External Links
| Designed by: |
| 1987 |
|
Played 15: Won 5, Lost 5, Drawn 5.
Sunday May 3 v Keble College at Oxford - Won by 87 runs
On a slow wicket Michael Wingfield Digby played the first of many fine innings in what turned out to be a prodigious summer for him. Lyons played sternly, as is proper for a captain, and it was disappointing to see him out two balls after lunch just 74 short of his century. The innings was given much needed impetus by Mason and Will Rydon, neither of whom were afraid to play the lofted shot, and their rapid stand of 64 enabled us to make an early declaration. Rydon went on to further distinguish himself by taking five Keble wickets, of which three were taken by surprise and the remaining two by balls that pitched. With Rob Rydon (2-14) bowling with great hostility at the other end, the Keble batting fell into disarray though the tail enders defended with spirit. Sunday May 17 v Dorset XI at Sherborne - No result Dorset won the toss and batted first in overcast and drizzly conditions which made bowling extremely difficult. After a number of interruptions for rain the 55 over match was reduced to 41 overs. However, the rain worsened and in the end it was a relief that the match was called off after we had batted for only 14 overs. Sunday May 31 - Cricketer Cup first round v Rugby Meteors at Sherborne - Won by 6 wickets We lost the toss and Rugby elected to bat on an easy paced wicket in bright sunshine. They were never able to assert themselves as a result of fine accurate bowling, particularly from Ward (2-22) and Slade, with the latter's four wickets all being bowled or lbw. Indeed, that was the method of dismissal of all the Meteors bar one, who was stumped. Our reply was dominated by a fine attacking knock from Edwards whose innings was probably his best for the Pilgrims to date; he was well supported by Jones, and they put on 150 for the second wicket. We won with seven overs to spare; a rare, but welcome, victory in the Cricketer Cup. Sunday June 21 - Cricketer Cup second round v Uppingham Rovers at Uppingham - Lost by 21 runs A match which brought sharply into focus the manifest frailties of our batting. We did extremely well to dismiss Uppingham for 163 and, even though the wicket was not easy, we never really came to terms with the task. Our bowling was excellent with Slade being outstanding - he kept the ball right up to the bat and his accuracy can be demonstrated by the fact that he clean bowled all his five victims. Blackburn also bowled well conceding 14 runs off his 12 overs, and all in all at the half way stage, whilst it was recognised that the Uppingham total would not be an easy one to pass on a pitch which was severely restricting stroke play, there was nevertheless reasonable cause for optimism. However, in spite of an opening partnership of 42 by Jones (27) and Eckersley-Maslin (20) our innings never gathered momentum with no-one establishing himself, and as soon as the asking rate crept up to four an over we were in real difficulties for, despite the modest bowling, it was extremely hard to force the pace on a pitch of Plasticine-like qualities. Thus disappointment again, though much encouragement could be found from the fine performances of the bowlers in both rounds of the competition. Sunday July 5 v Radley Rangers at Radley - Lost by 5 wickets Inept batting by us on a perfect wicket against ordinary bowling left Radley with a relatively simple task which they accomplished without much obstruction from our bowlers. Our innings would have been in a really sorry state had it not been for a staunch knock of 52 from Lough who brought to bear all the experience gained by him over the last two decades - it is rumoured that Lough has now gone to Australia to join the expanding Pilgrims community out there. A forward defensive shot resulting in his being stumped for nought caused Wilson to suffer a muscular seizure and limited his pace bowling contribution, which proved a considerable handicap when trying to knock down some early Radley wickets. Coming into this match with an increasing reputation as a mystery bowler, Rowe found himself against batsmen who refused to be puzzled by his ability to vary his length without any apparent change in his action - it is now thought that he will increasingly devote his time to commentary. Truth to say Radley were in no way tested by our bowling and no real pressure was brought to bear on them. Saturday July 11 v The School at Sherborne - Drawn Ultimately a somewhat tedious game with the School appearing to have no ambition other than to salvage a draw. In a way this was understandable for their bowlers had been severely battered. At lunch we were 153-1 and declared at 3.15. Rintoul, in his first game for the Pilgrims, played most impressively for his 96. To bowlers he must appear an imposing figure at the crease and, with a variety of strokes at his command, he was always seeking to dominate the bowling. With Thorne playing an attractive innings of 58, runs came at a great pace. Psychologically perhaps our total was a little too large for the School and, despite our bowling 61 overs at them, of which one third was leg spin, they never really sought to attack, though Kardooni played some attractive strokes. Sunday July 12 v Marlborough Blues at Marlborough - Lost by 80 runs We performed reasonably in dismissing the Blues for 236, especially as at one stage they were 214-3. For this we must be thankful to Rydon whose swerve bowling confounded their middle and lower order. We started our innings in great attacking vein with Jones and Wingfield Digby putting on 86 runs in quick time - from that high point we tumbled into utter disrepair with wide holes being blown into it by the hostile pace bowling of Battersby, although Fisher defended manfully for 25. Saturday July 18 v Honourable Artillery Company at Sherborne - Drawn On a benign wicket, against bowling so polite that to take a wicket would be regarded as a grave discourtesy to our first guests of the week, the HAC compiled runs in complete comfort. We were playing 12 a side. Our batsmen similarly enjoyed the offerings of the HAC bowlers with Wingfield Digby, Spink and Drew all playing forceful innings - in particular Spink struck some huge blows showing the technique acquired in the course of earning his Rowing Blue - his efforts almost snatched victory out of the jaws of a draw. It was nice to see Isaac in his third match of the year open his account with a spirited innings of 27. Monday July 20 v Sherborne Town at Sherborne (Terrace) - Won by 6 wickets In deference to their 150 year celebrations we agreed to play the Town on the Terrace and fielded our most powerful team of the week. Although we won, the match was a disappointment because the Town were much under strength and never made a match of it. However, mention should be made of Gent who in 18.4 overs of leg spin took 5-18. In our reply Jones played well for his 39, but an unevenly contested match ended with time to spare. Tuesday July 21 v Dorset Rangers at Sherborne - Lost by 28 runs Over the years we may have been complacent about our chances of beating the Rangers. This year we were put in our place. The bowlers did well in getting the Rangers 116-8 but allowed Scott to get what turned out to be a vital 38 at number ten. Nevertheless we had a good start, but 63-1 rapidly turned into an uncontrolled slide caused by the thoughtful off breaks from Morton. Wednesday July 22 v Old Tauntonians at Taunton - Drawn The best game of the week. This was a new fixture and for the first year we agreed to play at Taunton. We found our opponents a powerful and well organised team but we responded well to the challenge and, in an inspired bowling display on a wicket offering some help to the fast bowlers, we routed them for 119. Leading the bowling honours was Garrett who, in 23.4 overs of accurate, hostile bowling, took 5-44. We immediately realised that our march to victory would not be a formality when Taunton revealed a battery of competent bowlers led by the hostile speed of Grant, who was very sharp indeed. Nevertheless, whilst nobody actually established themselves, everybody made a valuable contribution, though at 85-6 things were getting a bit tight. We continued to inch our way towards the Taunton total, but three unnecessary run outs damaged our cause to such an extent that we were left to fight out the final few overs to secure a tense draw. A fair end to a most enjoyable game. Sunday July 26 v Old Tonbridgians at Tonbridge - Won by 7 wickets It is a pleasure to be able to report about a rare victory against illustrious opponents, and a substantial one at that. We were well captained by Michael Wingfield Digby who, encountering late selectorial difficulties, was compelled to draft in two "guest" Pilgrims, Ross and Browne, who both made valuable contributions to the cause. Our opponents were completely routed on a pitch offering some help to the medium pacers, who all bowled well to take full advantage of the conditions. A total of 126 is one which has been known to lure Pilgrims sides to defeat, but on this occasion the task was accomplished with panache. Our openers made a vital contribution by putting on 77 which put the result beyond all doubt and it was entirely appropriate that Captain Digby should be at the wicket at the moment of victory. Saturday August 1 v Hampshire Hogs at Warnford - Lost by 7 wickets The enduring memory of this match will be the superb innings of Eckersley-Maslin who played outstandingly for 153; 106 came in boundaries, 16 fours and seven sixes. He played shots all around the wicket, with his boundaries primarily being the result of fine timing and placement. The extent to which his innings dominated the proceedings is revealed by the fact that when he was dismissed the score was 207-4. Unfortunately, we were well short of regular bowlers and were never able to keep the powerful Hogs' batting in check. Although they were 24-2, Coles and Gifford added a powerful 153 for the third wicket which decided the result. Saturday August 8 v Bluemantles at Tunbridge Wells - Won by 3 wickets A small margin of victory flattered our opponents who were outplayed for most of the day in dark, overcast, but fortunately dry, conditions. The Bluemantles elected to bat on a slow green pitch. Our seam bowlers were not at their best and we quickly resorted to that wily left arm duo of Saunders (slow) and Gay (very slow) - the batsmen became increasingly frustrated by virtue of the accurate slow bowling and one by one fell to impetuous shots. A target of 147 was cause for justified optimism. Michael Wingfield Digby played doggedly for 27 and Mason, coming in when the innings had become calm, made a significant contribution of 34 to put victory well within our sights. Sunday August 23 v Cobham at Cobham - Drawn On arrival at the ground Lyons was advised by his opposing captain that so weak were his forces we should dispense with the toss and bat first - this we did. That redoubtable pair, Rice (22) and Mason (20), ignoring the problems posed by a sodden pitch, struck the ball forcefully in a valuable opening stand of 44 with Rice doubling his aggregate for the season. Further impetus to the innings was given by Spink who struck five boundaries in his 34. Rowe played a resourceful innings of 41, showing considerable patience in the face of a slow pitch, and bowling much of which was wide of the stumps. The innings ended on 179 with Garrett punctuating the close with a violent blow for six. Everything went well for us with Rydon's swerve bowling defeating the Cobham early order before Gay made inroads on the middle order with his sharply dropping left arm spinners - it is thought that the recent Soviet/US Arms Agreement may limit this style of bowling in the future. At 97-9, with three quarters of an hour left, we had high hopes on an early win. Such ponderings were rudely shattered by a violent assault perpetrated upon our bowlers by the number eleven, Hubbard, a large rough-hewn fellow of between 40 and 70 years of age who, on the occasions he connected with the ball, propelled it unerringly out of the ground. This he did frequently and Lyons, sheltering under the Pavilion, was powerless to do anything save for listening to the apologies proffered by the opposing captain for making gross misrepresentations at the start of the day. The unmerciful assault continued until we arrived at the final ball with two runs needed. Hubbard attempted another monumental blow, but thankfully missed the ball by a good two feet, and the match was over with a draw perhaps being the just result. |