Fillongley Cricket Club

Handsworth shedloads, Fillongley 209 all out

A report with a difference today because I wasn’t there most of the time. That doesn’t stop anyone else though. We have some excuse because the sicknotes came in thick and fast over the week. Not much bowling really. Dave Slade and Junior have 57 between them compared to our bowlers today who shared ten before the game.

This meant the toss mattered and it was Handsworth who won it and started hitting to all parts. Dawkins made 175 with 22 fours and eight sixes and Anton Johnson, who batted very well against us last year, made 65. They have a crop of useful young players and must be contenders this season. For us JC and Reg took the score to 42 in 4 overs but then wickets fell regularly and it became a scramble for bonus points. Kyle Taylor and Phil put on 63 for the sixth wicket, with Kyle making 19. It was all over though with 4 overs remaining. Seven points wasn’t too bad all considered!

Thanks to Louise Barber for scoring. An excellent job despite there not being enough space in the runs column for more than 400!

Fillongley 318 all out, Holmesfield 183 all out

We are through to the last 16 of the npower Village Cup after a pretty comprehensive win over the Derbyshire champions Holmesfield. Aaron won the toss and chose to bat, and really from the moment the first ball went for 4 it looked like big runs were on the cards. A wretched first over went for 14, then we progressed at six an over to reach 122-1 at 20 overs, with Reg and Nighters close to 50s. Following drinks the pace stepped up. Tom started hitting into adjacent fields with support from Aaron (32) and Waqar (44 off 19 balls). Wickets fell at the end and we were all out off the last ball, but 196 off the last 20 overs tells its own story. Tom Nightingale was the star with 111 off 84 balls with five sixes and eight fours.

There was no real chance that Holmesfield could chase this, but their coachload of travelling supporters (and indeed the home support) were treated to a splendid century from David Ward. He made 101 off 80 balls (seven sixes), after having made 119 not out in the Derbyshire final.

So it’s Bretforton away next. The village is a few miles from Evesham, and is best known for the Fleece pub.  They play in the same league as Exhall and Wixford.

Waqar is now the leading wicket taker in the competition!

Austrey 118-8, Fillongley 122-5

Another win for the juniors, who have lost just once this season, and that by a narrow margin at Bedworth. It wasn’t all that easy though, with Austrey posting a useful 118-8, enough to set up a decent game. Like several other teams in this league they have to include younger players in order to field a side, but some of them looked very promising and so in a year or two they are likely to be strong again. Once the openers were gone we made customary inroads but a stand by 13 year olds Allen and Shakeshaft allowed good runs to be made late on.

We lost Matt Smith in the first over then Avill bowled Will Vines in the third over of the innings, though the over also included nine wide balls, two fours and two singles. At 40-2 after 3 overs the rate wasn’t going to be a problem but wickets might be since we only had 9 men. It was relatively plain sailing though. Jonny Brown (24) and Kyle Taylor (52 off 33 balls) saw us most of the way home and we reached the target with more than five overs left. Kyle is making his first team debut tomorrow – a terrific milestone for a talented young lad – and we all wish him all the best.

Fillongley 271-8, King’s Heath 183-9    Winning draw 18 points

For the second week on the trot we were just one wicket away from a 24 point win. This time we had three overs at the last pair but missed out on the full 24. Ben Fleming has been getting out to his second big shot (third or fourth ball) so the order got changed (except for Aaron and Reg who have an injunctions in place keeping them at 4 and 2). Phil decided that we ought to test out the order so chose to bat on a green wicket which gave lots of help to the seamers in the first hour before becoming more batsman friendly in the second innings.

A lot went past the bat early on, one hitting Reggies leg stump, but the score built up at four an over. We were on top with Tom Nightingale, batting 3, hitting some top shots and benefitting from some slack catching. Aaron made 30 at better than a run a ball, especially enjoying batting against their fourth bowler Syed went for 31 in two overs. When he was given out, Ben started hitting to all quarters and for a time it was ten an over. The high point was 174-3 in 28 overs, which with a following wind would be a seriously big total. Tom made 81 and Ben 52.  Kings were thankful for Bannister, their sixth bowler of eight used, bowling 9 overs for just 20. A really excellent effort in the context of the game. In retroWe batted the 50 overs for 271-8, though in retrospect  (and with hindsight) we might have been better served keeping up the scoring rate and being bowled out for or five overs short.

On a hot muggy day there were a fair few close decisions and a fair few occasions when I could hear various pieces of equipment hitting the walls of the dressing room behind the scorebox following dismissals. Thoughts that we had maybe not got the rub of the green faded when this pattern continued through the the Kings innings.  A nice tea, though the real attraction of this ground is the club, which is included in the Good Beer Guide. I felt an obligation to check that standards in this regard are being maintained, and am plaesed to confirm that this is the case. 

Kings openers Davies and Jeffries are attacking players and went for it from the start, putting on 64. Once again Dave Slade ended any thought of a win so really from quite early on it was a case of Kins going for bonus points and avoiding defeat. Even so, long after I’d stopped working out the run rate I could hear an antipodean voice behind saying “It’s still do-able” and “we only need 27 an over (not really)” then when the required rate moved into the forties “I think it’s gone mate – just stay there – nought not out!). Must have been a similar scenario at Old Trafford when England were 180 odd for 3 chasing 210ish today. I’m not knocking it! .Sladey finished with 5-47 making 33 for the season at an average of just over 11. Steve Gardners took 2-47with his left arm spin and as always caused lots of problems for the batters. So with one game till the halfway point we are sixth, still in with a shout. Big games at the weekend!

After a succession of tense cup finishes, Fillongley prevailed again last night, winning through to the final of the Hilditch Cup, by beating Ambleside by four runs.

Ambleside won the toss, and Fillongley made a great start, with 26 taken off the first two overs.  However Ambleside pulled things back incredibly well, restricting us to 56 at the 10 over stage, and taking important wickets.  Phil Hammond turned the innings around for Fillongley, smashing an impressive 65, accompanied by a cameo from Kyle.  Simon also added some entertainment for the crowds,  hitting the ball into the deep,  running the first one short, and being run out going for the second – one of the most eventful first ball ducks that you’re likely to see.

It fell to Shawn Tregonning to face the last two balls, from which he clubbed a 4 and a 2, leaving us with a total of 141 – a great recovery in the last 8 overs.

We’ve failed to defend totals on a couple of occasions recently against Ambleside, and we knew that we’d need a good start.  Thankfully we got it, with 3 wickets in the first 2 overs, which helped to peg Ambleside back.  Ambleside counter-attacked well however,  and were probably slight favourites with 5 overs left, wickets in hand and around 40 needed.

In the end it all came down to the last two balls.  Ambleside were on the same total as we’d been at the same stage, but had lost more wickets.  Shawn was bowling, but could he stop them outscoring his 6 runs?  A dot and a two said that he could, and Fillongley won by four runs.

So yet another close game, and one that seemed to me to be played in a very good spirit.  We look forward to a rematch against Ambleside in the league next Thursday.

The final is at Attleborough against Wolvey on July 9th.