Friday 25 May 2007
Tim's bat
We all wondered why he preferred a piece of formica to the traditional willow. This article explains all - look where the manufacturer has been based up to now! Great loyalty, Tim. Bad news could be looming though. In future, it might be a long trip if you ever need a replacement.
Tuesday 22 May 2007
One-man show
Saturday's was a fine win in quite the most picturesque of surroundings.
The idyllic Greenwich Park resembled nothing so much as a scene from a novel by Jane Austen.
Flowering shrubs at the boundary's edge echoed to the sounds of summer - laughing children, a breeze ruffling the sweet chestnut trees, the thwack of leather on ornamental parakeet.
As the smallest and fluffiest of white clouds skipped euphorically across the azure sky, nothing, it seemed, could blemish the perfection of this early summer's day. Even the neatly trimmed grass on the outfield appeared to incline gently towards the pavilion in generous and heartfelt approval.
How tragic, then, how unforgivable that such an idyl should be so abused, so ransacked, chewed up, should have the very marrow sucked from its being and spat out in ugly gobs of detritus upon the grass, as it was to be by the selfish actions of one, unnameable batsman.
No care did he have for the pink hydrangeas, the exotic birdlife or the quiet majesty of the stately home overlooking the cricket ground.
No thought could he spare for the young lads - and girls, too - who had been hoping desperately to try their hand at a game they had grown to love in the back gardens and holiday beaches of childhood.
Nor could any other appeal to basic generosity of human spirit ever hope to hold sway with Cincinnati's most selfish of batters when he was in this mood. So-called team-mates were reduced to hapless spectators as he carved up the bowling, gleefully tucking into long-hops and good length balls alike.
He offered not the faintest hint of courtesy to the tiring BK attack, apparently delighting in making even the weariest of bowlers weep into his threadbare boots. Pull shots crashed through midwicket. Drives boomed past forlorn fielders at cover, and parakeets shrieked in mortal terror as another missile pierced the tranquil air over long-on.
So self-absorbed, so intent on single-handedly plundering the whopper-filled BK take-away was he, that a bare nine balls were left unbowled by the end of the match.
In all, 110 selfish runs - more than half the 215 required to win - had been voraciously hoovered up by our hungry left-hander.
By noon on Sunday, the Royal Parks Constabulary had issued an e-fit of a man brandishing an awful lot of shots who officers said they would like to talk to in connection with an allegation of disturbing the peace.
The RSPB have now placed ring-necked parakeets on the endangered list after reports of a sudden halt in the mating activities of five nesting pairs.
And some spoke rashly of a re-match.
The idyllic Greenwich Park resembled nothing so much as a scene from a novel by Jane Austen.
Flowering shrubs at the boundary's edge echoed to the sounds of summer - laughing children, a breeze ruffling the sweet chestnut trees, the thwack of leather on ornamental parakeet.
As the smallest and fluffiest of white clouds skipped euphorically across the azure sky, nothing, it seemed, could blemish the perfection of this early summer's day. Even the neatly trimmed grass on the outfield appeared to incline gently towards the pavilion in generous and heartfelt approval.
How tragic, then, how unforgivable that such an idyl should be so abused, so ransacked, chewed up, should have the very marrow sucked from its being and spat out in ugly gobs of detritus upon the grass, as it was to be by the selfish actions of one, unnameable batsman.
No care did he have for the pink hydrangeas, the exotic birdlife or the quiet majesty of the stately home overlooking the cricket ground.
No thought could he spare for the young lads - and girls, too - who had been hoping desperately to try their hand at a game they had grown to love in the back gardens and holiday beaches of childhood.
Nor could any other appeal to basic generosity of human spirit ever hope to hold sway with Cincinnati's most selfish of batters when he was in this mood. So-called team-mates were reduced to hapless spectators as he carved up the bowling, gleefully tucking into long-hops and good length balls alike.
He offered not the faintest hint of courtesy to the tiring BK attack, apparently delighting in making even the weariest of bowlers weep into his threadbare boots. Pull shots crashed through midwicket. Drives boomed past forlorn fielders at cover, and parakeets shrieked in mortal terror as another missile pierced the tranquil air over long-on.
So self-absorbed, so intent on single-handedly plundering the whopper-filled BK take-away was he, that a bare nine balls were left unbowled by the end of the match.
In all, 110 selfish runs - more than half the 215 required to win - had been voraciously hoovered up by our hungry left-hander.
By noon on Sunday, the Royal Parks Constabulary had issued an e-fit of a man brandishing an awful lot of shots who officers said they would like to talk to in connection with an allegation of disturbing the peace.
The RSPB have now placed ring-necked parakeets on the endangered list after reports of a sudden halt in the mating activities of five nesting pairs.
And some spoke rashly of a re-match.
Friday 18 May 2007
3) Cincinnati v BK at Greenwich Park
A terrific victory against our old rivals. Not sure who won the toss but, almost inevitably, we bowled first. BK's openers looked in an aggressive mood, and it took some good bowling from Jim & Tim to keep the score down. Nevertheless, the board was ticking along and we were all relieved when Ross Bros got the measure of BK's first danger man and sent him to the changing room.
Their second danger man was more stubborn and ended up scoring a fine century. As for our bowling, the Chairman and Selfish Batter took a couple of wickets each before undefeated captain JP brought on a new trio - Caroline, David and The Don - to finish off the innings for us. All three did us proud. None of us could believe it had been 9 years since Caroline had last played cricket, David marked his CCC debut with an emphatic wicket and The Don gave an indication of how useful he could be early in an innings with a couple of slips waiting for an edge.
BK ended on 214-6 in 35 overs. Once again, our opening batsmen had to show great discipline. Not at the crease but at the boundary, as the Chmn served up the usual feast.
We needed just over 6 an over. Selfish Batter and Jim got things off to a quick start, and we never really fell behind the required run rate after that. We put on 60 for the first wicket before Jim was caught behind for 22. Tim R and SB added another 20 or so before Tim R gave way to Tim M. After that, Tim cut and Selfish pulled us to a third wicket partnership of about 140. Tim ended on 59* (I think - please correct me Tim) and SB on 110*. We won the game with 9 balls to spare.
A fantastic day all round: a beautiful ground, a brilliant win and a boring FA Cup final for anyone who chose to sit in front of the TV rather than Rock up to the cricket!
Team: JP, Simon, Jim, Tim R, Tim M, Jack R, Caroline, Don, David, Andy O (10-a-side game). Thanks to the skipper for umpiring and to our new supporter for patiently watching the cricket and helping with the tea - you brought us good luck!
Result: Win
Scores: BK: 214-6 in 35 overs; CCC: 215-2 in 33.3 overs.
Season so far: P3, W2, L0, ?1
Their second danger man was more stubborn and ended up scoring a fine century. As for our bowling, the Chairman and Selfish Batter took a couple of wickets each before undefeated captain JP brought on a new trio - Caroline, David and The Don - to finish off the innings for us. All three did us proud. None of us could believe it had been 9 years since Caroline had last played cricket, David marked his CCC debut with an emphatic wicket and The Don gave an indication of how useful he could be early in an innings with a couple of slips waiting for an edge.
BK ended on 214-6 in 35 overs. Once again, our opening batsmen had to show great discipline. Not at the crease but at the boundary, as the Chmn served up the usual feast.
We needed just over 6 an over. Selfish Batter and Jim got things off to a quick start, and we never really fell behind the required run rate after that. We put on 60 for the first wicket before Jim was caught behind for 22. Tim R and SB added another 20 or so before Tim R gave way to Tim M. After that, Tim cut and Selfish pulled us to a third wicket partnership of about 140. Tim ended on 59* (I think - please correct me Tim) and SB on 110*. We won the game with 9 balls to spare.
A fantastic day all round: a beautiful ground, a brilliant win and a boring FA Cup final for anyone who chose to sit in front of the TV rather than Rock up to the cricket!
Team: JP, Simon, Jim, Tim R, Tim M, Jack R, Caroline, Don, David, Andy O (10-a-side game). Thanks to the skipper for umpiring and to our new supporter for patiently watching the cricket and helping with the tea - you brought us good luck!
Result: Win
Scores: BK: 214-6 in 35 overs; CCC: 215-2 in 33.3 overs.
Season so far: P3, W2, L0, ?1
Saturday 12 May 2007
2) Cincinnati v Caribbean at Tooting
Team sheet: Oliver, Dan, Adam, Andy O, Rockie, Tim M, Tim R, Simon, Ed, Steve, Will.
Hmmm, a funny one this. For the second season on the trot, our opponents from Tooting only managed to muster 8 players. The most honest result would be 'Cincinnati win' after we dismissed all of their players for 80-odd. In order to give ourselves a challenging total to chase, however, we invited their batsmen to try again. The outcome was a target of 222.
We saw some good bowling displays again from Ed and the two chairmen (past and present). Debutant Will put in a tidy performance behind the stumps and we took some difficult catches in the field.
In reply, CCC had difficulty in getting going. After some early listing in the face of good bowling, Selfish Batter and Tim M steadied the ship with a carefully crafted partnership. SB selflessly conceded his innings one short of a half century, which brought Will A to the crease. Will showed us all how to pick holes in an 8-man field i.e. by hitting the ball over them all for 6. He was last man out for 31.
We ended up with a total of 150ish all out. Which was less than 222, or more than 80, depending on your perspective.
Thanks to the Skipper for umpiring all day.
Result: Void
Scores: Confusing
Season so far: P2, W1, L0, ? 1
Sunday 6 May 2007
2007 season - 1) Cincinnati v West XI at Kingston
Cincinnati got off to a far more successful start to this season than last. It initially looked as though West XI would set us a target of over 200, but some tight bowling from Jim, the ex-Chairman, the new Chairman and Ed brought us back into the game.
The final total of 114 was never going to challenge our powerful batting line-up, particularly after our new opening partnership had taken us to 86 before the fall of the first wicket. After that, Young Tom showed us the full range of his shots - often to a single delivery from the loopy leggy - and the vice-captain looked in promising form until the skipper committed an act of sabotage.
Result: Win
Scores: West XI 114-10, Cincinnati 115-4
Season so far: P 1, W 1, L 0
The final total of 114 was never going to challenge our powerful batting line-up, particularly after our new opening partnership had taken us to 86 before the fall of the first wicket. After that, Young Tom showed us the full range of his shots - often to a single delivery from the loopy leggy - and the vice-captain looked in promising form until the skipper committed an act of sabotage.
Result: Win
Scores: West XI 114-10, Cincinnati 115-4
Season so far: P 1, W 1, L 0
Marathon Man
Congratulations, Mr Chairman and Social Secretary, on a fantastic achievement in the London marathon. He's now so slim that you can hardly see him here as he skips past the 23-mile mark. Fortunately, we got a better shot of him below as he enjoyed an emotional reunion with an old friend shortly after crossing the line.
First half-century of the season
Great to see a club stalwart celebrate another 50. At least, he claimed it was 50. Recount?
Paris tour 2006
Our 2006 tour took us to Paris. After our Hänsel & Gretel adventures finding the ground, we drew one game and lost the other. The highlight of the tour came at the close of the Saturday game when the Social Secretary displayed his fine diving skills.
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