Improving First XI Slayed by Taylor
The first XI traveled to Wherwell yesterday looking for an upturn in fortunes after a bad day versus Hurley last week.
Batting first, the innining s was once again dominated by captain Gerry Dique, who completed a half-century backed by several cameo roles, notably from Brad Compton-Bearne (40) Alan North (22) Clive Welsman (22) Dan Sumner (18) and James Bayliss (18).
This all round effort allowed the Oaks to reach a par target of 225 and when Tom Barnes took a wicket in his first over, it looked like the Oaks were in business.
However, Taylor, the Wherwell number three, had others ideas and steamed into the Oakley attack with a spellbinding and blistering 152.
There were also wickets for Dan Sumner and Kalum Sappumanage but when you get a guy in this sort of form, sometimes yo just have to take it on the chin.
An overall improvement with bat, it was just one of those days for the Oaks and positive results will come soon.
On Song Two’s Fightback in Thriller
The two’s staged a thrilling fightback to beat Hartley Wintney III’s in cracking encounter at Oakley Park yesterday.
Batting first, the Oaks were a little ponderous at times, with Jack Brundle notably stoical, batting his way to 9 not out at drinks in annings that would have had Geoff Boycott weeping with boredom.
That said, it was a difficult and sticky pitch to bat on and wickets fell at regular interval in between Jack eventually falling for a turgid 27.
Only Ravi Kancharla (18) and George Lethaby (13) made it into double figures and it was left to the tail to wag, with Bob Lethaby and Dean James hanging around long enough to support Ollie Rabley, who made an excellent and pivotal 39 in an eventual total of 154.
Unfortunately, Ollie’s hamstring was the victim of his success, meaning George Lethaby was forced to open the bowling, partnering Jeff King in an attempt to defend a small total.
Fortunately, they both started well, with George in great nick, rattling out the top order with a superb spell that produced four maidens and four wickets in 10 overs.
This set the tone for some superb fielding where everyone played their part, taking catches and cutting off runs, with Darrell Dimond particularly stingy in the covers.
Dan Jones picked up 3 wickets with Jeff King and Ravi also in on the action with one apiece but what summed up the performance in the field was an outstanding direct hit from Dan Jones just as Wintney threatened to get back in the game.
It was also great to see Deano James take a catch in the covers. Deano is not the greatest cricketer in the world, in fact, he wouldn’t be the greatest cricketer at Oakley infants school. However, his enthusiasm and love of playing cricket offers a real positive impact on the other players.
Wintney were all out for 107 in what was a competitive, tense, but great spirited affair, with very sporting opponents who were graceful in defeat, offering warm congratulations and hanging around for a beer or two as they listened to Deano and the tale of his catch that will live long in his memory.
So that’s four in four for the Oaks as we chase down the 10 point deduction and our local rivals, St Mary’s, who are setting the early pace.
Up the Oaks!