Cricket Web Black v Cricket Web Green
at Pickford Reserve
Scorecard
Commentary
A grand day out for the seamers and a nice polishing effort from Paddy Gundry saw Green help themselves to victory in a low-scoring clash at Pickford. The much-vaunted Black top order wilted without any resistance, eclipsing even the woeful performance shown by Green in the first innings.
Green batted first - and slipped to 61 for five. Malone and Garven both got good balls from Hoy, while Warwick was fortunate to get two catches against unsettled batsmen, and Mike Wilson picked up a nervous Rodgie for an 18-ball six. However, Vaughan and Dravid rebuilt calmly, adding 91 for the sixth wicket with plenty of singles off the change bowlers, and Pickup's nought for 34 was justified reward for some ultimately unthreatening bowling.
Green made 200 for seven, but it looked at least 30 too little. Until Rose and Goughy entered. Black's batsmen went to pieces at the sight of a cricket ball bowled at a pace above 80mph, and the scorecard made for grim reading: Chaulk bowled 1, Stedman caught 5, Blackman run out diamond duck, Butler bowled 2, Fitzsimmons caught 2, Wilson run out 1. The two run outs didn't help, of course, and at one point Black were 16 for six.
Desperate measures were taken, and Law and Thompson sought to block out the game. That they did - but the required run rate ballooned, and Paddy Gundry's reintroduction to the attack in the death overs did the rest. Black collapsed a second time, from 140 for six to 146 all out: the partnership of Law and Thompson contributed over 80 % of the runs. Green captain Andrew Garven led his team to a lap of honour in front of a bemused Pickford crowd, waving a placard with the now immortal Pickup quote: "It is possible to lose to Green."
Cricket Web Green 200 for seven (50 ovs; Dravid 70*; Hoy 3/40)
Cricket Web Black 146 all out (45.2 ovs; Law 66, Thompson 57; Rose 3/14, Gundry 3/30)
Cricket Web Green won by 54 runs
Man of the Match: Xavier Rose
Points: Green 5, Black 0