It was a scorching day , the hottest of the summer to that point. The track was hard and looked fairly even. Rob Anderson, captain for the day, lost the toss. So, predictably, we were banished to the field to bake for 40 overs. In the event, it turned out to be considerably less the 40 overs, thanks to some excellent bowling and fielding. James and Stuart opened the bowling, and both were right on the spot from the start. Runs were hard to come by, and wickets fell regularly. The pitch presented a few problems, with some balls popping and others keeping low. Guy, Stephen, and Rob continued the good work and before we knew it, Nuxley were all out for 97.
There didn't seem much point in having tea between the innings, so we carried on without a break. Rob opened with Sean, and despite usually batting further down the order, he looked the more comfortable of the two, striking the ball cleanly and firmly. As it happened, his 47 (jug avoidance? not so: he and Tony bought one after the game) was crucial because Sean, Kyle, Graeme, Stephen, Vinny, and Roric failed to make much of an impression on the tight Nuxley bowling. In fact, Stephen's golden duck gave absolutely no indication of what was to come the following week (a century)! So it was left to Tony to steady the ship. He was tentative at first, but very determined with it. When Guy strode to the crease, Exiles were seven wickets down and still a good 20 runs short. It was beginning to look like we could lose; the tension was rising. Happily, though, a partnership developed, with Tony now playing some impressive cuts and drives and Guy bravely defending his wicket with bat, pad, glove, and chest. When Guy departed there was only about five runs to get, and Stuart finished the match with a typically lusty swipe.
It's always good to have a close game, but that was one victory we nearly let slip away. The return match at home (13 July) should be interesting!
Sean O'Connor.
| Batsman | How Out | Bowler | Runs |
| M Heaney | Bowled | S Lindsay | 2 |
| Jay | Bowled | S Lindsay | 0 |
| J Chandler | Ct | J Weir | 0 |
| R Warner | Bowled | J Weir | 10 |
| Thaminda | Bowled | S Lindsay | 0 |
| T Russell | Bowled | J Weir | 14 |
| S Saunders | Ct Weir | SD O'Connor | 24 |
| A Hudson | Ct S O'Connor | R Anderson | 6 |
| J Andrews | Ct R Coleman | SD O'Connor | 13 |
| Upali | Bowled | SD O'Connor | 12 |
| Hahn | Not | Out | 3 |
| Total | 26 overs | Extras 14 | 97 all out |
| Bowler | Overs | Maidens | Runs | Wickets |
| S Lindsay | 5 | 2 | 8 | 3 |
| J Weir | 8 | 2 | 16 | 3 |
| R Anderson | 6 | 0 | 28 | 1 |
| SD O'Connor | 5 | 0 | 32 | 3 |
| G Hatton | 2 | 0 | 5 | 0 |
Exiles Innings:
| Batsman | How Out | Bowler | Runs |
| S O'Connor | Bowled | Saunders | 4 |
| R Anderson | lbw | Andrews | 47 |
| K Holling | bowled | Warner | 10 |
| G Van Rooyen | Ct | Warner | 0 |
| T Brook | not | out | 14 |
| R Coleman | Ct | Warner | 8 |
| V Brooks | bowled | Andrews | 0 |
| SD O'Connor | lbw | Warner | 0 |
| G Hatton | Ct | Saunders | 3 |
| S Lindsay | Not | Out | 5 |
| J Weir | , | , | , |
| Total | 27 Overs | for 8 Wickets | 99 |
Nuxley bowling figures:
| Bowler | Overs | Maidens | Runs | Wickets |
| Saunders | 8 | 0 | 37 | 2 |
| Hudson | 8 | 1 | 29 | 0 |
| Warner | 6 | 1 | 9 | 4 |
| Andrews | 5 | 0 | 18 | 2 |
Next up The Flying Wickets at home.