What a night...

Well, what a way to kick off the new season - victory over our bogey team for the first time in a good few years.

How did we do it? I'm not sure to be honest. When I arrived (late) at the ground, our team looked a bit thin - we were missing our regular captain Justin Evans, while some of our more consistent performers, including Brian Cole, Mike Stokes and Dave Ryder, weren't able to make it.

Did I honestly think we had a chance? Not really, no, especially when our stand in skipper Carl Dulson told me to get my pads on and open with him after we had won the toss.

We started well, Carl hitting the ball with his usual power; me blocking. Unfortunately for me, a miss-timed swipe against a slow bowler ended my stay at the crease for six. I was disappointed because I felt good, particularly against the quicker bowlers.

We then stuttered mid-innings - with Steve Daulby and son Matt both making ducks - but we were resuced by Carl's 24 and impressive performances from two of our younger players, Rory Jones (16) and Paddy Richards (13).

And thanks to a late flourish from veteran member Gareth Cole, we ended the innings on 77. The pitch was playing ok, but the long grass in the outfield meant boundaries were at a premium. It still looked 20 runs short as a defendable total, but at least we knew we had something to bowl at.

From the off, we bowled well and fielded impressively. Ian struck in his second over after opening the bowling with Steve (who made up for his duck with a miserly spell) and the Orthopaedic were under pressure.

Although we didn't take many wickets, we kept the bowling tight and even got away with a couple of missed chances. With eight overs to go, the Orhtopaedic had reached 39 and we knew we had an opportunity. As the pressure increased, we grabbed a couple more wickets as our opposition went for their shots.

Even I chipped in with my fielding, holding on to a catch off Rory that seemed to hang in the air for an eternity, and managing to stop a boundary by sticking a hand out more in hope than expectation. Paddy also produced one stunning stop, throwing himself full length to prevent anything other than a single, while Ian's throwing was perfect all night.

But everybody bowled and fielded well and, with one over to go, the Orthopaedic required five to win. Carl - taking his captain's responsibility seriously - bowled it beautifully and they ended up a run short, sparking scenes of celebrations in Gobowen. Forget the Champions League final, this was the result that mattered.

Next up, we face Cae Glas Ladies at our new 'home' Whittington. Hopefully our winning run will continue...