2ND XI SET NEW DUCK TAX RECORD, AS STOKE & OXTED CLINCH PROMOTION TO DIVISION 4!!
Result: Godalming CC - 2nd XI win 50 overs+bonus by 125 runs
Date: Sat 21st Aug 2010 @ 13:00
Ground: Hampton Wick Royal CC
Type: League : Division 5 - 2nd XI
There is an old saying that goes "In this world nothing is certain but death and duck taxes". A profound statement, wisely spoken however sadly no longer applicable in a world that continues to struggle with it's fierce financial foe. Like many things, Duck Tax was not recession proof and was abolished by founder Nick Clark in 2006. Luckily for some, especially the HWRCC 2nd XI, whom on Saturday 21st August 2010 would have set a NEW duck tax record, with no fewer than 6 contributing players.
People not up to speed on promotion pushes or top of the table clashes would have been forgiven for thinking that Saturday's match was a dead rubber, with both teams having very little to play for. However it was anything but a meaningless game and one that the 2nd XI had to win and win well if they were to apply any pressure on the top two teams in the league.
With 3 games left and the 2's having to win-in and rely on either Stoke or Oxted slipping up, we welcomed an ageing Godalming side to the WICK.
I mentioned above a quote that detailed two of life's certainties. One other I forgot to mention is the certainty that come the month of August of any year and despite lofty league positions, the WICKS availability becomes the weakest it has been all season and many other teams carefully manipulate the league rules to ensure they either continue their push for promotion or guarantee their survival from the drop. Godalming fighting for the later called on the services of former 1st XI captain John Milner, opening bat Tom Hickey and new ball bowler Sam Tunbridge all of whom were miraculously dropped from 1st XI duties JUST before making their 12th appearance for that side and therefore freeing them up for 2nd XI selection. You know, just in case the situation should call for it!! Our friends at the top of the league did a similar thing, with Stoke's Will Frost bagging 12 wickets in 5 league games having been "dropped" from the 1's.
In a nut shell the rules say that if you have played 12 games (two 3rds of the season) for a higher team, you can't play in a lower side for the remainder of the season. Hence week 11 becoming the most pivotal weekend of the season and one that has drawn recent (half way through this sentence) comparisons to the January transfer window in football. Technically these sides are doing nothing wrong and if the WICK were blessed with better availability and more players of a higher calibre that could drop down a side and make a real difference, then we would probably entertain doing the same, however it does make me sit and wonder if the rules could be different and these dramatic end of season changes could be avoided?
Back to Saturday's game and a brief summary of the "duck debacle". Winning the toss and bowling 1st the WICK dismissed all but the experienced Mr Milner for 174. A good effort but probably 50 runs too many having had Godalming at 96/6. Webster and Lown bowled well, whilst the others; Fudge, Donnelly, Marfleet & Cole struggled with rhythm and although their figures read well, we felt we had got away with a few and stemmed the flow b taking wickets on a regular basis. The fielding was bright on a dull and dreary day with Soppitt's catch providing a particularly early and very memorable ray of light. 27 extras also stood out, with Fudge being the main culprit, struggling to control the swing and despite the whole team telling him to slow down, still trying to bowl to fast. Fudge who only bowled for the 1st time in week 11 of the season, (see what I did there?) is perhaps wishing he hadn't! That way he would have spared this side the erratic spells he has subsequently subjected them too in recent weeks.
Looking back, tea should have given us an early indication of what our batting was likely to resemble. DBW is himself coming to the end of a long hard season and it was reflected in his culinary calamity. Lacking in both quality and quantity, even the egg mayo lacked guts and application something that would go on to sum up our batting display. 5/10.
I am loathed to call our run chase, "a chase". In order to chase something you at least have to fake a start, leave with intent and even threaten to break sweat. This was definitely not a chase. Godalming bowled well and held their catches but even they would agree that very limited skill was required on their part. Take the opener, Linegar for example. He must be 50 if he is a day and whilst he is wholly accurate his slow, left arm dobbers are crying out to be hit into the middle of next week. He is the type of bowler that if you faced him in the nets you would only get one ball every 5 or 10 minutes from. Not because of an exhausting run up, or because that's all he would require to hone his skill but because that's how long it would take him to fetch the ball from the other side of the park. Yet on Saturday we proceeded to play him as if he were Wasim Akram and as wickets fell quicker than Diversity on wet stage, this was never going to be our day.
So we crumbled to 49. The lowest WICK total this correspondent can remember in 18 seasons at the club. As a side we can only apologise to the WICK balcony faithful, whom if they had paid to watch such a heartless performance would have been banging on the home dressing room door and demanding their money back. The fact that they just quietly drank up and left shortly after stumps spoke louder than of any amount shouting or banging would have done.
The 2nd XI are guaranteed to finish 3rd in 2010 and despite this being a massive disappointment it is still an improvement on last years 4th place. Cricket is a game of stats yet some of ours just don't seem to add up. In the 8 games played against the top 5 teams in the league we have only lost 1. 5 wins (including a double over potential champions Stoke) and a winning draw meant we should have achieved more than we have this season. Points lost against Godalming (twice) and Old Paulines at home leave a bitter taste in the mouth but they will be the reason why we haven't progressed another run up the ladder.
We wish both Stoke & Oxted lots of luck in Division 4. Oxted are a proper cricket team whom deserve their promotion and are clearly capable of challenging for honours higher up. Therefore, maybe I should re-phrase that sentence and send all the luck to Stoke! The boys from D'Abernon are a nice bunch, who wouldn't say boo to a goose but without a doubt they were the weakest team we faced this year. Which leaves me scratching my head, thinking that something fishy must be going on...!! THATS IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Don't have the prawns!!
WICK
Hampton Wick Royal Cricket Club * 1863 - 2013 * 150 Glorious Seasons
Monday, 23 August 2010
DUCKING THE ISSUE...
2ND XI SET NEW DUCK TAX RECORD, AS STOKE & OXTED CLINCH PROMOTION TO DIVISION 4!!
Result: Godalming CC - 2nd XI win 50 overs+bonus by 125 runs
Date: Sat 21st Aug 2010 @ 13:00
Ground: Hampton Wick Royal CC
Type: League : Division 5 - 2nd XI
There is an old saying that goes "In this world nothing is certain but death and duck taxes". A profound statement, wisely spoken however sadly no longer applicable in a world that continues to struggle with it's fierce financial foe. Like many things, Duck Tax was not recession proof and was abolished by founder Nick Clark in 2006. Luckily for some, especially the HWRCC 2nd XI, whom on Saturday 21st August 2010 would have set a NEW duck tax record, with no fewer than 6 contributing players.
People not up to speed on promotion pushes or top of the table clashes would have been forgiven for thinking that Saturday's match was a dead rubber, with both teams having very little to play for. However it was anything but a meaningless game and one that the 2nd XI had to win and win well if they were to apply any pressure on the top two teams in the league.
With 3 games left and the 2's having to win-in and rely on either Stoke or Oxted slipping up, we welcomed an ageing Godalming side to the WICK.
I mentioned above a quote that detailed two of life's certainties. One other I forgot to mention is the certainty that come the month of August of any year and despite lofty league positions, the WICKS availability becomes the weakest it has been all season and many other teams carefully manipulate the league rules to ensure they either continue their push for promotion or guarantee their survival from the drop. Godalming fighting for the later called on the services of former 1st XI captain John Milner, opening bat Tom Hickey and new ball bowler Sam Tunbridge all of whom were miraculously dropped from 1st XI duties JUST before making their 12th appearance for that side and therefore freeing them up for 2nd XI selection. You know, just in case the situation should call for it!! Our friends at the top of the league did a similar thing, with Stoke's Will Frost bagging 12 wickets in 5 league games having been "dropped" from the 1's.
In a nut shell the rules say that if you have played 12 games (two 3rds of the season) for a higher team, you can't play in a lower side for the remainder of the season. Hence week 11 becoming the most pivotal weekend of the season and one that has drawn recent (half way through this sentence) comparisons to the January transfer window in football. Technically these sides are doing nothing wrong and if the WICK were blessed with better availability and more players of a higher calibre that could drop down a side and make a real difference, then we would probably entertain doing the same, however it does make me sit and wonder if the rules could be different and these dramatic end of season changes could be avoided?
Back to Saturday's game and a brief summary of the "duck debacle". Winning the toss and bowling 1st the WICK dismissed all but the experienced Mr Milner for 174. A good effort but probably 50 runs too many having had Godalming at 96/6. Webster and Lown bowled well, whilst the others; Fudge, Donnelly, Marfleet & Cole struggled with rhythm and although their figures read well, we felt we had got away with a few and stemmed the flow b taking wickets on a regular basis. The fielding was bright on a dull and dreary day with Soppitt's catch providing a particularly early and very memorable ray of light. 27 extras also stood out, with Fudge being the main culprit, struggling to control the swing and despite the whole team telling him to slow down, still trying to bowl to fast. Fudge who only bowled for the 1st time in week 11 of the season, (see what I did there?) is perhaps wishing he hadn't! That way he would have spared this side the erratic spells he has subsequently subjected them too in recent weeks.
Looking back, tea should have given us an early indication of what our batting was likely to resemble. DBW is himself coming to the end of a long hard season and it was reflected in his culinary calamity. Lacking in both quality and quantity, even the egg mayo lacked guts and application something that would go on to sum up our batting display. 5/10.
I am loathed to call our run chase, "a chase". In order to chase something you at least have to fake a start, leave with intent and even threaten to break sweat. This was definitely not a chase. Godalming bowled well and held their catches but even they would agree that very limited skill was required on their part. Take the opener, Linegar for example. He must be 50 if he is a day and whilst he is wholly accurate his slow, left arm dobbers are crying out to be hit into the middle of next week. He is the type of bowler that if you faced him in the nets you would only get one ball every 5 or 10 minutes from. Not because of an exhausting run up, or because that's all he would require to hone his skill but because that's how long it would take him to fetch the ball from the other side of the park. Yet on Saturday we proceeded to play him as if he were Wasim Akram and as wickets fell quicker than Diversity on wet stage, this was never going to be our day.
So we crumbled to 49. The lowest WICK total this correspondent can remember in 18 seasons at the club. As a side we can only apologise to the WICK balcony faithful, whom if they had paid to watch such a heartless performance would have been banging on the home dressing room door and demanding their money back. The fact that they just quietly drank up and left shortly after stumps spoke louder than of any amount shouting or banging would have done.
The 2nd XI are guaranteed to finish 3rd in 2010 and despite this being a massive disappointment it is still an improvement on last years 4th place. Cricket is a game of stats yet some of ours just don't seem to add up. In the 8 games played against the top 5 teams in the league we have only lost 1. 5 wins (including a double over potential champions Stoke) and a winning draw meant we should have achieved more than we have this season. Points lost against Godalming (twice) and Old Paulines at home leave a bitter taste in the mouth but they will be the reason why we haven't progressed another run up the ladder.
We wish both Stoke & Oxted lots of luck in Division 4. Oxted are a proper cricket team whom deserve their promotion and are clearly capable of challenging for honours higher up. Therefore, maybe I should re-phrase that sentence and send all the luck to Stoke! The boys from D'Abernon are a nice bunch, who wouldn't say boo to a goose but without a doubt they were the weakest team we faced this year. Which leaves me scratching my head, thinking that something fishy must be going on...!! THATS IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Don't have the prawns!!
WICK
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