Friendly
29th April 2006
The first game of the season was finally upon us. After spending the winter counting down the number of days like kids on the never-ending countdown towards Christmas, it was time to dig out the dirty whites wondering whether they would endure yet another season of grass stains & sunshine.
The team gathered at a rather dilapidated looking Warren Farm. It seems that perhaps the RAF had been performing a few practices bombing runs in our absence…..or maybe it was just the world’s biggest mole rampaging through our hallowed turf. Either way, we were unperturbed – nothing could spoil our enjoyment of the first game of the season!
It was most pleasing to see a number of new faces wearing the classic all-white strip of the best club in the world. Messrs Hargreaves, Feast, Barras & Reed took to the match like newlyweds to a bridal suite – full of passion & high spirits – although I’m pleased to report they didn’t pair off accordingly…
Chudley Ales CC sounds in theory like a team of part-time drinkers with full-time beer bellies…..names can be so deceptive. At kick-off time approached, we strode over to pitch 1 and discovered the oppo were short on numbers but high on antipodean accents….which is always a sure sign they all know how to play! Given that they only had 7 players present at the start (9 in total), Captain Nasser generously agreed to let them bat first while they waited for their final 2 players to arrive.
To be fair, PCC started off quite well. There was plenty of encouragement from everyone & a universal readiness for diving all over the place. This was just as well, because Chudley had quite a few guys that could bat and the boundary on one side of the wicket was shorter than a Brentford cup run. Nevertheless the opening bowling pair of the Scatman & Psycho tested the oppo with some good balls….and the odd couple of full tosses that went straight to the keeper. Both were rewarded with 2 wickets each – 3 clean bowled & 1 one caught by new boy Will Barras which capped a sterling personal performance by him in the field.
Unfortunately for Ploughmans, the loss of 4 relatively early wickets only served to allow Chudley’s strength in depth to be shown in all its glory. O’Donnell (83) & Clem (43 not out) spanked the juicy cherry to all corners of the ground in a very strong & determined partnership. However, it must be said that the PCC never gave less than 100% throughout the game and we battled hard to create chances, whilst restricting the runs whenever possible. Excellent vocal support from Adrian (Reedy) Reed & Alex Hargreaves boosted morale and helped support the splendid leadership of Nasser Khan. Will, Ed (Meaty) Feast & Reedy all showed superb aptitude to bowl 23 solid overs between them. Despite bowling without success, they slotted into the bowling process without any sign of nerves or apprehension. All of which must bode well for the long season ahead.
After their allotted 40 overs, Chudley made 235 for 5 and we all trundled off for tea & lashings of ginger beer.
The game restarted with skipper Khan & “there’s only one” Steve Houchin marching defiantly to the wicket. The few balls were defended well by Steve until one appeared to catch him on the foot & he hobbled (very slowly) for a run. Unfortunately, Steve actually twisted his ankle/foot when he turned for the run & was in severe pain. Enter an already padded up Morris to act as his runner. Alas Steve wasn’t to last long – he’d broken a bone in his foot/ankle & had to retire (very) hurt. We wish Steve all the very best for a speedy recovery and hope to see him back soon.
Next up was Morris for his first bat of the season. Along with Nasser, he managed to see off their version of Glen McGrath which wasn’t a bad feat considering the pitch was more uneven than the greens on the final day at Augusta. But unfortunately Chudley replaced their main strike bowler with a guy that would have made Brett Lee look rather pedestrian. Needless to say, Morris chanced his arm once too often & ended up walking after edging behind. Laney came in and as usual played without fear hitting their attack to most areas of the ground for very respectable score of 11. However, his wicket fell soon after along with Nasser’s which allowed some of the younger/newer guys to swing their bats in earnest. I’m afraid there was not of lot of resistance thereafter, bar a swashbuckling 12 from Will batting at 10. The final score was a rather disappointing 69 off 23 overs, but the lads had got the first game of the season under their belts & there were a lot of positives to take away, not least the performances of the 4 new guys. Well played all. Damn good spirit as always & a very enjoyable afternoon. Until next time kids…
RB