Bedouins v Enville on July 19^th

Bedouins lost by 4 wickets

It’s the over-training that does it. All those selfless hours honing skills in the nets; all those sessions pumping iron in the gym; and all that abstaining from the pleasures of the flesh. All of that is bound to take its toll. Hence a long list of strains and stresses among Bedouins this season.

Latest on the casualty list, in the annual needle match with an Enville XI, was Adrian Susman. Fielding in the deep, he was unwise enough to walk – very quickly, mind you – towards an approaching ball, only to pull up short with a complaining muscle in his leg. The result looked, from the scorebox, to bear a spooky resemblance to a “JB hobble” (sorry, skipper). Susman Junior therefore became another candidate for an early shower and restorative glass of beer. Talk about “ill wind” …..!

The Bedouins got away to a good start in their innings. In spite of a maiden first over from the metronomic Paul Moran, John Branch hit three boundaries in the second, on his way to 26, while Ian Woodhouse had six boundaries at the other end, before retiring on 31. They had put on 55 for the first wicket by the end of the seventh over.

Things slowed down a bit after that, although there were a couple of boundaries each for John Howells (13) and Jono Hill (13), the latter including a classic cover drive as one of them. With Ray Bate making 12 not out and Adrian Susman 10, all five Bedouins batsmen who got in had made double figures, so it was disappointing that the final total was no better than 117 for 4.

Josh Lemm opened the bowling with an accurate spell, taking 2 for 18 in his four overs. At the other end, Will Howells (son of, and guesting for the evening) kept things tight too, giving away just 12 runs in his four overs. But the later Enville batsmen got the scoreboard ticking over nicely, as the Bedouins tired.

Lee Bywater had to wait until the 17^th over before coming on to bowl and proceeded to complete two tidy overs, including a double-wicket maiden in his 2 for 4. The last over arrived with 8 runs needed, and the Enville batsmen achieved those with two balls to spare. A good, competitive game which maintained the Bedouins’ season-long run of close finishes.

Bedouins 117 for 4 (Woodhouse 33, Branch 26, Howells 13, Hill 13, Bate 12 not out, Susman 10)

Enville 118 for 6 (Bywater 2 for 4, Lemm 2 for 18, Susman 1 for 17, George 1 for 30)

Chairman’s Comment: In his “Credit where it’s due” piece now on the Beds website, Susman Junior generously refers to his father’s copy for match reports as being impeccable, “ … including apostrophes and all (some of them in the right places) …. “ I have to own up here. My alter ego is as Chief Inspector Susman, of the Apostrophe Police. And I’d just like you all to know that the most frequently met wrong usage of an apostrophe is in the word “its”. Here’s the rule for all to follow (sit up at the back there!) –the only time that “its” has an apostrophe (yes, the only time), is when it’s short for “it is”. So there!