Washington Cricket Club - 40th Anniversary Year

Washington’s hot streak continued with a fourth consecutive victory on Sunday, this time against arch rivals, Hollybush.  As smiling skipper Shawn Hill said afterwards:  “Believe me, that’s the sweetest of the lot!”

It was sweetness doubtless tinged with a sense of relief:  the early stages of the game had belonged to the Bush.  Indeed, as long as first wicket pair Dave Barker (59) and George Hope (83) remained together, a high total seemed a certainty.  Batting with caution but undeniable flair, the pair added 108 before Washington found a way through, Hope top-edging a bouncer from Chris Davies (1-14) into Steve Brown’s hands at square leg.

Thereafter, the initiative swung rapidly and decisively to the Wash.  An excellent spell of brisk off-spin from Kiwi Tony Burt (3-28 ) took out the middle order, and then the quicks returned to mop up the tail, Messrs Tidey, Hill and Kloss bagging a brace apiece as the Bush capitulated for 180.

Any tea-time thoughts the Wash may have had of an easy victory, however, were quickly set aside as they lost their first wicket with just 2 runs on the board.  For the next ten overs survival and consolidation were uppermost in the batsmen’s minds, and though 44 were on the board by the time Matthew Cragoe fell lbw for 5, the run rate was well off the 4.5 an over required.

However, in Paul Irons (79) Wash have a George Hope of their own, and as the burly South African began his familiar aerial assault on the boundary rope, the run-rate picked up.

He found an able partner in Aff Naseem (36) who looked to be recapturing the form of last season, mixing some sweet drives with some lusty pull shots.

Irons eventually ran himself out looking for a tight second run, and both Naseem and Tony Harris (23) were to perish before Washington crossed the line, but they got there in style, Brown stroking three crisp boundaries in his first outing of the season to end 12 not out.

It hadn’t been easy – it took 38.3 overs to overhaul the target - but ultimately, the laurels belonged to the Wash.

Man of the match:  Paul Irons – batting and bowling of a high order

Packing the Kit (nominated by John Roche) : Also Paul Irons for his fielding!

Washington:  Hill*, Roche+, Tidey, Cragoe, Irons, Naseem, Harris, Brown, Burt, Davis, Kloss.