Match report by Andrew Ainger
2nd XI v Downham and Bellingham
Oh dear oh dear
On Saturday, sacred elements of the 2s cricketing ethos were torn up and repeatedly plinked into rows of terraced housing. ODs went at more than 3 an over in the powerplay! Sixes were hit! Runs on the Board did not ultimately triumph…
It started so well with ODs winning the toss on a sunny afternoon and making hay. After a conventional first 5 overs, Sanders (28) and Loader (59),filmed warming up below, realised that the usual benchmark of 200 would not be enough given the good pitch, rapid outfield and miniscule square boundaries. Upon which, Loader exploded, taking on the offspinner who was launched successively over extra cover and deep midwicket. Downham & Bellingham were looking ragged, but managed to snatch three quick wickets, reducing ODs from 85-0 to 115-3 just after drinks. Fear not – Winks (29) built an excellent partnership with the returning Joe East who took time to settle but upon finding his fluency, stroked the bowling to all parts in making a majestic 66, before getting bored and trying to bat left-handed. Nonetheless, Oscar Jasper (27*) and Will East (27) combined to add the final flourishes in a punishing final 5 overs, taking ODs up to an imposing, but not insurmountable, 288-6 in 45 overs.
Davison and Bennett started well, conceding only 9 in the first 4 overs. But then the assault began. Length balls were deposited over the top and the rate began to soar. ODs shuffled the pack, with both Will East and Joe coming very close to the breakthrough, but only Arora (exceptional figures of 9-1-32-1) could provide the breakthrough when Purbrick was stumped for 63 with the score 140-1. ODs were not out the game, but every time pressure was built, it was immediately released with balls sailing into local gardens or speeding across the outfield. When Martin was finally dismissed for 122 (well taken by Pooley at mid off), ODs had left themselves too much to do, and despite a late flurry of wickets, subsided to a 5 wicket defeat with 4 overs to spare.
All in, ODs had conceded 30 fours and 11 sixes. Readers can be assured that this will not be repeated, certainly not at the Home of Cricket. The 2s look to build upon the 1s excellent win over Bickley Park with a game against their 2s this Saturday.
Match report by Laurence Sanders
3rd XI v Bexleyheath
It looked like a perfect day for cricket, with the sun shining brightly in the sky and the pitch freshly cut with the stumps firmly in the wicket. However, the excitement was slightly dampened by the grass cuttings scattered around the outfield and the undulating wicket. Nevertheless, the ODs boys knew that every day is a "win toss, bat" day, so they were eager to get the game started.
As the players got ready, donning their cricket kits, they discovered a major setback - Bunners' mum had forgotten to pack his bag. It was a disaster! Luckily, the groundsman came to the rescue and provided a spare set of whites left by the under 14s from the previous week. As Bunners put the whites on it became apparent that the whites would no longer fit a 14 year old ever again. Although they were a tight squeeze, whites are whites, and the game was ready to commence.
It became apparent early on that the pitch was challenging to bat on, causing wickets to fall left, right, and center. Sherry and Majid opened the batting for ODs. Unfortunately, Majid lost his wicket early, and Craig, the next batsman, experienced a similar fate. The pitch was playing tricks, creating difficulties for the batsmen. However, Phil Parkes' son stepped onto the field, looking in good form. He and Sherry began to steady the ship until Sherry fell victim to a ball that stayed low.
Now, it was Bunners' turn to bat. As he made his way to the crease, he fixed his wedgie and took his guard, displaying his determination. Sam and Henry were batting well until Sam also lost his wicket. Bilal came in to bat, and Henry whispered in his ear, encouraging him to do his best. True to his words, Bilal smashed a four on his first ball but got out on the next delivery, leaving the field with an impressive strike rate of 200.
The Chairman's son walked in next, advising Bunners to stay focused and keep going. Bunners nodded in agreement. Unfortunately, on the very next ball, Bunners attempted to hit it out of the park, but the ball ended up knocking over stumps instead.
Rousey tried to steady the ship, playing sensibly and taking advantage of the loose deliveries to keep the run rate ticking along. However, the ODs ended their innings with a total of 115 runs. It wasn't the score they had hoped for, but they remained determined to defend it.
As ODs took the field, Craig delivered an inspiring team talk that concluded with all of them putting their hands in the middle, chanting, "1, 2, 3, ODs!" It was a moment reminiscent of a scene from High School Musical, and the opposition realized that ODs meant business.
Gul and Howard led the bowling attack for ODs, steaming in with determination. Both bowlers performed admirably, with Gul bowling 8 overs, 2 maidens, conceding 28 runs, and Howard bowling 7.3 overs, 1 maiden, conceding 27 runs.
The opposition faced similar difficulties with the pitch, as it proved to be a nightmare for batsmen but a dream for bowlers. ODs started picking up wickets early on, with Dr. Zahid particularly shining, taking 4 wickets, including a magnificent caught and bowled dismissal. Alex Walker also bowled impressively, maintaining a tight line and length, making it difficult for the opposition to score freely.
The game was closely contested, but unfortunately, ODs fell short by about 30 runs. The match ended in the 33rd over, with the opposition securing victory.
Match report by Henry Hamilton
4th XI v Old Elthamians
With the April and May showers a distant memory, the 4s travelled to the picturesque setting of Eltham College in glorious sunshine. The track looked as good as the outfield and Coles was never going to deviate from the win-toss-bat mantra on a day made for cricket.
Kevan Harding and Steve Smith opened the batting against a consistent attack of military medium dobbers bowled with a consistent line and length making it hard to score. Harding worked the ball well for a useful 27 as he watched the rest of the top order of S Smith, L Colby and M Coles fall around him for a mathematically satisfying yet rather unfortunate set of 1-2-3 scores respectively.
Perhaps keen to complete his set of OD teams, an injured Kieran Hammond made his first appearance in the 4s with the field spreading after just one lusty shot to bring him onto a score of 4. Surely not a 1-2-3-4 from the 5?
A massive swipe and a miss saw him survive and the scoreboard started ticking over with some lusty blows bringing him to 19 until he was castled aiming to hit one over The Thames.
Good contributions from Billy Ansar (14) and Ben Westmacott (17) helped move the score towards a hundred as they both enjoyed sending the ball through the vacant cow corner. Avis looked to follow suit but a swing and a miss saw him bowled for 1.
Late-addition, newcomer Frankie Scrivenor, strode to the crease a little rusty in technique but with a good eye hitting the most popular boundary of the day in his 7.
It was left to T Fox and S Sawko to hold out as ODs batted out their overs for a respectable 124-9.
ODs at least had a total to defend and awaited to see what Old Ethamians had in their line-up given they were a 2s team and always likely to have one or two strong batsmen.
Billy Ansar (3 for 51) opened up charging down the hill with his inswingers challenging the stumps getting a wicket second ball to an outstanding one-handed slip catch from M Coles. Game on!
Ansar bowled unchanged down the hill for his full set of 9 as ODs went for the wickets needed to win the game. From the other end Sawko, Avis and T Fox looked for the breakthrough, but as suspected Old Elthamians had one player who proved the difference with some clean hitting punishing anything short in his match-winning 57 not out.
In truth, the opposition didn’t have much else in terms of batting, but with the score rate high with edges and extras firmly in play, they chased down the total in the 25th over despite Hammond getting a wicket first ball with his off spin thanks to another well-taken slip catch from the skipper.
Thanks to Dave Fox for umpiring.
Match report by Chris Colby (Scorer!)
T20 v Old Wilsonians
In a first round battle between two clubs that tend to punch above their weight in this T20 cup, ODs hosted OWs at the home of cricket.
OWs won the toss and chose to bowl first. With batting styles assigned by skipper Webster, Murrell and Pienaar went out and dominated the first 10 overs, scoring 80 for the loss of no wickets. This enabled the rest of the order to bat with real freedom from the 11th over onwards, and ODs got up to a decent total of 151-8 off their 20 overs, thanks to contributions from Murrell (43), Pienaar (35), Parr (28) and Extras (19).
Particular highlight was Murrell's diving header as he jumped to make his ground following a rejected call for a second run (see video).
The bowling innings started off brilliantly, with ODs reducing OWs to 29-2 off the crucial powerplay. Will East bowled fantastically to only go for 12 runs from his 4 over spell from the top end, while Davison, Pienaar, Webster and Ainger all chipped in with important overs.
ODs bowled to plans well, and the OWs batsmen fell into many-a-trap, with Jack McCarthy keeping brilliantly, claiming a catch, a run out and a stumping, and "One of our own" James Sims taking consecutive catches out in the deep to clinch the game for ODs.
Old Wilsonians ended 108-9 off their 20, meaning ODs won the game by 43 runs
This means ODs progress to Round 2 of the competition, where they will play a round robin at Bickley Park on 18th June against Bickley Park (10am), and Sevenoaks Vine (1pm). It would be great to get a good crowd along to support the Blue Army!
Thanks to Steve Sawko for umpiring, Wendy and Jane for scoring (in the absence of any scorer from OWs too!), and to Dnommah for the fantastic photographs in the gallery above
Match Report by Chris Webster
Under 15s
A hot day with a whipping breeze on the Costa del Catford had parents in an interesting mix of jumpers and sunhats. The umpires, however, provided the true sartorial talking point. The C&C umpire, we deduced, was clearly a chemistry teacher as he had his white lab coat on! Whilst our own representative was less Dickie Bird and more Lawrence of Arabia, with jumper swathed round head in stylish fashion – clearly a technique used before as it never fell off or required adjustment! Sadly the umpiring made a better talking point than the game as the U15As finally met their match this Sunday.
ODs won the toss and elected to bowl. The bowling started off very well with a maiden from Luke Curtis and just one run from each of Adam and Josh’s initial overs. However, as the batsmen got their eye in, they started to get the benefit of the fast outfield and the small boundaries. Unfortunately the ODs bowling and fielding was also not quite as sharp as it has been in recent weeks, resulting in C&C getting to 161 in their 24 overs with the loss of just two wickets. The first wicket to fall was thanks to a run out with a good throw from Ollie and the second saw Luke Curtis removing the other opening bat’s middle stump. Luke finished with figures of 3-1-11-1. Ed also bowled a maiden ending on 3-1-16-0. Jay was the most economical bowler of the day, with just 4 runs from his two overs. Adam also kept it tight with 14 runs from his 3 overs.
C&C undoubtedly boasted a better bowling attack than the other teams in this division that we have faced so far and their field was well set and disciplined, making it difficult from the off for ODs to hit the necessary scoring rate. However, they kept their bowling restricted to just six key players. It was certainly not the inclusive ethos that ODs operate of giving everyone at least two overs.
Luke Colby was unlucky to be caught out for 5, after scoring a good 4. The opposition came to regret dropping Tom early on in his innings as he carried his bat on 49 not out. Max pushed the run rate along with 28 off 37 balls, including 5 fours. Carter was out lbw for 4 after adding a boundary to the total. Knowing the team was behind the required run rate, Adam contributed 21 off 18 balls before being run out when pushing for yet another run. Ollie ran himself out on 2 trying to get Tom to his fifty in the final over, leaving Josh to come in and face the final ball of the game.
Thanks to Ollie for scoring, to Becky for operating a the scoreboard (a real challenge given how many numbers were missing!) and to Richard for managing and umpiring with such inventive headgear!
Picture of the Week
The 1st XI celebrate after their first win in the Championship over top of the table Bickley Park
Tour 2023 - 23rd to 26th July
This year we will be touring to Norwich! Leaving early on the 23rd July, we have a full fixture list for the 3 days, starting on the Sunday against Heatherset & Tas Valley Cricket Club during the final day of their Beer Festival. On the Monday, we travel to Cromer CC to play in the first fixture of their cricket week, before a short trip on the train on Tuesday to play against Acle CC.
Total cost of the full Tour will be £265 per person. Please let Mike Parr or Dan Baylis know if you are keen to come. Payment is due now!
Bank details as follows:
OD CUACO CC
20-49-8
40432628
Training times
The following times are designated for club training sessions. Nets will be available to use for club members outside of these times, and if there is no game on the main square.
Group | Day | Time |
Senior Nets | Wednesday | 6:00 pm - 8:00 pm |
Additional 1st XI nets | Tuesday | 6:00 pm - 8:00 pm |
U15-U17 | Tuesday | 5:00 pm - 6:30 pm |
Under 11 and below | Sunday | 10:00 am - 11:15 am |
Under U11s to Under 13s | Sunday | 11:15 am - 12:30 pm |
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