Saturday 7th
June
Thurcroft
Welfare II 94-9 (46 overs)
[1 point]
Thoresby
Colliery II 95-3 (36 overs) [16
points]
After the
smoothest journey to an away match for some time (nobody got lost, dropped out
or was late) the game began with Thurcroft batting on a pleasantly warm
afternoon.
Jeppo
immediately began with a wild beamer, right over the batsman’s head, which
Godders did well to stop. But two balls later Jamie’s line was perfect as he
yorked the opener. Within three more overs his partner had joined him in the
pavilion, being bowled off his pad, again by Jeppo. The no.3 looked
strong-in-arm and played a couple of forcing shots before taking half a run,
being sent back by his fellow batsman, then just sauntered straight to the
pavilion without trying to regain his ground …… run out by Billy / Godders.
Meanwhile the naggingly accurate Hutchison was replaced after 4 overs by the
aforementioned W.Lippeatt. Thereafter it was something of a slow but steady
procession back to the pavilion. Billy decided to bowl flat and make scoring
difficult for the home side – this is never a high scoring ground – and eventually
each batsman lost patience. Although Thurcroft managed to bat out their time,
only three strikes of 4, 4, 6 in one over off the otherwise accurate Evans
lifted their total to anything like respectability. Billy finished with
excellent figures of 5 for 15 off 17 overs ….. a triumph for tight bowling!!
Thoresby’s
reply started predictably poorly for Halfpenny who, having batted for the full
46 overs last week, decided to kick the first ball of the innings back on to
his stumps from about two feet wide of leg stump. The next incident swung the
game; Case being given not out on a ‘more than tight’ run. It’s a good job stand-in
square-leg umpire Hutchison doesn’t know the rules. However, Mick took his
chance to the full as, slowly but surely, he and Evans ground down the
opposition bowlers. At 23 overs we still needed another 50 runs, but by this
time John Hill and Bill ‘Pitchfork’ Pitchford were tired and needed a change.
Tom Oxley’s 64 year old spin did for Evans (20 runs) but Case carried on
relentless, stopping only to call over to the boundary at the bemused and
penniless Lippeatt to “get me a pint in, Billy” as he passed his first 50 of
the season. Ben Marson played a couple of corking shots off his legs to bring
the total nearer and Case struck the winning single at about 7 o’clock, just in
time for that lovely pint, then back to Edwinstowe before the village gates
closed at 7.30.