Match Report vs Wick
21 July 2019 @ Wick (Skipper Dan, report Will MW)
The Casuals arrived in a confident mood at Wick, scene in
recent years of fairly convincing Casuals’ victories,
on a 6 match unbeaten run and undefeated all year on Sundays.
Nothing but smooth sailing in sight then on our way to the
victory that would take us to 7th heaven….
Dan had cobbled together a team from old parts, spare parts
and a couple of new parts – another Dan (not young Dan),
though another young and athletic looking chap getting back
into cricket after a break, and Mike, who had come to give
cricket a try at the Casuals because he had read about the
club’s welcoming atmosphere and friendly ethos (more
on this later). Skipper Dan arrived to Wick late and from
the changing room instructed VC Jesus to toss up and if we
won bowl first, being as our batting was, on paper, and putting
it generously, “a bit thin”. Jesus called tails,
lost, and we were batting…Pabs and Jim ‘Hands’
Hodkinson opened up. Wick were without their usual opener
(I think I spotted him walking his dog on my drive to the
ground) much to the watching Casuals’ relief. Thus,
the opening bowling was not quite as threatening from both
ends as it could have been – however, it was still accurate
enough and seemed to be doing a bit through the air. Pabs
was watchful, working the bad balls for singles. Jim, after
a few nervous swishy drives in the opening overs, soon settled
down and began to find the middle, dispatching a couple of
nicely lofted shots to boundary on either side square of the
wicket. The Casuals made their way to 30ish from almost ten,
which brought the first bowling change and wicket. Pabs got
a beamer which followed him a bit, and then next ball got
a better ball that left him and hit the top of off. Casuals
37-1 at the end of 10.
Jesus joined Jim in the middle, intent on not ruining his
average at Wick (182 at start of play). He almost failed spectacularly
in this regard, chipping a relatively straightforward catch
to mid-off when on 6 only to be dropped! The youngish Wick
bowlers bowled with enthusiasm, though not always accuracy,
and both Jesus, after getting a life, and Jim were able to
cash in a bit, putting away the fairly regular bad balls for
boundaries and keeping the score going nicely. By drinks the
total had reached 109-1, and in the final over before the
break Jesus reached 50, hitting a full toss back over the
bowlers head for 6 then turning one through square-leg to
bring up the milestone.
Not long after drinks Jim, after reaching his highest score
of 43 (he knew because he was counting!) got one that stuck
in the pitch a little and chipped a simple catch to cover
point. This brought the left-handed Dan (maybe we can call
him “upside” because he’s like a reverse
Shagger, imagine Goffy saying “upside Daaan”…)
to the crease. He timed the nuts of his first ball, though
straight to the fielder who had dropped Jesus, who promptly
did the same to give Dan his first life. His second life came
two balls later, when he was dropped on the boundary, but
after that things settled down a bit…The bowling had
improved by this point, with an off-spinner from one end getting
noticeable turn, and the seam from the other end becoming
more accurate. Dan and Jesus kept things moving, Jesus hitting
a nice straight 6 from the offy, though they never accelerated
as much as they might. With the score having passed 180, Dan
was out in the 32nd over, stumped trying to take on the decent
off-spinner, but not before some controversy had erupted on
the boundary edge.
From my vantage point, I could only see the new player Mike
storming around and shouting a bit, but Skipper Dan, umpiring,
had caught more of the gist of things, and it transpired that
Mike, after at the start of the match seeming keen and very
talkative, had decided he no longer wanted to play for the
Casuals – what had brought on this sudden and extreme
change of heart you may ask? A quick glance at the team sheet
will reveal one G.Day in the XI, and it appears that Mike
had fathomed rather more quickly than most that playing for
the Casuals involves spending quite a lot of time in Goffy’s
company, and made the eminently sensible decision to up-sticks
as soon as humanly possible…in all honestly, as Mike
later explained to me after I was out, a bit of a falling
out had occurred over the batting order, which was exacerbated
by Mike’s self-professed recent struggles with his mental
wellbeing. After explaining at length to me the ways in which
we could improve how we welcome new players to the club (step
1: keep them well away from Goff) he had calmed down and he
left amicably enough just before tea – this did mean
we would be fielding with 10, so back to the cricket to see
if we would have enough to defend…
Richie had joined Jesus at the crease, and kept the score
going, but all eyes (except those on Mike, so no eyes) were
now on the increasingly weary Jesus as he neared 3 figures.
After being cruelly denied a century by his own old and talentless
team-mate in last year’s fixture, this year Jesus was
cruelly denied by his own lack of fitness and concentration.
Sensing he was nearing 100, the tiring Jesus went for the
big hoick over mid-wicket, but only managed to tickle an inside
edge through to the keeper to be out for 94. Goff went in
and produced his usual array of swishes and sashays and alongside
Richie took the score past 200. Richie was out in the 38th,
once again stumped off the offy – though admittedly
I didn’t see it as I was in full PR mode listening to
Mike. Dan went in to continue the slogging and both he and
Goffy hit straight-ish 6s before, inevitably, Goffy, according
to the book, was stumped (off the last ball I think but it’s
not entirely clear) in an entertaining finish to the innings.
The Casuals finished 227-6, a decent total, though probably
a few less than we might have hoped for.
Casuals Batting
P Stephens – bowled, 12
J Hodkinson – caught, 43
W Mason-Wilkes – caught behind, 94
U. Dan – stumped, 27
R. Holliday – stumped, 10
G. Day – stumped, 12
D. Lewis – not out, 12
Extras: LB 1, W 14, NB 2
Total: 227-6
Tea was good, though there was no sun-warmed pork pie like
there was last year, so I was a bit disappointed.
Skipper Dan and Dave opened up, Dan hoping to, for the first
time this season, take more than 1 wicket in an innings. The
first couple of overs went by without incident, but in the
4th DT made the breakthrough, enticing the opener to have
big sweep at one that he only managed to loop in the air to
the waiting Jesus, gratefully lodged at slip, who took a simple
catch. 17-1 from 4. Dan was the next to strike, in the 7th
over bowling the other opener to leave Wick 25-2 and with
a bit of work to do. In his next over Dan did what until this
season he had failed to do – take another wicket, with
another good delivery bowling the number 3 for 5, leaving
Wick 31-3 from 9. Dan, content with his 2 wickets, brought
Goff on to replace him, and DT bowled 7, in his last over
taking the wicket of the number 4, who had a hit a couple
of boundaries but only managed to get a little bottom edge
onto his own sticks. Wick now 61-4 from 14. The next man in
was Wick’s large bearded captain (interestingly, whilst
serving drinks his wife had mentioned to me that whilst I
was batting she had confused me for her husband, she should
be so lucky etc etc…) who had scored some runs against
us previously. He set about building a partnership with the
established number 3, keeping the run rate going and at the
start of the final over before drinks Wick had crept up to
99-4, only just over a run a ball required, 6 wickets in hand
and with 2 set batsmen at the crease.
Enter then, the mighty Mr Bump AKA Tim Bluff, having come
on to replace Dave in the 16th and seeing his first 2 overs
tonked for 19, in one over he turned the game decisively in
the Casuals favour. Second ball he enticed the number three
into a high lofted slap down the ground, which Skipper Dan
positioned himself under and snaffled securely, and then three
balls later he repeated the trick, luring the new batsmen
into a similar shot, which this time was mistimed and looped
once again to Dan at mid-off who took an even better catch,
‘diving’, or at the very least falling, forward
and just scooping his fingers under the ball as it dropped
in front of him. Wick 103-6 at drinks.
Following Tim’s decisive over the Casuals had one major,
and bearded, obstacle between them and victory. Shakes came
on to replace Tim and Upside Dan came on to replace Goff with
his left-arm(!) spin. Both bowled tightly and kept the run
rate down, and it was Shakes who made the decisive breakthrough,
trapping the bearded Skipper LBW (I was very convinced, Shakes
less so, and their match report suggests the batsmen might
have been a little annoyed, but their umpire gave it, so hey
ho). After that the Casuals raced through the tail. Shakes
got another with a good caught and bowled, again a dive/fall
and snaffle inches off the turf. Dan also got one on debut,
2 balls after finding the edge of the number 9s bat with a
chest high no ball which flew to slipper Jesus who managed
to hold on, he found the same edge with a classic left-arm
spinner, which turned away from the right-hand batsmen and
came through at a much more regulation height for Jesus to
once again take the catch. Richie replace Dan and bowled a
maiden (?!?!?!) before Shakes finished things off, bowling
the number 11 for nought to leave Wick 118 all out in the
30th.
Casuals Bowling
D Lewis: 5 – 0 – 20 – 2
D Thomas: 7 – 0 – 23 – 2
G Day: 5 – 0 – 29 – 0
T Bluff: 3 – 0 – 25 – 2
D O’Boyle: 4 – 2 – 8 – 1
M Stephens: 4.3 – 3 – 3 – 3
R Holliday : 1 – 1 – 0 – 0
Extras: B 5, LB 4, W 3
A very good all round performance by the Cazh, with a solid
batting platform laid and then good bowling and fielding taking
us to a very comfortable victory. We headed to the Lamb and
Flag to book in an EGM to discuss new player induction policy…..7
wins and counting!
back
|