A great start to the season (for IAS)

Steve Bullock made an early bid for 'Brown Ale Moment of the Year' to provide a highlight to an otherwise difficult day at the office for Cubs. The batsman sent a top edge high into the sky with its trajectory taking it about six feet behind the stumps. Cue an anguished cry of 'I can't get there' from our wicket keeper (sic) who was standing, rooted to the spot, a few feet away from where the ball thudded harmlessly into the turf. It would have been Calum's maiden Cublington wicket. Note to Calum: if you want to take wickets on a Sunday aim to bowl them, or slip Steve Mackie a few quid and try for LBW. We dropped six catches in all. Bully's high class drop was off the IAS batsman who retired, 90-odd runs later on 107. Oops!

We lost the toss (and the match, and the will to live) and things went downhill from there. Orchard managed an LBW (thanks Steve) before Shak and Bilmal cut loose with a stand of 134 for the second wicket which only ended when 4th change bowler Oscar Middleton nipped in with another LBW (thanks again, Steve). A couple of retirements, with batsmen passing huge personal landmarks got Cubs right back in the game (have you been drinking? Ed.) 8th change bowler Gadsby got someone caught. Can't remember where. Probably out on the High Street, the way they were hitting the ball. 40 overs yielded 304 runs. Pick of the bowling was, well, no-one, really.

After a monstrously big tea (well done everyone, especially Freddie Perkin for persuading his mum that he needed sandwiches for two teams, not two people) the Cubs reply got off to a slow start. Four ducks from the first five batsmen was enough to rival the flock in Tim George's field. Five ducks in total. An ageing Ben Orchard, in what must surely be one of his final innings before retirement slapped a happy 72. The Wazir of Farzi managed 15. Ryan Bullock looked good for his eight runs until run out by Borch ("Well he ran me out yesterday in the practice match!" - yes, but he was in the opposition then, numpty). We finished with some runs. The books says 126 so that most be the total, but it felt like a lot fewer. By the time we got to the pub most people had forgotten the grim reality and were talking up their own games. No-one, however, had forgotten Bully's wonderful drop. A highlight from Cublington's very own Benny Hill.