Uxbridge CC vs Ealing CC

The game was played with the following rules

Each innings starts on 200
Each pair bats for 4 overs
Each bowler bowls 2 overs each
'No balls' and 'wides' give away 2 runs respectively
Lose 5 runs for each wicket
'No balls' and 'wides' are not rebowled except in the last over

Captain - Tom Massey
Wicket-keeper - Jack McCarthy / Tom Massey

A strong Ealing team travelled to Uxbridge for a competitive hard ball game. Tom M won the toss and elected to field. Straight from the off, the boys were alert in the field. They were all walking in and giving each other constant encouragement. Backing up the throw was exceptional and they created pressure on the batting side. Even though the extras may look on the high side, this does not tell the whole picture. Generally the bowling was good against a good batting line up and catches were taken in the field. Tom M who wicket-keeped for 10 overs took the first 'caught behind' ever from our age group. A pleasing moment that had us all celebrating in style. The mixture of seam bowling and the quality leg spin from Aidan B restricted the batting from getting on top of our bowling. A total of 4 wickets went down with Arun G, Aidan M, Jack M and Aryan R all obtaining a solitory wicket

At the halfway stage, Uxbridge had posted 288 from their 20 overs. The game was evenly poised, and we knew we had to bat well to win this game. Each batting pair were given instructions on how many runs to achieve in their 4 overs. They all listened very well and played positively. There were some cracking pull shots from Zuhayr K and Aidan M that raced to the boundaries, which at the same time gave a lesson to everyone on how a pull shot should be played. There was some exceptional running between the wickets, with some quick singles being taken and some easy 'ones' being turned into 'twos'. Up until the end of the 16th over we had lost 6 wickets and needed 24 from the last 4 overs. Tom M and Arun G were the final pair to come in and knew they had to bat well and preserve wickets to win this game. I gave them instructions on how many runs to score in each over and I could see straight away that they were intent on listening to the advice given. Their running between the wickets was excellent and they played sensibly by knocking the ball around for singles, instead of trying to hit big shots. Going into the final over we needed 4 runs from 6 balls. Players and parents alike were feeling the pressure. My opposing manager left the final over to his best bowler and he didnt disappoint. He bowled a straight line and a good length. However Tom M and Arun G were equally upto the task and batted sensibly. The first five balls of the final over went 1,0,0,1,1. This meant the game was currently a tie. Therefore, three outcomes were still possible. A wicket would win it for Uxbridge. A dot ball would tie the game, or a run would win it for Ealing. Tom M faced the final ball with Arun G backing up well. They took the quick single, with the Uxbridge player throwing for a direct hit run out which went for 5 overthrows. This led to wild celebrations from not only the Ealing boys, but also the parents. WHAT A GAME! The best I have witnessed so far from this group of players. I left the ground so proud of them all. They played as a team and showed they have great camaraderie between them

Its a tough choice because it was such a great team effort, but please do not forget to vote for your "Man of the Match" on Teamer