Waverley Come Up Short

Fashionably late Waverley beaten in Elsted.

Elsted's ground has often been described by Waverley's players as having one of the best views in cricket. On a clear day, the view across the South Downs is a delight, and Sunday's game was no exception. A slight miscommunication between the skipper and players meant that not all of the Wave's band of merry men arrived at the ground in time for the 1:30 start. Doogs opted to bat having won the toss, with only 7 of the Waverley eleven present and correct. Well, present anyway.

Eventually, the full compliment was reached, and turning out for the Wave were Adrian Day (Mog), Russ Golding (Raoul), Sam Greensitt (Sammy G), Simon Brewer (KV), James Wright (Jim Jam), Kyle Moxham (Foxy), Matt du Gay (Doogs), Chris Beanland (Beanie), Sam Tempest (Troy), Matt Pride (London) and Peter Brewer (Mr B).
Having re-jigged the batting order slightly to accommodate the tardiness, Mog and Raoul got things underway for the Wave. The early going was tough, with the ball moving round a lot. Mog was the first to lose his wicket in slightly unfortunate circumstances, the ball not really getting up before bowling him. Sammy G was next in, but he was only able to add 4 runs before returning to the hutch, also bowled by a ball which swung back. KV joined Raoul at the crease, but their partnership was short lived, KV returning after too being skittled. When Jim Jam and Foxy both went in the space of 2 balls, Waverley were teetering at 22 for 5 after just 7 overs. Doogs joined Raoul in the middle and survived the hat-trick ball (the bowler kindly delivering a wide) and blocked the final ball of the over.
Doogs’ arrival in the middle obviously struck fear into the hearts of the opening bowlers and the home side shuffled their pack. The wickets stopped tumbling for a while, as Raoul and the skipper looked to push Waverley towards a defendable total. Raoul in particular was finding the gaps well, and soon brought up his 50. When Doogs eventually played on for 36, he and Raoul had added 95 to the score, and pushed Waverley past the hundred mark. Raoul continued in the same vein for a few more overs, before eventually holing out for a very well made 94. Troy and Beanie looked to add a few more runs to the total, but Troy was trapped LBW and Beanie bowled, leaving London and Mr B as the last wicket partnership. London was finally bowled for 1, leaving Mr B with another not out and Waverley with a total of 156 from 33.3 of their allotted 35 overs.

After an excellent tea (where the main topic of conversation was London’s “fashionable” shorts), Waverley looked to make a breakthrough to the Elsted top order. Troy and Beanie were tasked with starting off proceedings, and it was Troy who made the breakthrough in the first over, a high chance well pouched by Raoul at mid-off. Despite beating the bat a few times, both bowlers were unable to take any further wickets, Beanie bowling a very economical 6 over spell. Doogs introduced Mr B from one end and brought himself into the attack from the other. Mr B was keeping the run rate down very well, and creating a few half chances, but Waverley couldn’t make the breakthrough.
However, their persistence paid off when two wickets fell in the space of two overs. Mr B bowled the first, before Foxy followed suit in his first over by clean bowling another of the Elsted batsmen. Foxy picked up another wicket soon after, Troy holding on to a catch at mid-off. London and Raoul were introduced into the attack in an attempt to find more wickets, but the home side were digging deep and edging closer to the victory. Sammy G was brought on as well for a burst of pace, but the home site eventually reached their target with 8 balls to spare.
The award ceremony took place in the local public house, just across the road from the ground. Raoul’s impressive innings earned him the man of the match hat. Mog won the wAnchor hat for expertly sliding to stop a ball, before standing up to throw it in and promptly falling on his arse. For a 3rd consecutive week, London won the Pink T-shirt for a string of offences, the most glaring of all being his choice of lower body attire. The smart money is on the famed pink award not changing hands next week, with Pridey revealing he also has a matching shirt to go with his shorts…