Washington Cricket Club - 40th Anniversary Year

The date, September 14th. The venue, Broxbourne Sports Club. Weather, perfect. Pitch, firm but with low bounce. This will go down as one of the great matches in a local derby fixture that dates back to 1989.

Washington won the toss, and after some deliberation, skipper Pete Demetri decided to insert Pacific in what has become standard practice whenever these two teams play a time game. Lucius Faisal and Phil Spearpoint opened for Pacific and the former made his intentions clear by attacking from the off against tight bowling by Peter Kloss and Mick Kennedy. Wash broke through early, when Spearpoint wandered out of his crease against Kloss and ever alert keeper John Roche broke the stumps. Enter Jim Davies, the scourge of Washington in recent years. After a sweetly timed cover drive for 4, he faced a difficult over from Kloss, being hit on the pads several times, and was unluckily given out lbw when well forward. Leon Yates then joined Faisal and they proceeded to consolidate the Pacific innings. Faisal continued to attack and hit Kennedy for an enormous 6 over extra cover, while Yates accumulated intelligently.

Demetri, in an inspired move, introduced Washington's 'frog in a blender' spinner, Gary Malcolm, bowling in a cap and sunglasses. Faisal took three 4's from his first over, but once Malcolm found his length he was played with considerable suspicion. Then he dropped one short, Faisal swung and was bowled for an aggressive 36. Matt Holliday joined Yates and they kept the score going until the former was bowled by Eric Stoughton and Marcel Boonaert came to the crease. Demetri introduced Paul Irons to the attack to inject some South African rivalry into proceedings and this seemed to work. Boonaert decided to take Irons on an hit four 4's in an over only to be bowled off the last ball.

John Baglivi came to the crease. An absentee from Pacific-Wash fixtures for some years, his was a welcome return and he and Yates started to pick up the run rate, taking quick singles and hitting bad balls for 4. Yates emerged from his shell and started to show a fine array of strokes and their partnership turned the game for Pacific. Then Kloss returned from the top end and there followed w the over of the game. He had Yates lbw. Rob Bastin unluckily skied the next ball, a full toss, to Tony Harris in the gully. The batsmen crossed and on the hat trick ball, Baglivi played across the line and was bowled. The hat trick was a first for Kloss and he ended with a superb return of 5-45 in 15 overs. He exploited conditions brilliantly getting prodigious outswing at slowish medium pace. Pacific skipper Wilkinson declared after 43 overs on a competitive 187-8.

Wash openers Pete Demetri and Grant McDonald attacked from the start against some pacy bowling from Mike Alexander and Boonaert. By the 9th over they had reached 66, McDonald taking the lead role. The Pacific fielders were beginning to wilt and tempers were becoming frayed. Then the game turned on its head in Boonaert's 5th over, the tenth of the innings. The first ball saw McDonald lbw for a well-played 34. He gave the Wash a great start and aside from excellent off-side shots, his running between the wickets was superb. Next ball, Boonaert bowled Kiwi Tony Harris with an in swinging yorker. The hat trick ball was wild and went for 4 byes, but off the last ball of the over, Taran Persaud was brilliantly caught in the gully by Ollie Haill. From 66-0, the Wash were 70-3 and the game was on. Paul Irons came to the crease and started quietly. He and Demetri added 11, when there was an aberration in communication : they went for what looked like an easy second run when Irons was run out at the bowler's end. In the 12th over Wash were 81-4. The game was nicely balanced.

David Gluckman joined skipper Demetri with a need to consolidate the innings and try to wrest some of the initiative from Pacific. Nigel Wilkinson and John Baglivi joined the attack and tight bowling from both ends kept the pressure on. Over the next 15 overs, the pair accumulated steadily and added 50. Demetri then asked his partner to accelerate and Gluckman duly obliged by swinging wildly at Wilkinson and losing his middle stump. 10 overs to go and 57 to win. Enter big Aussie Mick Kennedy and he and Demetri upped the tempo, adding 25 in the next 5 overs, when Demetri edged the ball high over gully off Wilkinson for what looked like a certain 2. Ollie Haill turned and ran backwards and took a fantastic catch to remove the Wash skipper for a fine 67. Bowling hero, Peter Kloss joined Kennedy with 32 to win in 6 overs. The light was now fading fast, but Kennedy was in the groove. He and Kloss ran very well between the wickets and the gathering gloom was becoming a problem for the Pacific fielders. Haill joined the attack and he and Wilkinson upped the pressure with some tight overs. The final over. Wilkinson bowling. The Wash had lost some momentum and now needed ten to win. Kennedy clubs a 4 off the first ball. A dot ball. Then a 3. Then a single. The field closes in to save singles. Two to win. Two balls to go. Wilkinson bowls and Kennedy swings through the line. A huge 6 over mid wicket, the only one of the game. Wash win with a ball to spare. A great game of cricket, played in fine spirit. 2003 tally : Pacific 1 Washington 1. Honours shared.