A First Common Blue of the Year

 You know me when I'm at work, when the Tourettes tics become too much, when the ADHD demands movement, that I take 5 minutes to have a quick bimble outside, to see what's afoot on campus, to spy what's on the wing. 

On a patch of grass,where a few birds foot trefoil where to be found - a species that seems to have suffered horribly locally with the dry spring and summer - a low flying glimmer of blue caught my eye.

Creeping a little closer, and taking great care not to lose it as it flew, I saw the tan coloured spots on the wing that indicated the presence of a male common blue butterfly. 

It settled on one of the yellow blooms, and edging closer still, I was able to get a few shots - sadly not great ones - as it happily nectared away in the warm sunshine. 

Small, and rather lovely. 

Si

All text and images copyright CreamCrackeredNature 25.07.25

Kinoulton Fun

 Sunday saw me take a side out to play Kinoulton at their pleasant little ground down endless bumpy lanes going out towards the Leicestershire border. 

I was thinking we were going to be going in with an actual 11 players, but as it turned out we had two late drop outs, so I was left with 9. Ah, never mind, I thought. It was a nice day, we'll figure it out. 

After "winning the toss" - me basically being asked by the very pleasant Kinoulton co-captains if I wanted to bat first, I tried to sort out some kind of batting order and see what would unfold. 

Kinoulton had said they had a very young side, but it certainly wasn't as young as ours. But our opening bats, the youngest and oldest players on the team I think, made a fantastic start, and batted with great authority for the first 15 overs and getting a fine 50 partnership on the board. I umpired for the second half of this, while spending the first half filming a hummingbird hawk moth that was putting on a show feeding off the buddleias in the posh gardens overlooking the ground. 

It was after drinks when things started to go wrong. One of the Kinoulton skippers, wearing an Oasis bucket hat which I found myself wearing while he was bowling. 

Cue much terrible punnage - "Champagne Super-Over", "Wonderball", and most disgracefully "Well that's Definitely Maybe out" being said myself when I had to give our young opener out plumb LBW. 

He then castled two more of our bats, taking three wickets for no runs and leaving us without much more batting in the tank, or so I thought. However, a debutant played decided to go postal in the last few overs with some big hitting. 

His power was remarkable, given that he didn't seem to move until the ball was about a foot away from him, before he whipped his wrists through generating incredible bat speed. In partnership with a young players dad, he got us to 124 for 6, much to my joy as it meant I didn't have to bat. 

I was actually going to send out a couple of the young ones to bat again. 

So 124 didn't feel like enough, especially as the big slogger who wiped us out last year was playing. But our young opening bowlers made a good start, although one of them said "You can't catch anything" when I offered to field at slip. 

No respect from the younger ones for their skipper.

He didn't need any fielders, as he soon castled one of the Kinoulton openers with a beauty. But this meant the big slogger came in, and it was time to patrol the boundary. 

But as it happened, he never got away from us. Our young slow bowler had him totally baffled, and he walked up and down the wicket before having to play a little block, or push a gentle single. He eventually holed out to the debutant at the other end, caught by his own captain who was fielding for us, and who refused to celebrate. 

So, they weren't murdering us, but they were getting the runs at the required rate. Gave myself a little bowl, and it went well, bowing their opener who top scored with one that turned two feet out of a footmark and kept very low. 

Too bad in the 28th over I suddently dragged a couple down short to lose us the game. 

In the end though, it didn't matter, we had a great afternoon playing a great bunch of lads, and there was a well stocked bar to retire to after the game. So all was well with the world. 

Si

All text and images copyright CreamCrackeredNature 15.07.25

Happy in Defeat

 Our most recent league came took us across to Collingham, a former happy hunting ground of mine where I took plenty of wickets in the days our third XI used it as a home ground. 

Ah those happy days when I could still bowl my left arm swingers. 

Collingham thirds had beaten us pretty comfortably a few weeks ago, and today we were going in with a another youthful scratch side, boosted by our veteran grandfather and with a couple of players from our successful women's outfit on board, who are very happy to be referred to as youthful. 

As is customary, we fielded first, and we knew were up against it very early. One of the openers has been scoring runs for fun lately, and the other was the deaf cricketer we had come across last time - who it transpired has played both cricket and football for official England Deaf sides. 

A bit above my pay grade these two, and indeed, they were soon in the runs against our bowlers, including the bowler who wears deep black shades when he bowls. No joy for him, or indeed anyone. 

They put on 203 for the first wicket. But in spite of that we kept working in the field and never let our heads drop, and we fielded pretty well. Better players on the day, all you can do is say "Well batted!"

One opener retired on 102, while the dear cricketer unluckily nicked off for 97, before the same bowler castled the number 3. 

Speaking of luck, well I didn't have any. My first ball missed the top of middle stump by millimetres, The Man from Blidworth dropped a fairly easy catch, there was a missed stumping, balls looped in the air and didn't go to hand, or beat the edge of the bat without catching it. 

So yes, the good mood was not universal...

When we batted, we started well against The Fireman Next Door To My Stepfather, but it was the young swing bowler at the other end who was causing the problems, initially luckless with edges going between the various slip fielders, but eventually he made the double breakthroug. 

As ever, I was umpiring at the time. 

Another couple of wickets fell, then one of our lady players joined the steadfast grandfather, and there then followed an excellent partnership, in the cricketing sense, which lasted for nearly an hour. The run rate didn't matter, we weren't going to win, it was all about putting up a fight and going for batting points. And we were getting them. 

All the while, The Grandfather was nearing an excellent 50. And guess who went out there as last man when he was on 49? Yes, me, 15 runs all season and an endless series of ducks. This did not look like it would go well. 

I managed to somehow fend off a few deliveries, until when on the last ball of the over, the keeper behind me fumbled the ball and it ran down towards the sight screen. The Grandfather ran for the bye, while with the only tactical knowledge I had, I urged him, gently, to "GOOOOOOO BAAAACCCCKKKK". 

It took him a while, but eventually he did. He got his 50 off the first ball of the next over with a single. The next ball after that, I was castled flapping like a humpbacked whale at an outswinging yorker that was utterly wasted on me. 

Still, a lot of people were happy, and so it didn't matter.

Si

All text and images copyright CreamCrackeredNature 02.08.24

Unexpected Heroics

 With a lot of players missing for Saturday's game at Upton against Thrumpton 2s, a big decision was to be made.

Who could captain the third team?

Who had the skill, fire, fight and tactical nous to take on the second in the league with a very young team, and get a result?

Er, that would be me. 

Having won the toss against the Thrumpton captain, who bore a resemblance to Dwalin from "The Rings of Power" I put Thrumpton into bat, knowing that bowling first offered our best chance to get as many points out of the game as possible.

Things did not start well against the powerful Thrumpton openers, with our young opening bowlers a little wayward, and they were scoring runs for fun as they have been doing all season. I was a bit at a loss, felt slightly out of control of things in the field, and kept forgetting everyone's names. 

Luckily, I soon settled down, and so did our next pair of bowlers, a very young seamer who has been taking a lot of wickets at junior level, and a guest player from Farndon who bowled some excellent leg spin, and they took three wickets between them. Add to this that there was some superb fielding going on resulting in a few runouts, and we were going well. 

"Everyone is doing fantastic" I would exhort ungrammatically. "Let's bowl them out!"

I even got a wicket myselfm caught at mid on. I actually bowled better than I thought, with figures of 1-23 despite getting a bit of tap from a big lower order hitter who got 41. 

We bowled them out for 160, which I'd take any day of the week. Maximum bowling points obtained. 

I did not anticipate us getting anywhere near, and so sent the opening bats out, one of whom was the guest leg spinner, with an initial target of 90 to get the first batting point. I had to go and umpire, of course. 

From that vantage point I had a great view of our opening bats make a good start against bowling that was a bit less rapid than in our previous game against Thrumpton. A rather massive 6 was hit, and there was a bit of over-excited chirp on the boundary concerning a bit of fielding where one of the Thrumpton chaps trod on the rope while picking the ball up. 

Dwalin the Thrumpton captain told me to get our players to cool it, so I did. 

Sadly we lost one of our openers with the score on about 50, and now things were going to be rather tricky as we had a section of young players in our batting order, so there was a bit of procession at one end.

Meanwhile, the leg spinner, 13 years old, was still out there, and joined by our experienced wicketkeeper began to score runs at a cracking pace. To see such match awareness in a 13 year old was totally new to me. When the keeper was out after having played really well in a supporting roll, he began to farm the strike with another batch of youngsters, while slamming the odd boundary.

Alas he then got a ball that stopped and bounced, and that was it. Game Set and Match.Out for 78.  But we had put up a tremendous fight in a game we had no right to even compete in, and I was very proud of my young side. 

Si

All text and images copyright CreamCrackeredNature 27.07.24

The Library Gardens are Pretty

The Library Gardens, now a nature reserve after the locally famous "Stop the Chop" campaign, has been beautiful this spring and summer, awash with colourful wildflowers and more cultivated species too.

A wildlife pond has been added, where I photographed the broad bodied chaser a few weeks ago, and the wall of flowers on the metal equipment shed has been in full bloom. The bees and bumblebees love the place, with vestal cuckoo bumblebees being particularly numerous. 

Not so many butterflies for some reason, but then it's been a terrible year for them. There's plenty of the low level ground loving species like meadow brown and small skipper about, but the more obvious peacocks and small tortoiseshells have been in very short supply. 

There's been reports of fritillaries locally, which is news to me, so I shall have to go looking!

Anyway, enjoy the pretties I have found for you. 

Si

All text and images copyright CreamCrackeredNature 23.07.24

Excitement in the Rain

 Saturday saw the third team,  now captained by The Man from Blidworth, head out to the lovely ground at Colston Basset to face Keyworth 3rds again. 

As ever early, I headed off into the gloom up the hill to photograph the ruins of St Mary's Church that overlook the venue and help make it so scenic. 

Well it would be scenic on a normal day, but the entirety of this match was played in what ranged from a misty drizzle to full on heavy rain; that we played the whole thing was remarkable.

We were surprised at being asked to bat first, as we had what on paper was a weak team and we thought this meant we were going to be skittled and the match be over in an hour. 

This was not the case, no sirree. Things started very slowly, with one of the Keyworth opening bowlers bowling seven overs for two runs, until one our first batter, having done an admirable job in seeing off these very good Keyworth bowlers, fell right at the end of the 14th over, at which point we had 15 runs on the board.

A remarkable partnership then developed between the other opening bat, the Owmby coach of our women's team, and the grandfather of our young opening bowler who was out there using my bat and in the process that it is me, not my bat, that is talentless.

The two of them out about 90, starting cautiously before unleashing an array of powerful shots around the wicket despite a very tricky pitch and the awful weather. After they were out, we did subside a bit when the opening bowlers came back on. 

But ask us before the game, we'd have taken 125 for 6, in fact we'd have bitten your hand off to the shoulder. 

The weather worsened. We went out to bowl. Could we do it? Could we pull off an improbable win?

Things started well. The aforementioned young opening bowler found his range very quickly and castled one of the openers, while others fell to the Keele captain LBW. There was a deflection run out - gosh luck really was running with us! 

Before too long, they were about 65 for 6. 

This is where our problems started. These lads did not panic; they knew what they were doing. They played straight. Meanwhile, we were running out of bowling - you could tell this as I was brought onto bowl.

50 runs needed, 45, 40. There was a brilliant run out before a young bat came on and started smoking us everywhere, including a mighty blow off me. The ball was like a bar of soap, it was hard to bowl, but the young opener snagged the big hitter to claim his fourth wicket! 30 runs, 25, 20. I was bowling as well as I could but one bad ball an over was costly, as was a batsman nicking one past the keeper's gloves. 

15 runs, 10. THe number ten bat managed to hit a coulpe of fours while looking like he didn't know what he was doing. Four runs to win, I floated one outside off stump, and got walloped for four. Scores level. 

I then agonisingly beat the bat with a beauty. 

However, he cross bat swatted the next ball for a single, and that was it. We lost. Winning runs scored off me. 

"Well that one was my fault" I said in the dressing room, hoping that the others would tell me it wasn't. 

They did.

Si

All text and images copyright CreamCrackeredNature 19.07.24

Terrible Weather but Still things to See

 Well, this summer is an absolute stunner, isn't it? The last few days we've had occasional sightings of a hazy looking round yellow thing up in the sky, only for a wave of heavy cloud to immediately cover it over and deposit a large amount of water on the saturated ground. 

I've been cycling to work most days in a very fetching bright yellow disposable poncho, which I'm finding to be indisposable. Despite the odd tear it now sports. 

Still, when there isn't rain, there have been some very pretty creatures on the wing, most notably the patchwork leaf cutter fee that visited my just about open gazanias I bought from the market. 

Down in the library gardens I've come across yellow legged mining bees and large numbers of vestal cuckoo bumblebees, while at work, there are small skipper butterflies on the thistles and endless ragwort that covers the badlands next to the cycle path. 

Even saw a muntjac deer down there the other day. 

In short, there are still things to see, but I would imagine they are as fed up as we all are.

Si

All text and images copyright CreamCrackeredNature 16.07.24

Red Kites at Ropsley

 An unusual game on Sunday, as it was for Upton rather than Newark. No-one was interested in playing for us, so our game was cancelled and the third team captain and myself were able to snare a game with the good burghers of Upton, a club which we call our second home this year after the flooding. 

The last two games I had played in, including a horrible defeat to Keyworth the day before, had been so horrendous that I couldn't bear to write about them. I didn't bowl, and I can't remember the last time I hit the ball with my bat. 

Having toyed with the idea of forgetting cricket and moving to a Tibetan monastery, I did turn out for this game over in the very pretty village of Ropsley, the other side of Grantham. My sister and I were delighted to see it was red kite country, and before and during the game a couple of these magnificent raptors flew low over the ground. .

The Ropsley Baboons, for t'was their name, were rather less majestic as it turned out. Like the Upton lads a very nice bunch of chaps, they found dealing with our bowling very tricky, aided by a similarly tricky wicket. Our early bowlers, a couple of whom turn out for us on a Saturday, soon started cutting through the top order, followed up by the third team captain who took two wickets before being taken off for being too good. 

I even got a bowl myself, castling one of their younger bats second  ball, before bowling a gentle spell of tight control against rather more "mature" batters. Even let my old quicker ball go, and it was even straight. 

Sadly, it was my partner at the other end who grabbed the last couple of wickets, so I ended up with four overs 1 for 2. 

It was then time for me not to worry about batting, as we coasted to victory, overhauling Ropsley's 55 all out in about 16 overs before retiring to a lovely pub in the village for a few beers!

Made me feel good about playing cricket again, which will probably last until I play Keyworth again on Saturday. 

Si

All text and images copyright CreamCrackeredNature 12.07.24

A Magnificent Beast

 I was just walking along next to this coral berry hedge, when I was alerted to this fluttering commotion low down among the leaves. 

What on earth was it? I swear I thought it was a bat initially, although what a bat would be doing crashing about in a shrubbery in daylight was beyond me. But, I do have half a brain, and was able to work out reasonably quickly that what I was looking at was some kind of hawk moth. 

I watched it carefully, taking hold of my cameraphone, and praying it would settle where I could get a photograph. 

It did. 

It wasn't ideal, being somewhat tucked away, but slow as a sloth and holding my breath, I got as close to it as I could. It was a poplar hawk moth, one of the commoner hawk moth species, but not one I've ever seen in glorious reality. 

It was a magnificent beast, probably disturbed by something from its sleeping place and looking for another one. It let me take a couple of shots, peaceful and still, and then I left it to its rest. 

What a thrill it was to see it! Totally made my day. Seeing something you've never seen before is always exciting, but somehow to see this creature was more than that. 

Hope you like it.

Si

All text and images copyright CreamCrackeredNature 09.07.24

Under a Collingham Cosh

 Saturday saw our third team playing at Upton once again, this time against Collingham's third team complete with the familiar figure of my stepfather's next door neighbour who it has taken me several years to get to play against.

Against expectation the weather was good, and the ground looked immaculate. I was thrilled to see not just one red kite, but a pair, who appeared before the game and graced us with their presence at various times throughout the afternoon.

"Can you eat them?" asked our resident geographer, unimpressed. 

There were kestrels and loudly keening buzzards around too, although the question of their culinary status never arose. I'm glad other players did turn out to share my interest in nature. Well, one did, anyway.

As is customary it seems, we bowled first in a 36 over game, and Collingham's senior bats, one of whom was the first profoundly deaf player I have played in a match with, made a fast start and it took a while for our captain and the Keele captain to find their rhythm and start taking a few wickets, at which point we dragged ourselves back into the game. Our young opening bowler, after having been clattered a bit in his opening spell, came back well later to take three wickets.

The captain noted "If I don't give you a bowl you will be moaning about me in your blog", so I did get three overs at the end. It went ok-ish, as I tried to bowl of a straight approach to avoid dragging the ball down, but for some reason I bowled my first no ball in ages and so a catch off me didn't count. One bad ball got flogged for four by a young bat, who in truth we hadn't bowled well at, and Collingham closed on 159-9. 

We had a bit of a makeshift side, so that looked probably a few too many forus to get, and it quickly became clear that Collingham's bowlers were going to be far more accurate than us on a wicket where it was hard to score. We lost the geographer and his son early as the aforementioned next door neighbour nabbed a couple of wickets with his left hand medium pace loopy stuff. The other opener stood form, but scoring was very difficult, especially when a young speedster came on and ripped through our middle order.

The captain was the only bat who could really handle him, and he used the extra pace to show us some classical front foot driving, but alas he couldn't stay in.

Back in my usual number 11 spot, or rather 10 as we only had 10 players, I went in with the game well and truly gone, nervous as hell after four consecutive ducks - they should call me Audi, like they did Alan Mullaly back in the day - but reasured by the Upton captain, who just told me to relax and do what I could.

I managed to score one run, but that was it, as my partner was out shortly after. 

All in all, a pretty heavy thrashing, but it was a really enjoyable game and I didn't mind too much. I thought, stupidly, that Sunday would go better...

Si

All text and images copyright CreamCrackeredNature 03.07.24

All flattering references to the captain are there to ensure he might let me bowl again one day

The Golden Small Skipper

 Areas of our verges at work look like alpine meadows at the moment. Who'd have though such run of the mill plants as self heal, hawkbit and white clover could create such an arresting sight. 

The bees and bumbles are, of course, loving it. 

Various species of thistle are also in flower, and it was upon one of those that I came across my first close view of a small skipper this summer. It was cool this morning, and grey as my cooking, hence the little butterfly, a little golden paper dart, was still enough to allow me to get some good photographs. 

After a bad start to the year for flutterers, it is good to see a fair few of them around now. Fairy tale burnet moths are also up now, but keeping their distance.

Si

All text and images copyright CreamCrackeredNature 02.07.24