At Last, a Sunday Victory

We haven't won on a Sunday for two years. Indeed, not only have we not won, we've been murdered by sides playing on average 10 divisions higher than most of  our  team and our morale has  been savaged as if by a pack of rabid wolves. A lot of players stopped playing because it was so soul destroying - spot the vicious circle being drawn there!

Anyway, this was our first match at Kelham Road this year, and mine personally too. To be back at our  HQ, with the sound of lapwings from the fields all around and great tits nesting in the old scorebox. Not that the chairman liked me pointing this out although admittedly I was fielding at the time.

Whoah, roll back.

We batted first, and against an attack that held few terrors in itself, but on a wicket that was six paced never mind two, our senior batsman found it hard to score without really looking as if they were going to get out. This meant as the number 9 for the day, I had time to go off the ground into the meadows, chasing a brown argus that didn't want to be photographed, and a damselfly that wouldn't get in focus.

Back to the ground for a 15 over square leg umpiring session - not a lot of fun in strong sun when you forgot to sunscreen your face - while wickets fell but runs accumulated - our opener was eventually out for 93.

I got into bat for an over and made 4 not out. Tea was another slightly restrained affair - I only ate two as I usually open the bowling on Sundays. With 166-9 to defend, myself and the Sunday skipper, a demon athlete, started off well with early wickets. I swung the ball a little as my body loosened up, and had their opener caught by  our best fielder.

From then on, we basically chipped away, with everyone getting wickets who bowled until we knocked them over for 85 or so. Gosh, after two seasons of massacres, to do  that to another team felt really rather good.

Before I go, a curious sideshow from last night. One of our second team players adopted a snail he was carrying from pub to pub in a fag packet, until we found it some nice flowers to sit amongst.

Si

All text and images copyright CreamCrackeredNature 03.06.18