Learning Experience for Weak Academy XI

Sunday 9th July 2017
Surrey Trust League
Stoke D’Abernon 125 all out (36.3 overs)
Reigate Priory 126 for 1 (21.3 overs)
Reigate Priory won by 9 wickets

It would be an understatement to say that this weekend’s selection and finalising teams was like herding cats, (great book of the same name for those who may care to read it, by the way), and Stoke’s Academy bore the brunt yesterday, running into a different herd, one of llamas in Reigate, and did their best with limited resources.

Will Thomson won a crucial toss with a big proportion of the team still on the way from an age group game in New Malden, (win secured there with Ben Townsend taking a hat-trick!), and we were able to bat first rather than face the very real prospect of taking the field with half a team.

After 3.2 overs of the batting effort we were hoping said players were close as two early wickets fell; Alastair Curran got one that stopped on him and he hit Goss’ first ball to cover, then late call-up Michael Dolman hit the same bowler to point.

Oscar Jensen and Will Thomson got the board moving with anything not straight at a fielder going for four on a lightning quick outfield; Thomson looked good until he slapped a short ball to cover. 37 for 3.

Jensen and Alex Clinton re-built and doubled the total with sensible batting and good calling & running. The change bowlers were starting to look ineffective in the heat, but just as the pair looked to press on a top-edged sweep was very well held at “45” out of the sun to account for Jensen who looked very good for his 33.

Clinton and Rod Thomson added another 46 runs either side of drinks; but the departure of both for 37 and 13 respectively exposed the bowler-heavy side’s pretty lengthy tail. The last six wickets fell for eight runs, Goss collected four of them to finish with career best figures of 6.3-2-14-6, and Stoke were 125 all out in the 37th over.

After tea, plenty of bowling options were at Thomson’s disposal, he tried pretty much all of them and managed the side well on the field. All did well without luck, Patrick O’Neill the pick, and he got Stoke on the board when Patel steered a lifting delivery to the captain at slip.

21 for 1 at this point and although the scoring rate was kept in check by the change bowlers who all did well, as is often the case with a below par total, some very difficult chances didn’t go to hand, near-miss run-outs went for overthrows and another catch was missed as it was lost in the sun. There would be no other breakthrough and the home side cruised home with nearly half their overs to spare; the well-organised Bhat made 67 not out, the less fluent Bunyan 38 not out. Partnership 105* – Dolman led a keen fielding effort with “zero byes” (Quote/Unquote.)

The team should still have learned a lot from this despite the result and can be proud of the way they kept going. Project this group forward 3 or 4 years, add in the odd adult Surrey Championship player to help out, and any Stoke side of that composition would have been more than competitive against this opposition, nearly all of the llamas were in the U18 to U21 age bracket.

On the admin side, thanks to Doug Gilbertson for scoring, (we believe you when you say your booked added up on it own merits and you weren’t copying it in from your fellow scorer’s i-pad app, mate!), and to those parents who trucked players around Surrey to make this game happen and acquire valuable bonus points.

Next week some senior assistance would really be appreciated as we host Wimbledon at The Rec.

Scorecard : http://sdacc.play-cricket.com/website/results/2916191