Bohemians v RTCC at Crouch End CC
Sunday 21st August 2016
(40 overs)
Bohemians 246-6
RTCC 170-9
Lost by 76 runs
What had started off as a lovely day at Crouch End CC ended in a bit of a drizzle, both actually and figuratively, as we slumped to a first defeat in three.
Chris put Bohemians in on a pitch that offered some variable bounce and a nine-man Tavs team bolstered by kindly donated sub-fielders went about their work. Tom and Eiran shared the new ball and while both threatened, the breakthrough wouldn’t come. Their No. 1 especially was happy to hit the ball in the air, teasing the committed Tavs fielders into leaps and dives, only for the ball to fly on towards the boundary unperturbed.
The first wicket finally fell on the stroke of drinks. Andy P had taken over from Eiran, with Barry occupying the other end. Both bowled tightly and the pressure eventually told. After their No. 2 had played and missed at three of Andy’s deliveries in his previous over and French cut the fourth ball to add insult to injury, our left arm dynamo had seen enough and bowled him neck and crop.
The runs continued to flow unabated though, with their No. 3 playing some rasping shots and racing to fifty. When Guy eventually removed him it caused a mini-collapse, with a run-out following swiftly. Their No. 1 was still there though and played superbly to bring up his century before he too perished, off the bowling of the returning Tom. More good bowling and relentless work in the field meant that we managed to restrict Bohemians to less than 250 despite their strong start. As we settled down for tea, one fact sat less easily in our stomachs than the curry on offer: Most dismissals had come from one end and involved balls staying low to clatter the stumps.
Our innings was all about a counter-punching innings from Eiran. Openers Simon and Andy perished early, the former to an excellent tumbling catch at second slip, the latter bowled by one that stayed low (see?). Eiran was joined by Chris and they put on a partnership that saw out their opening bowlers while keeping the runs flowing. Then came trouble. Bohemians brought on Mr Leloir to bowl from the end that had produced so much of the variable bounce. 3-3-0-2 later and we were looking at a bit of a rebuilding job.
Eiran had passed fifty by the time drinks came on and he continued the good work. He was joined by Guy who played an excellent innings, supporting his senior partner astutely with an unbreachable defence. When our master batsman finally fell to a smart catch on the boundary for 71, Guy cut loose to score 18, including four sweetly struck 4s. Bohemians had agreed to let our two least successful bats have another go, and there was a gaggle of players who would’ve been eligible. Tom made sure he wouldn’t be one of the chosen ones, dispatching the ball to the boundary for his first Tav runs.
It was therefore left to Jack (who had bagsied a second knock thanks to his first innings duck) and Andy P to have a second go. With the pressure off (we were still a hundred runs adrift), both enjoyed their reprises to the full extent and made sure that we wouldn’t be bowled out. When the rain started to move in there were even whispers of a draw, but to be fair we all knew who deserved to win this match. Bohemians sped through the remaining overs before we all rushed off indoors to indulge in various pints.
A loss then, yes, but an enjoyable game on a (mostly) sun-filled Sunday nonetheless and we can take heart from a spirited performance against a strong Bohemians attack. Let’s hope that next week’s match at Ferme Park will deliver on both the sunshine and a positive result.
Matthias
