Incredibly, and in spite of the torrential rain during the latter part of last week, we played our final game of the season, a 30-over match at Acton Reynalds on Sunday - and we won in emphatic fashion.
Our victory was really the story of our very own cricketing dynasty, the Joneses - dad Huw and sons Rory and Geraint.
Rory stole the show for us, claiming a hat-trick which included Acton Reynald's star batsman, Fran Hick, and taking two splendid catches.
Huw weighed in with two wickets, while Geraint (who was run out by me in dreadful fashion during our innings) also chipped in with an important wicket.
All in all, it was a superb performance from North West Water. We batted first on a pudding of an pitch. The artificial square was soggy and slow and the outfield almost ruled out the prospect of boundaries unless they were sixes.
We started solidly enough, with Pete Danby and Rory putting on 20-odd for the first wicket. Two of our new recruits, James and Lloyd, then continued in the same manner, with Lloyd - who went on to make 29 - in particular playing some lovely shots.
Wickets fell, but we managed to maintain the momentum and skipper Justin Evans raced to 30 (we'd agreed beforehand that batsmen who reached 30 had to retire).
His innings featured some tremendous hitting, including an enormous six that was simply majestic.
We ended on 135 off our 30 overs, and I ended on six not out after going in with two overs left and the bowler on a hat-trick. I played all round the first ball and was expecting to hear the stumps rattle but somehow survived. It was the most exciting thing that happened while I was at the crease.
After too much to eat during the interval, I took the new ball and bowled a decent first over, before spraying it all over the place during my following two overs. I blamed the slippery conditions; in truth, I think the roast beef sandwiches had more to do with my eratic performance.
Anyway, I ended up going for nine runs off my three overs, while Gareth Cole was similarly tight at the other end.
Huw's introduction saw us grab a couple of wickets, one coming courtesy of a tremendous diving catch from Rory.
At the other end, Matt Daulby made amends for being hit for six (well, it was more of a full toss that hit the batsman's gloves and ballooned for six) by clean bowling one of the Acton Reynalds' crew.
Justin then joined the party with two excellent wickets, including one with his first delivery, and Geraint removed another of their batsmen, while we continued to look sharp in the field - well, most of us did. I just slipped and stumbled around due to my lack of spikes, and at one point fell flat on my face while trying to field at point. Very classy.
Then Rory arrived with Acton Reynalds on 85 for five. First he removed Acton Reynald's best batsman, Fran Hick, clean bowled. Next up he got a plumb lbw. Two in two balls and the hat-trick was on. Rory was right on the money and his next victim had his stumps rearranged.
That little episode prompted the umpire (one of their openers) to ask Justin why he hadn't opened with Rory "rather than that other rubbish". Cheers.
Anyway, Rory was now looking for four in four and to mark the occasion Justin posted four slips and me at gully. I've never seen a field like it in all the time I've been playing for North West Water. The delivery was spot on again and struck the batsman on the pad, prompting a massive appeal from the slip cordon. It wasn't given, but it reduced the umpire to hysterics as we closed in on victory.
The last couple of wickets soon fell - with Lloyd taking the final wicket courtesy of a smart catch from James - and we were home with 30-odd runs to spare.
It was a great way to the end the season - and hopefully the spur to greater things next year.
Monday, 8 September 2008
Friday, 22 August 2008
Legal action?
The latest correspondence from Neil Morley concerning the Woodburners' fortunate victory over North West Water at Whittington on Wednesday.
Mr Wright:
My solicitors advise me that, bearing in mind the Cutting And Pasting On To Blogs Without Permission Act, an out-of-court settlement of, say, 10k, should embarrassing legal proceedings no longer necessary.
Actually, we were very very lucky to get a game. It was rain-free during play, but it was cloudy and threatening. We cut it down to ten 8-ball overs, which proved to be a good decision.
Modesty forbids me to mention the part played by a elderly gent of this parish in a 41-run, (all-run, boundary free) opening stand by the Woodgeezers. But what the hell, I'll mention it anyway.
Cheers, Neil
Mr Wright:
My solicitors advise me that, bearing in mind the Cutting And Pasting On To Blogs Without Permission Act, an out-of-court settlement of, say, 10k, should embarrassing legal proceedings no longer necessary.
Actually, we were very very lucky to get a game. It was rain-free during play, but it was cloudy and threatening. We cut it down to ten 8-ball overs, which proved to be a good decision.
Modesty forbids me to mention the part played by a elderly gent of this parish in a 41-run, (all-run, boundary free) opening stand by the Woodgeezers. But what the hell, I'll mention it anyway.
Cheers, Neil
Thursday, 21 August 2008
A sorry and soggy end to the season
I missed last night's game between North West Water and The Woodburners at Whittinghton - our final fixture of the season - due to being stuck in a queue of traffic on the M6 at Birmingham.
However, my former colleague Neil Morley - a Woodburners' stalwart - helpfully sent in this summary of proceedings. I can only assume he's being sarcastic when he refers to me as 'star all-rounder'. Regular readers of this blog will recognise this as a blatant misrepresentation of my lack of talent.
It sounds like it was a fitting end to a season that has been disrupted by bad weather throughout. Our form fell away as the season went on - probably due to the frequent postponements - and we also lost last week in the 17th over to our other arch-rivals, The Orhtopaedic last week. Still, we do have a 40 over game pencilled in for the 7th of September. Things can only get better!
Anyway, here's Neil's match report:
Fuming NWW cricketers blamed their star all-rounder Martin 'Wrighty' Wright for their latest devastating defeat against arch-rivals the Woodburners.
''If only Wrighty had turned up, we might have lost by a run or two less,'' said a rueful NWW spokesman after last night's Whittington debacle.
Gleeful Woodburners took full advantage of the absence of NWW's much-vaunted iconic talisman, romping home by the huge margin of a few runs, on a pitch that was later described as 'a trifle muddy'.
...but seriously, shame you weren't there, we were two short as well. It was a good see-sawing game on a surreal strip (I went a**e-over-tit the first time I ran).
However, my former colleague Neil Morley - a Woodburners' stalwart - helpfully sent in this summary of proceedings. I can only assume he's being sarcastic when he refers to me as 'star all-rounder'. Regular readers of this blog will recognise this as a blatant misrepresentation of my lack of talent.
It sounds like it was a fitting end to a season that has been disrupted by bad weather throughout. Our form fell away as the season went on - probably due to the frequent postponements - and we also lost last week in the 17th over to our other arch-rivals, The Orhtopaedic last week. Still, we do have a 40 over game pencilled in for the 7th of September. Things can only get better!
Anyway, here's Neil's match report:
Fuming NWW cricketers blamed their star all-rounder Martin 'Wrighty' Wright for their latest devastating defeat against arch-rivals the Woodburners.
''If only Wrighty had turned up, we might have lost by a run or two less,'' said a rueful NWW spokesman after last night's Whittington debacle.
Gleeful Woodburners took full advantage of the absence of NWW's much-vaunted iconic talisman, romping home by the huge margin of a few runs, on a pitch that was later described as 'a trifle muddy'.
...but seriously, shame you weren't there, we were two short as well. It was a good see-sawing game on a surreal strip (I went a**e-over-tit the first time I ran).
Tuesday, 12 August 2008
Rain, rain and more rain
Both of last week's fixtures were called off due to this wonderful summer we're enjoying.
At a rough guess, we've now lost about four or five matches due to rain this year, making it the worst year for North West Water I can remember.
To make matters worse, we've only got two scheduled games remaining - although hopefully we'll have a decent September and we can sneak in a couple of Sunday fixtures.
Well, I like to be optimistic.
At a rough guess, we've now lost about four or five matches due to rain this year, making it the worst year for North West Water I can remember.
To make matters worse, we've only got two scheduled games remaining - although hopefully we'll have a decent September and we can sneak in a couple of Sunday fixtures.
Well, I like to be optimistic.
Thursday, 31 July 2008
A battling defeat
As I said in yesterday's post, North West Water lost to BT on Tuesday evening on a difficult pitch at Oswestry School.
We won the toss and batted but made slow progress in the first ten overs, despite some dogged resistance from our opening pair Pete Danby and Rory Jones.
Rory continued his fine form with the bat, producing a couple of superb boundaries, while Pete showed a deft touch to keep things ticking over in the face of some accurate, hostile bowling.
The pitch didn't help. There had been plenty of showers during the day and the pitch cut up pretty quickly, which made the bounce more uneven than usual. One delivery even reared up and hit Rory on the helmet.
We continued to struggle throughout the innings, despite a cameo innings from Steve Daulby, who crashed a couple of boundaries before departing. I ended up going in with a couple of overs left and ended on four or five not out, but not before almost gloving a catch to mid on and then falling flat on my face trying to set off for a quick single. I really must invest in some spikes.
We ended on 78 and, in truth, it was always 20 short of a competitive total. We bowled tightly for most of their innings, with our skipper, Justin Evans, bowling economically and taking another wicket with his increasingly effective leg spin.
I opened the bowling and was given four straight overs, taking one for nine. It was the best I'd bowled for ages, although my wicket came from a wide ball that was knicked through to the agile Pete Danby behind the stumps. It was probably my worst delivery, but as I'd beaten the outside and inside edge of both batsmen a couple of times, and had one ball sail over middle stump, I felt I'd earned it.
Steve Daulby also bowled a good spell, taking one wicket and instigating a run out, to leave BT needing 26 off the last four overs. At this stage it looked like it could be a close finish, but BT hit back through a tall left-hander, who simply demolished our attack. They ended up winning with two overs to spare.
It was a disappointing end to a decent match. We're now turning our attention to the rematch with BT next Tuesday, followed by Shropshrie Health at Whittington on Wednesday. We need a win.
We won the toss and batted but made slow progress in the first ten overs, despite some dogged resistance from our opening pair Pete Danby and Rory Jones.
Rory continued his fine form with the bat, producing a couple of superb boundaries, while Pete showed a deft touch to keep things ticking over in the face of some accurate, hostile bowling.
The pitch didn't help. There had been plenty of showers during the day and the pitch cut up pretty quickly, which made the bounce more uneven than usual. One delivery even reared up and hit Rory on the helmet.
We continued to struggle throughout the innings, despite a cameo innings from Steve Daulby, who crashed a couple of boundaries before departing. I ended up going in with a couple of overs left and ended on four or five not out, but not before almost gloving a catch to mid on and then falling flat on my face trying to set off for a quick single. I really must invest in some spikes.
We ended on 78 and, in truth, it was always 20 short of a competitive total. We bowled tightly for most of their innings, with our skipper, Justin Evans, bowling economically and taking another wicket with his increasingly effective leg spin.
I opened the bowling and was given four straight overs, taking one for nine. It was the best I'd bowled for ages, although my wicket came from a wide ball that was knicked through to the agile Pete Danby behind the stumps. It was probably my worst delivery, but as I'd beaten the outside and inside edge of both batsmen a couple of times, and had one ball sail over middle stump, I felt I'd earned it.
Steve Daulby also bowled a good spell, taking one wicket and instigating a run out, to leave BT needing 26 off the last four overs. At this stage it looked like it could be a close finish, but BT hit back through a tall left-hander, who simply demolished our attack. They ended up winning with two overs to spare.
It was a disappointing end to a decent match. We're now turning our attention to the rematch with BT next Tuesday, followed by Shropshrie Health at Whittington on Wednesday. We need a win.
Wednesday, 30 July 2008
Strike rates and updates
Just a brief update on North West Water's recent progress... or rather lack of it.
I missed a game two weeks ago due to work commitments, away at the beautful Acton Reynolds ground against Shropshire Health Authority.
We managed 94 chasing their total of 114 which, according to reports at last night's game was a decent effort, "we just lacked a few boundaries".
Last night, we also lost, failing to defend a total of 78 against BT. I'll post a full report on that match shortly.
However, I would like to boast about my strike rate so far this season. Now I have a quite deserved reputation as being the most negative batsman in our team. I admit that I possess very few scoring shots... in fact, I'm struggling to think of any.
Instead, I prefer Mr Boycott's high left elbow, no need to score runs today, approach.
But last night, our resident statistician Jamal produced a spreadsheet not only showing that my batting average for the year is 32, but that my strike rate is a frankly remarkable 84. In fact, it's the third highest in the team, behind Rory on 110, and Justin on 100. It's obviously inaccurate, but I'm still going to have it framed. In fact, I'm seriously considering retiring on a high...
I missed a game two weeks ago due to work commitments, away at the beautful Acton Reynolds ground against Shropshire Health Authority.
We managed 94 chasing their total of 114 which, according to reports at last night's game was a decent effort, "we just lacked a few boundaries".
Last night, we also lost, failing to defend a total of 78 against BT. I'll post a full report on that match shortly.
However, I would like to boast about my strike rate so far this season. Now I have a quite deserved reputation as being the most negative batsman in our team. I admit that I possess very few scoring shots... in fact, I'm struggling to think of any.
Instead, I prefer Mr Boycott's high left elbow, no need to score runs today, approach.
But last night, our resident statistician Jamal produced a spreadsheet not only showing that my batting average for the year is 32, but that my strike rate is a frankly remarkable 84. In fact, it's the third highest in the team, behind Rory on 110, and Justin on 100. It's obviously inaccurate, but I'm still going to have it framed. In fact, I'm seriously considering retiring on a high...
Thursday, 17 July 2008
No cricket
The disappointing British summer is continuing to disrupt our programme this year - hence the lack of updates recently.
Tonight's game is scheduled to be away at Acton Reynolds against Shropshire Health Authority. I can't make it due to work commitments but I'm not sure whether it will be on anyway judging by the view from my desk in Mold.
Next week is fixture-free, followed by two games the week after - weather permitting.
So I'll be watching the Test match intently instead. At least the return of Freddie Flintoff adds spice to the occasion. I just hope his injury troubles are behind him because, on song, he's one of finest bowlers in the world. And, if fit and in form, he could make the difference against Australia next summer.
Tonight's game is scheduled to be away at Acton Reynolds against Shropshire Health Authority. I can't make it due to work commitments but I'm not sure whether it will be on anyway judging by the view from my desk in Mold.
Next week is fixture-free, followed by two games the week after - weather permitting.
So I'll be watching the Test match intently instead. At least the return of Freddie Flintoff adds spice to the occasion. I just hope his injury troubles are behind him because, on song, he's one of finest bowlers in the world. And, if fit and in form, he could make the difference against Australia next summer.
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