Primaries Before Si Marries

The Casuals prove that they need a good night’s sleep before a game...

The Primary Club Casuals, playing their traditional end of season fixture against Newport Inn, staggered to defeat after a Boyes hat trick.

With 10 of the Casuals attending opening bowler Simon Hunter’s stag weekend in Weymouth, arranging the long standing game in Braishfield, Hants, to break up the journey home seemed like a good idea back in winter. However the excesses of the night before proved too much, with the Casuals going down by 93 runs.

"This may not have been our most competent performance," commented Euan Spence, captain and best man. "but the three primaries for the Casuals certainly helped a good cause."

On a bright summer’s day, the team arrived in surprisingly good time at a ground they know well, this being the sixth time that the two teams had met. Spence called incorrectly and Newport Inn elected to bat on a good looking pitch. Hunter, opening the bowling with Michael Beck, was remarkably sprightly and almost as frugal as ever, inducing several false strokes from the batsmen without being able to make the breakthough. Beck too was unable to take a wicket in his opening spell, likely hindered by his second degree sunburn.

With a threatening opening spell building, Spence took the responsibility on himself and soon produced an outswinging yorker that trapped Bowden leg before for 29. With Gregg Peacock picking up his opening partner Hardy caught and bowled soon after for 13, the Casuals sniffed an opportunity, which Spence was able to exploit with a devastating spell of swing bowling, swiftly taking a further 3 wickets. The scoreboard was, however, still ticking over nicely as the Casuals’ fielding standards wilted in the afternoon sun, so Newport Inn’s score of 90-5 at drinks left the match delicately poised.

Against received wisdom, the drinks break did not yield a further breakthrough, and Newport Inn consolidated successfully, until Allan Guild and Peacock were able to make inroads including Whiteside falling for a top innings score of 41. Even then Newport Inn continued to score at an impressive rate, so that when Spence brought himself back into the attack in search of the Casuals tenth wicket, and his fifth, the score stood at 161-9. Spence proved half successful in his aim – his first ball in his new spell being a caught and bowled chance that he dropped, whereupon the ball cannoned into the stumps at the non-strikers end running out Boyes for 29 pugnacious runs that were a portent of things to come.

With the urn (tea, not Ashes) not yet boiling, the Casuals had a tricky fifteen minute spell to face. Hunter and Spence started brightly, with the former striking two attractive boundaries, before Boyes struck with a straight ball defeating Hunter’s attacking shot. Ross Rogers strode to the crease, only to be beaten for pace by a well aimed yorker, leaving Luke Living to face the hat trick ball. Living read the pitched up ball and played a classic forward defensive on the line of middle stump; sadly the ball was on the line of off, leading to wild celebrations from Newport Inn and a quiet tea for the Casuals.

Spence and Tom Harries attempted to repair the damage after the interval, but this was shortlived, Spence bowled by Wright and Harries following off the bowling of Bowden for an innings top score of 17. Dave Haggart, Chris Butler and keeper Neil Sebba briefly mounted rearguards, but after they fell the last three batsman were unable to contribute a run between them, including a third primary when Peacock holed out to long off first ball, from Newport Inn stalwart Eric Philpott. The innings ended when Guild was stumped by the same bowler, leaving the Casuals all out for just 73.

Once again Newport Inn put on a great day, and were very sporting in allowing the festivities to encroach on their day. At least the Casuals’ ineptitude helped boost the coffers for the Primary Club, with fines and teas raising a total of £55 for the visually impaired.