Match Report vs Hawks
20th July 2023 @ Wenvoe (Skipper Luvvers, report Rhys)
A slightly overcast day in Wenvoe was what faced The Casuals
for their weekly Willow League fixture - this time vs Celtic
Hawks. Wearing a kit that resembled Manchester United 3rd
kit (https://tinyurl.com/cazhball)
Hawks strode out to bowl after another successful toss from
our skipper.
The usual pair of Alex & Rhys opened but struggled to
score much in the first few overs, at the mercy of a nippy
opening bowler who was finding a good line. With the score
only at 14 off the first 4 overs, Rhys was the first to fall,
bowled by an attempted bouncer which didn’t make its
way above the stumps.
Partnerships of 14 must be in fashion, as Will was next to
fall, edging to the wicket keeper off a ball that drifted
away. Out for 11 after some nicely struck boundaries pushed
the Cazh to 28-2.
Jim came to the crease and after a slow start, got motoring
with some cracking boundaries. He must have been mindful that
the partnership of 14 was fast approaching, as a mix-up between
him and Alex (each blaming the other one!) lead to the latter
being run out for 8.
Three partnerships of 14 runs later and the Cazh were sitting
precariously at 42-3 after 8 and a bit overs. A ‘captain’s
innings’ was needed from Luvvers, and he didn’t
disappoint. After a few sighters, the sixes started to come.
Some over-pitched deliveries were dispatched to Luvvers’
favoured leg side boundary. Cries of ‘spare ball’
were heard more than once, as a search party was sent towards
the river, sadly without Foxy’s magical ball retriever.
With Luvvers and Jim both in ‘the zone’, the
score began to increase at a rate of knots. Cazhball was indeed
in full flow. Jim was dealing in singles and fours only, and
by the time he was out LBW he had amassed 35 runs and put
the Cazh in a strong position via the partnership of 57 from
35 balls. Rob arrived in the crease and after a few singles
here and there, dispatched some shorter balls with great timing
for 4 and then a big 6 in the direction of the noisy neighbours.
Luvvers was striking the ball well but after successive fours,
was caught in the deep going for one last six before retiring.
45 very useful runs, pushing the Cazh to 126-5 with 20 balls
remaining. Debutant Will Purdie came to the crease and was
able to get off the mark on his first shot, pushing a few
quick runs here and there with Rob at the other end. Casuals
finishing off 144-5 which was a decent recovery after a slow
start.
A HEATH Run Out 8
JR DAVIES Bowled 5
W MASON-WILKES Ct wk 11
J HODKINSON LBW 35
G LOVERIDGE Ct 45
R OWENS NOT OUT 16
W PURDIE NOT OUT 5
----------------------------------------------------
Hawks had a tough task ahead. A run rate of 7.25 was required
to hit their 145 target, but the openers didn’t hang
about. Dan’s first over went for 8, and Rob’s
for 13. Halfway thru the 6th over, Hawks were 38-0 but it
was here that Rob managed to get the first wicket of the innings.
Twice. It needed to be twice due to the unwritten rule opposition
teams tend to have of ‘don’t give our opener out
LBW’. It was third time lucky with the appeals (the
second one plumb) as the umpire sent their Batter#1 back to
the pavilion for 22.
Dan managed to restrict the opposition to only 11 runs from
his final three overs, meaning Shakey was introduced for over
8 with the score at 51-1: on par with the run rate. Shakey
quickly took the wicket of the other opener with a straight
ball which was missed. Some economic bowling kept the run
rate roughly 5 an over, finishing off a decent spell with
only two boundaries conceded, thanks to some nifty hand and
footwork from Luvvers & Rhys.
Pabs at the other end was equally as economical and managed
to pick up two important wickets as well. Firstly a stumping
by Jim, and in the following over a straight ball that Wenvoe’d
it’s way to 6 inches above the ground, before hitting
the stumps! After 15 overs Hawks had fallen behind significantly
at 99-4. Needing 46 from the last 30 balls, Luvvers brought
himself on to bowl with Pat at the other end.
Rule 21.1.1 The umpire shall ascertain whether the bowler
intends to bowl right handed or left handed, over or round
the wicket, and shall so inform the striker.
It is unfair if the bowler fails to notify the umpire of a
change in his/her mode of delivery. In this case the umpire
shall call and signal No ball.
For those who weren’t privy to the conversation our
skipper had with the umpire, Luvvers’ first ball was
initially called a no ball because our skipper hadn’t
‘informed him of his action’. As you can see from
the rules above, a no ball should only be called if there
is a ‘change in … delivery”. Anyway, it
was a rubbish ball and it deserved to be hit for 5! Sorry
skip!
Lucky for Luvvers, Pat was holding down the other end very
well with some tight bowling, restricting the Hawks to 6 an
over. With the help of Rob’s final over and a much better
second over from our captain, The Cazh were able to stop a
last-minute charge from the Hawks and secure another win,
leapfrogging Cavaliers into 4th spot in the league.
D LEWIS 4-0-19-0
R OWENS 4-0-39-1
M STEPHENS 4-0-23-1
P STEPHENS 4-0-22-2
P DEAN 2-0-12-0
G LOVERIDGE 2-0-12-0
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