Early season cricketing contests are usually moist, grey and stodgy affairs played beneath ashen skies with regular breaks for rain, lashings of deep heat and extra pullovers. It was strange sight therefore to see this early May contest with Chemistry begin beneath an up-turned beaker of blueness, with only a fresh, chuckling breeze betraying the proximity of the wintriness just passed.
After a season of near total success on the chase, Skipper James granted the visitors first use of a wicket that was shadowed in green but was otherwise drier and firmer than could be expected from a pre-Whitsun track. The St Catz ground was a predictable delight, although my ageing eyes made it 20-25% bigger than August last year.
Having impressed in Nets sessions, Skipper James threw the new ball to debutants Ordish and Hall – a pairing that sounds more northern cabaret circuit than new ball attack. Ordish began down the hill, off a run-up that left Danson bristling with sepia memories and his opening contributions were highly impressive, striking the pitch hard and stinging West’s gloves. At the other end the shape of Hall was also promising and the early overs went UCLES’ way with Robinson and West conjuring a scalp, the first of many run-outs doubtless to come.
And although boundaries began to appear, mostly through edges that would have brought Ordish wickets in a test match, Hall soon opened his account, rattling willow with a full delivery. But these early successes were to be the only bright spots of a generally depressing experience in the field as the Chemistry batsmen began to strike the ball with increasing confidence and authority.
Hall was the first to suffer, with his final over yielding as many runs as the previous four, mostly back over his head into the shadows of the mighty trees, but he was hardly the only one to suffer as runs started to come freely and frequently. The bowlers cause was hardly helped however by the fielding which, despite moments of quality (Dagless producing one diving stop that would have made Indiana Jones proud) was scruffier than a miner’s knapsack. A sprinkling of chances settled on turf rather than skin as UCLES fielders lunged for catches like spinsters chasing a bride’s illusive bouquet.
When the 20th over finally came and went, Chemistry had massed an awesome 184-2, probably 40-50 above par on a decent but not helpful batting track.
Linsdell and his new opening partner Monk began the chase with shimmering new bats and more than a little gusto, Monk cutting hard to the fence in the opening over and Linsdell crashing the first four balls ball of over 2 to various corners of the mighty field. Monk’s contribution was however to be short-lived, unlucky to drag his sixth ball onto his stumps. Robinson joined Linsdell at the crease and the early impetus was retained until the latter skied a further attempt to reach the boundary and fell for a brisk 37. Wickets then began to fall with nagging irregularity, only Dagless (10) and Robinson (27) finding double figures in the middle order.
With a chill evening wind demanding an end to proceedings, Danson returned to UCLES service with the bat for the first time since using a Slazenger V600 to stun a rat in the changing rooms at Churchill in 1982. Having begun sheepishly his shoulders eventually ground loose allowing the UCLES legend to amass a creditable unbeaten 12 in what, for a long time, had been a losing cause. The curtain finally fell with four balls to go – Hall succumbing for a brisk 10 – leaving the home side 128 all out, some 56 runs short.
In truth Chemistry were worthy winners, dominating the majority of the contest, but UCLES can look with some optimism to future fixtures as fielding improves, a new bowling attack begins to gel together and a batting line-up – still managing to accumulate a respectable total in the face of defeat – grows in confidence.
