Surrey Trust League – Surrey Women – Gold Division
Streatham & Marlborough 68 for 5 (20 overs)
Stoke Molesey Ladies 69 for 2 (18.3 overs)
Stoke Molesey Ladies won by 8 wickets

Jon Elworthy has sent in the following match report:

This was the first match of three for the Stoke Molesey Ladies in the playoffs for the 2013 Surrey Trust League title.

Streatham & Marlborough won the toss and decided to bat first. Stoke Molesey took to the field knowing that to have the chance of silverware we had to put in a similar performance against this opposition as they had done away to them in Dulwich.

In front of a large crowd Eva and Charlotte opened the bowling, and both did well to restrict the openers with accuracy and control. Both bowled well within themselves and the natural pace they possess was tempered to build up the pressure on the openers, Mattinson and Midel.

Megan came in at first change, and continued to keep the pressure on, picking up a well deserved wicket in her second over. Louisa was next change and in her second over the change of pace told on the batting side with two wickets in two balls. Another over by Megan, and a drinks break, were to delay her chance of a hat trick. Unfortunately it was not to be.

Mollie and Rosie came on next and again bowled well and accurately to keep the pressure on. The champagne moment of the match came during one of Rosie’s overs when the ball was driven to Eva at mid off. A swift pick up and strong shy saw the middle stump tilt and the bails fly.

The rest of the innings saw the opposition find it hard to get the ball of the square with the result they achieved the modest score of 68 for 5 off 20 overs.

With a low score to chase, instructions were given for all to play themselves in, score off the lose deliveries and play steadily. Megan and Rosie stuck to the brief, but unfortunately Rosie hit one firmly in the air back to the bowler who caught her at the second attempt. Runs again had been slow, but we looked like we could accelerate at any time, and this occurred when Alex came in. Alex showed some restraint in the first over she faced, then she became more expansive, with strong shots and positive running to increase the run rate. Unfortunately she mistimed a shot and was caught by Selwyn in the covers.

Charlotte was next in, and with Megan acting as anchor, Charlotte maintained the run rate increase set by Alex. Megan needs to be singled out for a strong batting performance, and because of her presence, it never looked like we would not chase down the runs, which we did for the loss of only two wickets.

Although it was another win there were certain issues that need to be highlighted. Although we bowled and fielded well, we were not really tested by this side, and if the rather lacklustre “feel” and relaxed attitude occurs again this will be exploited by stronger teams. The losing side’s commitment and energy in the field was noticeably better than ours.

The running at times was excellent, but sometimes leisurely running and poor grounding of the bat caused some concerned to those watching.

These are all things that can be improved through training, leadership and support on the field. We will be working on these before the next match.

However it was a good win and we should all be proud of the girls in their quest to be champions.

Well done all and thanks to the parents for the strong support given, and for providing an excellent tea!

Scorecard Link : http://sdacc.play-cricket.com/scoreboard/scorecard.asp?id=11830587

Table Link : http://ssdl.play-cricket.com/leagueTables/divisionTable.asp?id=10065385&seasonid=26

Forthcoming Fixures : http://ssdl.play-cricket.com/scoreboard/fixtures.asp?seasonID=26&fromForm=1&quickSearch=season26&startDay=&startMonth=&startYear=&endDay=&endMonth=&endYear=&divcupid=10065385&cupid=-1