First XI Report from Gerry Dique
B&NH won the toss and chose to field on what started out as a warm and sunny afternoon at Oakley Park.
Gerry Dique and Dan Sumner opened up the innings and unfortunately lost Dan in the first over. The fall of the wicket brought new recruit James Bayliss to the crease. B&NH bowled very disciplined and controlled lines which made scoring difficult. This, and a bit of extra bounce, lead to the fall of James’ wicket caught at slip.
After the loss of two early wickets, it was important to consolidate and see off the opening bowlers with a view to be patient for loose deliveries. Michael Wood joined Gerry at the crease and set about building a platform. A partnership of 80 runs took the innings to the first drinks break. This allowed Oakley to lift the scoring rate and with the added pressure created through some hard running, there was a definite shift in momentum.
Woody scored freely and when it seems he was about to kick on, he was bowled. This brought Alan North out and he quickly set about increasing the scoring rate with two boundaries of his first 2 balls. Gerry also started to play more fluently and after scoring 50, accelerated to reach his 100 in the 34th over. Shortly after he was bowled and allowed Bard Compton-Bearne an opportunity for some power hitting. Alan continued his fine form with 2 consecutive sixes, one an absolute monster hit.
With a few more overs remaining in the innings, running was more aggressive and with this approach a few run out opportunities presented itself. One such unfortunate incident was when Alan was on 48 and narrowly missed out on what would have been a well-deserved 50. Brad ended on 37 with further valuable contributions from Neil Warner, Jack Brundle and James Bright.
With a winning target set at 261, Oakley knew that early pressure would be a must to ensure early wickets. B&NH have a few power hitters and it was crucial to stay patient for wicket opportunities. Mark Potter opened up the bowling and was steaming in with his tail up. His right-arm pace was well complimented by James Bright’s left-arm swing bowling. With the pressure being created from both ends, James made the first breakthrough. Mark was very unlucky not to get any wickets, but through keeping the bowling tight from his end, the added pressure lead to a superb catch at point by Jack Brundle off the bowling of James.
Alex Brundle joined the bowling task and, after an early expensive over, very quickly settled into a rhythm. B&NH were starting to build a good partnership which was underpinned by some very fine batting by their young left-handed opening batsmen.
The fielding was exemplary as everyone remained positive and with a mind-set that they don’t concede any runs in the field to them. Alex made a key breakthrough, bowling one of the set batsmen for 30. Brad chipped in with 3 wickets through continued aggressive bowling. Alex added 4 more wickets to his tally to end on a well-deserved five for. The last wicket summed the day in the field up, beautifully delivered ball and spectacularly caught in the gully by Woody.
A great start to the season and a good celebration afterwards, but the team is well aware that a tough season lie in wait in that we should focus on each game at a time. A great team effort!
Up the Oaks!
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