Match Report Wednesday xi vs Linden Park - by Wickles

"Someone bowled some left arm rubbish... guess who?" - Ed

Linden Park 239-8 (40 overs)
Hampton Wick 196-4 (40 overs)

Strange thing mid-week cricket. Unlike DBW teas you are never sure what you are going to get. The Wick X1 boasted 2 oldies (Lord Culham & The Chairman) a bunch of talented colts and the return of Dutchy behind the stumps. The oppo had 4 first teamers plus an assortment of older colts. The skipper (The Chairman) won the toss and elected to field. For the first 20 overs thing were relatively tight. Shri and Ed Charlton opened followed by the return of Pete Culham who bowled 5 accurate balls and a 4 baller per over. Robbie Oliver also bowled a tidy spell. The run rate increased with the return of Ed, who then proceeded to retire with an injured Achilles and the introduction of some left arm rubbish – guess who? James Madoc Jones and Joe Hirsch bought a few wickets. Towards the end of the innings the fielding sagged with The Chairman and Charles Edmonds doing very good Gary Sprake impersonations (Gary who?). Linden Park ended with 239- 8 from their allotted 40 overs.

Teas were the usual plus a bonus of scones with strawberries and cream 7/10.

Six an over was a tall order plus some of the Linden Park guys treated the game more like a test match rather than a Wednesday afternoon friendly. It turned out the Linden Park skipper was a Seagulls and Sussex fan. Apart from that the skippers had little in common. The oppositions skipper spent the next 40 overs either barking orders or taking the p*ss, particularly at the expense of a young colt known as “Milky”.

Back to the cricket. A solid start saw the Wick at about 40-1 after 10 overs with Joe Hirsch edging to gully. This was followed by the highlight of the afternoon. Harry Copeland and James Madoc Jones batted with a great deal of skill and determination, running numerous 3s and 4s on the large outfield. They put on over 100 for the second wicket and at around 160-1 with 8 overs left it was game on. The loss of Harry (56) and then James (75) saw the run-rate slow. Pete Culham went first ball whilst Matt Rudolph and Charles Edmonds struggled against a variety of left arm bowling. The Wick ended up 196-4 from 40 overs – a great effort against a more experienced team.

MOM – James Madoc Jones. The oppo stayed behind for a few drinks and listened to endless anecdotes from Brian Phillips about the strength of Kent cricket (perhaps that’s why Pete made a swift exit after the match).