Bedouins v Chancers at Enville – Wednesday, 3 June 2015

Bedouins lost by two wickets

The Bedouins made a welcome return to active service – or at least what passed for “active” – with an ultimately close encounter with the Chancers, the home side losing by a couple of wickets with an over or two to go.

With fewer players having arrived by 6.30, the Bedouins agreed with the Chancers that the home team should bat first, to get the game under way.  That gave the visitors first use of the new ball, and they had the bowlers to take advantage of that, tying down the experienced Bedouins opening pair of John Branch and Jon Stanier, to the extent that the ten-over total of runs was no more than 20.

With JB out for 16, a clatter of wickets brought Lee Bywater and Neil Smith to the crease, and these two accelerated the scoring rate, enabling the Beds to post a final total of 90 for 4, with Bywater 27 not out and Smith 15 not out.

The opposition made a more determined start to their reply, with the top three batsmen all reaching double figures.  Then five wickets fell in the seventies, as that man Bywater weighed in with 3 for 20 and Stanier included two maiden overs in his 3 for 11.

But the home side’s slow batting start, added to the rash of dropped catches and a couple of Bedouin bowlers finding that they had, after all, got muscles that it was possible to pull, proved too much of a handicap as the Chancers reached a winning 91 for 8 at the end of the 18th over.

However, the good news was that, for much of the evening, the sun shone.  Plus there was a generous helping of good humour.  Plus Mrs Skipper did a first=class job as stand-in caterer, as the usual incumbent relaxed in the Spanish sunshine.

Bedouins 90 for 4 (Bywater 27 not out;  Smith 15 not out; Branch 16)

Chancers 91 for 8 (Bywater 3 for 20; Stanier 3 for 11)