Clapham Nomads averages for 2017 season.
Batting (qualification - 3 innings)
Hassan 668 runs at an average of 66.80
Zia 401 runs @ 44.56
Riaz 206 runs @ 20.60
Javed 244 runs @ 20.33
Darwin 238 runs @ 19.83
Mahesh 240 runs @ 17.14
Sami 97 runs @ 16.17
Faseeh 95 runs @ 15.83
Abbas 76 runs @ 12.67
KK 88 runs @ 11.00
Emil 16 runs @ 5.33
John 4 runs @ 2.00
Bowling (qualification - 4 wickets)
Riaz 7 wickets at an average of 15.43
Hassan 16 wickets @ 16.13
Javed 5 wickets @ 18.80
Faseeh 7 wickets @ 21.43
Abbas 23 wickets @ 22.48
Sami 10 wickets @ 22.50
Zia 14 wickets @ 24.64
KK 12 wickets @ 27.75
Emil 6 wickets @ 56.33
Bowling strike rate;
Javed - a wicket every 19 balls
Riaz - a wicket every 20 balls
Hassan - a wicket every 21 balls
Abbas - a wicket every 25 balls
Faseeh - a wicket every 30 balls
KK - a wicket every 31 balls
Zia - a wicket every 32 balls
Sami - a wicket every 33 balls
Emil - a wicket every 66 balls
Bowling economy rate;
Sami - 4.07 runs per over
Faseeh - 4.23
Zia - 4.60
Hassan - 4.69
Riaz - 4.73
Emil - 5.12
Abbas - 5.367
KK - 5.371
Javed - 5.81.
Fielding.
Catches (qualification - 2 catches)
Zia - 11
John - 9 (all as wicketkeeper)
Mahesh - 7 (1 as wicketkeeper)
Abbas - 4
Darwin 4
Faseeh - 4
KK - 3
Hassan - 2
Sami - 2
Report on the season to follow soon.
Tuesday 26 September 2017
Thursday 21 September 2017
Team India A v Clapham Nomads - 17/9/17
Nomads finished off the season with a rather tame defeat against Team India A at Bromley Common. This was a new fixture suggested by Mahesh Vyas and they were very pleasant opponents with a nice ground and we would be probably be quite well matched although, unusually for this season, Nomads batting did not come off.
I don't know if that is due to the shock of a start time of 11:45, which is a time many Nomads probably did not realise existed, for sporting purposes anyway.
I arrived at 3.45, due to working Night Shift, and found that our bowlers had done a good job to dismiss Team India for 153. However, the boundaries were long and the outfield slow-ish, so this was probably worth 170 or so.
A 10 a side match had already been agreed on.
Unfortunately we lost Mahesh who gloved one to the keeper 4th ball. There then followed the best batting of the innings with a stand of 33 between Darwin and Riaz, Riaz was then out for 21 - the top scorer - and a collapse followed from 33 for 1 to 37 for 6. Even Hassan missed out, which is very unusual for him this season.
The bowling was steady and varied but not spectacular and the pitch was decent, so it was just one of those inexplicable things. This season's has been one of the best batting line-ups we have ever had, so we cannot really complain.
Abbas did steady the ship a bit batting at No. 8 until his dismissal brought together the old favourites Emil Todorow and John Crossland, hopefully to make the deficit respectable and provide a bit of entertainment along the way. Emil had started shakily but, after 3 or 4 overs, began to look assured; he hit a nice 4 and was beginning to middle the ball. The pair were reasonably amicable with one another initially, despite Emil's basso profundo cry of "Calm down, John" becoming a temporary catchphrase for Team India's younger fielders. Soon however, John charged down the pitch and flicked the ball to Short Midwicket and yelled for a single, Emil hesitated, went for it, but was run out. I was half asleep (despite being umpire) so I cannot really say whose fault it was but there was a lengthy and ongoing analysis of the situation from the 2 protagonists. Spectator Andrew West also joined in. Anyway, Nomads were all out for 74 at 5 c'clock.
A beer match was hastily arranged which made an already unhappy John even less contented. I had to leave when Team India A were on about 40 for 3 but apparently they won the beer match as well. It's not all about me but I must mention that I took my first wicket for Nomads for several years in the beer match - caught on the boundary beautifully by Faseeh off a half volley. Shit gets wickets as the cliche goes.
So there was a strange end of term feel to what has been one of Nomads' best season, but it was still an enjoyable afternoon (and morning) of cricket.
More details and analysis of the season to follow.
Team India A (recorded in scorebook by John as Gupta XI) - 153 all out from 33.3 overs
Nomads' bowling;
Hassan 5-2-10-2
Emil 5-0-33-1
Abbas 7-1-39-1
Sami 7-0-31-0
Faseeh 4.3-0-12-3
KK 3-0-12-1
Riaz 2-1-4-2
Clapham Nomads 74 all out from 20.2 overs
Mahesh 0
Darwin 8
Riaz 21
Hassan 1
KK 6
Faseeh 0
Sami 1
Abbas 8
Emil 10
John not out 1
F.O.W. - 0, 33, 35, 35, 36, 37, 45, 56, 74
Nomads lost by 79 runs.
Man of the Match - Faseeh - Not just because he took a catch off my bowling;.he also took 3 wickets in the main match
Fielder of the Day - Abbas (he took 2 catches.)
I don't know if that is due to the shock of a start time of 11:45, which is a time many Nomads probably did not realise existed, for sporting purposes anyway.
I arrived at 3.45, due to working Night Shift, and found that our bowlers had done a good job to dismiss Team India for 153. However, the boundaries were long and the outfield slow-ish, so this was probably worth 170 or so.
A 10 a side match had already been agreed on.
Unfortunately we lost Mahesh who gloved one to the keeper 4th ball. There then followed the best batting of the innings with a stand of 33 between Darwin and Riaz, Riaz was then out for 21 - the top scorer - and a collapse followed from 33 for 1 to 37 for 6. Even Hassan missed out, which is very unusual for him this season.
The bowling was steady and varied but not spectacular and the pitch was decent, so it was just one of those inexplicable things. This season's has been one of the best batting line-ups we have ever had, so we cannot really complain.
Abbas did steady the ship a bit batting at No. 8 until his dismissal brought together the old favourites Emil Todorow and John Crossland, hopefully to make the deficit respectable and provide a bit of entertainment along the way. Emil had started shakily but, after 3 or 4 overs, began to look assured; he hit a nice 4 and was beginning to middle the ball. The pair were reasonably amicable with one another initially, despite Emil's basso profundo cry of "Calm down, John" becoming a temporary catchphrase for Team India's younger fielders. Soon however, John charged down the pitch and flicked the ball to Short Midwicket and yelled for a single, Emil hesitated, went for it, but was run out. I was half asleep (despite being umpire) so I cannot really say whose fault it was but there was a lengthy and ongoing analysis of the situation from the 2 protagonists. Spectator Andrew West also joined in. Anyway, Nomads were all out for 74 at 5 c'clock.
A beer match was hastily arranged which made an already unhappy John even less contented. I had to leave when Team India A were on about 40 for 3 but apparently they won the beer match as well. It's not all about me but I must mention that I took my first wicket for Nomads for several years in the beer match - caught on the boundary beautifully by Faseeh off a half volley. Shit gets wickets as the cliche goes.
So there was a strange end of term feel to what has been one of Nomads' best season, but it was still an enjoyable afternoon (and morning) of cricket.
More details and analysis of the season to follow.
Team India A (recorded in scorebook by John as Gupta XI) - 153 all out from 33.3 overs
Nomads' bowling;
Hassan 5-2-10-2
Emil 5-0-33-1
Abbas 7-1-39-1
Sami 7-0-31-0
Faseeh 4.3-0-12-3
KK 3-0-12-1
Riaz 2-1-4-2
Clapham Nomads 74 all out from 20.2 overs
Mahesh 0
Darwin 8
Riaz 21
Hassan 1
KK 6
Faseeh 0
Sami 1
Abbas 8
Emil 10
John not out 1
F.O.W. - 0, 33, 35, 35, 36, 37, 45, 56, 74
Nomads lost by 79 runs.
Man of the Match - Faseeh - Not just because he took a catch off my bowling;.he also took 3 wickets in the main match
Fielder of the Day - Abbas (he took 2 catches.)
Tuesday 12 September 2017
Clapham Nomads v Gentlemen of Hampstead - 10/9/17
A rare cancellation from the reliable Barnes Occasionals left Nomads looking for a replacement fixture last weekend but we soon managed to arrange a game against the excellently-named Gentlemen of Hampstead.
There are several unusual links between the 2 clubs; a) both are named after areas with astronomical property prices and famous open spaces (Hampstead has its Heath - a hillier, larger, wilder version of Clapham's famous Common) which are, I am informed by people in the know, used for very particular "leisure pursuits" - I mean long, healthy walks of course. b) With a surprise appearance from Andrew West - still banned from playing or umpiring, but remaining a Nomads Legend who can still update the scoreboard and eat a large tea - we were justified in subtitling ourselves "the Gentlemen of Clapham." c) Both clubs have Eastern Bloc connections; Nomads' is well-known but the "Gents'" is perhaps more interesting as they went on tour to Moscow in 1988, during the last days of the USSR, and played matches against three embassy sides; UK, Australia and New Zealand. They played at Moscow's Olympic Stadium, and had to prepare the pitch themselves using a scythe. d) Finally, they were founded in 1960 by the late, great actor Sir John Hurt, star of Midnight Express, Champions and The Naked Civil Servant. The connection here - Nomads have been represented by several civil servants, but probably none you would wish to see naked.
Anyway, to cricket. In a 10-a-side contest The Gents won the toss and batted under threatening skies with rain forecast. Their openers Brann and Nelms started well, peppering the short boundaries. The pitch was basically good but with a touch of irregular bounce both high and low. The breakthrough came in the 8th over when Emil Todorow, who bowled a good steady spell, found a little extra bounce and had Nelms well-caught in the slips by Mahesh Vyas - 32 for 1. Abbas replaced Hassan and, with a touch of extra pace, caused Brann to play on off the inside edge. 41 for 2 . Not long after, Abbas found the edge of No. 3 Preston's bat but it dropped just short of keeper John Crossland. That would have put us in a good position but Preston took full advantage of the let-off and dealt harshly with the frequent short balls. With the left-handed Cleeve also playing well the Gents made remorseless progress, with
just one half-chance going down, to 111 when Abbas found Cleeve's edge and Crossland snaffled the chance.
Another profitable stand followed between Preston and skipper Matt Bell but this was marked by some comedy (? tragicomedy) fielding by 2 of Nomads' veterans. The bowling was too short but the batsmen, almost as if they were doing it on purpose, kept chipping the ball up into the inner leg-side. Our 2 seniors (yes, alright, I was one of them...NL) missed 2 chances each in a 6-over period. One each was eminently catchable but both old-timers were also confronted by hideous, swirling skyers, neither of which they managed to get a hand to. (Well, it was a bit gusty.) The unluckiest bowler was Javed who should have had 3 wickets. Eventually, Faseeh showed us the way to do it when he did well to catch both these batsmen, in successive balls from Sami, on the Deep Mid Wicket boundary with the score on an imposing 183 in the 28th over. A late flurry, led by Sadip, took the North London side just over the 200, having scored at over 6.5 an over.
An eclectic, alfresco tea was enjoyed despite the high winds which we can call Hurricane Andrew as Mr West was on hand to increase our eating rate and chase off stray dogs.
Nomads had lost several batsmen due to late withdrawals (Zia, Riaz and KK) so this target looked tall. Even more so when Matt Bell, bowling a tricky length up the hill, had Mahesh and Javed caught, and back in the pavilion, with the total on 21.
There followed a superlative stand between Darwin, producing his best batting of the season and absolutely leathering the ball, mainly between Extra Cover and Mid Off but also over Square Leg, and Hassan who started the game on ? 597 runs this year at an average of well over 70. Hassan batted really elegantly and did not give a chance until he was finally out for 71 later on. In the meantime, the stand was tragically broken after the pair had put on 96 for the 3rd wicket when Darwin was run out to a smart piece of work in the covers. 117 for 3 and a lot now appeared to rest on Hassan. Faseeh started well but fell to a caught and bowled from the tricky left-arm spinner Alex Bell. 141 for 4. Hassan finally fell 3 runs later and, at 144 for 5 with only 4 wickets left, we seemed up against it, particularly to scorer John Crossland who was becoming so apopleptic on the sidelines that a colleague had to point out to him the difficulty of obtaining emergency medical assistance on a Sunday.
Abbas and Sami batted nicely to add 29 before Abbas was well stumped by Preston. Sami was starting to knock it about really well but now had only Nick Lefebve, Emil Todorow and John Crossland for company with 30 still needed. Thanks to Hassan and Darwin we were well up with the rate with about 8 overs to go. Lefebve had not held a bat for 4 months and showed virtually zero technique but fortunately some guts in sealing one end while Sami played some cracking shots. The pair took us in sight of victory when a short one reared up, ? off the edge, and hit Sami in the face causing temporary retirement. Still 4 to win off about 14 balls as Emil Todorow walked out. The elderly pair of Lefebve and Todorow - opening batsmen in a previous lifetime but who now had to concentrate as much on wiping the drizzle off their spectacles as on batting - streaked a couple before Lefebve finally got hold of a leg-stump delivery and smacked it towards the boundary. Victory seemed sealed but then, simultaneously, the batsman skidded back on the slippery crease and upended a stump and Alex Bell soared to take a mid-air one-handed catch at Backward Square. Out, however you want to label it (I will settle for Hit Wicket so I can blame the pitch). With 2 still needed off 7 balls, Sami bravely returned with a swollen cheek but was bowled. This left Emil with 6 balls to face and 2 to win. Gents had run out of front-line bowling options and turned to the gentle pace but reasonable accuracy of Nelms. This was definitely an "Eric Situation" - see report for Nomads v Surbiton Imperials from April 2014. The ghost of Eric loomed very large as Emil failed to connect with the first 3 deliveries but finally received one "in the zone" (short and outside off stump). Our hero belted it past the despairing dive of Point, went through for an easy single, and then halted. With all Nomads, Andrew West, and especially non-striker John Crossland bellowing obscenities at him, the skipper revved up again and scampered home for the second to secure victory in a real squeaky bum thriller.
Not out best perfomance by any means, despite excellent perfomances from Hassan, Darwin and Sami, but a fine team effort with everyone contributing something. A team for whom winning has become a habit - our 9th of the season - we could not countenance defeat and dug deep for the win. All credit to Hampstead as well, a talented, pleasant and very interesting side. When you arrange a Conference Fixture you are looking for well-matched opponents - and a 1-wicket win shows the teams certainly were well-matched.
Gentlemen of Hampstead 202 for 6 from 30 overs
Brann b Abbas 25
Nelms c Mahesh b Emil 9
Preston (wkt) c Faseeh b Sami 84
Cleeve c John b Abbas 20
M. Bell (cpt) c Faseeh b Sami 33
Sadip not out 14
AJ b Sami 0
Welton not out 2
F.O.W. - 32, 41, 111, 183, 183, 183
Nomads' bowling;
Hassan 5-1-19-0
Emil 6-1-29-1
Abbas 6-0-48-2
Faseeh 6-0-30-0
Sami 4-0-39-3
Javed 3-0-32-0
Clapham Nomads 203 for 8 from 29.4 overs
Mahesh c ---------- b M.Bell 3
Darwin run out 53
Javed c ----------- b M. Bell 3
Hassan c ----------- b Cleeve 71
Faseeh c & b A. Bell 4
Sami b Cleeve 34
Abbas stumped Preston b Sadip 12
Nick hit wicket b Cleeve 1
Emil not out 3
John not out 0
F./O.W. - 7, 21, 117, 141, 144, 173, 201, 201
Gentlemen of Hampstead's bowling;
Welton 5-0-47-0
M. Bell 6-0-47-2
A. Bell 6-0-35-1
Sadip 6-0-47-1
Cleeve 6-3-16-3
Nelms 0.4-0-2-0
Clapham Nomads won by 1 wicket (10-a-side match)
Man of the Match - Hassan
Fielder of the Day - Faseeh.
There are several unusual links between the 2 clubs; a) both are named after areas with astronomical property prices and famous open spaces (Hampstead has its Heath - a hillier, larger, wilder version of Clapham's famous Common) which are, I am informed by people in the know, used for very particular "leisure pursuits" - I mean long, healthy walks of course. b) With a surprise appearance from Andrew West - still banned from playing or umpiring, but remaining a Nomads Legend who can still update the scoreboard and eat a large tea - we were justified in subtitling ourselves "the Gentlemen of Clapham." c) Both clubs have Eastern Bloc connections; Nomads' is well-known but the "Gents'" is perhaps more interesting as they went on tour to Moscow in 1988, during the last days of the USSR, and played matches against three embassy sides; UK, Australia and New Zealand. They played at Moscow's Olympic Stadium, and had to prepare the pitch themselves using a scythe. d) Finally, they were founded in 1960 by the late, great actor Sir John Hurt, star of Midnight Express, Champions and The Naked Civil Servant. The connection here - Nomads have been represented by several civil servants, but probably none you would wish to see naked.
Anyway, to cricket. In a 10-a-side contest The Gents won the toss and batted under threatening skies with rain forecast. Their openers Brann and Nelms started well, peppering the short boundaries. The pitch was basically good but with a touch of irregular bounce both high and low. The breakthrough came in the 8th over when Emil Todorow, who bowled a good steady spell, found a little extra bounce and had Nelms well-caught in the slips by Mahesh Vyas - 32 for 1. Abbas replaced Hassan and, with a touch of extra pace, caused Brann to play on off the inside edge. 41 for 2 . Not long after, Abbas found the edge of No. 3 Preston's bat but it dropped just short of keeper John Crossland. That would have put us in a good position but Preston took full advantage of the let-off and dealt harshly with the frequent short balls. With the left-handed Cleeve also playing well the Gents made remorseless progress, with
just one half-chance going down, to 111 when Abbas found Cleeve's edge and Crossland snaffled the chance.
Another profitable stand followed between Preston and skipper Matt Bell but this was marked by some comedy (? tragicomedy) fielding by 2 of Nomads' veterans. The bowling was too short but the batsmen, almost as if they were doing it on purpose, kept chipping the ball up into the inner leg-side. Our 2 seniors (yes, alright, I was one of them...NL) missed 2 chances each in a 6-over period. One each was eminently catchable but both old-timers were also confronted by hideous, swirling skyers, neither of which they managed to get a hand to. (Well, it was a bit gusty.) The unluckiest bowler was Javed who should have had 3 wickets. Eventually, Faseeh showed us the way to do it when he did well to catch both these batsmen, in successive balls from Sami, on the Deep Mid Wicket boundary with the score on an imposing 183 in the 28th over. A late flurry, led by Sadip, took the North London side just over the 200, having scored at over 6.5 an over.
An eclectic, alfresco tea was enjoyed despite the high winds which we can call Hurricane Andrew as Mr West was on hand to increase our eating rate and chase off stray dogs.
Nomads had lost several batsmen due to late withdrawals (Zia, Riaz and KK) so this target looked tall. Even more so when Matt Bell, bowling a tricky length up the hill, had Mahesh and Javed caught, and back in the pavilion, with the total on 21.
There followed a superlative stand between Darwin, producing his best batting of the season and absolutely leathering the ball, mainly between Extra Cover and Mid Off but also over Square Leg, and Hassan who started the game on ? 597 runs this year at an average of well over 70. Hassan batted really elegantly and did not give a chance until he was finally out for 71 later on. In the meantime, the stand was tragically broken after the pair had put on 96 for the 3rd wicket when Darwin was run out to a smart piece of work in the covers. 117 for 3 and a lot now appeared to rest on Hassan. Faseeh started well but fell to a caught and bowled from the tricky left-arm spinner Alex Bell. 141 for 4. Hassan finally fell 3 runs later and, at 144 for 5 with only 4 wickets left, we seemed up against it, particularly to scorer John Crossland who was becoming so apopleptic on the sidelines that a colleague had to point out to him the difficulty of obtaining emergency medical assistance on a Sunday.
Abbas and Sami batted nicely to add 29 before Abbas was well stumped by Preston. Sami was starting to knock it about really well but now had only Nick Lefebve, Emil Todorow and John Crossland for company with 30 still needed. Thanks to Hassan and Darwin we were well up with the rate with about 8 overs to go. Lefebve had not held a bat for 4 months and showed virtually zero technique but fortunately some guts in sealing one end while Sami played some cracking shots. The pair took us in sight of victory when a short one reared up, ? off the edge, and hit Sami in the face causing temporary retirement. Still 4 to win off about 14 balls as Emil Todorow walked out. The elderly pair of Lefebve and Todorow - opening batsmen in a previous lifetime but who now had to concentrate as much on wiping the drizzle off their spectacles as on batting - streaked a couple before Lefebve finally got hold of a leg-stump delivery and smacked it towards the boundary. Victory seemed sealed but then, simultaneously, the batsman skidded back on the slippery crease and upended a stump and Alex Bell soared to take a mid-air one-handed catch at Backward Square. Out, however you want to label it (I will settle for Hit Wicket so I can blame the pitch). With 2 still needed off 7 balls, Sami bravely returned with a swollen cheek but was bowled. This left Emil with 6 balls to face and 2 to win. Gents had run out of front-line bowling options and turned to the gentle pace but reasonable accuracy of Nelms. This was definitely an "Eric Situation" - see report for Nomads v Surbiton Imperials from April 2014. The ghost of Eric loomed very large as Emil failed to connect with the first 3 deliveries but finally received one "in the zone" (short and outside off stump). Our hero belted it past the despairing dive of Point, went through for an easy single, and then halted. With all Nomads, Andrew West, and especially non-striker John Crossland bellowing obscenities at him, the skipper revved up again and scampered home for the second to secure victory in a real squeaky bum thriller.
Not out best perfomance by any means, despite excellent perfomances from Hassan, Darwin and Sami, but a fine team effort with everyone contributing something. A team for whom winning has become a habit - our 9th of the season - we could not countenance defeat and dug deep for the win. All credit to Hampstead as well, a talented, pleasant and very interesting side. When you arrange a Conference Fixture you are looking for well-matched opponents - and a 1-wicket win shows the teams certainly were well-matched.
Gentlemen of Hampstead 202 for 6 from 30 overs
Brann b Abbas 25
Nelms c Mahesh b Emil 9
Preston (wkt) c Faseeh b Sami 84
Cleeve c John b Abbas 20
M. Bell (cpt) c Faseeh b Sami 33
Sadip not out 14
AJ b Sami 0
Welton not out 2
F.O.W. - 32, 41, 111, 183, 183, 183
Nomads' bowling;
Hassan 5-1-19-0
Emil 6-1-29-1
Abbas 6-0-48-2
Faseeh 6-0-30-0
Sami 4-0-39-3
Javed 3-0-32-0
Clapham Nomads 203 for 8 from 29.4 overs
Mahesh c ---------- b M.Bell 3
Darwin run out 53
Javed c ----------- b M. Bell 3
Hassan c ----------- b Cleeve 71
Faseeh c & b A. Bell 4
Sami b Cleeve 34
Abbas stumped Preston b Sadip 12
Nick hit wicket b Cleeve 1
Emil not out 3
John not out 0
F./O.W. - 7, 21, 117, 141, 144, 173, 201, 201
Gentlemen of Hampstead's bowling;
Welton 5-0-47-0
M. Bell 6-0-47-2
A. Bell 6-0-35-1
Sadip 6-0-47-1
Cleeve 6-3-16-3
Nelms 0.4-0-2-0
Clapham Nomads won by 1 wicket (10-a-side match)
Man of the Match - Hassan
Fielder of the Day - Faseeh.
Thursday 7 September 2017
Recent reports plus tributes to Hassan and Emil
I have finally finished the reports of recent matches, so if you need some really boring reading to help you drop off to sleep at night, here they are.
Also, I am soon going to do the long overdue tributes to Hassan for reaching 5,000 runs for the club (this is so overdue that he is now up to about 5,500) and to Emil for achieving 250 successive appearances for the club (I think he is now on 258.)
In the report of the match against Wimbledon United (6/8/17) I said that Hassan had made his second century of the season. Sorry, it was - of course - his third. I will list all his centuries for the club in the tribute.
Nick
Also, I am soon going to do the long overdue tributes to Hassan for reaching 5,000 runs for the club (this is so overdue that he is now up to about 5,500) and to Emil for achieving 250 successive appearances for the club (I think he is now on 258.)
In the report of the match against Wimbledon United (6/8/17) I said that Hassan had made his second century of the season. Sorry, it was - of course - his third. I will list all his centuries for the club in the tribute.
Nick
Southall Dragons v Clapham Nomads - 3/9/17
After our scheduled game against Surbiton Imperials was called off, we were pleased to secure an away fixture at the Perivale home of the Southall Dragons.
Both John Crossland and I remembered playing at this venue - the Ealing Central Sports Ground - for Open University sometime in the early 1990s and it was an ideal venue at which to represent the OU as the roar of traffic from the neighbouring A40 drowned out the constructive criticism dealt out by skipper Dave Hunter and other team-mates such as Micky and Benny.
Anyway, enough nostalgia. Nomads took a 12-man squad up there and looked strong in batting. The Dragons are a talented and friendly side with some excellent players.
Nomads batted but came up against a fine opening bowler in Jasmeet who had 2 main deliveries; the bullet speared in from a wide angle towards leg stump and the crafty slower ball that moves away off the pitch. Both Mahesh and No. 4 Javed were undone by the first of these while Darwin unfortunately holed out into the covers off the other opener Raj. Nomads were in deep trouble at 15 for 3. Enter 2 men who have been absolute stars this season; Hassan and Zia. They steered Nomads sensibly up to 45 before the splendidly named Guv had Zia caught. Riaz was No. 6 and he is a man who, if he survives his first 2 or 3 overs, can cause havoc. We needed this to be one of those days. He certainly obliged with a massively entertaining 49 including an enormous straight 6 right out of the ground. I was waiting anxiously for the tinkle of glass and screech of brakes from the A40 when the ball sailed over the trees, but I think the ball might actually have got closer to the A4. (2 miles away).
When Jasmeet returned for his second spell (his last 2 overs), I felt that, if Hassan and Riaz survived it, we would have a decent chance. Unfortunately, Hassan got hold of a rare half-volley but it went hard and low in the air straight to Cover. 89 for 5.
Riaz kept up the entertainment but Faseeh and Abbas didn't last too long. Luckily he found a partner in No. 9 Sami who played a series of sensible groundshots for 24. Dragons' usual opening bowler "Da Man" arrived late but accounted for both Riaz - 1 short of a fifty - and Sami in the same over. On the final ball of the over he bowled Emil off the inside edge leaving No. 11 John Crossland frustrated on 0 not out without facing a ball. Emil was hard on himself over this dismissal and even made whispers about retirement at some point - probably 20 years time, but there is no disgrace in being done first ball by an opening bowler with a straight one, especially as this is not the best "seeing" ground with its trees on the boundary and no sightscreen.
Nomads finished on 144 all out and had failed to use 3 of the 30 overs. Could this be crucial?
There was a quick turn-around as tea wasn't ready yet and, for possibly the only time in the match, Nomads got their noses in front when a fine bit of bowling from Zia accounted for No. 2 with the score on 12. This was, however, followed by a remorseless stand, full of good batting, between Robbie and Yas. Tea was taken on about 60 for 1 but this failed to disrupt their concentration and, as the score passed 100, a 9-wicket defeat looked possible. 3 quick wickets from Hassan, including an excellent catch on the boundary from Zia to dismiss Robbie for 64, made it respectable and then a further 2 men fell. With Dragons on 128 for 6 and the left-handed No. 8 not looking immediately assured, there appeared to be just a sniff. The West London side had good depth to their batting though and they steered the hosts home with the loss of just one further wicket, despite tight and pacy bowling from Faseeh near the end.
It was an enjoyable game and the defeat was not a disgrace. On the day, Dragons had the best bowler and the best batsman and this proved crucial.
Clapham Nomads 144 all out from 27 overs.
Mahesh 6
Darwin 0
Hassan 22
Javed 0
Zia 15
Riaz 49
Faseeh 0
Abbas 4
Sami 24
Emil (capt) 0
John (wkt) not out 0
F.O.W. - 7, 7, 15, 45, 89, 91, 96, 140, 144, 144
Southall Dragons 145 for 7 from 26.2 overs.
Nomads' bowling
Sami 5-0-30-1
Zia 6-0-27-1
Abbas 4.2-0-27-0
Hassan 6-0-31-3
Faseeh 5-0-18-2
Nomads lost by 3 wickets.
Man of the Match. Hassan came very close with a useful 22 and 3 wickets which dragged us back into the game. However, in a low-scoring game, Riaz provided some vital and very entertaining batting and gets the nod.
Fielder of the Day - The most consistent ground-fielder was possibly Faseeh, but Zia's excellent catch to remove the top scorer wins him the vote.
Nomads have now played 13, won 8, drawn 1 and lost 4. Our best season was 2001 when we won 10 and lost 4, so we have a chance of of equalling this if we win our last 2 games. Next up are new opponents - The Gentlemen of Hampstead - at home on Sunday 10th.
Both John Crossland and I remembered playing at this venue - the Ealing Central Sports Ground - for Open University sometime in the early 1990s and it was an ideal venue at which to represent the OU as the roar of traffic from the neighbouring A40 drowned out the constructive criticism dealt out by skipper Dave Hunter and other team-mates such as Micky and Benny.
Anyway, enough nostalgia. Nomads took a 12-man squad up there and looked strong in batting. The Dragons are a talented and friendly side with some excellent players.
Nomads batted but came up against a fine opening bowler in Jasmeet who had 2 main deliveries; the bullet speared in from a wide angle towards leg stump and the crafty slower ball that moves away off the pitch. Both Mahesh and No. 4 Javed were undone by the first of these while Darwin unfortunately holed out into the covers off the other opener Raj. Nomads were in deep trouble at 15 for 3. Enter 2 men who have been absolute stars this season; Hassan and Zia. They steered Nomads sensibly up to 45 before the splendidly named Guv had Zia caught. Riaz was No. 6 and he is a man who, if he survives his first 2 or 3 overs, can cause havoc. We needed this to be one of those days. He certainly obliged with a massively entertaining 49 including an enormous straight 6 right out of the ground. I was waiting anxiously for the tinkle of glass and screech of brakes from the A40 when the ball sailed over the trees, but I think the ball might actually have got closer to the A4. (2 miles away).
When Jasmeet returned for his second spell (his last 2 overs), I felt that, if Hassan and Riaz survived it, we would have a decent chance. Unfortunately, Hassan got hold of a rare half-volley but it went hard and low in the air straight to Cover. 89 for 5.
Riaz kept up the entertainment but Faseeh and Abbas didn't last too long. Luckily he found a partner in No. 9 Sami who played a series of sensible groundshots for 24. Dragons' usual opening bowler "Da Man" arrived late but accounted for both Riaz - 1 short of a fifty - and Sami in the same over. On the final ball of the over he bowled Emil off the inside edge leaving No. 11 John Crossland frustrated on 0 not out without facing a ball. Emil was hard on himself over this dismissal and even made whispers about retirement at some point - probably 20 years time, but there is no disgrace in being done first ball by an opening bowler with a straight one, especially as this is not the best "seeing" ground with its trees on the boundary and no sightscreen.
Nomads finished on 144 all out and had failed to use 3 of the 30 overs. Could this be crucial?
There was a quick turn-around as tea wasn't ready yet and, for possibly the only time in the match, Nomads got their noses in front when a fine bit of bowling from Zia accounted for No. 2 with the score on 12. This was, however, followed by a remorseless stand, full of good batting, between Robbie and Yas. Tea was taken on about 60 for 1 but this failed to disrupt their concentration and, as the score passed 100, a 9-wicket defeat looked possible. 3 quick wickets from Hassan, including an excellent catch on the boundary from Zia to dismiss Robbie for 64, made it respectable and then a further 2 men fell. With Dragons on 128 for 6 and the left-handed No. 8 not looking immediately assured, there appeared to be just a sniff. The West London side had good depth to their batting though and they steered the hosts home with the loss of just one further wicket, despite tight and pacy bowling from Faseeh near the end.
It was an enjoyable game and the defeat was not a disgrace. On the day, Dragons had the best bowler and the best batsman and this proved crucial.
Clapham Nomads 144 all out from 27 overs.
Mahesh 6
Darwin 0
Hassan 22
Javed 0
Zia 15
Riaz 49
Faseeh 0
Abbas 4
Sami 24
Emil (capt) 0
John (wkt) not out 0
F.O.W. - 7, 7, 15, 45, 89, 91, 96, 140, 144, 144
Southall Dragons 145 for 7 from 26.2 overs.
Nomads' bowling
Sami 5-0-30-1
Zia 6-0-27-1
Abbas 4.2-0-27-0
Hassan 6-0-31-3
Faseeh 5-0-18-2
Nomads lost by 3 wickets.
Man of the Match. Hassan came very close with a useful 22 and 3 wickets which dragged us back into the game. However, in a low-scoring game, Riaz provided some vital and very entertaining batting and gets the nod.
Fielder of the Day - The most consistent ground-fielder was possibly Faseeh, but Zia's excellent catch to remove the top scorer wins him the vote.
Nomads have now played 13, won 8, drawn 1 and lost 4. Our best season was 2001 when we won 10 and lost 4, so we have a chance of of equalling this if we win our last 2 games. Next up are new opponents - The Gentlemen of Hampstead - at home on Sunday 10th.
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