Southwick Wanderers Cricket Club

Match report – KINGS LANGLEY CC VS SOUTHWICK WANDERERS - Played on Sunday 14th July 2008

The second and last match of the Wanderers' mini tour of Herts saw them travel the short distance from the Premier Inn to the picture perfect Kings Langley home ground. Having visited the ground earlier that morning, we knew that the wicket would be well prepared judging by the meticulous attention it was getting from the groundsman and his roller. He made another appearance 10 minutes before the game with a leaf blower to blast away and straggling particles of dust from the wicket. This was serious stuff!!

Jamie took responsibility of captaincy once more and the Wanderers found themselves in the field for this 45 over encounter. Jez, having taken a rap on the toe the previous day was less than mobile ,so took the gloves, giving another bowling option for Jamie in the shape of John Bird.

It was to be Jamie and Paul opening the bowling, and both kept it tight in the early exchanges  finding line, length and pace, sadly with no luck. Langley's openers began to find the gaps and the classy youngster Sambrook (16yrs) was stroking the ball to the boundary both sides of the wicket with consummate ease, despite his own mutterings of dissatisfaction about his timing of the ball.

The first wicket came from the first change bowling of Dave Field and Taylor Salerno, and it was Dave who accounted for Smith's demise forcing him into an uppish drive which was plucked from the sky brilliantly by Anthony Higgs who had and excellent day in the field. He  marshalled the short boundary at the bottom of the hill excellently, saving a lot of runs.......

Morton came in next for Langley joining Sambrook at the crease and soon after that came the controversial dismissal that never  was. A clear edge behind for Jez from Dave's bowling to juggle for a moment before the ball nestled into his pad for him to complete the catch. Morton didn't walk despite the appeals and the umpires were unsure as to whether the ball had bounced or not. A touch of disgruntlement followed for a couple of minutes, but that's cricket!!

The end of the day for the local school kids meant a further delay to the game as groups of youths decided to use the cricket field as part of their route home. Morton was particularly angered by this, and one lad ignored his polite request to 'get off the pitch you beep beep beep before I wrap this beeping bat around your beeping head' whilst waving his bat over his head in a tribal fashion. The brave oik stood for a second seemingly pondering his next move and reposted with the brilliant middle finger and scarper move, which none of us expected.

Back to the game........

Sambrook and Morton accelerated the scoring and as Sambrook passed his fifty, Morton too was bludgeoning the ball to all parts of ground, and wasn't far away from striking one or two school kids into the bargain!!

After a luckless spell from Taylor, Jamie turned to John Bird to have a bowl. He found some reverse swing almost immediately, and it was he who finally was the undoing of the lucky Morton tucking him up with a jaffer inswinger, that took out middle and leg stumps.

Sambrook soldiered on and made a very impressive 101 retired. No doubt a talent for the future. Dave was to take two further wickets subsequently, in relatively quick succession. Firstly removing Stolk for 5 getting her caught at midwicket by John and then seeing off Clarke with one that swung like a banana evading the bat for Jez to stump.

This brought to the crease Howie and Jag who resolutely set about seeing themselves in. Jamie cam e back on in the latter stages and clean bowled Jag and Kings Langley were to complete their 45 overs with an impressive 207 to their credit.

After Anne Voisey's wonderful tea, it was the Wanderers turn to bat and try to fair better than they did the day before.........

John and Anthony opened up and found scoring difficult as the opening bowling pair kept things tight.

Anthony was nicking the odd single to find his way to 5 before losing his fight for survival as he was bowled.
He was clearly delighted however, that he had outscored John by this point and held his arms aloft as he strode back to the pavilion in celebration.

This brought Mike 'Tommo' Thompson to the crease joining John at 7-1. Tommo not having played for some months looked in good touch from the off, and the  pair began to score more freely. The running between the wickets was excellent, although I suspect Tommo would have liked a few more to have reached the long boundary to save the significant number of 2's and 3's he and John were scampering. They'd even ran a 4 such was the length of the boundary on the far side.

The partnership that the two put on together must have been close to 100 before Tommo was caught off the bowling of Jag for a very well crafted 38. John meanwhile had passed his 50 and the pair had put the Wanderers into a very strong position to win the game.

A fair amount of work was still required.........

Keith joined John next, and like the day before found himself walking back to the pavilion after being bowled by Jag, having not troubled the scorers. This completed a thoroughly miserable weekend's cricket with the bat for Keith.

It was Jez's turn out in the middle and he and John picked up the pace once more before John was expertly caught in the gully region, as he was the day before, in fact it was almost a carbon copy. John's innings was pure class and included some exquisite cover and straight drives and several brutal pull shots to the boundary, one of which carried for six. He eventually departed for a very welcome 71. Kim joined Jez at a time when the win from here was really on, requiring 4 an over. Unfortunately after a promising start,  Kim was once again adjudged LBW leaving as he did with 10 to his name. This was the 6th LBW decision against Kim in a row.

Jamie at 7 was next and as the business end of the match was approaching, Langley tinkered with the field more and more. The light by now was beginning to fade too which promised to make it a tense last few overs. The victory though, was handed to the wanderers in one devastating over  when what can only be described as dolly drops were bowled to Jamie who despatched the first four balls powerfully to the boundary, including a straight head height drive that fizzed between Jez and the umpire at the other end. Another 4 pulled by Jez off  the over and 21 from it was as good as the game for the wanderers. Jez was to score the winning runs from the next over driving the ball for 4 and taking the wanderers to a winning 210 total. Jamie made a quick fire 30 not out and Jez finished on 31 not out.

A very satisfactory win then for SWCC after the heavy defeat the day before, making this performance all the sweeter.

Thanks to Kings Langley for an entertaining days cricket and for their hospitality.

All in all, an enjoyable weekend's cricket, especially to meet up with old SWCC friends Tommo and Family, Jag and Howard and Anne Voisey.

KINGS LANGLEY INNINGS

SWCC BOWLING

SWCC INNINGS

KINGS LANGLEY BOWLING

All in all a successful tour. I will add more details in the next couple of weeks.

Please note, their is no match this Sunday, 20th July