Saturday 21st August and Sunday 22nd August 2004

Bexleyheath v New Ash Green
Saturday 21st August 2004

Kent League Match - 100 Overs

Bexleyheath (20 points) 127 all out (46.4 overs)
New Ash Green (4 points) 102 all out (35.5 overs)
New Ash Green lost by 25 runs.

Good form in the last couple of weeks had given New Ash Green hope for their important game against fellow strugglers Bexleyheath. The wicket was green and damp after heavy rain during the week, and on winning the toss Andy Stuart had no intention in inserting Bexleyheath. He and Andy Cox caused dome problems for the batsmen, but the difficult bounce was mostly physically dangerous to the batsmen rather than threatening in wicket taking terms.  The difficulty in scoring, though, was probably responsible for the first wicket. The batsmen tried to take a third run to Vic Mayers arm at fine leg, but a smart piece of work by Elvis Murrey, intercepting the throw and swivelling to throw down the stumps at the bowler’s end caught the batsman by surprise, having assumed he was running to the ‘safe’ end. Murrey also took a catch at slip as Andy Stuart got one to lift and balloon off the glove, and after 11 overs Bexleyheath were struggling at 10-2. Opener Chris Hobbs looked very uncomfortable against short bowling, but he grafted away for 17 overs to make 12, and Chris Bell played the most accomplished innings of the match, playing the short balls particularly well as he made 39. Two good catches behind the stumps by Matthew Quantrill off Vic Mayers’ bowling brought the game back New Ash green’s way, but Bell and Dave Curtis battled well, and young Raj Patel with 21 helped the tail to keep the acoreboard turning over. Andy Mayers was the most successful bowler with 3-36, Andy Stuart took 2-19 in 9.4 overs, Vic MAyers 2-24 in 9 and Andy Cox 0-17 in 11, but there was a feeling that New Ash Green had not made as much of the conditions as they might have done.

Although the pitch was by now much dryer the new ball was always likely to cause problems, and Dave Meeking turned out to be the bowler best able to exploit the conditions. Although both Marc Klus and Matthew Quantrill despatched him for boundaries he was able to get occasional balls to lift sharply, and both openers fell to such balls when looking in good touch. Rob Boss also hit a couple of good shots but then got carried away and swung and missed one on centre stump from Dai Locke, a bowler with a Dominic Adolphe style run up, but rather more pace and accuracy. Andy Cox and Elvis Murrey led a fight back, and with the new ball seen off and Meeking looking the only real threat the game seemed to be swinging back towards New Ash green. When Murrey hit a huge six onto the roof of the Welling United football stand and followed it up with a our in the same over things were looking good, but Cox fell to one which kept low, Simon Duke chipped one to mid on and Vic Mayers managed to glove one onto the stumps. Murrey still looked very capable of winning the game, but was then given out LBW for 27 when advancing a long way down the track, a decision that he was not best pleased with.  At 76-7 the game seemed up, but Andy Stuart and Andy Mayers batted sensibly, picking up ones and twos and the occasional boundary and added 26 for the 8th wicket before the returning Meeking induced Stuart to flash at one and edge behind. Andy Mayers then repeated Simon Duke’s mistake of chipping the ball to mid off rather than going through with the shot and Kieran Hoddinott gave Meeking his 5th wicket, caught at short leg. The last three wickets fell on the same score and New Ash Green ended up disappointingly short. The league table still suggests that it will take something of a mathematical freak for New Ash Green to go down, particularly if the weather forecasts are correct for this week, but it was a poor effort after much stronger showings in the last few weeks.

 

Click HERE for full scorecard from KCL site

Click HERE for latest league table.

 

New Ash Green II v Barbados Overseas II
Saturday 21st August 2004

Kent League Match - 100 Overs

Barbados Overseas II (20 points) 225-9 (50 overs)
New Ash Green II (4 points) 57 all out  (34.4 overs)
New Ash Green lost by 168 runs.

I have heard nothing about this game, but going from the KCL scorecard it seems to have been a thorough thrashing. The only redeeming feature seems to be that no opposition batsman got a big score, plenty of wickets were taken so at least 4 bonus points were earned!

Click HERE for full scorecard from KCL site.

Click HERE for latest league table.

 

Southfleet v New Ash Green
Sunday 22nd August 2004

Kent Village League Match – 40 overs per side

Southfleet (0 pts) 127 all out 
New Ash Green (6 pts) 131-2
New Ash Green won by 8 wickets

At last a Sunday win! Will someone please, please write a report for this match. I gather from the message board that  Marc Klus and Ben Cooke may have had a hand….but that is all I know!

Click HERE for scorecard from KCL site

Click HERE for latest league table

 

 

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