Scorecard

Erratics Cricket Club Erratics v Stokeinteignhead on Sun 21 Sep 2025 at 1pm
Erratics Cricket Club Won by 30 runs

Match report Match report by Martin Wright

“How Green Was My Valley?”.

Will Erratics in years to come, perched in pastures new, be musing on that romantic question as they recall the golden days of their lost home ground?

Who knows? What is certain is that, in the here and now, the (Teign) Valley in question had greened up quite astonishingly in the last few weeks, thanks to the late summer rains that have transformed it from semi-desert to emerald oasis. And so we hosted old friends, rivals and frequently teammates, Stokeinteignhead, on a gloriously sunny Sunday, on a field that, even with much mowing, was positively lush.

The impact on the scoring rate was palpable. Where August’s drives and clips seared their way to the boundary, September’s trundled to a halt well short of the rope. Singles were commonplace, twos a rare treat, threes out of the question, and fours best achieved aerially.

Erratics batted first, on a pitch lovingly rolled, repeatedly, by Rick Lindsay, who then suffered an ironic dismissal – caught off a ball that shunned the pitch altogether, and just floated, temptingly, until Rick popped it into the hands of mid-off.

Mark Philips was bowled by a loopy delivery which kissed the top of his stumps, while Jon Perkin took a robust approach, clumping a four back over the bowler’s head, and unveiling what was widely agreed as a “Graham Thorpe-esque” one-legged pull.

After Jon was dismissed for a lively 20, Jonathan Kirby and your correspondent took over, reprising our aged but enthusiastic scampering between the wickets which had so endeared us to Anuj Tiwari in his report of a Newton St Cyres T20 earlier in the summer, before I holed out to square leg off a full – a very full – toss.

Mark Hailwood took over, armed with Lee Grant’s bat. This clearly came imbued with some of Lee’s aggression, too, resulting in some powerful blows, including a particularly fine straight drive. Jonathan, too, opened up, adding an array of impressive off- and cover-drives to his trademark laps and sweeps. Both Mark (21) and Jonathan (35) eventually perished going for glory as tea approached.

Rob Scott followed suit, marking his first innings for Erratics all season in the most selfless, and indeed, briefest way possible. Fraser Chave and Nigel Rutherford kept up the pace, adding a valuable 24 to take Erratics to tea on 138. By consensus, a par score – not least because of the richness of the pasture…

In response, Stoke were soon going like their customary metaphorical train, with Joseph Liyo and Vivek launching the ball to all parts. They didn’t merely cast caution to the winds: they took it in both hands and hurled into the stratosphere. Both were brutal; Joseph in particular beautifully so: a high arc of the bat, Liyo-cum-Lara, followed by a full swing of the blade, wielded with devastating effect until he had the grace to swing one straight into my paws on the midwicket boundary.

Stoke looked as though they’d do this at a canter, until…. Enter, stage left, Phil ‘The Power’ Power. His first faltering steps into the spotlight flattered to deceive. First, he put down a skier from Vivek at square leg. Then he watched the batter he’d so generously spared send his opening deliveries soaring back over his head and into the trees.

A lesser man would have wilted. But – at the risk of this report becoming a Hailwood-esque encomium to the Man from Totnes – it has to be said that Phil is made of sterner stuff. Next over, he cleans up Vivek. Then, wielding all his array of flight and guile, not to mention gite and flial, he steadily runs through Stoke’s middle order.

The rest of our attack weighed in, too. Lee Grant and Nigel were tight as ever, Rob Scott had lost none of his hurtle as he steamed in like a man making up for a lost summer, and Fraser Chave, on the money as always, all picked up a wicket. There were a few sharp catches too: Jon taking a towering one over his head; Rick using all his six-foot-and-quite-a-lot to pluck one out of the higher levels, and Fraser sealing Phil’s fivefer, and an Erratics victory, when he snaffled Abner, Stoke’s last man standing.

Phil, shoved to the front by his team mates, led us off the pitch with a modest wave. A modest man, indeed, with very little to be modest about.



Erratics Cricket Club Erratics Batting
Player Name RunsMB4s6sSRCtStRo
extras
TOTAL :
3nb 11w 6b  
for 7 wickets
20
138		        
Jon Perkin ct B Clarke 20 33 2 60.61
Richard Lindsay ct N Paul 2 9 22.22
Mark Phillips b B Clarke 1 15 6.67
Martin Wright ct J Joice 18 32 1 56.25
Jonathan Kirby b N Paul 35 54 4 64.81
Mark Hailwood b J Liyo 21 25 2 84.00
Fraser Chave Not Out  15 18 1 83.33
Rob Scott b J Liyo 0 1 0
Nigel Rutherford Not Out  6 13 1 46.15
Phil Power  
Lee Grant  

Stokeinteignhead Bowling

Player nameOversMaidensRunsWicketsAverageEconomy
Nomy Paul4.011326.503.25
Vivek Vithlani5.002700.005.40
Brendan Clarke4.01623.001.50
Jay Hughes4.002200.005.50
Liam Town4.001700.004.25
Roger Putman5.002000.004.00
Joy Joice4.0024124.006.00
Joseph Liyo3.01321.501.00

Stokeinteignhead Batting
Player name RMB4s6sSR
extras
TOTAL :
6w 1b 1lb 
for 10 wickets
8
105 (24.3 overs)		     
Ginoy Joseph b L Grant 5 19 26.32
Joseph Liyo ct R Scott 33 23 6 1 143.48
Vivek Vithlani b P Power 30 27 2 2 111.11
Roger Putnam ct N Rutherford 4 20 20.0
Nomy Paul b P Power 8 14 1 57.14
Jay Hughes ct F Chave 14 21 2 66.67
Brendan Clarke b P Power 0 7 0
Liam Town lbw F Chave 0 3 0
Joy Joyce ct P Power 1 5 20.0
Abs Liyo ct P Power 2 8 25.00
   

Erratics Cricket Club Erratics Bowling

Player NameOversMaidensRunsWicketsAverageEconomy
Lee Grant7.0119119.002.71
Rob Scott5.0033133.006.60
Nigel Rutherford5.0019119.003.80
Phil Power5.302955.805.27
Fraser Chave2.00321.501.50