Nearly got a result

The Ballinger Sunday XI looked very twenty-ish when we arrived. Not an old crock or young child in sight. They just looked a lot like cricketers. The Cublington Sunday XI looked like they normally do. A little less cricketer-ish.

Ballinger play win, lose, draw on a Sunday with 20 overs from 6pm. That gave us our chance. The skipper contrived to lose the toss and was duly invited to field. Ballinger took a while to get going with a tight opening spell from the superannuated Orchard and a tight spell, for seven overs at least, from Howitzer. His first seven went for 21, his 8th went for 17. Gadsby H kept the scoring in check but at the other end mayhem ensued and Ballinger rattled along at seven an over. They declared 15 minutes before the scheduled tea break. A big hand to Bocrch who bowled ten overs and nothing fell off him. Very impressive.

The Cubs had to bat like dervishes to win, or more realistically survive for about two and a half hours for a draw. Orchard and the Prof started well against good bowling but in the 8th over the Prof defended the ball into his his foot whence it rolled back into the stumps. Howitzer and Borch kept going for another ten overs but when the Howitzer was bowled one end opened up. James Taylor went in at four to show what he could do. 'Will he bat like a batsman?' asked one team mate? 'Or like a child that has overdosed on Haribo?' asked another. Haribo won as JT took a huge mow at the leggie and was bowled first ball.Corporal Baines and Gadsby H tried to block but were both undone. John Munday listened carefully to The Wazir's advice to get to the pitch of the ball against the leggie. Even when he bowled a long hop. John charged towards the middle of the wicket, fell over and was stumped by a distance. Gadsby and Farr came together with 22 overs to survive and took the game deep into the last few overs, the Wazir doggedly and the skipper agriculturally. Eventually the Wazir was pinned so in front of the stumps that he almost gave himself out. The next ball the skipper feathered one to the keeper, and with just six overs left to go our version of Rorke's Drift failed, unlike the original. Good fun, though, and the format made what would have been a very dull game at tea into an interesting one which challenged both teams.