Saturday 2nd July

Bexley III v New Ash Green
Saturday 2nd July 2005

Kent League Match - 100 Overs

New Ash Green (20 points) 140 all out (47.1 overs)
Bexley III (4 points) 113 all out (43.2 overs)
New Ash Green won by 27 runs.

With no second XI for the second week running New Ash Green were at least able to re-inforce the 1^st XI with the leading 2^nd XI performers. The sight of the Bexley team jogging round the filed, and then performing stretches and fielding drills did not put New Ash Green off, and even the enforced loss of the toss through once more not having an umpire did little to dampen their confidence that this was a team they could compete with.

Andy Cox and Matthew Quantrill opened, and it was soon clear that the wicket was producing very steep bounce at one end. Grant Houghton started with 6 consecutive maidens at that end, also picking up the wicket of Quantrill who was beaten by the bounce trying to pull and lobbed up a gentle catch to square leg. At the other end, though, Tom Warwick was bowling enough loose balls to keep the run rate ticking over, to the extent that Cox was actually annoyed when Warwick was forcibly removed from the attack for bowling a third beamer in his 8^th over. Matt Scanlan again did a solid job at number 3 staying with Cox until they were both dismissed in quick succession, Cox top scoring with 38, just as New Ash Green seemed to have weathered the early difficulties and were looking set to accelerate. Vic Mayers and James Hewitt kept them on the right track, adding another 35 before Hewitt was somewhat unlucky to be given out caught and bowled for 12 from a bump ball, a rare mistake in an otherwise excellent performance from the home umpire. Pete Burke joined Mayers, but having already produced 2 big sixes Mayers was caught in the deep soon afterwards for 28. Craddock and Burke took the score on to 129 and New Ash Green were still looking good for a score in the region of 175, but undisciplined batting at the death left them with a considerably lower total as the innocuous looking spin of Des Hewegama was rewarded with the startling figures of 4-6 in 2.1 overs. New Ash Green seemed unable to resist heaving at him, and were either caught in the deep or stumped as they collapsed to 140 all out and gifted Bexley 2 extra overs in which to chase their target.

Although the total was less than they would have liked New Ash Green, and Andy Cox in particular, still felt they were in with a good chance if they could exploit the dangerously steep bounce with the new ball. A fired up Cox proved to be the right bowler to exploit it, his first ball lifting viciously to take Phillips gloves and provide a simple catch to Andy Mayers at silly mid off. 14 year old Jack Bell showed great promise in dealing with such hostile bowling, but he too was undone by vicious bounce, edging one into his thigh and into the air to Pete Burke, given out despite his vigorous protests that he hadn’t hit it, despite the very wooden sound before the ball thudded into his body. Ian Clark at three suffered a painful rap on his finger from Cox, and although he tried determinedly to stay in line was clearly struggling and was eventually bowled by one that didn’t bounce. At the other end Micky Sumner was bowling well, with some hostility as well, though he didn’t have the advantage of the steep lift from the other end. He picked up a wicket of his own with one that did bounce, and Grant Houghton was panicked into trying to take a single to James Hewitt and was run out for 0. With the initial hardness in the ball wearing off there was less in the pitch, and Cox was pulled for 2 fours by Rick Melbourne, before retiring to give Vic Mayers a go. Mayers claimed he was still struggling to recover from the previous week, but the pace and bounce in the pitch inspired him to provide a long spell full of fire and accuracy. Although the pitch had calmed a bit about one ball an over was still flying through, and one of these removed Melbourne, via his gloves and a simple catch at gully, to leave Bexley 34-6. At the other end James Hewitt started with 3 consecutive maidens after Sumner had been removed from the attack by a flurry of boundaries from Bexley Skipper Matt Cheeseborough, but he became Mayers second victim when another flyer took a simple edge to the keeper. At 51-7 it seemed al over, but Bexley’s lower order showed much more application than New Ash Green’s. The odd unplayable ball beat them, so there were always chances, but they worked diligently to survive and hit the loose balls when they could. Hewegama spoilt Hewitt’s figures with a number of pulls for 4 and then a big six over square leg, and Billy Shinners took 3 successive boundaries hooking Mayers. Extra leg side fielders cut off that source of runs, but Bexley were not in too much danger of falling behind the rate, so it was a relief for New Ash Green when Mayers finally got an edge from Shinners that was taken one handed by Matthew Quantrill, to end a partnership of 34 for the 8^th wicket. Tom Warwick, batting with a runner due to a hamstring strain, kept things ticking over with Hewgama as they added another 28. Andy Mayers, in his first spell of the season, bowled very tidily, and was unlucky not to take a wicket, an edge from Hewegama going into the fingertips of Quantrill’s outstretched glove inches form the ground, but coming out again as he hit the ground. With the score at 111 with 10 overs remaining the game was still very much in the balance, but the return of the opening bowlers, from their original ends, proved too much for them. First Micky Sumner bowled Warwick with a beauty, then Cox again extracted bounce from the pitch to take Hewgama’s edge and give Quantrill his 4^th catch behind the stumps and give New Ash Green a comfortable looking 27 run win.

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New Ash Green II v High Halstow II
Saturday 2nd July 2005

Sadly there were not enough players available to put out any sort of viable 2^nd XI, a sign of the increasing crisis of commitment to regular cricket.

Back to 2005 Fixtures