“Fats Ain’t Misbehavin’
As MAD Look to Vince’s Mantra”
Match: 11
/ 221
Won
by 2 wkts
|
Team |
Total |
|
Wootton & Boars
Hill CC |
157 - 8 |
|
T. Smith 2 - 13, D. Shorten
2 - 23 |
|
|
|
|
|
FFTMCC |
158 - 8 |
|
J. Pearson 71*, J. Newman
20 |
|
|
“Winning is a habit. Watch your
thoughts, they become your beliefs. Watch your beliefs, they become your
words. Watch your words, they become your actions. Watch your actions, they
become your habits. Watch your habits, they become your character.” And
so the monkey was banished from whence it came. After the opening weekend’s
obligatory raping at the hands of Horspath the Mad were left rejoicing
following a narrow and hard fought victory over Wootton & Boars Hill CC. Yes,
on Easter Sunday they rose again, with the kind of gutsy performance that has
become so synonymous with… many other sports teams. It was a splendid knock
from James ‘Fats Fattori’ Pearson that brought the team home but that is not
to say this was a one man show from the Mad. That’s
not to say it was an eleven man show all of the time either as J Hotson,
fresh from a night’s sleep, needed half a day’s more sleep to get himself
into prime condition. “Oversleeping is a habit too, I
guess.” J Hotson
M. Reeves (10) just 20 days before he married. Mad
undertook the first 15 overs one man short, and it showed. Wootton and Boars
Hill took full advantage of the gaps in the field, and the angles of R Eaglestone’s knee, as they raced to 70 without loss. The
opening bowler partnership of Newman (5-0-23-0) and Pearson (6-0-36-0) toiled
in the unrelenting sun but to no avail; the latter being watched by his
mother and father, and the most popular addition to the crowd – his sister.
Cruel this world can be as the on looking relatives saw their kin hit to all
sides of the ground, before they made a swift exit prior to his heroics with
bat. Eventually the cavalry arrived, and then eventually it got its kit from
the car, and then eventually it readied itself for battle, and then
eventually it joined said battle. And how the tide was to turn… “The achievements of an
organization are the results of the combined effort of each individual...” …
And it’s easier when they’re all present. In the space of a couple of overs D
Shorten splayed Studds’ (35) stumps and waved away
D Wiskin (34) at the start of a devilish spell that arguably deserved more
than the 8-1-23-2 he left with. The wickets shocked The Mad into life and
more fell with alarming regularity after that, with the hosts only able to
muster 157 off of their 40 overs despite their hasty start. T Smith
(7-0-13-2) was the constant thorn in ‘the Boars’ side, striking fear into the
opposition as he steamed in from his one pace walk up… oh sorry, correction…
as he walked in from his one pace ‘run up’ steaming. At the other end the
wily J Hoskins was twizzling and twirling and tossing up many a tantalising
teaser that lured countless batsmen into false strokes, including the
lolloping lurer of all lurers. Hoskins eventually finishing with 8-0-28-2. “It’s not whether you get knocked
down, it’s whether you get up.”
Proof that T. Smith’s cricketing prowess should
be consigned to a circus. The
Mad’s powers of recovery had shone through and nothing encapsulated it more
than the right Patella of debutant R Eaglestone. Getting your knee in the way
of a ball that’s flying your way at square leg is ill advised. Kneeing it for
four through a vacant long on region is even more so. And yet up jumped young
Robert (admittedly partly through shock) ready to perform admirably in the
field for the rest of the day. The Mad would be required to show this kind of
steel and fight at least once more though… “The harder you work, the harder it
is to surrender.” At
many points during the run chase the white flag could easily have been flown.
The chase was in disarray early on as a kid, imaginatively entitled A Kidd,
saw off El Capitan Westmoreland (2) courtesy of a delicious in-seamer with
the score on 3. It was a slow start from The Mad and when M Reeves perished
(10) and R Eaglestone (0) bagged the customary debut duck, brows were
perspiring profusely as the flag was starting to be unfurled. The ship was to
be steadied though as first Hoskins (13), and then J Newman (20) put together
a couple of useful partnerships in tandem with the innings’ stalwart J
Pearson (71*). Roll that flag back up! “You never win a game unless you
beat the guy in front of you. The score on the board doesn’t mean a thing.
That’s for the fans. You’ve got to win the war with the man in front of you.
You’ve got to get your man.”
J. Pearson (71*) demonstrating a public-school
pull. After
an inspirational talk from the skipper the words of legendary American
Football coach Vince Lombardi were clearly ringing in The Mads ears, and
perhaps being taken a little too literally. First Reeves maliciously left
alone a wide one before watching the ball onto the knee of the 11 year old
wicket keeper (the R Eaglestone Guide to Fielding is available in all good
bookstores). Following that Newman surreptitiously thumped a line and length
ball into the back of another small child before Pearson angrily stomped a
third upon reaching his fifty. With the score on 120 and Hotson (10) and
Pearson milking the singles, much to the still groggy Hotson’s chagrin, The
Mad seemed to be cruising towards victory. It is never that easy though and
nerves were a jangling when after Hotson’s dismissal, a golden duck from G
Timms and a shameful plain ordinary duck from T Smith plunged The Mad into
the depths of despair. Both Timms and Smith latterly explained they were
thinking of the ‘good of the team’ as they flatly refused to steal Pearson’s
thunder. There were plenty of overs left but now only 2 wickets. At 120-8 out
strode A Mongoose with Lego in hand… oh sorry, correction… out strode Lego
(13*) with a Mongoose in hand. A couple of mongified
(?) blows from Shorten took The Mad to the brink. Ex-army man Pearson then
unleashed a couple of shots that could have taken Osama out (wait a minute…)
to hand The Mad the spoils, thus ensuring the white flag remained unspoiled.
“No pressure, Dave – I’ve laid the groundwork” –
Moo (left) “I just saw the kid, aimed for him,
and got the little tyke; it’s been a good day.” J Newman Indeed
it was a good day. Having first glanced at, and then stared down, before
eventually full on ogling at the barrel, The Mad were rightly delighted to be
leaving with their heads held high and a win under their collective belt. A
belt seemingly tightened after the previous weekends ‘trousers down’ affair.
And so The Mad’s hoped for winning season was off and running. “Winning is not everything – but
making the effort to win is.”
Stumps. It
seems only right that the final word should go to the man who made it all
possible… “To be honest I was just thinking
about carrying my bat more than anything else.” J Pearson (Possibly in secrecy to
this match reporter?) * - All
quotes attributable to Vince Lombardi unless otherwise stated. ‘Noah S. Ark’
|
*
Statto Scorecards
|
Far from the MCC versus Wootton &
Boars Hill CC Played at Wootton & Boars Hill,
24 April 2011 Wootton & Boars Hill CC won the
toss and elected to bat Far from the MCC won by 2 wkts Far from the MCC debuts: Ron Eaglestone (116) |
11 / 221 40 over match |
|
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|
|
|
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|
|
|
Team |
Wootton & Boars Hill CC |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
# |
Batsman |
How Out |
Total |
Balls |
4s |
6s |
FOW |
|
1 |
J. Studds |
b Shorten |
35 |
|
|
|
2-80 |
|
2 |
D. Wiskin |
b Shorten |
34 |
|
|
|
1-70 |
|
3 |
D. Mills |
c Smith b Roberts |
21 |
|
|
|
3-119 |
|
4 |
S. Morton |
b Smith |
31 |
|
|
|
5-140 |
|
5 |
D. Godfrey |
b Smith |
8 |
|
|
|
4-139 |
|
6 |
A. Kidd |
b Hoskins |
9 |
|
|
|
6-152 |
|
7 |
O. Horton |
b Hoskins |
4 |
|
|
|
8-153 |
|
8 |
J. Rogers + |
run out (Westmoreland/Smith) |
0 |
|
|
|
7-152 |
|
9 |
W. Oddy-Watts |
not out |
4 |
|
|
|
- |
|
10 |
D. Parker |
not out |
0 |
|
|
|
- |
|
11 |
M. Wiskin |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Extras |
(W5, LB1, B7) |
13 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
TOTAL |
(for 8 wickets, 40 overs) |
157 |
|
|
|
|
|
# |
Bowler |
Overs |
Maidens |
Runs |
Wkts |
|
|
1 |
Pearson |
6 |
0 |
36 |
0 |
|
|
2 |
Newman |
5 |
0 |
23 |
0 |
|
|
3 |
Shorten |
8 |
1 |
23 |
2 |
|
|
4 |
Roberts |
6 |
0 |
27 |
1 |
|
|
5 |
Hoskins |
8 |
0 |
28 |
2 |
|
|
6 |
Smith |
7 |
0 |
13 |
2 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Team |
Far from the MCC |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
# |
Batsman |
How Out |
Total |
Balls |
4s |
6s |
FOW |
|
1 |
M. T. Westmoreland * |
b Kidd |
2 |
(10) |
- |
- |
1-4 |
|
2 |
M. K. Reeves |
lbw b Godfrey |
10 |
(24) |
1 |
- |
2-36 |
|
3 |
J. W. Pearson |
not out |
71 |
(107) |
10 |
- |
- |
|
4 |
R. Eaglestone |
st Rogers b Godfrey |
0 |
(4) |
- |
- |
3-36 |
|
5 |
J. D. Hoskins |
c b Cuddy-Watts |
13 |
(20) |
2 |
- |
4-62 |
|
6 |
J. Newman-Robson |
b Morton |
20 |
(21) |
3 |
- |
5-99 |
|
7 |
J. C. W. Hotson + |
st Rogers b Wiskin |
10 |
(22) |
- |
- |
6-120 |
|
8 |
G. J. Timms |
lbw b Wiskin |
0 |
(1) |
- |
- |
7-120 |
|
9 |
T. P. W. Smith |
b Wiskin |
0 |
(4) |
- |
- |
8-120 |
|
10 |
D. Shorten |
not out |
13 |
(16) |
1 |
- |
- |
|
11 |
C. D. Roberts |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Extras |
(W2, LB11, B6) |
19 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
TOTAL |
(for 8 wickets, 38.1 overs) |
158 |
|
|
|
|
|
# |
Bowler |
Overs |
Maidens |
Runs |
Wkts |
|
|
1 |
Kidd |
8 |
3 |
15 |
1 |
|
|
2 |
Godfrey |
6 |
0 |
27 |
2 |
|
|
3 |
Parker |
6 |
0 |
26 |
0 |
|
|
4 |
Oddy-Watts |
4 |
0 |
21 |
1 |
|
|
5 |
M. Whiskin |
8 |
2 |
22 |
3 |
|
|
6 |
Morton |
6.1 |
0 |
26 |
1 |
|
|
MOTM: J. W. Pearson Champagne Moment: R. Eaglestone’s
knee to the boundary Buffet
Award: J. W. Pearson’s army ration
of fruit cake (with custard) |
Opposition:
V039 / 08 Ground: G017 / 06 Captain: C011 / 46 |