Everything falls into place for Strongroom
Highgate Wood, 5/17/2008
Strongroom won by 146 runs
Strongroom: 176-5 (R.Woolhouse 76)
Washington: 30
View the Scorecard
Rarely do events during a game dovetail so effectively for one team, but in the course of a drizzly Saturday afternoon at the woods, Strongroom harnessed their resources and pulled off a stunning victory.
Washington won the toss and inserted Strongroom on a podgy brown surface. Rich Woolhouse (76) and Chris Willcock opened the innings, but Chris fell victim early on and the obvious reaction at this early stage was to predict a low total in difficult conditions. However, James Claro (23) and Woolhouse battled brilliantly through the next 25 overs and laid what was effectively a match-winning platform. The score after 10 overs was 20-0, and 50-0 after 20, but both Woolhouse and Claro showed great patience and character, in particular their shot selection and 'leaving' was most impressive. It was clear that inside their heads they were carrying years of experience of batting on wet tracks at the Woods, and though the wet wicket and soggy outfield made scoring runs a real challenge, it also made for absorbingly attritional cricket. Mariner, Butcher and Sandeep were difficult to get away, but after Claro was bowled by one that kept low, Jon Gower (32) replaced him and banged out a quick cameo (including more dropped catches!). Woolhouse was eventually stumped after an innings that was probably worth 100 runs in normal conditions, but Guy Wilson (20*) played another feisty innings, and twonked some good aerial boundaries which helped Strongroom to a very respectable 176-5. Strongroom had plundered 95 runs off the last 10 overs, and their final total was a good 30-40 runs more than they had expected in such tough conditions.
Tea report: 9/10 A superb tea was provided by Messrs Willcock and Baddeley. Chris employed the deep-frying methodology to devestating effect, and included chicken, lamb and ribs amongst his victims. Great attention was shown to detail - which included a fine salad, potato salad, cakes, cordial, and even serviettes.
Skipper Gower was blessed with eight bowling options, but the obvious quicks to pair up for the initial assasult were Ray and Ell, and neither disappointed. What transpired over the next hour was unexpected in it's swiftness and scale. Ray (3-14) bowled intelligently off a shortened run-up (still drizzling throughout) to brilliant effect, and his uprooting of the dangerous Sandeep's stumps was dramatic. At the other end Paddy Ell (3-9) bowled a deadly off-stump line and generated steepling bounce which cannot have been easy to counter with the bat. Two of his deliveries feng-shui'd the batsmens' stumps ('rearranged their furniture'), and of the Washington batsmen only Harris showed the mettle required, but eventually he too holed out to deep mid-off. Proctor pulled off a brlliant hattrick, finishing with a beauty which squared up the batsmen to induce an edge to Woolhouse at slip. In doing so, Proctor and Patel had mopped the up the tail to complete a routing of Washington for a mere 30.
This was a very satisfactory win for Strongroom, owing much to the batting of Woolhouse and Claro, the bowling of Ray and Ell, and excellent out-fielding and catching by all. Strongroom had exploited knowledge of their home ground to good effect, and Washington had experienced a 'bad day at the office'. It was clear they were much better than the scoreline suggested, and we look forward to playing them again in 2009.
Read the brief Washington report.
Written By: JG
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