Washington Cricket Club - 40th Anniversary Year

'Scoop' Cragoe reports ...

The Wash were edged out in a rain-soaked thriller at London Colney on Sunday.  Home side St John Fisher overhauled their target of 173 on the third ball of the last over, by which time steady drizzle had turned the field into an ice rink and the ball into a bar of soap.

Dressing room analysis after the game offered up two areas where the Wash fell short:  the sages agreed that either an extra 10 runs when we batted, or some early wickets when we bowled would have made all the difference.

For a long period, it looked as though Wash might indeed end up with a total of around 180-200.  Matt Cheviott (8) and Rory Guy (30) opened up and added 39 at a steady rate of 4 an over – a decent platform.  Both fell in quick succession, and were joined back in the hutch by Nick Bunney (2) – unbelievably caught at short mid-wicket off a howitzer shot – but the Wash middle order flourished.

Brian White (46) came in and stroked the ball elegantly to all corners of the ground, and skipper Aff Naseem (25) played with intelligent fluency.  They had added 51 at five an over when Naseem was bowled, but White and new batsman Tom Allott (33 not out) kept up the momentum, with a seven-an-over stand of 45. 

White eventually gloved a rising ball to the keeper, but Allott continued to time the ball sweetly, driving and pulling with genuine power. The sight of Naveed Mir marching out to join him with 4 overs to bowl quickened Washington pulses:  anything is possible when he gets going.  However, it was not his day – out second ball to a sky-high top edge – and after a cameo from David Gluckman (2), the last telling blows were struck by Shawn Hill (8 not out).

Wash finished on 172 – a defendable total but not, as it transpired, a winning one.

Doubtless early wickets would have aided the cause.  As it was, Wash ran into an inspired opening partnership from Dawkins (74 not out) and Cormack (52) who added 118 for the first wicket and batted the Fishers into a position of strength.

The peculiarity of it from a Washington perspective was that none of the bowlers bowled badly:  indeed, quite the opposite – every arm that was turned seemed to carry the promise of an imminent breakthrough. 

Peter Kloss (0-18) bowled a beautiful opening spell, and from the other end, the newly capped Will McDonagh (0-26) kept up a good line and length and troubled both openers.  The first change pair were just as good:  Guy (0-37) and Mir (1-37), both hurried the ball through at an impressive pace on the sluggish surface. Mir, especially, was getting the ball up throat high at pace – much to the discomfort of all the Fishermen.

And then there was Allott (1-40), who made the breakthrough having Cormack well caught at wide long on (ie cow corner) by White, and who bowled 7 overs of accurate and economic spin – his figures scarred by two straight sixes from Marriot (19).

But well though the Wash bowled and fielded, the breakthroughs didn’t come.  And so it was that as the rain came down in the game’s final overs, it was the Fishers who had the advantage. 

Dawkins, having batted beautifully all afternoon, utilised the thickness of his outside edge to good effect at the death, and that, combined with some frantic running and some needless overthrows granted by the Wash, was enough to see the Fishers home to a seven-wicket victory.

But as skipper Naseem said afterwards:  ‘It was an exciting finish – just a shame we were on the wrong side of the final result.’ 

MoM:  Tom Allott for his best all round performance in a Washington shirt