Match reports

Old Albanian Cricket Club Sunday Cavaliers v Rickmanswortth

Scorecard

Old Albanian Cricket Club Sunday Cavaliers v Rickmanswortth on Sun 27 Jun 2010 at 12.30pm
Old Albanian Cricket Club Lost by 18 runs

Match report

The Cavaliers were due to host Rickmansworth in a Chess Valley League fixture on Sunday, but foolishly thinking that they didn't want to miss the England v Germany game, the two sides instead agreed to play a Twenty20 Friendly, with a long tea break to watch the football.

With the St Albans carnival making traffic problematic for the visitors, the game was late starting and left less than 90 minutes for the Cavaliers to get through their overs. Indeed, even a start 15 minutes earlier might have had a bearing on the result, as the Cavs were racing through their overs at a rate of knots without necessarily giving due care and attention to field placings and strategy.

Tims Foster and Firmin had the new ball, and use it excellenty. Star bowler Foster was in particularly fine form, picking up three wickets in a devastating opening spell that left Rickmansworth reeling on 8 for 3. Two of these wickets were from long hops, held well by fielders, but as Foster was quick to assert: "I've bowled enough decent balls and got no reward that when a wicket comes off a sh!t ball I'll gladly take it!". Despite the fielding restrictions that allowed only two men outside the ring for the first 6 overs, the visitors only scored 19 runs in this period.

A fifty parternship at this stage rebuilt Rickmansworth's innings, with the left hander Rahul looking a particularly fine player before Ben Rankin duped him in to a charge and 'keeper Gareth Lloyd removed his bails. Another wicket quickly followed, this time a superb direct hit run out by Todd Baines in the covers. With wickets still in hand and with the Cavs more focussed on getting in front of the big screen, Rickmansworth were able to hit out at the end of their innings, with skipper Fraser Tant on the end of a bit of an onslaught in the final over and Ben Rankin taking a catch on the boundary only to step over the white line.

John Gregory and Ellis Thorpe opened the batting and got the Cavaliers off to a decent start, 44 coming during the fielding restrictions. However, both fell in close succession, followed by Nick McLean shortly afterwards, and when some kamikaze running saw both Ben Rankin and Gareth Lloyd run out, the Cavaliers looked in trouble. With ace batsmen Todd Baines and Lance Boyd-Clark at the crease though, the Cavaliers looked favourites, before a rare loose shot from the former ended his afternoon.

With barely 70 still needed off the last 8 overs, Boyd-Clark and Fraser Tant opened their shoulders, and a 50 partnership kept the challenge going. However, when both fell on the swords trying to hit over the top, and Tim Foster did likewise, the game was up - barring a fine-inducing last over in which Jim Burton played out five dot balls and was bowled off the last ball. Tim Firmin, as ever, was the not out batsmen - 'the man they cannot shift'.

"To be honest, it was a disappointing day all round" commented Man of the Match Foster. "We let them get a few too many, and a few loose shots cost us big time. And that's before we even mention the football..."