Open GI v Bedouins at Ombersley – Wednesday, 8 August 2012

Beds win by 14 runs

Mr Chairman writes:

The picturesque Ombersley cricket ground on a perfect summer evening; the church clock chiming the hours in the background; the click of bowls on the adjacent bowling green; doves cooing in the long grass; ………. Whoops, sorry, got carried away a bit there.

It must be the experience of actually getting a Beds match played this soggy season in something resembling appropriate weather.

After the previous week’s experience of a farcical final few overs in stygian gloom at Enville, it was important this time to get things under way as early as possible.  Some kind of record was established by starting the game before 6 p.m. – even though it was an “away” match.  So it can be done.

Beds had first use of the invitingly hard Ombersley wicket but suffered an immediate setback, with Andy Hill bowled in the first over.  That brought Paul Lippitt to the wicket to join the skipper, John Branch, making a welcome return after his trip to the valleys with the Enville boys the previous week.

Lippitt effortlessly hit the game’s only six over mid-wicket before being bowled for 14.  Meanwhile JB was proceeding in his usual accomplished fashion, hitting the odd boundary among a host of singles.  At the other end Adrian Susman was likewise in “singles” mode until a couple of consecutive boundaries preceded his departure for 15.

Austin Gregory was next in and, with the occasional meaty blow, made his way to the 30 retirement point, with the skipper once again doing the same.

Welcome guest Rhodri Parfitt looked the regular cricketer that he is in hitting 23, which just left enough time for Lee Bywater and Tony Hancock to get to the wicket before the 20 overs were up, with the Beds on 126 for 4.

Open GI made a terrific start to their reply, getting somewhat stuck in to the bowling of David Pearson and Mike George.  At one stage it was disconcerting to hear a shout of “Well bowled, George” coming from the pavilion area.  Unfortunately from the point of view of our skipper of vice, it was from the bowling green, praising the efforts of a “George” with a wooden ball (don’t be rude!).

Open GI’s openers made good progress, putting 45 on the board in six overs before a double bowling change brought the wickets that the Beds needed.  Lee Bywater twice managed somehow to avoid the expense of completing a hat-trick, returning the astonishing figures of 4 for 7 in 4 overs, including two double-wicket maidens.  At the other end Spratters was weighing in with 3 for19, to the delight of hid dad, who had turned up to support (he seems to be remarkably jolly in spite of having to bear the cross of being Spratters’ dad!).

One of his victims was Open GI skipper and sometime Bedouin Des Johnston.  From the vantage point of the scorebox, he appeared unlucky to be given out LBW – a view with which he seemed to concur as he left the field muttering something that included the words “umpire” and “Specsavers”.

With a ninth wicket stand of 34, Open GI were just 14 runs short of their target at the end of their overs, as John Branch came on to take the pace out of the bowling and to record 2 for 16 in three overs.

So another win for the Beds.  It should be noted that a couple of good catches were taken – by Susman and Hancock.  And somewhere along the way somebody, possibly wearing keepers’ gloves, had the unlikely distinction of dropping catches off successive balls.  Dropping two balls sounds like a nasty case of you-know-what.  Nice to have you back, Andy, and thanks for coming!