After the heroics of the day before, Oakley had to re-energise themselves to maintain their 100% record in Kent. Could they go again against Nonnington CC? Was there enough left in the tank for an encore? No one thought it would be easy and it wasn’t.
with a 5PM start, at least The Oaks (bolstered by the arrival of Woody, Ian and Bown) had time to prepare. Several did this by joining the waifs, strays an ne’er do wells for an early start in JD Wetherspoons. It is rumoured that George Lethaby spent an hour looking at his pint before galvanising himself to take a sip.
Sensible Whitstable
Meanwhile the slightly worn out trio of Bob, Paul and Gordy, limped around Whitstable Bay in a Kent version of ‘Last of the Summer Wine’. All of them were crocked but Bob, in the unique position of being the youngest of the trio, knew he had to be game ready. He did this by having a vomit inducing half pint of oyster stout.
Back in Canterbury the rest of the squad were getting their game heads on by being 6 pints deep by 2:30 PM. People in the medical profession may argue that this wasn’t ideal preparation. However, we live in a time where experts don’t count, so what would they know, eh?
Game Time
By the time game time arrived, most players were in a state of ruin. The Oaks were asked to bat first which would be interesting. They opened with a buoyantly drunk Bown, and a malevolent Ian Bennett, who was still fizzing with incandescence at being dropped to the Twos this weekend.
Ian gave ‘one in the eye’ to the selectors by scoring 4, whilst Bown raced to an uncultured 23 that would have cricket connoisseurs throwing up long into the night. Alex Brundle made up for yesterday’s duck with a slightly chaotic 19 whilst a battered looking DJ departed for just two. Michael Wood put on 13, a decent effort 8 pints in.
Glad for Brad
After yesterday’s heroics, no one was asking the question “could Brad do it again?” Indeed he could, smashing 36 off not many whilst aided by Nigel, who hit a couple of lusty blows in a knock of 13. There was still time for a poignant moment where father and son (George and Bob) batted together, and a cameo from Billy. In fact, Bob and Billy’s unbeaten partnership of 3 had ‘potential game changer’ written all over it.
Could The Oaks defend 136?
No.
Nonnington proceeded to twat the ball all over Kent and it soon became a competition for the worst figures. Despite great efforts from Bob, Brundle, Woody and George, no one could do worse than DJ, who went for a sensational 26 off just 12 balls. This was a bit harsh on Woody, who was well on course after being hit for six on his first three deliveries of his second over. Sadly, the third six was the match winner, meaning Woody avoided going for a maximum 36.
Post Match Fun
Now, this might seem like a brutal onslaught from a club who take touring teams too seriously. It was anything but. It was a game high on frolics and entertainment, played in a spectacularly good spirit. Nonnington were excellent hosts, providing a barbecue after the game and everyone enjoyed some post match beers.
It was then back to Canterbury to meet up with them again and have a night on the town. An excellent way to finish our tour of Kent. Great times with plenty of happy cricket memories made.
On we travel. We will come back stronger!
Possibly.