Getting The Band Back Together

The start to the season has been good but something has been missing. You know, like ordering your favourite curry but the waiter forgets the pickle tray with your poppadoms. Today however things felt closer to how things should be.

We were missing the Claw (on a Sabbath Holy Moley??) , Frank was still battling Gout , but we had Terry standing as Umpire, Mandeep and Bombay Mix making their seasonal debuts and catches going down all over the place. Less Feng Shui more Fleckney Sundays.

Always good to see Terry and this time he had excelled himself. He had refereed a game of Youth Football in the morning and then umpired in the afternoon in an impressive attempt to make the most unpopular man in Fleckney since someone told the Yak that the Shield was running low on Guinness, thankfully that rumour was unfounded.

Three balls into the game the mark was set. A swipe to mid wicket and Mandeep put down a regulation chance. Fleckney fielders groaned and unbeknownst to the Roving Reporter the Glen fielders mentally made a note saying "Hold My Beer".

The Fat Keeper has had a slow start to the season , for slow read snail in reverse, and although the floored caught behind was a half chance that hit the end of the fingers the two stumpings could not be categorised so generously. If his hands were as quick as his verbals the scorecard might have looked a little better.

Anyway to the game. Justin Goddard for Glen was the class act on the field. Scored a brisk 52 with four towering 6's, one of which hit the toe end of the bat . If it had hit the middle it may have landed in Northamptonshire. He later took 3 wickets and managed to bang his head falling backwards trying to take a one handed. He had quite the afternoon.

Glen's batting was aggressive, T20 stuff in a 40 over game. However with reward comes risk and wickets fell to apply the brakes. Hishan bowled a beautiful spell of 2 for 21 from 8 overs, Henry continued his purple patch with 2 of his own and the skipper managed to go through the entire weekend without a wicket to his name. If he carries on firing blanks we may have to think of an inappropriate nickname for him that would not pass censorship here.....

Anyway Glen scored 253 on a pitch offering variable bounce and it felt like a winning score. So it proved.

Mandeep and Pawandeep both scored 50's before retiring. The former was dropped at least 4 times as Glen put down 11 in total, cue Fat Keeper feeling a little better about himself.

The rest of the Fleckney batting was a succession of cameos as they closed on 185 for 8. Quick mention here to Adam Houghton who has clearly developed as a cricketer and has, over the Winter, gone from the quiet mouse who doesn't say a word to the guy who has clearly decided ( quite rightly) that he isn't taking anymore nonsense from his teammates and will start dishing some back. His parents may disagree but such sporting and personal development is exactly what we love to see.

OK Fleckney lost but it was a lovely afternoon and the willingness of both sides to give younger players an opportunity bodes well.

Marton Village next week. Get well soon Frankie, square leg isn't the same without you.