Scorecard

Erratics Cricket Club Erratics v Sunsets on Fri 29 Jul 2011 at Unknown
Erratics Cricket Club Lost by 5 wickets

Match report Match Report: Jan Heaton

On a sticky, overcast evening, Sunsets won the toss (I think) and put Erratics in to bat, despite the away side awaiting 3 of their players. The Erratics skipper, Guy Clarke, sent in Al Brunt and Jan Eaton to open, (the Sunsets scorer kindly giving me a pen name, perhaps to distance me from the innings to follow. It’s not my best variation of my name though – the best so far was when I used to subscribe to ‘Wicket Women’ magazine, published in the ‘90s before the WCA merged with the ECB, which was mailed to a ‘January Heaton’).

Brunt was a bit surprised by the first ball – he hadn’t realised we had agreed to play with a white(ish) ball. Sunset’s opening bowler Dunk was getting some movement in the air and off the pitch and was hard to play and to keep to. Brunt and Eaton got off to a safe but slow start, seeing off the opening bowlers and reaching just 24 after 8 overs, before both were bowled by the Sunsets 3rd bowler Price for 13 a piece. By this time, the Sunsets team had fully assembled, only for one player to withdraw owing to some problems with his contact lenses (no, the ball really does do that on the Dunsford wicket).

Jonathan Kirby and Chris Ferro came in and quickly formed a sprightly partnership, picking off singles and twos with apparent ease, and scoring the odd stylish boundary, before Kirby was out to a stunning c&b by White - a straight-punched drive taken inches off the ground with his non-bowling hand. Another good partnership followed between Ferro and Peter Cox, broken when Ferro was out caught in the covers by Bowen for 25. Cox snr was then joined by son Sam, who watched in disbelief as Cox snr played an uncharacteristic agricultural shot for 4 through mid-wicket (and then made up for it with a more elegant 4 through the covers soon afterwards). By the 16th over, Erratics had reached 74. When Cox snr retired, Simon Orpen was sent in wielding the club’s Mongoose for its debut. (see Editor's note below) As the appointed match reporter, I was wondering if I would get to report that the Mongoose was out for a duck, but it didn’t happen… Simon and the Mongoose scored 2, and Cox jnr was run out on the last ball trying to get one more run for the team. And so we managed 104 for 5.

Could Sunsets do any better? Tom Harris, returning after a 10+ year break, asked more questions with his bowling in tandem with Ferro, but neither could break through. There were a few edges and a difficult chance wasn’t taken (it was a nicely set trap though). After 8 overs, Sunsets were well ahead at 49. Then the game changed. Perryman drove the ball to Orpen in the covers, who kneed the ball to Chris Fear (I think) at point-ish, who relayed the ball to Phil Ellis to somehow achieve a run out (and my ‘champagne moment’ of the match – or should that be a ‘cider moment’ down here?). With the other opening batsman retired, Phil Ellis and Peter Cox took on the fresh bats. Both bowled tightly, and there were lots of dot balls…. There were also two wickets, as Cox c&b Bridge and Price in quick succession, after Bridge had struck a rare boundary off Cox. By the 16th over, Sunsets were on 78 runs, just 4 ahead, and it was all to play for. On the boundary, Harris was getting more excited at the prospect of a winning return.

But it wasn’t to be. Bowen came in at #6 and scored 24* runs to see his side home, with Fear and Orpen forcing the game into the last over, when Sunsets knocked off the 7 they needed with a couple of boundaries, losing the ball to the stream with the final shot.

Editor's note: I'm told that Jim Thomson may have baptised the Mongoose in an earlier game. He's certainly the one who drew the attention of the Erratics to this particular weapon.

Erratics Cricket Club Erratics Batting
Player Name RunsMB4s6sSRCtStRo
extras
TOTAL :
3w 8b 2lb 
for 5 wickets
13
104		        
Al Brunt Bowled  13
Jan Heaton Bowled  13
Jonathan Kirby Caught  9
Chris Ferro Caught  25
Peter Cox Retired Not Out  28
Sam Cox Run out  1
Simon Orpen Not Out  2
Guy Clarke  
Phil Ellis  
Christopher Fear  
Tom Harris  

Sunsets Bowling

Player nameOversMaidensRunsWicketsAverageEconomy
No records to display.

Sunsets Batting
Player name RMB4s6sSR
extras
TOTAL :
2nb 6w 3b  
for 5 wickets
11
106 (19.2 overs)		     
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   

Erratics Cricket Club Erratics Bowling

Player NameOversMaidensRunsWicketsAverageEconomy
Tom Harris4.003000.007.50
Chris Ferro4.001900.004.75
Phil Ellis4.011600.004.00
Peter Cox4.001125.502.75
Christopher Fear2.001400.007.00
Simon Orpen1.201400.0010.50