Crossbats assembled at Hampton Wick for the first time this season looking as if this was their tenth match. Despite numerous injuries the determination to play conquered all, so with dodgy backs, anaemia, hamstrings, calf and suspect gout the team were ready to play.
Our prey this week Nashers, another team not dissimilar to ourselves with a fair mix of experience and youth. That experience, did however, let them down when it came to the toss, which despite winning, elected to send us into bat and enjoy a sunny afternoon on the deck chairs where the majority of conversation was about the politics of working for Sky TV. As the afternoon wore on and the temperature rose there was the unpleasant sight of white flabby flesh being revealed to the ozone for the first time since September 2006.
Usual stuff with our batting so I won't bore you. Collier was in sparkling form, Spiro sluggish, Winch clueless, Wright careless, Jones crab like, Reeve blind, Tillson adventurous, Fitch care free....... but then there was Dunbar. WOW this man can not drink full strength beer but can he bat! A ferocious assault against the Nashers attack left them in disarray. From a wobbly 100 and nearly all out we scorched along to 224 with Dunbar hitting his maiden test 50 in 27 balls. This was awesome stuff. Cars going down the Hampton Court road were in serious danger. The entertainment was thrilling.
The Nashers were easy fodder after tea. At last we were starting to take our catches. Two clean slip catches for Winch from Gumbley. The other end, two Lawrence wickets, straight bowled then another decent delivery prompting a thrash to point which was caught by Reeve. Pretty much game over. Of course the day would not be complete without some dropped catches. Lawrence, probably still cursing, failing to snaffle a dolly at Gully and Spiro provided his customary dropped skyer.