Following the delight of victory last week, the 3s were confident, as the team this week was looking good, based upon the numbers available for selection. Max, on the hottest day of the year, lost the toss & we were in the field. Sun cream was liberally applied, caps were found & collars were up. The opening bowling partnership of Max & Value promised much & it delivered much. Much runs, unfortunately. A number of boundaries flew past the fielders & the ball bounced about half way down the pitch too frequently. Max & Value both found a little bit of rythym, but, by this point, St.Johns Billericay were scoring at 8 per over. John was brought on earlier than usual to stem the runs & this worked, especially when Olly, making his first appearance of the season, came on at the other end. Jonn managed to sneak one through the opener's defences & we took our first wicket. Olly got a top edge that went skyward, but was dropped & the chance was gone. A few comedy moments occured - misfields & throwing the ball into the branches of the tree to turn singles into boundaries. The St.Johns Billericay batsmen had plenty of wickets in hand, so started to open up & the run rate went up once more. A variety of other bowlers were used, but the run rate of 9 per over did not help our cause. Dan Allen, making his first appearance for a long while, had a bowl &, apart from a couple of wayward deliveries, was accurate enough to bowl out 2 batsmen. The end of the innings proved fun for the St.Johns Billericay player, who slogged his way to 50 in quick time.
At tea, a score of 254 looked a challenge, after a few hours in the blazing sunshine.
Jamie provided tea & set the bar very high for the rest of the season. Home made everything will be hard to beat for those yet to make teas.
Following his great effort last week, & for making teas, Jamie opened the innings, with Jacob this time. The first over was interesting, taking 11 balls to complete. The bowler was changed & had Jamie caught behind with a feint edge. Dicko strode to the crease & struck a couple of majestic 4s, off the middle of the Salix. But, he holed out a few balls later & John was in. Another comedy moment was when we signalled a wide for a delivey that the batsman chased & hit firmly with the bat! Jacob was taking it slowly at one end, so John took the bowlers on & struck some boundaries quickly. But, another change of bowling saw John get a top edge for a simple catch. From this moment on the game belonged to the St.Johns Billericay player who earlier score a rapid 50. Jacob & Dan kept the scoreboard moving at a good rate, but Jacob was C & B. The man of the match then ripped through the 3s, finishing with 6 for 35 with his loopy deliveries that bamboozled the batsmen. Sam, Olly, Henry, Dan & Pete did not last too long. A brief cameo from Value at the end made our score a bit more respectable. But, in all aspects of the game St.Johns Billericay were better.
A positive note the the run rate, but not the wickets that fall too quickly.
