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In a much changed line up, a valiant Waltham side battled hard throughout a tense and well contested away match only to fall just short of victory against a deserving Goring – without a jellybean in sight! Stand in skipper Damon Hill lost the toss and was asked to bat first on a glorious English summer’s day on what looked to be a firm and fast track. Indeed, the track did prove to be an excellent one and very much to the taste of openers Nathan ‘the Coalminer’ Thomas and Naveed ‘Huggy Bear’ Raja. Raja was in no mood to run singles and dealt in a furious flurry of brutal boundaries that saw Waltham quickly past the half century well inside the first ten overs. Goring were forced into rotating their bowling attack and eventually found success when Thomas was cleaned up for a patient 10 with the scoreboard a healthy 64. Raja was joined at the crease by Ziggy ‘the Human Sieve’ Kiani who looked composed as he went about his business. Raja eventually fell for belligerent 52 with the score on 80 as Waltham achieve their best start of the season. This news was greeted with relief by local residents who had been fearful for their homes windows, walls and roofs! Chris ‘I go to school to eat my lunch’ Sharpe joined Kiani in the middle and continued to press Waltham’s advantage in a mature innings in which he showed deft touch to work singles in a shell shocked Goring field. Both Kiani (16) and Sharpe (12) perished in quick succession having moved the scoreboard along to 113 for 4 after 25 overs. Any let up that the Goring field may have hoped for was quickly dashed as the lanky figure of Hill joined the scruffy tramp that is Paul Gearing at the crease. The two displayed great patience and powers of concentration in the ferocious heat of the afternoon against a probing Goring attack. Gearing was especially brutal on any width or over pitched deliverers as the scoreboard continued to climb. He eventually fell for 48 as he tried to accelerate the scoring at the death but not before posting a 105 run partnership with Hill. It was left to Hill and ‘Noodle’ Owen to provide the final flourish in which Waltham achieved their best score of the season with a magnificent 234 for 6 from there 45 overs with Owen left desperately unluckily stranded 99 short of his century. At half time there was a feeling of great optimism in the Waltham ranks and this was heightened by a nasty rumour that Mrs Nebbett was shortly to be seen sunbathing in her bikini! Waltham chose not to take the new ball immediately, and Gearing and Thomas opened up. Behind the stumps the mild manner Mike Thompson had eaten two bags of Jellybabies and was sledging away like a drunk Australian. Gearing quickly claimed a double break through that saw Waltham firmly in charge of the match. Goring knew that they needed to chance their arm and did so on numerous occasions as time and time again half chances went begging, edges found gaps, and difficult catches didn’t stick. Rashid ‘Ralpindi Express’ Arif together with Keith ‘Zulu’ Lugthart battled in vain as some fine partnerships from the Goring side wrestled the game back in favour of the home side. A late glimmer of hope was offered by Lughart and Raja who both claimed well deserved wickets however, it was a day of so close yet so far for a spirited Waltham side as Goring closed out the game in the penultimate over. There were any positives to take from the match as the Waltham side which had almost achieved an unlikely victory contained just three regular first team players. The team also realise that with greater concentration in the field some of the chances could have been claimed and the simple midfields eliminated from the innings. Coupled with some indecisive running between wickets at times this defeat should be seen more in terms of a valuable learning exercise as Waltham look to build towards next season. Cricket enthusiasts from all over the world would have been disappointed star all rounder, and Waltham CC alcoholic in residence, Matt Nebbett did not have a greater impact on the match. However, he is expected to take a full part in the next match as his training regime of 2 packs, 8 pints and a double portion has achieved considerable success in making him a more well-rounded cricketer. Many thanks must go to Goring who were magnificent hosts but also to the entire Welsh village of Thomas who left there flocks unattended for the day to support their favourite son Nathan who cut a dapper figure throughout the day in his woolly whites. Ziggi Kiani was also rewarded for his efforts in the field by a massive endorsement from multi national corporation Teflon to promote their new range of cricket wear. Hope that you all enjoyed the match report, all offensive comments were suggested by Dan ‘Noodle’ Owen and complaints and retribution should be directed towards him. “keep you eye on the ball” |
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Read all the local reports in the Maidenhead Advertiser. Out on Thursdays. |
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