Wednesday 2nd June 2004
Dartford Postal v New Ash Green
Friendly Match
- 40 Overs per Side
Dartford
Postal 227-9 (40 overs)
New Ash Green 220-9 (40 overs)
New Ash Green lost by 7 runs.
Many senior players having apparently forgotten that there was a mid-
week match to be played the club was saved from embarrassment by the fact that
it was half term, and a number of members of the under 17 team, who’s game the
previous evening had been rained off, stepped into the breach, and for the most
part performed admirably.
The wicket at Hesketh Park was not as
flat and even as one would have expected, and the outfield was rather longer
than would be ideal as well, but nonetheless Postal were doubtless happy to
have the chance to bat first on it. Good opening spells from Robin Wills and
Dan Lewsey kept them well in check, Lewsey picking up two good wickets in an opening spell of
2-30 in 8 overs. Wills, though wicketless, bowled some good balls, and got a lot of turn
from his slower balls. This inspired him to switch to bowling spin, at
which he proved to be extremely impressive, so much so that a career as club
spinner undoubtedly beckons if he works on it regularly. Bowling a mixture of
flat and slightly flighted deliveries, with
considerable turn and a vicious quicker ball he undoubtedly proved troublesome
to quality batting, and when returning to bowl at the death remained
economical, finishing with 0-38 in 11 overs.
For the first part of the innings New Ash Green’s youthful side
kept a good quality Postal batting line up well in check – at 20 overs the score was 72-2. Chris Wade bowled a promising
spell, beating the bat a number of times before losing his line and length a
little at the end of his spell, and Shane Hampshier
and James Oliver both picked up wickets with their first balls. Shane, indeed,
had something of a ‘golden arm’ day, taking two wickets and running out Postal’s top batsman, Dickie
Irving, for 75 when he touched a straight drive onto the stumps, catching
Irving backing up too far and sportingly walking when the umpire gave him not
out. Two more run outs from Matthew Quantrill and
James Oliver helped to stop the total from running away completely, but too
many full tosses and long hops from the youthful attack meant that Postal were
able to set a target of 227.
Matthew Quantrill and Dan Lewsey, of course, had been involved in the two weekend
games where NAG had chased 227 and 226, and Quantrill
had made a century each time, so it was a case of surely he couldn’t do it a
third time…..could he? Well…..no. But he and the rest of the team made a very
good effort at it.
A promising start was spoiled when Quantrill
tried to sneak a single to the wicketkeeper who responded sharply and threw to
the far end, hitting the bowler’s stumps direct to run out Matt Scanlan. Alan Carter didn’t last long, but Robin Wills then
showed his all round potential with an excellent innings, mixing solidity with
powerful attacking strokes. At the half way stage NAG were only 2 runs short of
their opponent’s score at the same stage, and as the partnership blossomed the run rate was pushed up as well. For a while a
real prospect of an astonishing victory was on the cards, but then Wills tamely
pushed one back to the bowler for 44, to end a partnership of 102 for the 3rd
wicket. The game was not yet over as Shane Hampsheir,
though not as successful on his attacking shots as Wills, gave Quantrill good support as he tried to up his scoring rate,
but his timing was never quite there on the slightly uneven pitch, and
eventually he also pushed one gently back to the bowler to end his quest for a
third successive century 28 runs short on 72. By now the run rate seemed
impossible, but the tail kept wagging to the end. Chris Wade continued to
impress, making 11 from 5 balls, Graham Hampsheir
blasted 21 from 10 balls, Dan Lewsey seemed to get
over his batting problems by smashing his first ball for 4, only to be out next
ball, and with 27 needed from the final over 14 year old Sam Wilson impressed
by scoring 19 from it, including a 7 from the last ball with the help of first
2 then 4 overthrows. Indeed had the ball not crept over the boundary as the
fielders were giving up on it he and James Oliver might have run even more and
produced the most astounding of victories – 15 needed from the last ball!
All in all it was a most impressive display from such a young
team. As so often recently the feeling is that there is a real future for the
club if all these players can be kept interested in the game and the benefits
of 3rd team and colts cricket in giving
them all games and helping to develop them are clear. Dartford Postal were a
strong side with mostly regular adult club cricketers who play at a decent
level, and though towards the end they treated it as a formality for the most
part New Ash green were genuinely in the game, despite giving all the
youngsters a go at the expense of keeping the bowling as tight as possible
throughout. The score fairly reflects the closeness of the game, the only
mystery being why our under 17’s can’t perform better against their own age
group!