Fleckney Win, Home Side Rock-ing

To get to the splendidly appointed Old Eastonians ground you enter Rockingham Castle and prove yourself to be a cricketer ( or someone attempting to be) instead of a tourist and are directed to the ground by a very pleasant lady in the booth. However instead of directions she simply borrowed a line from the films and said with pointed finger, 'Follow That Car!".

This was not the first visit for this Roving Reporter but the driver of THAT car, whose name we shall change to the Chelsea Chemist, was struggling. Faced with a turning towards a diminishing road towards some trees or open pasture with the strongly possibility of a cricket field he held up the queue of cars to phone for assistance. Then around the corner, and not seeing the road clearly double backed on itself to continue the journey, he parked by a pasture filled with livestock presumably wondering if the oppo were of the four hooved variety. Two paragraphs of the match report already written and not a ball bowled.

The game itself was a heartening display by a team chasing their first win. The quicker bowlers ( well Sam Hill and somehow Andy Loomes) bowled with the strong wind at their backs whilst others were mixed from the other end. The home side , superbly marshalled by Jaymesh Patel who was playing his first game since entering fatherhood, reached 91 without loss at drinks. Then the magic happened.

Instead of a acceleration the hosts were squeezed by tight bowling. Patel fell LBW to the Yak , not the only decision that caused discussion this afternoon, and the scoring rate slowed. 91 without loss became 169 for 5 after 40 overs and something hung in the air. Was it the scent of possible victory or the byproduct of the animals disturbed by the Chelsea Chemist when he first arrived? Probably a little of both.

Nigel and the far from home pharmacist opened up and both were soon back in the hutch. Nigel bowled and the poorly positioned pill producer knocked one up in the air, suspiciously bang on 4pm when the football was to start. 8 for 2, bloody marvellous.

However from this point, and with a minor wobble as an exception, it was all Fleckney. Punit Modi (30) and Riyad Adam (81*) provided a perfectly paced platform that put that first win firmly within reach.

When Punit fell LBW and Mandeep with a drastically reduced beard fell first ball, parallels with Samson and Delilah anyone, there was the chance of late drama. Home bowler Trivedi completed his hattrick (congrats young man) when Chris Hill was adjudged LBW but the Yak arrived to see Fleckney over the line.

Its clearly lovely to win and the team totally deserved it but it's more than just the 11 on the park. This was for the absent skipper who fashioned the team and puts the real hard work in, to Frank who is not yet ready to return, to Ollie Timms who couldn't play but has been a regular part of the side and everyone else who has contributed so far this year.

We don't define our success by either victory or defeat but it's sure nice to taste a win occasionally. Now, has anyone got confirmation that you know who made it home safely or should we all chip in for a Sat Nav for him?