I've not blogged every game, but if you read between the lines on my cricket posts, you can probably see a common theme about this season so far.
Every game I've played I've been on the losing side, and none of them were close. I was 0 and 5 for 2025.
Rather rubbish, really.
So today, I took our Sunday team out to play Wellow, on their beautifully rustic ground above the dam fishing pond, and near the Maypole I attended the celebrations at last weekend. The facilities may not be up to much, but the setting is delightful.
After a bit of negotiating with our friend the Wellow skipper, it was decided that we would bat first, on a snooker table green wicket surrounded by a tangled outfield that the Wellow mower had broken down on with the job only a quarter done.
As ever, I went out to umpire with six little stones collected from next to the pavilion, which gradually turned my hands black. Lawnmower oil.
Against the two paciest, and best, Wellow bowlers, it was apparent very early that the wicket was going to be a naughty one, with the ball bouncing chest high one ball, skittering along the ground the next. But after our senior opener unluckily dragged one on that kept low, two young batsmen made a really good fist of watching the ball hard, playing sensibly, and seeing off these opening bowlers, and what came after, for fifteen overs when we took drinks.
At this point, I risked unpopularity by telling them that they had now done their job, and done it brilliantly, but it was now time to push on. 54 off 15 overs is a little light in the context of a 30 over game, and we had some power hitting in the hutch.
To their great credit, they then upped the scoring rate, one of them making the highest score in his young life of 33, which set the platform for some power hitting later on by our middle order, one of whom blasted 50 in about 35 balls. Many a ball was lost to the unripe green stalks of the adjoining cornfield.
We closed on 174 for 5, a brilliant team effort.
Time now to bowl, and also time for a sharp shower after a couple of overs. Again, I was unsure about most of Wellow's batting line up, and they started with a former Notts ladies player who batted with great class. But our young pair who had batted so well were up to the challenge, and got her and the other opener early doors.
One of Wellow's opening bowlers now came on to bat, after umpiring in his pads, and he looked like he could play a bit. But after hitting me for a boundary, I got one to bounce on his and he spooned it to cover.
After a month, my first wicket this year, and it was their gun bat, and most welcome after the drubbing I took on Saturday. I was bowling well, pushing the ball through a bit, and I soon had another wicket to end up with 2 for 7. OK, they weren't as good as Saturday's bats, but I really needed that!
The serious damage, however, was done by our second team spinner at the other end, who got some sharp turn even bowling with a slippery ball - the cricket ball that is - and took 5 for 18. Much better than me!
So, I captained us to victory and got myself off the mark for the year. I think I handled things pretty well. I'm not very good at the actual game perhaps, but I do know a fair bit about it, and how to run a Sunday game.
And lovely house martins flew over the ground too!
Si
All text and images copyright CreamCrackeredNature 01.06.25