Hornchurch Athletic. Hornchurch Athletic.
Match Report Date 21/07/2024 Oppo Hornchurch Athletic (a) Type 40 Overs Report approved by Club Compliance 😊 Following the pulsating finish at Woodham Mortimer, the O’s visited Hornchurch Athletic which attracted a bumper crowd, locals packing the boundary like sardines and WAGS being flown all the way from Ecuador and Highams Park to get a glimpse of a team in fine form who hadn’t tasted defeat for 2 weeks (A wash out and a tie - No wins). Club Captain Richardson returned to the side following his Edinburgh weekend which mainly consisted of smuggling Whiskey & Haggis flavoured vapes back over the border to waft around batsmans noses and keep local fire brigades on full alert. Richardson lost the toss (standard) meaning the O’s were in the dirt and it was Club President Liam Mulholland and Fives & Heronians 2’s star Jack Baker-Merry to open the bowling. The hosts got off to a flier and were 45-0 after 5 overs until Jack got the O’s into the game with an excellent caught & bowled which was quickly followed by another wicket as Mirza chipped one to Alex Franklin off the bowling of Mulholland. With the tour around the corner and the pure fact we had limited options, Richardson threw the ball to Alex Franklin who indicated his last effort with the ball was 2 years ago playing Brian Lara Cricket on PS2. Undeterred by this minor comment, Franklin bowled a magnificent spell of 2-39 and suddenly the O’s were causing a few headaches as the hosts runs slowed up - despite the continued efforts of Whitaker who made use of the lightning outfield. The O’s did have a chance of a run out when Broad looked stranded and Ryan Smith smartly rolled the ball to Dano who was ‘allegedly’ updating the W/K victim stats on his phone when the ball trickled past him and the opportunity was gone. Matt Hiscock came onto bowl just before drinks and cranked up the pressure when Skipper Richardson flew to his right to take a fantastic diving catch at 2nd slip and remove Broad who didn’t make the O’s pay. The skipper then brought himself on and got in the act by dismissing the dangerous Whitaker who made 71 (despite giving the O’s a couple of chances). The O’s struggled to take the final wicket but had certainly given themselves a chance with a decent effort all-round as Athletic finished on 178-9 off their 40 overs. Tea was served (Get in there!) A display of Sandwiches, Cakes, Fruit and Potatoes, although there was some hesitation about consumption levels as Sir Jack was overheard enquiring with the skipper where he was batting and whether a 3rd jam donut would be acceptable. Openers Sandeep Barot and Alex Baker-Merry opened and got off to a steady start when the Urchins unfortunately lost their W/K to a thumb injury after a dangerous leave from Barot who sensed blood. With one man down, Barot set about a death count to eclipse RoboCop, Terminator and Die Hard combined. The smashmeister had spent a week meticulously studying Trump footage making sure there was no room for error on this occasion. No-one was safe…Children picking Daisy’s were oblivious. Mum’s were screaming. Buggies were accelerating quicker than Formula 1 cars to get out of the firing line. At the other end, ABM found life difficult against some accurate bowling and departed for 8 bringing Franklin to the crease. A nice partnership was building until our Woodham loanee was bowled for 14 bringing Olly Buck to the crease. Meanwhile young Ryan Smith politely nudged the skipper to remind him he was next in and may need some equipment. Luckily the skipper acted quickly as Buck was dismissed first ball. The game was now in the balance and sadly Smith followed Buck back to dressing room having added just 2 more to the O’s total - both being clean bowled. Hiscock arrived at the crease as Barot reached 50 with a rapturous applause from the visiting supporters and the pair quickly put on 35 and appeared to have restored some order until MH walked after nicking one behind for 16 just before drinks. There was slight delay in proceedings as certain O’s players thinking their afternoon was over, fully changed, ordering beers at the bar, putting on some sun cream and reading ‘How to play cricket’ manuals were quickly reminded by the club hierarchy, our Oppo were still a fielder short. We still needed to drop a few catches and kick a few over the boundary if we were to win this one. The O’s needed 70 off the last twenty overs, Barot was having the time of his life. A vast array of shots and with each boundary you sensed Edgy was going big whilst closely monitoring whether any ice-cream vans were stationary with queues building and potential targets. Meanwhile at the other end, Bob Marsh fell victim to LBW for 2 and JBM was bowled for 7 as Ullah picked up his third wicket. The experienced Mulholland stood nervously as the nippy Parr steamed in and provided a few generous extras to get the O’s closer to the target. Barot hit the winning runs finishing with a magnificent 94 Not Out. The East Londoners went home happy following a nice post game social which included Club legend Eddie Tooth! Next up is the tour…..
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© Dave Revell