17th May v Horton Kirby (A)
This week the Second XI visited Horton Kirby on a beautiful May afternoon. For a number of us it was the second visit in as many weeks, having played there with the First XI on the opening league weekend. Experience of that encounter led Calypso to bowl first on an inconsistent wicket (toss won with a head).
Our bowling attack was pretty strong owing to Siraj, Amir and Omar being available, the younger two taking a break from exam revision to play. They shared the new ball and enjoyed some early success mixed with a good number of extras. Omar picked up two wickets, bowling their first bat with a ball that kept low, and having their number two caught overhead by Matt Bell at point as he slashed hard at an away swinger. Whilst Omar struggled to tame a ball that was swinging prodigiously, Amir bowled with good control, but without luck from the pavillion end. He beat the bat on several occasions and was unlucky not to draw the edge in his first spell.
Siraj and Calypso bowled the middle overs, both struggling to contain numbers 3 and 4 who began to stroke the ball to the boundary with ease. The scoreboard rattled around and the hosts reached 103-2 from 16 overs, before George held onto a good catch at extra cover from Calypso to dismiss their number 3 for 53. Three wickets in the next four overs (2 Siraj, 1 Pannell) brought us back into the game with the hosts on 130-6 at drinks. We were encouraged to think we could hold them to a total of less than 200, with a disciplined fielding, if not bowling performance.
George Greenaway (13) bowled his leg spin beautifully, turning out a player of the match performance with figures of 7-0-2-41. He had the batsmen guessing and was ably supported by the silky-gloved Wesson who completed two excellent stumpings as the batsman advanced only to miss a perfectly flighted and spinning ball. If George was our strike leggy then Sam Poynter (13) was our miserly medium pacer. Sam bowled rythmically with great line and length going for only 18 runs from 5 overs as the batting side were looking to accelerate.
Siraj and Amir closed the innings, with Amir deservedly picking up a late wicket as Horton Kirby finished on 210-9 from their full quota of overs. We were pleased to hold them to that score, having at one point faced a mountainous score of 300+. The fielding was good the whole way through, with special mention to Ted Bell who fielded excellently including a nonchalant one-handed pickup, running around the square leg boundary to save a four.
Our fielding effort was better than our batting. We were never really in the chase at any point. Amir and Matt opened the batting with Amir given license to hit out or get out so that he might get home early to complete a Chemistry practice paper. Both scored a couple of boundaries early on and we were up with the rate after the first couple of overs :-).
However, once their tall opening bowler found his line and length, things got tricky. He bowled very well, just short of a length, removing Amir’s off-bail with the ball on the way up and (literally) smashing the middle stump to dismiss Matt. With the stump replaced he didn’t look back and ended up bowling 7-1-5-21, accounting for Ted, Sam and Omar. Wesson came and went, caught and bowled from the other end as he attempted to exert some pressure. Calypso hung around for a few overs at glacial pace and was caught from a checked straight drive at mid-on for 17. Siraj batted responsibly with Anthony and stretched out our innings to 29.2 overs. George was unflustered and played nicely without scoring. Siraj ended up 17 not out and our innings closed on 74, one run short of the 75 needed for a batting point.
We were disappointed not to have acquitted ourselves better with the bat, but our fielding performance was decent. Highlights, as is often the case in our side, was the contribution of the three younger players.
Scorecard: https://speldhurst.play-cricket.com/website/results/6698476
24th May v Kilndown and Lamberhurst (A)
Thanks to Nick for captaining the 2s this week. His report:
A gloomy start to the day (rain and 9 players—no wicketkeeper) ended up a cheerful one (no rain, 10 players, great team spirit and a closely fought narrow loss).
As I knew most of the home team (relatives, old friends) and the captain (fellow custodian back in the day), I thought I could negotiate the toss and ask to bat first given our predicament. No such luck! Thought he was a mate! Ended up losing the toss. Still thinking he was a mate and would let us bat—he then decided to put us in the field. Brilliant.
But, against league rules (I think), he let us have a fine leg fielder for the innings. Fair play to him. Perhaps the club could thank Kilndown and Lamberhurst.
Anyway, I still needed a keeper. Because he had some wicketkeeping stuff, a little voice in the corner said, “I’ll do it.” Up steps young Sam Poynter. And what a job he did! Gathering cleanly, reading the line and length—fantastic.
Welcoming back the Roches for their annual outing, we took to the field and kept things very tight in the bowling and fielding. Big shoutout to young Ted Bell for agreeing to open the bowling with Pierre (who bowled with typical guile). James bowled with zip downhill, and the stand-in captain chipped in with a couple of wickets and a run-out, leaving the opposition 80-3 at drinks.
George did a great job bowling uphill into the wind with his leggies, making sure his dad (Anthony) got plenty of fielding practice on the leg side! Ed turned up from a late lunch (?) and relieved Sam from his keeping duties, who then bowled at the end of the innings. Considering (apart from a fine leg fielder) we had only seven outfielders, restricting the opposition to 221-7—including three run-outs—was a commendable effort. Thanks to Pierre for his help in the field.
Briefly forgetting I was captain for the day, I got a little nudge from the opposition asking about a batting order. After a little persuasion, James gratefully opened and got his eye in early with a few boundaries on his way to 19, giving us a positive start. Thanks also to Matt Bell for opening for the second consecutive week. Pierre and Ed put on a calm 50-run partnership before departing, leaving us 84-4 at drinks. Similar scoreline to the opposition at this stage—but one wicket and one player fewer.
With the juniors due to bat, I suggested they just bat for themselves, get their eye in, and enjoy it.
All three acquitted themselves perfectly, enabling the score to build through partnerships with Nick. The oppo’s keeper (a relative) tried his best to sledge me, then smirked that we needed 13 an over with 10 overs left.
Time to start hitting.
George (6) showed great technique—partnership of 21. Ted (17) cracked three boundaries—partnership of 39. Sam (16) joined me at the crease with good footwork—unbroken partnership of 64—helping Nick (76) get us to within 10 runs of the required total.
Agonisingly short, but a great game all round. Lovely to see four dads and their sons playing!
Scorecard: https://speldhurst.play-cricket.com/website/results/6698479
31st May v Leigh (H)
This week saw the first home game of the season for the Second XI, and it promised to be a warm one.
Calypso won the toss (heads) and elected not to sweat in the field, preferring to bat first on what was a decent wicket. He and Matt Bell opened and were quickly underway, taking advantage of a couple of looseners in the first few overs. Calypso was fortunate to be dropped from an outswinger that went quickly to first slip on 10.
They had reached 30 when Matt got an excellent nut from the pavilion end that went through his back-foot defence and clipped the top of off stump. Ed Bartlett, a late and very gratefully received addition to our side, batted at three. His technique was good, but his stay was short as he nicked through to the keeper from the same outswing bowler.
Ed W strode out at four with the early impetus waning and a couple of quick wickets threatening to destabilise our innings. The assignment was clear: to consolidate and soak up the pressure of what had settled into disciplined line and length from both opening bowlers. They picked off the odd loose ball and ran well to push the score to 72 for 2 at the 20-over mark. The opening bowlers had delivered their full allocation with nearly identical figures, a wicket each, a couple of maidens and an economy of just over three.
We hoped this was an indication that things might get easier with the first change bowlers. As we resumed after drinks, Wesson in particular was able to seize on a more leg-side line from the village hall end, hitting a number of boundaries through the leg side and down the hill. The trend continued and the scoring rate climbed steadily. Calypso, slower to get going than Ed, also started to find the boundary more regularly and we were soon moving along at six an over. The running was effective as well, consistently putting the Leigh fielders under pressure and turning singles into twos.
Such was the exertion of the running that it became clear by over 35 that Ed’s hamstring might not make it the whole way through. With batting in reserve and thinking ahead to an afternoon of throwing himself around behind the stumps, Ed retired injured on an excellent 81 not out.
With five overs to go, Pierre made the right decision to push Ben Roberts of “Ben’s Bashers” fame to bat at five. He was out second ball, playing to the brief, and was caught well on the longest of long boundaries. Another 10 cm of elevation would have seen the ball safely over for a maximum, but it was not to be.
Pierre came and went, doing his best to get going quickly but knowing that thrashing about in the dying overs is not the ideal position for a player of his class.
Ted Bell (U13) was in next and, although he ended up scoreless, he executed his instructions to run hard. The final 10 balls saw six twos, and it was a hot and bothered skipper who hit the penultimate ball of the innings up in the air and was caught for 94. Charlie Ludlum (U13) faced the final ball of the innings, kept it out, and we had posted a creditable 197.
Tea had plenty of cakes (thanks Suzie, Alison, Min, Judy and Lizzie), but no tea, as we had forgotten to put the urn on. Alison quickly rectified this oversight to save our blushes, and we headed out to field feeling we had a good chance of defending our total.
Pierre and Rakesh opened the bowling. Pierre bowled at around five percent of his youthful pace but was accurate and miserly throughout. His nine overs cost only 15 runs and he dismissed their opener (bowled), returning the most controlled bowling performance of the match.
Rakesh and then Roberts rotated from the other end, both struggling for consistency, and Leigh were able to make fairly rapid progress. Roberts conjured a decent one to get rid of their powerfully built number three, which was a relief as he looked strong, capable and was wielding a heavy-looking bat. At drinks, it was 72 for 2 from 15 overs.
Pannell and Ted Bell replaced Roberts and Pierre respectively. Ted bowled very well, keeping the scoring under control and taking a wicket when the ball was launched high into the summer sky with his father standing beneath it. Matt took the catch confidently, despite having to back-pedal down the slope. Our pair of Bells had broken through… ding-dong!
Calypso wheeled away and managed to get through their opening bat, dismissing him for 40. He got another when Anthony Greenway clung on to a decent catch as the batters were looking to expand. By the end of his spell, Leigh needed around seven an over for the last 10.
Ed B bowled a good spell of medium pace to keep the pressure on. He took three wickets, including an excellent caught behind that his namesake took well behind the stumps. With three overs to go, things hung in the balance. Leigh needed 30-odd, and we needed two wickets. Rakesh came back to close out but struggled to get his shoulder going again and we leaked some precious extras. Bartlett finished his spell from the other end with Pierre showing good guile, “misfielding” a ball to allow a single that ensured their junior batter was on strike for the final over.
With 10 runs needed, Calypso threw the ball to Ted, who was the best option to conserve precious runs. He stood up to the task brilliantly, switching ends and bowling with confidence. The final over was a tense affair with scrambled runs, a dropped catch and a wide. With one ball to go, Leigh could not win the game, and Speldhurst could not lose if Ted bowled a legal ball. Ted duly delivered, as did their tall number eight, who took a long stride up the wicket and hit a clean drive over long-on to get the six needed for a tie.
It was a breathless end to a really good game of cricket.
The Leigh skipper said that the only batter in their line-up who could hit the ball that far was their number eight, and we happened to find him on strike with a ball to go. It felt like a pretty fair result, and it was good to at least share the points, building on better and better performances this year.
A big thank you to Anthony Greenway for playing at short notice in place of George. We would surely have lost the match with only ten in the field.
Likewise, to Ed Bartlett for answering our desperate call for players at even shorter notice and making a great contribution with his bowling.
And finally, a huge well done to Ted Bell, who helped Calypso add late runs at the end of the innings and bowled a disciplined seven overs, including that tense last over.
We will win it next time 🙂
Scorecard: https://speldhurst.play-cricket.com/website/results/6698483
Speldhurst Cricket Club 