If ever there was a game that spoke of tradition, it would be a tight call between the fine sport of cricket and that rather interesting of Afghan past times, Buzkashi. Having played Buzkashi in school (as part of a possibly over-comprehensive Australian PE program) I can say that, although they share certain fundamental similarities (such as the requirement to be well stocked up on stain remover after a particularly active match), only one of these has the advantage of a warm cup of tea and a tasty wedge of fresh Victoria Sponge mid-match. In this game of cricket, there are few traditions as well observed as the mighty Kilmington and Stourton Cricket Club facing bitter local rivals Wincanton on a damp squib of a day in the first game of the season. Rarely has a ray of sunshine escaped the great cloudy wall in the sky on these days, and it was like Groundhog Day on several counts when I found myself parked in the wrong housing estate, unable to the find the ground and the rain falling on my windshield. When eventually I was supplied directions from my understanding (through tears of laughter) team mates, I was also able to reflect on another Groundhog Day tradition...if Punxsutawney Snooky emerges from the changing rooms and see's his own shadow, it means another 6 years of Labour government! Needless to say, with the Sky News cameras about it was a bit of a shock for them all when he emerged without his shirt on....and I will leave you in suspense as to what he saw so as not to spoil the election night coverage.
With dark clouds in all directions and none at the ground expecting to get in a full game, Your Brave Leader™ stayed true to form and lost an important toss. Wincanton chose to stick us in and with opener Ant still not arrived having struggled with the vast distances between Gasper and Wincanton, last week’s hero Ray Rose stepped into the breach and accompanied his captain out into the gloom. The sensational form of the previous week was immediately evident as the Skipper expertly guided the first delivery of the day through the up-stretched hands of second slip for 4. Obviously bored with the pedestrian proceedings of the week, Rayzzo had an almighty pull at a full length delivery and found himself strolling back to the pavilion, staring forlornly at the sky hoping that at least some of the dark clouds above might be comprised of ash. Ant Williams finally made his entrance and a tough fighting partnership was formed. Although the wicket was damp on top it played pretty well, but was quite difficult to get in on. The 2nd wicket partnership was far from fluent but runs were being accumulated at a reasonable rate. Things might have been a little better had the recent invention the of the lawnmower been introduced to Wincanton town. Several delightful shots found themselves holding up in the long outfield, hampered by the damp grass and the possibilities of finding the Lost World somewhere just short of the rope. After a couple of over-aggressive boundaries from El Capitan, Ant intervened with a quick mid pitch conversation between overs to suggest we calm down a little and continue to accumulate. In a classic text book manoeuvre, Mr Williams then duly pulled the next ball straight into the hands of deep mid-on for a handy 27. Jon Rowe struggled with the pace of the pitch and the considerable turn being presented by the opposition finger spinner....but refused to submit and hit some cracking boundaries in another very handy partnership. With overs disappearing, Jon (32) and then finally the Skipper (having made 105 with the permission of 3 kind Wincanton fielders) made way for the return of human highlight reel and resident smasher Duncan Burles. Duncan assessed the situation with his expert eye and implemented plans A to Z, destroying the Wincanton attack to all parts. His quick fire 44* included 6 mighty 6's, 5 windy swishes, 4 scampered singles, 3 unexpected leaves, 2 gasping doubles and a partridge in a pear tree. His most telling blow sent the ball over the clubhouse (some distance back from the boundary) and has to be one of the longest hits since records began in April 2010. His fireworks ensured a very respectable total of 226/4 on a wicket that looked tricky to bat on.
By the time it was our turn to bowl, the supply of spare cricket balls had almost completely dried up as most of them had either found themselves in the river or had simply disintegrated on impact with Duncan's bat. And it was with this last bar of dark red soap that Mr Tom Barton and Punxsutawney Snooky began contrasting spells. While Tommy B was fast, accurate and beating the bat on multiple occasions....Snooky was not. The dangerous openers decided to chance their arm against Mr Reliable and balls flew tantalisingly close to fielders but never to hand. However, having leaked (the kind of leaking generally associated with striking an iceberg) 16 runs in the first 3 balls of his 6th over, the unlicky Snooky had Tormentor Legg caught off a full toss...the sort of delivery that usually takes wickets AFTER he has finished bowling and finds him grumbling at first slip! The completion of Tommy B's testing spell saw a double change that altered the complexion of the game significantly. The Professor Rowe and Clunker Burles turned the screws...both taking important wickets (including a typically brilliant slip catch to Mr Snook) and keeping runs in check. The Professor took 2 important wickets and the 2 to 3 over experiment with Duncan was extended to a 7 over spell as he claimed the prized wicket of Henstridge Legend Hippy (who will now have to listen to Duncan telling him all about it every Sunday for the next 48 years). Winci were still having a crack though, preferring all out aggression to accumulation. Ant bowled a tidy 2 over spell...and then a not so tidy 2 over spell directly after. Spencer Churchill was finally introduced with the dark clouds becoming ever more threatening....and he proceeded to reclaim his Destroyer title with a potentially match winning cameo...claiming 2 wickets in consecutive overs. Tommy B was having a horror story at deep long on, grassing 2 catches but he was eventually shown the way by a suprised Dan Gould who held on to an immensely important catch in the deep to assist The Destroyer in removing their top scorer. That was accompanied by a fantastic Keeper's catch standing up to the stumps off a fine edge. It was all getting very interesting with Winci 8 down but with overs in the bank to score the winning runs. Tommy B returned in the near pitch black to scare the threatening Coombes half to death and remove his wicket....and with the rain coming down Spence had the last man caught at backward point by Anter for a famous victory! The relative closeness of the game is shown by Wincanton eventually being all out for 190 in the 37th over.
Batting:
C Hansen 105
D Burles 44*
J Rowe 32
A Williams 27
Bowling: o m r w
S Churchill 5.1 1 21 3
D Burles 7 2 33 3
J Rowe 6 2 20 2
T Barton 10 2 24 1
S Snook 6 0 53 1
In a most untraditional fashion, KSCC have blasted their way through the start of the season with consecutive 35 point wins to top Division 3 (having played an extra game kind of helps with that as well). It was another tremendous effort and I must offer my thanks to 2nd team regulars Andy Reid, Alex Ross and Dan Gould who all put in sterling (and critical!) efforts in the field.
Next week we host Huntspill and a chance at continuing this amazing run which surely must see us on the back page once this infernal football season is completed.
Cheers all,
Skipper
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