Result:  Alternatives lose in last ball thriller

Score:  Alternatives 158 – 9
Wadhurst 163 – 5

Alternatives lost by 5 runs

 

As we drove through the blossoming hedgerows and a myriad of green tree canopies, with lambs gambolling in the lush pastures of the Sussex Weald, the birth of a new season was eagerly anticipated by the collective of Alternatives’ cricketers. When we arrived at the Wadhurst pitch it looked strangely quiet except for the faint rustle of rabbits and the swoop of chasing swifts across the carefully cultivated turf. A lone gnarled groundsman mumbled gently to himself, idling or tormenting with memories of past summers and lost loves, the fragility of youthful hope when faced with the onslaught of time, but gave no clue to the whereabouts of the opposition. And then, a car arrived and the Wadhurst skipper stepped out, he advanced towards us…by himself. The match was off!

A terrible mix-up of misunderstandings meant that no opposition could be rallied to meet us upon the battlements, or so we first believed. But then their ranks slowly swelled and upon the hour a team of Wadhurst yeoman had been gathered to the cause. And to top it all, they could muster up a tea with the imminent clash. Thank goodness, all was well again.

A match of 25 overs was agreed and the Alternatives elected to bowl first.

The start proved eventful. A short boundary rope against an angry neighbour’s house was too enticing for the Wadhurst openers and balls were duly dispatched for six into his garden. The rush of runs threatened to flood into a deluge but good bowling by Scores and Spink accounted for both openers. Then a smart run out by Green helped to slow the attack.

Steadily the Wadhurst middle-order rebuilt their innings and took advantage of some mis-directed bowling. Bryden proved the exception and showed himself to be a valuable debutant to the Alternative team. His wily off-spin and consistent rhythm helped to tie up and frustrate the batters. But runs were being leaked elsewhere and some hefty hits at the end lifted the final score to an imposing 163-5 on a very slow pitch.

A spritely start to the Alternatives innings by Mainprize and Stenner proved short-lived. A doom-laden omen from the Gods was noticed but no-one dared to mention as Stenner’s talismanic “Man from Atlantis” cap fell from his head during a quickly taken single. Such warnings need to be heeded. The ancients knew that the Gods will not suffer being ignored. Soon after he perished from a freak throw to his stumps and many believe it was not simply bad luck. Wickets quickly followed and a rather dismal 28-4 looked fairly pessimistic to even to the most hopeful Alternative supporter.

But, like so many times before, the dependable batters Green and Spink joined the fray and gathered momentum to the fight-back. Despite Green’s unexplained determination to run himself out, the score advanced quickly and a flurry of runs followed. With about 6 overs left the target had been reduced to less than 60 and the game was finely balanced.

 

An inside view of the thoughts going through Greens head whilst running between the wickets !!!

 

But then Green perished. An attempted quick single ended with a muddled mess in the middle and he sacrificed himself so Spink could continue. The loss was sorely felt, just as the Wadhurst skipper introduced his best bowlers back into the match. Spink continued to hit out and reduced the gap but a young Wadhurst spinner was proving too good for the rest, picking up two wickets for few runs.

By the last over the Alternatives had reached 149-7, so that 15 runs were needed for victory. Scores had joined Spink at the wicket and the result was too difficult to predict.

Tragically on the second ball, taking on a necessary but risky single, Spink was run out. Almost on his own he had led the team back into the match but his magnificent innings (72) was cut short.

The game looked lost as Scores faced the final two deliveries needing 12 runs to win. Then on the penultimate ball he smashed an imperious six and at that moment the Wadhurst players stood in silence and disbelief. Could this match really be won by the Alternatives?

In preparation of the final ball, with a frantic haste, the fielders retreated to the boundary’s edge and stretched themselves to a new height as a hopeful deception and in case the ball headed towards them. The bowler nervously threw the ball from hand to hand as he took a final deep breath. Taking confidence from the wind behind him, he charged down the slope and tried to unleash his fastest delivery. Scores stood firm in his crease and manfully swung his bat, hoping to repeat his previous shot. Alas, this time the connection was less sweet. His valiant swipe rushed low towards the top of the field but was easily collected by a relieved and grateful fielder.

The game had been lost on the final ball. But all agreed the match could not have been bettered.

 

Dicken was pleasantly surprised by the low cost bar snacks at the clubhouse bar – nice

 

A cunning plan dreamt up by the Alts to avoid further run out mishaps – the team helmets have been exchanged for stop-go signs