We were massively hit by injury and withdrawals from this game - not making excuses (honestly) - and Skipper Todorow did well to raise 10. Some of the guys then put a call out to their friend Mohib who turned up later. In fact, it was a 12-a-side game which had been suggested by United earlier in the week but, technophobe that I am, I had missed the email. The away side had an extra man and it was agreed that they would lend us a fielder and one of our men could bat twice.
Due to uncertainties about our depleted batting line-up, Todorow inserted Wimbledon and received an early-ish reward with Imran making the breakthrough with the score around 30. The scoring rate was decent but Nomads struck again when the skipper hit the stumps with an "Overpitched Yorker." The batsman said he had been playing almost entirely on the leg side and was confused because Todorow set him a 7-3 Off Side field and tried to work the crafty interpreter to leg. Anyway, 50 for 2. Game in the Balance.
Well, that was about as good as it got. A magnificent partnership of over 150 led by Alex made for a tough afternoon in the heat for Nomads' fielders. Easily the best fielder on display was United's Dave Hitchman who got through loads of work for us and was one of the few fielders to whom the Dons did not run 1s and 2s at will. As in the last game, punishment was fairly even, with Sami, Emil and Riaz probably the pick of the bowlers. Mohib went for 25 off his 2 but I thought he bowled reasonably well. There was one brief quiet spell towards the end of the innings with Riaz and Emil bowling but that turned out to be Alex's nervous nineties and the batsman soon notched up his first century for the club. As if Wimbledon don't have enough top quality batting options anyway what with Dave Hitchman and Sameer (who was not playing in this game but had made 160 the previous week.) Nomads' bowlers stuck to the task but the fielding was not great with numerous groundfielding errors. Darwin and Abdul (despite a shoulder injury) were 2 of the better fielders. 2 late wickets including a smart catch by wicket-keeper John Crossland off Darwin saw the innings close on 223 for 4 off the full 35.
Nomads were missing 4 men who were our regular Top 4 last season; Mark, Mahesh, Prasanth and Hassan. A lot was going to depend on Gul, Riaz and Darwin. Still, we had to be positive and Mohib was also highly spoken of. Anyway, we all know that Joseph Hood in High Summer is a batsman's paradise.........
.......Or is it? After 6.1 overs, Nomads were 16 for 4 with Peter Brown, "The Southfields Express", cutting a swathe through us and Nomads frankly looking odds-on to break a long-standing record (our all-time low innings total of 39.) Sound play by Abdul and Hamid took us past this first target before Hamid was caught. 40 for 5. Abdul and Nick Lefebve then put on 47 to restore some respectability with the veteran blocker leaving anything outside off, prodding out anything on the stumps and having a wild and usually unsuccessful swish at anything outside leg. This succeeded in boring the spectators, frustrating the bowlers and contributing 4 to the partnership while Abdul hit some nice 4s off the slow-medium Samir who tended to overpitch. Unfortunately the win was now beyond us. The 50 stand was prevented when Abdul was bowled by Dean for a fine 43. With Riaz being, by popular choice, the man who would bat again, the remaining batsman started to go for their shots. Sami made a cameo 12 with 2 nice leg-side boundaries, Lefebve and Imran were bowled slogging and then Emil played nicely for a quick 12. Riaz returned and gave us what we wanted to see with a towering 6 over mid-wicket to take the deficit below 100 just before we ran out of overs.
Despite (as Old Leagonians would say) having our pants pulled down for the first time this season, this was an enjoyable afternoon as games against Wimbledon United usually are. They are a very talented side and we have done well to beat them twice (and to be a only a fingertip away from a third win) since May 2013.
Man of the Match was Abdul; by far the bast batting and he fielded OK despite injury. I will give Fielder of the Day to John Crossland who conceded few if any byes after about the fifth over and took our only catch.
Quote of the Day - "Some of our batsman are like cups of tea. They are OK while they last, but they don't last long." - Who else but John Crossland ?
Wimbledon United 223 for 4 from 35 overs (Alex 104)
Nomads' bowling
Sami 7-0-29-0
Imran 7-0-48-1
E. Todorow 7-0-28-1
Abdul Khan 7-0-49-0
Mohib 2-0-25-0
R. Khan 4-0-30-1
D. Gunawardena 1-0-5-1
Clapham Nomads 129 for 10 from 35 overs - (12-a-side match)
Gul b Brown 6
R. Khan caught ? b Brown 9
D. Gunawardena b Brown 0
Mohib lbw Rowan 0
Hamid caught ? b Rowan 9
Abdul Khan b Dean 43
N. Lefebve b Martin 8
Sami caught ? b Hasan 12
Imran b Martin 4
E. Todorow b Martin 12
J. Crossland not out 0
R. Khan (extra innings) not out 12
F.O.W. - 15, 15, 16, 16, 40, 87, 100, 106, 111, 117
Nomads lost by 94 runs.
Thursday 11 June 2015
Thursday 4 June 2015
Clapham Nomads v Barnes Occasionals - 31/5/15
Nomads just lost out by 18 runs to Barnes Occasionals in a very entertaining match at Abbey Rec. This was notable for a fantastic six-hitting, car roof-crunching half-century off approximately 26 balls from Riaz, an early morning dash back from Spain by Ollie Hogg of the Occasionals, who was not playing but was understandably anxious to get a glimpse of this very watchable Nomads side, and most importantly, the seasonal re-appearance of the charismatic Mr Andrew West.
Chasing 186 off 30 (Roger Price had top-scored for the visitors with 70-odd), we were at one stage (with Riaz in control) 77 for 1 off 7 and a half overs. Riaz received able support from Mark, who was unluckily out played on to a thick inside edge, and Gul who scored 53 at a rather steadier pace than Riaz.) However the middle order lost its way somewhat, especially against the very tricky Keith Seed who went for only 3.7 per over and the late men had a bit too much to do, with 19 needed off the last 2 overs.
Man of the Match was Riaz. Fielder of the Day was Mahesh who produced one of his stunning, full-length diving, fingertip slip catches. FULL REPORT TO FOLLOW.
REPORT .... Nomads were only able to raise 9 players who could do the full shift and 2 who could play part of the game. I was one of the 2 and I emerged from a hole in the Abbey Rec hedge just after 3 pm together with Andrew West (who was late) just in time to see Occasionals' batting star Roger Price despatching Emil Todorow over the mid-wicket boundary for 6. This kind of set the tone for the rest of the innings and Price went on to score a pretty rapid 70-odd, with Nomads dropping him - possible crucially - at least twice.
Barnes kept up a consistent rate of above 6 an over with punishment being shared out fairly evenly. Our highlight was the seasonal debut of West, an increasingly charismatic figure and one of the few Nomads the public would pay to see, should we ever start selling tickets to our games. The big man was not quite at his best, having not bowled for some time, and went for almost 10 an over but showed a mature attitude by bagging a wicket and only threatening to retire once.
A direct hit run out from Abdul ("The throwmaster") was another bright spot but Barnes, who have started to develop a youth policy with positive results, posted an imposing 185 for 6 at the close. Abdul and new man Imran shared equally the other 4 wickets.
Someone said the pitch was slow (and in fact on the next-door pitch, Nursery Road, Energy Exiles' Keith Roberts made 12 from 66 balls) but our track was anything but sluggish and Nomads openers Mark Bradshaw and Riaz Khan fairly burst out of the traps and we had already reached 49 in the 6th over when Bradshaw was most unluckily out played on to a thick inside edge. The bowler was Dan Hogg (another of the famous dynasty - (? nephew of Ollie and son of Adam) who impressed with good pace and hostility bowling left-arm round. He hit No. 3 Gul in the collar-bone with a lifter early in Gul's innings. At the other end was Tom Hooker who bowled straight enough but for some reason Riaz just took an absolute shine to him and dispatched him for two sixes off his second over and a brutal 22, including 2 further clearances, off his 4th. The last of these sixes hit a car roof which reminded me of an Energy Exiles batsman hitting a car at this ground a few years back which prompted some wag to ask; "Are you fully ensured, Emil?" This was met with an uncomfortable silence.
Riaz and Gul kept up the pace and Riaz reached his 50 off approximately 26 balls. Sadly, he had to leave for Night Shift and went into Death or Glory mode and was stumped. Gul and Mahesh took us well over 100 with Tooting's finest barber making a 50 of his own before being trapped leg before.
I had to leave myself at this point and the required rate was down below 5 an over. Sadly, Mahesh and Imran became rather bogged down against the legendary Keith Seed who is lethal on a slow pitch but still difficult enough to score off on a fast track like this one. The asking rate went up and up as wickets fell - a six from Abdul was one of the few high-points - and we found ourselves needing 19 from the last 2 overs. Emil Todorow and Andrew West were both bowled by Blair in the attempt and we fell 18 runs short.
We certainly missed Hassan and Abbas in this game and I hope they will both be back soon. Also, if Riaz had been able to stay just another 10 minutes that might have been enough, but all credit to Occasionals' improving side for a fine victory - their first against Nomads for a while.
Man of the Match was Riaz (another Nomad the public might pay to watch.) Fielder of the Day was Abdul.
Barnes Occasionals 185 for 6 from 30 overs (Price 72 (?) )
Nomads' bowling
Sami 6-0-36-0
E. Todorow 6-1-33-0
Abdul Khan 6-0-33-2
R. Khan 2-0-11-0
A. West 5-0-47-0
Imran 5-0-22-2
Clapham Nomads 167 from 28.5 overs
M. Bradshaw 17
R. Khan 50
Gul 53
M. Vyas 7
Imran 7
Abdul Khan 9
Sami 3
E. Todorow 3
J. Crossland not out 0
A. West 0
Did not bat; N. Lefebve (had to leave early due to work commitments - pre-arranged with the captain.)
F. O. W. - 49, 92, 134, 142, 154, 167, 167, 167
Nomads lost by 18 runs.
Chasing 186 off 30 (Roger Price had top-scored for the visitors with 70-odd), we were at one stage (with Riaz in control) 77 for 1 off 7 and a half overs. Riaz received able support from Mark, who was unluckily out played on to a thick inside edge, and Gul who scored 53 at a rather steadier pace than Riaz.) However the middle order lost its way somewhat, especially against the very tricky Keith Seed who went for only 3.7 per over and the late men had a bit too much to do, with 19 needed off the last 2 overs.
Man of the Match was Riaz. Fielder of the Day was Mahesh who produced one of his stunning, full-length diving, fingertip slip catches. FULL REPORT TO FOLLOW.
REPORT .... Nomads were only able to raise 9 players who could do the full shift and 2 who could play part of the game. I was one of the 2 and I emerged from a hole in the Abbey Rec hedge just after 3 pm together with Andrew West (who was late) just in time to see Occasionals' batting star Roger Price despatching Emil Todorow over the mid-wicket boundary for 6. This kind of set the tone for the rest of the innings and Price went on to score a pretty rapid 70-odd, with Nomads dropping him - possible crucially - at least twice.
Barnes kept up a consistent rate of above 6 an over with punishment being shared out fairly evenly. Our highlight was the seasonal debut of West, an increasingly charismatic figure and one of the few Nomads the public would pay to see, should we ever start selling tickets to our games. The big man was not quite at his best, having not bowled for some time, and went for almost 10 an over but showed a mature attitude by bagging a wicket and only threatening to retire once.
A direct hit run out from Abdul ("The throwmaster") was another bright spot but Barnes, who have started to develop a youth policy with positive results, posted an imposing 185 for 6 at the close. Abdul and new man Imran shared equally the other 4 wickets.
Someone said the pitch was slow (and in fact on the next-door pitch, Nursery Road, Energy Exiles' Keith Roberts made 12 from 66 balls) but our track was anything but sluggish and Nomads openers Mark Bradshaw and Riaz Khan fairly burst out of the traps and we had already reached 49 in the 6th over when Bradshaw was most unluckily out played on to a thick inside edge. The bowler was Dan Hogg (another of the famous dynasty - (? nephew of Ollie and son of Adam) who impressed with good pace and hostility bowling left-arm round. He hit No. 3 Gul in the collar-bone with a lifter early in Gul's innings. At the other end was Tom Hooker who bowled straight enough but for some reason Riaz just took an absolute shine to him and dispatched him for two sixes off his second over and a brutal 22, including 2 further clearances, off his 4th. The last of these sixes hit a car roof which reminded me of an Energy Exiles batsman hitting a car at this ground a few years back which prompted some wag to ask; "Are you fully ensured, Emil?" This was met with an uncomfortable silence.
Riaz and Gul kept up the pace and Riaz reached his 50 off approximately 26 balls. Sadly, he had to leave for Night Shift and went into Death or Glory mode and was stumped. Gul and Mahesh took us well over 100 with Tooting's finest barber making a 50 of his own before being trapped leg before.
I had to leave myself at this point and the required rate was down below 5 an over. Sadly, Mahesh and Imran became rather bogged down against the legendary Keith Seed who is lethal on a slow pitch but still difficult enough to score off on a fast track like this one. The asking rate went up and up as wickets fell - a six from Abdul was one of the few high-points - and we found ourselves needing 19 from the last 2 overs. Emil Todorow and Andrew West were both bowled by Blair in the attempt and we fell 18 runs short.
We certainly missed Hassan and Abbas in this game and I hope they will both be back soon. Also, if Riaz had been able to stay just another 10 minutes that might have been enough, but all credit to Occasionals' improving side for a fine victory - their first against Nomads for a while.
Man of the Match was Riaz (another Nomad the public might pay to watch.) Fielder of the Day was Abdul.
Barnes Occasionals 185 for 6 from 30 overs (Price 72 (?) )
Nomads' bowling
Sami 6-0-36-0
E. Todorow 6-1-33-0
Abdul Khan 6-0-33-2
R. Khan 2-0-11-0
A. West 5-0-47-0
Imran 5-0-22-2
Clapham Nomads 167 from 28.5 overs
M. Bradshaw 17
R. Khan 50
Gul 53
M. Vyas 7
Imran 7
Abdul Khan 9
Sami 3
E. Todorow 3
J. Crossland not out 0
A. West 0
Did not bat; N. Lefebve (had to leave early due to work commitments - pre-arranged with the captain.)
F. O. W. - 49, 92, 134, 142, 154, 167, 167, 167
Nomads lost by 18 runs.
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