Saturday 20th April
Saturday 20th April
Friendly Match - 40 overs per side
Farningham 216-5 (40 overs)
New Ash Green 97 all out (35.2 overs)
New Ash Green lost by 119 runs
After last year's wettest summer in living memory and an almost equally damp and cold winter and spring it was a real pleasure to be greeted by a day of unbroken sunshine and blue skies for the start of the season, though the chill in the air fought back wit a vengeance towards the end of the game as the sun set. The outfield at Farningham was still soft underfoot, but the square was remarkably firm, if a little grassy. Farningham looked to have a stronger side for this game than in the equivalent game a year ago, and so Joe Elisak took the cautious route and elected to bowl first on winning the toss. Luke Shaw and Ian Mellor had the honour of starting up the seasons, and for the most part bowled tidily, but a few loose balls were put away, and they had little luck with their best balls as Farningham got off to a very steady start. The first chance of the season came off Mellor, James Gegg at point trying to take a sliced drive over his shoulder as he turned, but not quite able to get a hand on it. Eventually it took a run out to make the breakthrough and bring the first wicket of 2013, the batsman thinking there should be one to the fielder on the boundary, even on the very short pavilion side. Hs partner was less sure, and by the time he did set off for a run he had nowhere enough time to beat Joe Elisak's throw. Elisak then brought himself on to bowl to claim the first bowlers wicket of the season, responding to being clouted for 6 by turning one nicely through the gate and onto leg stump. Elisak was looking quite the star player at this point, but spoiled things by dropping the easiest of several chances that New Ash Green failed to take – his excuse that he had a cigarette in his hand not finding much sympathy with his team mates. Nonetheless this was probably the best period of the game for New Ash Green as Matt Bushe finally became the first New Ash Green player to hold a catch this year, clinging on to a sharp chance at gully, and then followed up soon afterwards as bowler by having Farningham's captain well held on the boundary by James Gegg. With Paul Sumner, Elisak, Bushe and Luke Shaw in his second spell all fairly tidy in the middle overs the run rate had dropped and New Ash Green seemed to be dragging themselves back into the game. Unfortunately Olly Powell had different ideas, coming in a swinging the bat. He got away with a few, balls just out of fielder's reach, mishits landing safely, an inside edge failing to stay in the keeper's gloves, but also hit some very effective shots with great power, and after giving James Gegg a miserable time in his one over he made sure Farningham made the most of the last ten overs, before finally being out in the final over when a hard, flat pull to the short boundary was brilliantly caught by a tumbling Dean Freeman, possibly saving the life of the dog on the boundary that had been in line for a direct hit. Powell's hitting had taken Farningham to and beyond the 200 mark, and they ended up setting a fairly formidable target of 216 at the end of their 40 overs.
As for New Ash Green's reply, for the most part the less said the better. They didn't help themselves by giving out four of their own batsmen LBW, to varying degrees of disbelief, and by a silly running mishap. Matthew Quantrill went first, LBW in the second over. Glen Freeman was bowled. Dillon Pike looked solid, and Dean Freeman played a couple of positive shots and looked in good form before Pike hit one into a gap, and called for the single that would have got him back. There was probably a quick single there when he called it, but Freeman called a firm no, and a more experienced batsman would probably have stopped then. Unfortunately Pike didn't, and as he carried on Freeman did the only thing he could do and set off, hoping for a mistake from the fielders, but the throw to the keeper was accurate and Freeman couldn't beat it. Pike, somewhat distracted by this felt he had to try and make up for it by swinging the bat a bit more, and soon became the 2nd LBW victim, leaving New Ash Green on 26-4. James Gegg and James Joslin, guesting from Ash, managed to steady the ship for a while, though the scoring rate, already far beyond that required, plummeted even further. They added 9 before Gegg, having hit a couple of attacking shots, missed one and was bowled by the spinner. Joe Elisak swung mightily several times, mostly without making contact at all, and had managed only one single before he was the third LBW, playing a long way forward. From 38-6 things could hardly get worse, and in the shape of Joslin and Ian Mellor they did in fact get a little better. They put on 24 for the next wicket, Joslin blocking successfully despite being surrounded by almost the entire Farningham team while Mellor played a few more aggressive shots. Having survived long enough to have faced more balls than he did in the whole of 2012 Joslin was inspired to chance his arm a bit, and was delighted to swing away a four to the longest boundary. This gave such a boost to his confidence that he immediately smacked the next ball through the covers for another four, giving him a career best score, and forcing a change of bowling to a pacier bowler. This achieved the desired affect for Farningham, Joslin being bowled by his third ball. This brought in Luke Shaw for his first New Ash Green innings in some years, and he played probably the best innings of anyone. Mellor and Paul Sumner both suffered the same fate as Joslin, bowled by well pitched up balls, but Shaw battled his way to 26, including playing the best shot of the innings, a clip off his toes through midwicket for 4, before finally, and perhaps appropriately, becoming the 4th and final batsman to be given out LBW, playing a long way forward. It ended a performance that was, overall, a disappointing start to the season, but contained several bright sparks, not least the batting and later bowling of Shaw, and was actually probably a better performance than the scoreboard suggests. Equally importantly was the general enthusiasm and support – thanks to the near dozen supporters who turned up at various times and ensured, as so often, that New Ash Green mostly had more support than the home side.