Colonel Mustard reports from the PoW Cricket Centre on the Bays fifth match in Division 3 of Cheltenham’s Indoor Cricket League. Captain Chris Horner won the toss with an expensive two pound coin, leant to him for the formalities. Unusually, this esteemed leader chose to field. Were the conditions right for bowling? Did the early evening lights dazzle the batsmen? Or was it that Chris had a table booked in a local restaurant 15 minutes before the game was scheduled to finish? This we’ll never know…
Cheltenham Civil Service (B) began batting relatively quietly with little indication of what was to come. Slow scoring gave way to not quite a tsunami of runs, but to at least a wave upon which a large quadruped bovine may well have surfed if given the opportunity.
H Buckland scrapped his way to twenty five without too much problem. Batsman number 2, Madyembwa did the same before Alex Van Dyke ran out Leitch for 17. Sugur went for 7 caught well by Tom Liley off Adi Rai’s bowling. The new ball swung well for Tom and span well for Adi. They returned creditable figures of 3/19/0 and 3/16/1 respectively – 35 runs in half of the overs the Bays were to bowl. Adi also had a well judged run out. CCSCC finished with 129/3 off their 12.
In reply, the Bays started well, but then Horner was run out, to be followed the very next ball by Fran who went the same way. Tom Liley steadied the ship, to go on to make Bays’ top score of 28 off 21, including 4 fours. Steve Liley went cheaply for 2, trying to hit the back wall, but being clean bowled instead. Alex Van Dyke was caught for a quacker before, Tom went caught and bowled by Leitch. Adi amassed 17 not out off 20 to complete a team innings that concluded on 96.
Not the start the Bays would have liked for the new year, but at least the Bays’ leadership is not in question and no players are to be stripped of their positions. Earlier in the week a splendid Glossy Ibis was spotted near Slimbridge showing that our avian friends are firm supporters of the Bays. The Lansdown Inn provided ‘after match sanctuary’ for the players; well at least for half of them and the Chairman.