The visiting players from Swindon N.A.L.G.O. Cricket Club arrived at the Sulis Club ground, to face a Hospital eleven still smarting from their defeat at Potterne the week before. The National Association of Local Government Officers were alternatively exuberant from their six wicket win against Warminster in the previous week.
Overnight rain was still laying on the outfield, and with the grass a little too long to see classic cover drives racing to the edge of the playing arena and skipping the boundary rope, so putting the opposition into bat was the order of the day.
Hospital skipper Toby Patrick selected his bowling attack from the pace of Stuart Webb-Martin and the aged old guile of Billy Minchin, bowling in his 38th season, and runs for the NALGO batsmen were soon hard to come by.
Opener Joshi (6) was the first to go caught by Patrick from the bowling of Webb-Martin., Ramman was run out for 16, Raffier LBW for 22, and the NALGO middle order started to wobble. All the Hospitals bowlers played their part and bowled tight line and lengths, wickets fell at regular intervals as the NALGO men pushed for runs, but it was the tail enders who “swung the willow” and their last four batsman all with scores in the 20’s, took the total to 159, with the last man out on the final ball of the innings.
Pick of the bowlers Jon Fair with 9-4-14-3, and Stuart Webb-Martin 9-1-36-3, were ably assisted by Jake Dyer 8-0-32-2, Toby Patrick 9-2-28-1 and not forgetting Billy Minchin 9-1-37-0.
A tactical reshuffle of the batting order was planned by the Hospital skipper with Div Puri joining Andy Boyce for an alternative opening partnership. Jake Calgie was to move up the order but was struck down by a sickness bug that he put down to drinking water from a hose pipe. Andy (Mr Boyce, Monday to Friday) said it was due to him working an extra day in temperatures of 34°C and not applying sun cream, therefore sunstroke was the culprit. His team mates felt it was Homesickness as he had spoken to his Mum and Dad, Julie & Andy, and sister Amelia the day before on “facetime” and with the other burden of falling in love with every girl he meets, the young Australian Romeo had a lot of pressure on his young shoulders. Scoring runs would have been his antidote.
The Hospital innings could not have got off to a worse start. Div Puri (0) was adjudged out LBW also followed by Jon Fair (1) also adjudged out LBW and when Jake Dyer was caught in the slips playing a woeful shot outside his off stump, the Hospital scoreboard read 11 runs for 3 wickets down in the 10th over. Cometh the hour, cometh the men, Toby Patrick joined Andy Boyce at the crease and the pair formed a partnership that was later described by Jason Humphries the Hospital secretary as the most dogged and resilient that he had witnessed in his 35 years at the club.
The NALGO team tried every trick in the book to try and break the resolve of the Hospital duo, even changing the wicket-keeper three times so as they could bowl against them. None of their antics worked as Boyce and Patrick scored run after run, quick singles and plenty of two’s frustrating the Swindon men, and when reaching his 50, Boyce had only scored two boundaries in his entire innings. Toby Patrick took a quick single to the next ball to also reach his 50 and with the opposition completely deflated, Patrick let loose and punished the NALGO attack. An unbroken partnership of 149 saw Andy Boyce (58 n/o) and Toby Patrick (81 n/o) take the Hospital side to a deserved win.
Next Saturday sees the Hospitals X1 away to Bradford on Avon and in the evening sing “Happy Birthday” to ex-player? Ivan “The Terrible” Lintner at Walcot Rugby Club.