Fives and Heronians Cricket Club

Scorecard

Wanstead v Fives and Heronians Cricket Club Saturday 2nd XI on Sat 27 Jun 2009 at 1 pm
Match was Abandoned

Match report Match Report – by a Country Member

The Tumultuous Downpour Of Biblical Proportions

Fives and Old Heronians won the toss. Ben Britton, deputising as skipper for Keith Oram, elected to bat. Keith, troubled by an aggravated fetlock and a pain in the back, spared his side the pain in the neck of umpiring, and dutifully officiated the game from both ends, resplendent in his newly-acquired MCC members’ tie.

This was an all-hands-to-the pumps day, with several players N/A or injured, and Phil Legreake a late dropout. With Keith umpiring, another man on square-leg duties, one scoring, one electronic scoring, two batting, two padded up, and two last-minute retired old-timers dozing under the tree (guests excused duties), one man “lost, but on my way!” – there was only one player left available to perform the obligatory ritual of a lap of the ground playing boundary-marker golf/bowls. With the flags generously placed in close proximity on the perimeter, each ‘hole’ was a par two. Reggie Coleman went round in nine over and managed to lose to himself.

Neil Braithwaite and Nick Rotsey settled in against the opening Wanstead seamers, Jennings and Potter-Clark, and while Neil nurdled to leg pleasantly once or twice for scampered quick singles, Rotsey flailed away in despair at short balls, his air-shots giving the impression he had holes in his bat. But gradually the pair got to grips with the pace of the pitch, and Rotsey found his range, unfurling a series of lusty on-drives for four, and Braithwaite’s timing and placement improved, his leg glances now finding the boundary.

This spirited opening stand of 47 ended when Rotsey fell for 26 to an over-exuberantly celebrated caught and bowled by Jennings. Braithwaite raised the 50 in the following over, and in the next new man in, Britton, launched a furious assault upon Jennings, striking boundaries off four successive deliveries: through fine leg, square leg (a no-ball beamer), over backward point, and through midwicket. That was the end of Jennings for the day.

It was a hot and beautiful afternoon (to this point), and clearly not a day to be fielding first. The change bowlers were tucked into, a sequence of generously floated half-volleys treated appropriately, and the score mounted. But at 102, Britton cut uppishly, and mistimed a ball from Iqbal to cover.

Yet runs kept flowing with James McKay joining Braithwaite, and at drinks Fives supped happily at 131-2 from 26 overs. Braithwaite raised his fifty in the first over after the resumption, turning a full pitch to leg from the newly introduced young leg spinner. Indeed, Wanstead had two young tweakers throughout the rest of the innings, one a wrist spinner, the other slow left arm.

It was Ellis-Greswell, the left-armer, who raised the anchor, trapping Braithwaite in front for 57. Neil’s disappointment at not seeing through the innings was evident as he trudged back to the pavilion. At 146-3 after 29.3 overs McKay was now the senior partner, with company at five and seven from the flowerpot men, Bilal and Ben, with Andy Hall cast as the weed between them at number six.

It became 168-4 when Bilal Ashfaq was the victim of a once-in-a-lifetime freak dismissal. McKay drove the leg-spinner, Hassan, back hard for a caught and bowled opportunity. He spilled it – straight into the stumps at the non-striker’s end, with Bilal, stranded, run out 21.

But the innings’ impetus didn’t relent, and the 200 came up at the end of the 40th over – effectively providing Fives with 12 bonus overs in which to give the bowlers more to defend, and bowl at. Yet the two brave young spinners never ceased to give the ball air, inviting the drive and lofted shots to the deep set field, although today it seemed a very big field to cover. Soon McKay cleared the entire playing area, when Ellis-Greswell was hoisted high and handsome into the tennis courts at deep midwicket. “I hope you’ve got good insurance, boys!” was the helpful response from an Andy Murray wannabe.

Wickets and runs were traded quickly as Ben Lloyd was stumped and McKay bowled for 45 by a beautiful googly, both off Iqbal. Old-time pros David Oram and Andy Smellie (mistaken pre-match by Ellis-Greswell as Fives’ scorer) tried to jockey Hall along to his 50, but he fell in the penultimate over for a fine 42, another victim of the googly. Ten and Jack, Coleman and Javaid, perished for nought apiece and Fives were all out for 262 in the final over, Wanstead being rewarded for their open play with full bowling points - Ellis-Greswell finishing with 4-99 and Hassan 3-47, although five dropped catches were costly.

The Wanstead tea, amidst original art prints depicting 1905 cricketers by Albert Chevalier-Taylor, was excellent and plentiful, and several players retook the field rather plumper.

The Wanstead innings was brief. Threatening thunder was precursory to a and hailstones the size of marbles, after 13 overs of the reply. In that time Wanstead had made 71-3, with Waquas Javaid taking 3-20 from six splendid new-ball overs.

The stoppage left a decidedly one-sided affair drawn, with the sides ironically taking six points each. But the early abandonment did mean a return to the pavilion to tuck back into the remains of tea – and even a freshly brewed pot emerged!

Fives and Heronians Cricket Club Saturday 2nd XI Batting
Player Name RunsMB4s6sSRCtStRo
extras
TOTAL :
 
for 10 wickets
0
262		        
Neil Brathwaite lbw Ellis-Grewell 57
Nick Rotsey ct Jennings 26
Ben Britton ct Iqubal 26
James McKay b Hassian 45
Mohammad Bilal Ashfaq Run out  21
Andy Hall b Hassian 42
Ben Lloyd st Hassian 3
Andy Smellie Not Out  7
David Oram b Ellis-Grewell 5
Andrew Coleman ct Ellis-Grewell 0
Waqas Javaid st Ellis-Grewell 0

Wanstead Bowling

Player nameOversMaidensRunsWicketsAverageEconomy
Jennings8.0342142.005.25
Potter-Clark7.022100.003.00
Ellis-Grewell19.4099424.755.03
Hassian12.0147315.673.92

Wanstead Batting
Player name RMB4s6sSR
extras
TOTAL :
 
for 3 wickets
0
73 (0.0 overs)		     
J. Palmer b W Javaid 2
M Velani b W Javaid 24
T Corbyn b W Javaid 18
A Jennings Not Out  6
N Adams Not Out  4
J Ellis-Grewell  
R Hassian  
F Bassadien  
H Ishtiaq  
M Potter-Clark  
S Iqbal  

Fives and Heronians Cricket Club Saturday 2nd XI Bowling

Player NameOversMaidensRunsWicketsAverageEconomy
Andrew Coleman6.002800.004.67
Waqas Javaid6.012036.673.33
Nick Rotsey1.00600.006.00

  • Umpire :
    Keith Oram
  • Scorer :