Kent League Match - 100 Overs

New Ash Green (2 points) 91 all out (37 overs)
Offham (16 points) 92-5 (25 overs)
New Ash Green lost by 5 wickets.

I now have the scorebook and some brief descriptions from some of the players for this game. It appears that the wicket was very green and soft, and having chosen to bat New Ash Green struggled with the ball moving around, stopping and shooting. Andy Cox's run of form ended with a duck, Marc Klus made 11, Vaughan John and Pete Burke also got ducks and after 14 overs New Ash Green were 18-4. Kevin Ginn then took 16 off one over from Corcoran, then shortly afterwards a 4 and 6 from Rigden, the other opening bowler. This, though, was the high point of the innings. Almost immediately afterwards Vic Mayers was run out and Ginn was caught for 29. The opening bowlers went through their 15 overs taking 2-36 and 5-27 respectively, Simon Duke being the only other batsman to score many off them getting to 12. Matt Meehan (7) and James Hewitt (18*) took some runs off the change bowlers in making 28 for the 9th wicket, the best partnership of the innings, but Andy Stuart became the 4th duck of the innings to leave the final total below three figures.

Initially Macknade struggled as much as New Ash Green had done. Matt Meehan and Andy Cox took as much advantage of the conditions as Macknade's opening bowlers, and after 9 overs Macknade were 9-3. Around that time light rain started to fall and continued throughout the match. As so often happens such conditions favoured the batting side as the ball becomes swollen and slippery, stops swinging and seaming and tends to bounce more evenly. It also becomes more difficult to field with a slippery ball on slippery ground. Matt Meehan continued to bowl well, only a 4 off his last ball taking the runs off him up to 1 an over as he got 1-9, and Andy Cox took 2-21 in 7 overs. James Hewitt and Andy Stuart took a wicket each, but all the change bowlers, bowling entirely in the rain with the wet ball, had less impressive figure than the openers and Macknade cruised home with half their overs and half their wickets to spare.

New Ash Green II v Dartford Halls IV
Saturday 26th July 2003

Kent League Match - 100 Overs

New Ash Green 142-7 (42 overs)
Dartford Halls did not bat
Match Abandoned.

I now have the full scorecard and link, but no report from anyone who played. However it appears that New Ash Green chose to bat first, but got off to a slow start losing Andy Mayers, Chris Hoddinott and Matt Payne as they slid to 17-3. Paul Sumner scored 21 and Darren Phillips and Micky Sumner also contributed scores in double figures, supporting Dominic Adolphe, who's reportedly brutal 44* seems to have been a little slower than that description would suggest! Nonetheless he was still there and could well have taken New Ash Green to a very useful score had the rain not intervened.

Southfleet v New Ash Green III
Saturday 26th July 2003

Central League Match - 40 Overs

New Ash Green 107 all out
Southfleet did not bat
Match Abandoned.

A strong 3rd XI arrived at Southfleet with high hopes, and when the first ball was cracked through the covers for 4 by Matthew Quantrill, playing for the 3rd XI because he had to leave at 6.00 and the selection committee couldn't find anyone who could play the whole game, the optimism looked justified. However it was downhill from that point on. The pitch had had a lot of rain and a lot of rolling and was as dead as a doornail. Southfleet's selection of slow bowlers rarely got the ball to lift above ankle height, and as they mostly bowled reasonably straight it was very difficult to score runs off them. Quantrill managed to force a couple more balls through the covers and Dan Lewsey hit a couple of overpitched ones straight, but they had only added 31 after 15 overs when Quantrill edged behind attempting to force the pace. Lewsey soon followed, and although Andy Tutt survived a concerted stumping appeal to go on to make 40, mostly hit hard through mid on and mid wicket, the rest of the side collapsed, with Graham Poole being the next highest scorer on 9, hitting two excellent fours in a useful last wicket stand of 15 with Stuart Ball. As the innings was coming to an end light drizzle began to fall, and during the tea interval it grew gradually heavier and showed no signs of stopping, so the game was abandoned at 5 p.m.

New Ash Green's failure to take the field reduced the opportunities for Champagne Moments, but despite competition from Matthew Quantrill's first ball 4, Andy Tutt's 6 and Graham Poole's two fours, particularly his late cut, Alan Carter took the award for a combination of a sprawling dive to regain his ground after a calling mis-understanding with Tutt and being bowled by a wide, which he managed to drag back onto his stumps.

 New Ash Green v Pluckley
Sunday 27th July 2003

Kent Village League Match - 40 Overs

New Ash Green (0 points) 93 all out (37.1 overs)
Pluckley (6 points) 94-3 (28.3 overs)
New Ash Green lost by 7 wickets.

Short of a few players due to tour New Ash Green struggled against Pluckley. Winning the toss and choosing to bat first only Andy Mayers made a reasonable score with 29, though Marc Klus, Vic Mayers and John Harding all made it into double figures. Pluckley made the runs reasonably comfortably, but not perhaps as easily as they might, with Dominic Adolphe producing another fine spell as emergency opening bowler as he took 1-17 in 9 overs.