The Waltham team turned up
to the picturesque village of Goring to find a pitch
that turned out to be a cross between Headingley and
Perth; as the covering of grass gave the bowlers plenty
of assistance whilst giving the batsmen pace and bounce
(sometimes too much, as Ashton’s elbow and Johnson’s
ribs would attest to) to work the ball with.
Waltham fielded first and got off
to a dream start with opening bowlers Harris and Arif
picking up wickets in each of their second overs; both
smartly held by debutant keeper Jones.
Jones showed
throughout the course of his wicketkeeping stint a true
promise with the gloves, effectively dealing with everything
that the bowlers sent his way.
However, these early wickets
sought to bring the more talented Goring middle order
to the crease with these next three batsmen scoring
half of the total innings runs.
Skipper Gearing made the first
of many clairvoyant bowling changes and brought himself
into the attack. The skipper bowled exceptionally well, mixing
late inswing with the straighter ball for his seven
overs and trapped the attacking Deeks LBW with his first
ball to the said batsman.
Dalai Gearing then brought
Waltham’s Kolpak player Lugthart
into the attack. Lugthart who had obviously heard that Leicestershire
were looking for another South African import not only
bowled the Goring skipper with an off cutter coming
back up the slope but such was the ball’s momentum it
sliced through the bail.
Goring continued to dig in
until NostraGearus brought Matt Andrews into the attack
and he also took a wicket in his first over.
Obi Wan Gearobi then brought
Harris back on and replaced Lugthart with Henry Evans.
These two
bowled well to curtail the Goring innings within the
45 overs; especially in the warm and humid conditions.
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At tea Waltham
knew that 201 would be a test for the young team and
that the senior players would have to perform to achieve
a positive result.
Waltham openers Ashton and Gearing
started well before the later was caught and bowled
mistiming a pull. Ashton was soon to retire hurt after his elbow
was peppered by a couple of balls that misbehaved off
the pitch and gave him the look of man who had a golf
ball implanted in his elbow.
Evans joined Johnson at the
crease and both players set about laying a platform
from which to win the match. Both were watchful in defence but punished
the bad ball to the boundary, unfortunately though these
were a rare occurrence due to some excellent off/leg
cutter bowling by the home bowlers. However, both batsmen stuck to their guns
and not only blunted the Goring attack in the heat of
the day but also the inane warblings of what experienced
cricket watchers call Dichheadius
Fielderus,
a thankfully rare occurrence where graduates of the
Robert Mugabe wit and charm school continually embarrass
themselves for three hours of a Saturday afternoon.
With the departure of Johnson,
Biffer Harris entered the fray with Waltham
in a good position to win the match needing a run a
ball with effectively 7 wickets in hand with 10 overs
left. Harris proceeded to bat like a man with his
amp turned up to 11 as he smashed the ball out of the
ground on two occasions costing Goring two balls and
the local pub a new window.
Waltham looked on course for
victory with Matt Andrews at the other end playing some
photogenic shots to the boundary, however, as Andrews
departed so did the Waltham push, as wickets tumbled
to leave Waltham with a highly creditable draw knowing
that everyone contributed to the final result.
It must be added that today
offered a glimpse into the future for Waltham
and as such the future looks rosy. The young players present showed
promising ability in first team surroundings and look
ready to take the club upwards in years to come. |