Match Report vs Dinas
Powys 23rd June 2024 @ The Common (Skipper Jim, Report
Rupert)
It was Pride weekend in Cardiff and the Casuals were certainly
full of it! Especially Foxy as he celebrated his 85th! Yes
85, that wasn’t a typo.
The coin was tossed (I presume) and Hodkinson elected to
bat on an overcast pitch! A masterclass call from the skipper
as swing wasn’t going to be an issue, with a heavily
used pink ball donated as the match ball from the Casuals
kit bag (we really shouldn’t be so generous) …
Alas the game was off, Hodkinson and White (the Dave type)
to open the batting against a young bowler who was bowling
a decent length and another White (the George type) with the
bit between his teeth to ensure his father had a torrid time!
A torrid time it was, White struggled for runs whilst Hodkinson
picked off some shorter balls to the boundary nicely. The
scoreboard ticked on, and the opening pair of batters saw
off the young bowlers with a hint of relief as White’s
clenched buttocks must’ve somewhat released as to not
be bowled by his son.
Things were going well (slow but well), however the change
in bowling saw Hodkinson bowled for 27 off 38 with White I
believe still stuck on 1 or 2! Sayer next, White explained
that ‘we had time’, but time is boring, and the
boundary is short – 4 runs off the first ball from Sayer.
Now seeing Hodkinson and Sayer score runs White picked up
the pace and starting to hit a few boundaries himself before
being caught by his son for 16 off 39 (I hope he slept in
the shed)! Wilkes in for a brief stint, LBW given out by Pat,
1 off 5, this time more clear cut than Stevo’s shocker
midweek (you can’t question Pats integrity)… Talking
of the man O’Reilly in at 5, just in time for some new
and rather trickier bowlers to face, he kept them at bay and
helped Sayer move along on the opposite end forming an unorthodox
partnership that kind of worked. O’Reilly then spooned
one up to one of their better fielders, out for 8 off 25.
This gave young Warren the chance to see off the quicker bowlers
and he did so nicely, calmly plucking out the good balls and
nicking some good singles.
Sayer 126 off 68 (retired), this cunt was stealing Foxy’s
birthday innings. Fox (Prior) dabbed a fine shot down the
leg side to be off the mark off his first (take note White)
only to fall victim to an unwelcome ball from George White
to ruin his Birthday, 1 off 2 (I really hope he did sleep
in the shed)!!! Owens was in at 8 and flicked a few away to
the boundary as he paid witness to Warren spooning one to
the field, 13 off 19.
In came Dean at 9, where I sensed some menace in his eyes!
Now I wasn’t in the middle at this point, but I get
the feeling the wicket keeper was giving Dean a bit of jip…
Dean (tactical and astute Dean), weighed up his options and
knew the keeper was one of the oppositions better batters.
Dean dummied the keeper ‘pretending’ to go for
a big one by dancing down the wicket, swing and a miss (all
part of the plan), ball now in the keeper’s hands diving
towards the stumps. Dean scrambles back, obliterating the
stumps himself and taking out the keeper whilst injuring him
in the process. Dean was out, but we shall wait and see who
had the last laugh. 4 off 9 but a hell of a sacrifice!
Day in at 10, who formed a cute bond with Owens to pick up
some vital runs to leave the Causals 246 / 7 off 40 Overs.
TEA
Hodkinson - 27 (38)
White - 16 (39)
Sayer - 126 (68)
Wilkes - 1 (5)
O’Reilly - 8 (25)
Warren - 13 (19)
Prior - 1 (2)
Owens - 20 (19)
Dean - 4 & a human sacrifice (9)
Day - 16 (12)
Thomas - DNB
The Powys put a strong opening pair in to bat with White
(George variety) forming 50% of that pair! Day and Thomas
opened the bowling and saw a stubborn teenage twosome frustrate
and dominate the game with no respect for their elders (two
nights in the shed for George minimum)! Boundaries were starting
to become too frequent, and the lacklustre Cazh style fielding
wasn’t cutting the mustard.
Powys were motoring, Hodkinson needed change and needed it
now. He pointed to our most senior to take the reins, Fox
got the skippers nod, ‘limber up foxy’. The Birthday
boy tasked with slowing the pair down and he did just that,
a Cazh original not letting his side down, an economy of 6.5
slowing the Powys down. The mixture of pace from Warren and
‘genuine’ off spin from Fox rattles the batsmen
as we headed to drinks. 115 / 0 from 20 overs, the game was
still on!
We needed wickets and we needed them now, this pair were
now surpassing their half centuries. Warren picked up the
pace and the number 1 hoisted it to Day who took a fine catch…
Game on, in comes their keeper at 3! Dean grins, he knows
he hurts and looks forward to a cheap dirty wicket! Warren
steams in, hurtling the ball into his pads, screams from the
field, a notable ‘arragghhgahahagh’ screeching
from Deans direction! The umpire raises his finger, a Golden
Duck for the Keeper and a Golden moment for Dean! Warren had
his man but Dean made his mark… 2 in 2, Hatrick ball!
The field closes in, Warren licks his lips and steams in,
time slowed as the ball finds a slight edge off batsman 4…
This is it, Warren has a Hatrick, the field turn their heads
to the slip cordon… O’Reilly in wait ‘Oh
Shit’ the response! The ball flicks through his fingertips,
leaving Warren exacerbated, DROPPED! A chance to make the
history books goes pelting towards the boundary… At
least it goes down as byes! (not)!
We must move on – Warren’s clever spell started
to open up opportunities for our bowlers to whittle away and
get a few more. George pulled a ball from O’Reilly into
Sayer’s hands, dismissing him for 53… leaving
a tricky pair in who started to pull away a bit! 32 a piece
saw the Powys gain some traction but Day taking a one-handed
catch off White’s bowling broke the bond and tipped
the game back into the Casuals hands. O’Reilly bowled
a straight one to dismiss the lad swiping across the line.
Clear up mode was then activated as Day, White and Owens swept
up four more wickets, with Day notably taking 3 catches in
the field (we won’t talk about the drop).
Dinas Powys 218 / 9 off 40 Overs. END
Day – 8 Overs 1 Maiden 30 Runs 1 Wicket
Thomas – 5 Overs 0 Maidens 44 Runs 0 Wickets
Prior – 2 Overs 0 Maidens 13 runs 0 Wickets
Warren – 6 Overs 0 Maidens 27 Runs 2 Wickets
Owens - 6 Overs 1 Maiden 23 Runs 1 Wicket
O’Reilly – 5 Overs 0 Maidens 34 Runs 2 Wickets
Dean – 4 Overs 0 Maidens 30 Runs 0 Wickets 1 Man
White – 4 Overs 0 Maidens 17 Runs 3 Wickets
The Casuals take another win by 28 runs. 2 wins in 2 games,
a turning point in the season, the Skipper has momentum as
we head to our Bowl game on Tuesday v the Hawks.
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