Scorecard

Woodbury and Newton St Cyres (Mini-League) v Erratics Cricket Club Erratics on Tue 21 Jul 2020 at 6.00pm
Erratics Cricket Club Won by 7 Wickets

Match report Apparently, the incidence of ghost sightings has declined in recent years, in direct proportion to the increase in mobile phones. This may explain why no-one journeying to the season’s first Mid-Devon Mini League fixture glimpsed the souls of lost Erratics, once rumoured to wander the labyrinthine lanes around Cheriton Fitzpaine CC, forever looking for the ground.

As well as sparing us a haunting, technology also ensured we were unlikely to suffer the same fate, thanks to Cheriton having kindly dropped a pin on a google map to guide us to the elusive spot.

So it was that 11 Erratics and true were there well before the six o’clock start, including a welcome debutant in Jonathan Beverley, of whom more later, and nearly newcomer Lee Grant, ditto. Annie and Mercedes womanned the scorebox, sticking to their task despite the rather enthusiastic intrusion of two hyperactive Jack Russells (the terrier, not the County Cricket Matters artist-in-residence), who seemed keen to assist.

Skipper Fraser’s first task was to find out who we were playing. Having ascertained it was the geographically-unlikely combo of ‘Woodbury and Newton St Cyres CC’, he won the toss and led us onto the field.

Ben and Rithvik opened tightly, and I managed the rare feat of running out a batsman other than Duncan Chave (who had been the victim of friendly fire in two successive matches the previous week). Fraser rotated his attack cannily, with Lee bowling a fine spell of full, testing deliveries and Mark beating the bat nicely a couple of times. Combined with some sharp fielding, not least by Richard Lindsay behind the stumps, this kept WNSCC quiet up to the six-over sanitise.

Afterwards, Jeff ‘Golden Arm’ Haynes was brought on for his first twirl since before the war, and immediately clean bowled the batsman with his first ball. Jonathan showed promise with some nicely flighted spin, although one or two deliveries carried on being rather well-flighted after reaching the bat as well, bringing the hedge behind the pavilion into play. He would more than make up for it later, however.

Despite bursts of clean hitting, WNSCC never really got away, with Fraser and Matt keeping the Errati-lid on, and finished with 120 – leaving us with a neat six-an-over task to grasp in our slippery, sanitised hands.

Skipper sent Duncan into bat with Matt Crawford, on the basis, as he ungraciously let slip within my earshot, that “he won’t run you out”. (Duncan then almost demonstrated that he was quite capable of performing the task without my assistance, venturing dangerously out of his ground before safely regaining the crease.) In the face of some fine tight bowling from WNSCC’s gender-balanced opening attack, they struggled to get the ball off the square in the first few overs. But then Matt broke the shackles, and we were away. He perished soon after, as did Ben and myself, both victims of the ground’s notorious downhill shooters, but not before I had achieved my primary goal of not-running-Duncan-out.

Thus reprieved, he opened up with some excellent clean hitting through the covers, and one glorious straight six. He was joined in a highly productive partnership by Jonathan, who placed the ball well and ran athletically, before launching himself at the bowling, sending it skimming to – and over – the ropes. An impressive debut indeed. Both he and Duncan were compulsorily ‘retired’ after reaching 30, but they had broken the back of the task, and Fraser and Rithvik steered us home like the couple of young pros that they are, easing Erratics over the line with a couple of overs to spare and a couple more sixes over the rope.

So, an excellent start to the 2020 Mini-League (or as it shall always be known in these parts, the Cheriton Fitzpaine Girt Big Bash). And for the fourth match running in this truncated season, the sun shone, too.

But as I pulled away, a stray cloud slipped across it, a chill breeze sprang up, and there, did you see it, by that old stone cross near the ruined barn, a spectral figure in whites, clutching a cricket bag, frowning at a map…

Match Report by Martin Wright.

Woodbury and Newton St Cyres (Mini-League) Batting
Player name RunsMB4s6sSR
extras
TOTAL :
1nb 9w 1b 2lb 
for 7 wickets
13
120 (20.0 overs)		     
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   

Erratics Cricket Club Erratics Bowling

Player NameOversMaidensRunsWicketsAverageEconomy
Ben Youngman3.0017117.005.67
Rithvik Gutha3.0016116.005.33
Mark Hailwood3.002000.006.67
Lee Grant3.00522.501.67
Jonathan Beverley1.002100.0021.00
Fraser Chave3.0016116.005.33
Jeff Haynes2.0014114.007.00
Matt Crawford2.00800.004.00

Erratics Cricket Club Erratics Batting
Player Name RMB4s6sSRCatchesStumpingsRun outs
extras
TOTAL :
2nb 5w 3b 2lb 
for 3 wickets
12
121		        
Duncan Chave Retired Not Out  32 4 1
Matt Crawford Bowled  6 1
Ben Youngman Bowled  1
Martin Wright Bowled  2
Jonathan Beverley Retired Not Out  31 4 1
Fraser Chave Not Out  27 1 2
Rithvik Gutha Not Out  10 1
Lee Grant  
Richard Lindsay  
Mark Hailwood  
Jeff Haynes  

Woodbury and Newton St Cyres (Mini-League) Bowling

Player nameOversMaidensRunsWicketsAverageEconomy
No records to display.