Tick, Tick, Tock
Milton 1st vs. Little Downham 1st.
Milton 174 vs. Little Downham 97. Both bowled out.
The first game of a new season in a new league, a few new faces, new expectations and new dreams, all for the same grand Milton Cricket Club. The desire of the Milton 1st team is to either consolidate their place in the Senior 3 league or gain promotion into the Senior 2 league, Saturday was the day when the campaign began.
Players turned up and the toss to place, with Jez walking off the field with his famous batting signal of an air forward defensive. Milton had suffered a slight injury scare in the warm up though, which supposed level 2 coach Mark Barton led, with Sam “the Torpedo” Allen pulling up with a slight injury to his shoulder. He had fallen on it in an attempted diving catch, this twinned with the sharp grass which is common early season, caused a twinge in Sam’s shoulder which he deemed bad enough not to be able to open the batting. For this reason the batting line up was: 1. J. Major 2. S. Costan 3. S. Mohanraj 4. T. Scotter 5. A. Misra 6. A. Minto 7. J. Amphlett 8. R. Carey 9. M. Barton 10. S. Allen 11. D. Costan.
The innings began slowly and the early season Milton pitch was clearly the reason for this, yet as a lot of local teams pitches where unplayable as admitted by a few of the Downham players, everyone was pleased to be playing. Jez struggled to get a rhythm going and was dismissed edging the ball back on to his stumps for 9, Simon followed 30minutes later for 12 having been caught out and 2 minutes later Sandeep also followed suit in the same fashion for 7. The poor batting performance continued with Scotter getting bowled for 9 before Ash made a gruelling 16 but was dismissed caught, an over later John followed. During this time though Action Man, Ali Minto had began his innings, Ryan came and went for 4, Mark Barton had stuck around and got 4 through one classy shot over Mid-On, but he had supplied ample support to Action Man, Ali Minto, who began to wield his mighty weapon. Boundaries began to flow with 4’s being smashed through the on and off sides before Ali decided to really begin to unleash and started smashing 6’s, all with a Mal Lowe esq. slog sweep over deep mid wicket with the ball sailing over the two fielders on the boundary rope, one landing on the metal shed roof and another only being stopped by the trees, but looked destined to reach the road side. Through sheer force of will, class and some big hitting Ali Minto pulled Milton to a score which looked defendable. 10 4’s and 3 huge 6’s all where part of Ali reaching 89 before being caught out and leaving a solid looking Dan Costan still yet to get off the mark, and Milton on a total of 174 all out which is a defendable total on a slow low wicket.
When the Little Downham innings began the overhead conditions changed to overcast, yet still warm. The new ball was thrown to Ryan Carey, who along with Dan Costan set the tone for the Little Downham inning straight away with both only going for a combined total of 27 runs after their opening spells of 7 overs each, a defensive trend with a reluctance to play attacking shots stretched the whole of the Little Downham inning. During this spell Ryan had cracked the batting order open with an edge which flew to Sandeep at gully who juggled with the ball before clinging on. An over later Ryan got a second wicket with a ball that swung away from the batsmen yet nipped off the seem and rattled middle stump. Ali Minto came on with Mark Barton and last season’s two leading wicket takers where not about to release the pressure either, Minto dispatched the remaining opener’s stumps and Mark chipped in with two wickets as well, both bowling really well. During this time Sandeep had replaced Scotter behind the stumps due to Scotter having to run off to work (a minimalist contribution from the character which is Tom Scotter). Sandeep snaffled a catch off Mark’s bowling, a bottom edge which Sandeep darted his gloves too. Mark’s second wicket was a sharp caught and bowled, with the Downham batsmen looking to hook the ball to the leg side but managing to hit it straight back to Mark who got his hands to the ball and clung on well. Ash and Simon then took over as the level of Downham batsmen steadily decreased, they mopped the tail up both displaying superb ability to not only spin the ball but control it, Simon with his off spin and Ash with his quick leg spin and the change up off spinner. Both mesmerised the Downham batsmen and finished the tail off, both picking up 2 wickets each. Simons wickets came via 1 superb catch at deep square leg by Ash and the second by just plain out beating the batsmen and bowling him. Ash’s wickets came via 1 LBW decision, and the second by yet another catch by Sandeep behind the stumps.
A decent bowling performance from the Milton bowlers, coupled with a poor batting display by Little Downham, and more than ample support in the field especially from Sandeep who clung on to important catches and did a decent job behind the sticks after the disappearance of Mr Scotter, proved enough to bowl the visitors out under 100. Although it was a poor batting performance from Milton, with only 1 player getting above 20 and only 2 more getting past 10. A decent target was therefore only made possible by the big hitting of Ali Minto, whose good form will hopefully continue into the next game.
Writers Man of the Match A. Minto for splendid knock of 89.
A Tale of Two Ash’s
Milton 1sts vs. Sawston 2nds
Milton 254-8 vs. Sawston 253-8
The second game of the season was played away at Sawston, and on a scorching hot day Milton arrived to a heavenly Sawston pitch which looked destined to have a huge amount of runs scored on it. Sawston are one of the stronger teams in the league and would therefore provide a good standard to which Milton could compare to.
The Milton line-up was: 1. S. Allen, 2. J. Major, 3. S. Mohanraj, 4. A. Misra, 5. J. Amphlett, 6. A. Minto, 7. D. Clarke, 8. R. Carey, 9. S. Costan, 10. M. Barton, 11. D. Costan. With this being a fairly strong line up the toss took place which Jez lost, and subsequently Milton took the field with ball in hand. The pitch looked a dream batting track and one of the best Milton have played on in recent years, the task of bowling Sawston out was going to be a tricky one.
For the second match in a row the Milton bowling attack was led by Ryan Carey and Dan Costan and from the start both looked as though they would get wickets, and both did. With Dan bowling 12 overs straight through and picking up 3 well deserved wickets, and Ryan getting 1 as well as having 2 catches dropped 1 off the Sawston number 4 who was on 7 at the time but went on to get a superb 100. Carey went for 23 runs bowling two consecutive maidens for his 1 wicket which was a catch by Jez who had moved into a short cover position on the drive, Dan Costan bowled his 12 overs for 53 runs and also bowled two maidens for his 3 wickets. Dan got his wickets by, firstly pinning the Sawston number 2’s off stump, the second was a fine catch by Ali Minto and the third was a good take by Grinners who had began to move down leg before snaffling the ball which nicked the edge.
After the 15th over and the first set of drinks Sawston where only 51 for 2.
Ali Minto came on to replace a tiring Carey and was bowling at an absolutely rapid pace, he got an edge through to slip but this got dropped. Minto bowled accurately and very quickly and as a result only went for 34 off his 7 overs, bowling 1 maiden but not picking up any wickets. The Sawston batsmen where beginning to get a grip on the innings and therefore the match, especially when Ash came on to replace Minto, this over could turn out to be one of the most expensive of the season, as he got smashed for 3 big sixes and 2 fours for a combined total of 26 off one over. In his place Simon came on who went for 9 in his first over and the trend looked as though it may continue. Mark replaced Dan who had got through a mammoth spell in the roaring heat and had bowled with pace and aggression. Mark started expensively as well going for 11 in his first over, but began to gain more control as his spell went on. Simon got into his rhythm though and bowled well, giving the ball good flight, which provided too much of a temptation for the Sawston batsmen who often chased the ball as Simon picked up 3 wickets, all of which where caught behind by Grinners, who kept superbly.
The batting started out very nicely with Sam Allen, although still suffering from the shoulder injury, scoring a quick 20 with two boundaries in it, but he was dismissed via a catch. Jez put down a solid platform, but when Sam went the scoring rate slowed considerably and Jez followed Sam 3 overs later after getting bowled for 14. When Ash arrived at the crease the wind of change blew across the field as he began to score runs quickly, hitting boundaries for his first 3 scoring shots with two 4’s and a 6. Sandeep at this time was nudging the ball around the field cleverly and ticking his own score over. Ash quickly strode on to his 50 and hit 1 over for 21, hitting 3 sixes and he raced on to a superb match winning score off 71, a splendid knock which made up for “that over”, and a partnership with Sandeep of 127 which proved the most important contribution in the innings. John came and went for 7, and Ali Minto joined Sandeep at the crease and smashed a quick 24 before departing. Then Grinners smashed the ball over the top and guided another boundary down to fine leg, this shot proved to be part of his downfall, the Sawston team took 15 minutes to find the ball Dave lost his concentration and was pinned first ball back for 9. Ryan came and went within 2 balls, stretching in an attempt to manoeuvre the ball to leg side and nicking to the keeper, Simon went in and knocked a few runs off, as well as smacking one superb shot through point, a trademark cut shot.
The first ball of the final over with only 3 runs required to draw and another to win the Sawston bowler bowled a wide which Mark and Simon where also able to run a quick single with as well to make the scores tied, 5 dots followed and as it looked as though Simon was not going to get the winning runs he flicked one to the leg side which did not quite go for 4 yet as only 1 run was required it didn’t matter. Milton had chased a mammoth Sawston total of 254 to win.
A vastly improved batting performance on a much better pitch with the Milton top score being Ash’s 71 which was filled with boundaries, 7 4’s and 4 6’s with his last 3 scoring shots being 6’s. Sandeep although was not at his fluent best battled and played some nice shots for his 68 and hit 8 4’s in this innings. Ali Minto was the next top score for 24 with 20 of these runs coming via 4’s, and Sam also broke the 20 mark before getting out.
A brilliant match from 2 evenly matched sides, who will both no doubt be at the business end of the table come the end of the season, 3 50’s and 1 hundred demonstrate what a batting paradise this pitch really was. Wickets where hard to come by, although Milton could only really blame themselves for this with 5 dropped catches being the main reason Sawston where allowed to get to that eventual target of 253. A half decent bowling performance from the bowlers who as stated where not backed up in the field, but they did allow the Sawston score to get to 250 as a result of some expensive overs. Sawston cracked on in the second half of their innings as they gained a strong strangle hold on theirs and for large periods Milton’s innings as well.
Writers Man of the Match: Sandeep Mohanraj for a hard working knock of 69 which saw the Milton innings through.
Madingley 162 all out (39 overs)
Milton I 166 for 2 (25 overs)
Milton powered to an impressive victory over Madlingley with some pesistent bowling and steady batting.
Milton lost the toss and were put into the field on a hot but windy day at The Sycamores. After a mixed start by the opening bowlers, some excelling quick bowling by Ali Minto and Mark Barton ripped throught the Madingliney top order, exposing a more inexperienced tail. Owen Howell was Madingleys top batsman on 41, removed after a stunning caught and bowled by Ali.
In response, Milton started solidly, Jon Amphlett and Ash Misra putting on 53 for the first wicket. Ash was batting stunningly, getting off the mark with 3 fours and a six. Madingleys heads were down and even after Sandeep chipped a simple one to mid-wicket, Milton kept the pressure on. Graemes quick 21 meant that Ash was just short of a stunning century, 96 not out, at the close. A great victory for an impressive looking Milton side.
Girton v Milton Saturday 31 May
Milton 156 all out
Girton 160 for 6
Milton suffered their first loss of the season on a damp wicket at Girston Rec.
After losing the toss, Milton were put in on a damp looking but drying wickets at The Rec. Girton opening bowlers Matt Hobbs and S.Pawley got some early exaggerated seam movement and Milton batsmen Sam and Jon struggled to make any meaningful scores in the first 12 overs. Then a flurry of wickets as both Jon and Sandeep were removed. This brough Graeme Newton to the crease, who confirmed his recent in-form status by knocking a quick 47. Apart from this however, Miltons middle order struggled to stay around and when Hobbs returned, Milton were cleaned up pretty quickly for a disappointing 156, Hobbs finishing with 6 wickets.
Girtons response started solidly enough, which forced Jez into making quick bowling changes to try to get a breakthrough. This came wihen Thornton lofted one to mid-off. Some good overs from Mark Barton and the returning Nic Seaman brought another couple of wickets. Simon Coston bowled well and there was an outside chance of a win for Milton when Nic and Simon combined to remove C. Cooke, shortly followed by the run out of Hobbs. However, Girton had enough left to see them reasonably confortably over the line with 3 overs to spare. A disappointing day for Milton; a bad toss to lose and a lackluster batting performance.
In and Out, The Tale of the Sam Allen Bench
Milton 1sts vs. Great Chishall 1sts
Milton 174 vs. Great Chishall 145
With the last game Milton played being a loss to Girton and the rained off game which proceeded that, this game took an extra dimension with Milton requiring a win on order to keep up the chase for promotion. The conditions seemed to favour the bowlers, with overhead conditions being overcast and the pitch slow and low due to the wet weather throughout the week.
The Milton line up was: 1. S. Allen 2. J. Major 3. A. Misra 4. G. Newton 5. J. Amphlett 6. N. Seaman 7. D. Clark 8. R. Carey 9. S. Costan 10. M. Barton 11. D. Costan A fairly batting orientated line up with only the specialist numbers 10 and 11 Mark and Dan being the only ones not considered being able to bat although Mark would dispute that and Dan would discuss his square drive for his single. Any score around 170/ 180 would be a good score and very defendable.
Jez lost the toss and Milton were put into bat on the damp Milton wicket, the first over was a great start with Sam getting off the mark and Jez scoring runs freely from the off with a 2 and then his first 4. Jez raced onto 30 in the first 9 overs before being pinned in the first over of the change bowler. During this quick innings Jez had played some exquisite shots, with repeated off drives right back past the bowler as well as his trademarked flick off leg stump for four. The score was 44 for 1 after 9 overs when he went. Ash entered the crease and continued where Jez had left off manoeuvring the ball around the field and dispatching the bad balls which came his way, but 5 overs later Sam got a leading edge and clipped tamely back to the bowler and after 13 overs went for 7. Ash and Gray lasted a few overs together before Ash fell on 23 at deep mid-wicket after attempting to play his favoured slog sweep for six with the Great Chishall fielder clinging on well. Gray and John then built a solid partnership of just under 50 before Gray fell for 20, out with a second caught and bowled from Great Chishall. Soon after John followed on 20 getting caught as well. Nick Seaman and Dave Clark were the last of the decent contributions from the Milton batsmen with Nick scoring a hard hitting 30 and Dave doing what he does best at the end of an innings and knocked the ball around intelligently as well as departing the bad balls. The last 3 wickets fell for 1 run with Ryan, Mark, Simon all going with the score on 173 before Dan played a supreme square drive which was stunningly stopped by a diving Great Chishall fielder but otherwise looked destined to race away, like a cheetah chasing a antelope for four.
During this time a bench had been dedicated the memory of Sam Allen getting runs. May Sam getting above 10 rest in peace, lol. Only joking mate, the runs will come, not very quickly but maybe eventually, lol. Love it!!!
The Great Chishall innings started with the pitch being in a similar condition to when Milton’s innings had begun although it did have a degree of damage on it due to the natural wear and tear that a pitch has to deal with throughout a cricket match.
With the return of Carey after a brief spell on the side lines due to pulling up in training with a shoulder injury, the usual opening bowling attack of Costan and Carey took the new ball with immediate consequences for Great Chishall. Dan bowled a maiden to start the Great Chishall innings and then after a wide and a no ball Carey picked up the first wicket of the Great Chishall innings with the Great Chishall batsmen going on the drive, yet only chipped it to John at point and he held a straight forward catch to his left hand side. In the next over Dan picked up the next wicket with the remaining Great Chishall batsmen chipping to the other Costan cousin Simon for Dan’s first wicket. Ryan’s next couple of overs went by without any real problems for any one and Dan bowled a maiden before in his fourth over picking up another wicket, this time the batsmen nicked the ball behind to Dave Clark who held a simple catch. Nick replaced Carey and set about his task well, causing problems for the Great Chishall batsmen, and Mark replaced Dan to pick up a wicket in his second over with yet another catch by Dave behind the sticks. The Great Chishall captain A. Gent had begun to build an innings though and in Marks third over dispatched him for 2 6’s and a four. Simon came on to bowl at Mark’s end and picked up a wicket for himself, a LBW which was actually given. Ash was bowling at this time from the Tesco end and was turning the ball around corners, with none of the Great Chishall batsmen or any of the Milton side themselves having any idea what he was going to bowl next. With this came the problems though, after some dodgy umpiring decisions Ash began to get a little angry, twinned with his normal exited behaviour the Great Chishall players began to take some offence. Dan came back on and cleaned the tail of Great Chishall up finishing with fine figures of 4 for 23. Great Chishall were angry at the result in this match but this could also be due to the fact that Milton have thrashed them both times we have played them, with both matches having Great Chishall in semi-decent positions before Milton had battled back to defeat them. As in last time when Milton had the giant trophy to take home, Milton this time had 20 hard worked and hard won points to take home, and keep the chase for promotion alive.
Another good match from two sides battling for a second successive promotion. A superb performance from the Great Chishall captain who bowled 12 overs and picked up 3 wickets before going on to make 53 with the bat as well. He without argument was the one thing which kept Great Chishall in the match, but on this day he was just not capable of being able to claw his side to victory as the Milton machine rode on to another victory. With the bat though Milton had a mixed afternoon with 6 batsmen getting to twenty yet none getting above 30, more batsmen will be required to go on to bigger scores if Milton are going to gain promotion. In the field Milton fielded half decently with 6 wickets being taken via catches, although extras do need to be rained in after 28 were given to Great Chishall, with 10 byes and a combined 15 wides and no-balls.
Writers Man of the Match: Dan Costan for fine figures of 9-3-26-4 and cracked the Great Chishall batting open before finishing off the tail.
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jon
First Team Match Reports
jon
Sat 3rd May 2008 Little Downham
Milton 1st vs. Little Downham 1st.
Milton 174 vs. Little Downham 97. Both bowled out.
The first game of a new season in a new league, a few new faces, new expectations and new dreams, all for the same grand Milton Cricket Club. The desire of the Milton 1st team is to either consolidate their place in the Senior 3 league or gain promotion into the Senior 2 league, Saturday was the day when the campaign began.
Players turned up and the toss to place, with Jez walking off the field with his famous batting signal of an air forward defensive. Milton had suffered a slight injury scare in the warm up though, which supposed level 2 coach Mark Barton led, with Sam “the Torpedo” Allen pulling up with a slight injury to his shoulder. He had fallen on it in an attempted diving catch, this twinned with the sharp grass which is common early season, caused a twinge in Sam’s shoulder which he deemed bad enough not to be able to open the batting. For this reason the batting line up was: 1. J. Major 2. S. Costan 3. S. Mohanraj 4. T. Scotter 5. A. Misra 6. A. Minto 7. J. Amphlett 8. R. Carey 9. M. Barton 10. S. Allen 11. D. Costan.
The innings began slowly and the early season Milton pitch was clearly the reason for this, yet as a lot of local teams pitches where unplayable as admitted by a few of the Downham players, everyone was pleased to be playing. Jez struggled to get a rhythm going and was dismissed edging the ball back on to his stumps for 9, Simon followed 30minutes later for 12 having been caught out and 2 minutes later Sandeep also followed suit in the same fashion for 7. The poor batting performance continued with Scotter getting bowled for 9 before Ash made a gruelling 16 but was dismissed caught, an over later John followed. During this time though Action Man, Ali Minto had began his innings, Ryan came and went for 4, Mark Barton had stuck around and got 4 through one classy shot over Mid-On, but he had supplied ample support to Action Man, Ali Minto, who began to wield his mighty weapon. Boundaries began to flow with 4’s being smashed through the on and off sides before Ali decided to really begin to unleash and started smashing 6’s, all with a Mal Lowe esq. slog sweep over deep mid wicket with the ball sailing over the two fielders on the boundary rope, one landing on the metal shed roof and another only being stopped by the trees, but looked destined to reach the road side. Through sheer force of will, class and some big hitting Ali Minto pulled Milton to a score which looked defendable. 10 4’s and 3 huge 6’s all where part of Ali reaching 89 before being caught out and leaving a solid looking Dan Costan still yet to get off the mark, and Milton on a total of 174 all out which is a defendable total on a slow low wicket.
When the Little Downham innings began the overhead conditions changed to overcast, yet still warm. The new ball was thrown to Ryan Carey, who along with Dan Costan set the tone for the Little Downham inning straight away with both only going for a combined total of 27 runs after their opening spells of 7 overs each, a defensive trend with a reluctance to play attacking shots stretched the whole of the Little Downham inning. During this spell Ryan had cracked the batting order open with an edge which flew to Sandeep at gully who juggled with the ball before clinging on. An over later Ryan got a second wicket with a ball that swung away from the batsmen yet nipped off the seem and rattled middle stump. Ali Minto came on with Mark Barton and last season’s two leading wicket takers where not about to release the pressure either, Minto dispatched the remaining opener’s stumps and Mark chipped in with two wickets as well, both bowling really well. During this time Sandeep had replaced Scotter behind the stumps due to Scotter having to run off to work (a minimalist contribution from the character which is Tom Scotter). Sandeep snaffled a catch off Mark’s bowling, a bottom edge which Sandeep darted his gloves too. Mark’s second wicket was a sharp caught and bowled, with the Downham batsmen looking to hook the ball to the leg side but managing to hit it straight back to Mark who got his hands to the ball and clung on well. Ash and Simon then took over as the level of Downham batsmen steadily decreased, they mopped the tail up both displaying superb ability to not only spin the ball but control it, Simon with his off spin and Ash with his quick leg spin and the change up off spinner. Both mesmerised the Downham batsmen and finished the tail off, both picking up 2 wickets each. Simons wickets came via 1 superb catch at deep square leg by Ash and the second by just plain out beating the batsmen and bowling him. Ash’s wickets came via 1 LBW decision, and the second by yet another catch by Sandeep behind the stumps.
A decent bowling performance from the Milton bowlers, coupled with a poor batting display by Little Downham, and more than ample support in the field especially from Sandeep who clung on to important catches and did a decent job behind the sticks after the disappearance of Mr Scotter, proved enough to bowl the visitors out under 100. Although it was a poor batting performance from Milton, with only 1 player getting above 20 and only 2 more getting past 10. A decent target was therefore only made possible by the big hitting of Ali Minto, whose good form will hopefully continue into the next game.
Writers Man of the Match A. Minto for splendid knock of 89.
jon
Sat 10th May 2008 Sawston 2nds
Milton 1sts vs. Sawston 2nds
Milton 254-8 vs. Sawston 253-8
The second game of the season was played away at Sawston, and on a scorching hot day Milton arrived to a heavenly Sawston pitch which looked destined to have a huge amount of runs scored on it. Sawston are one of the stronger teams in the league and would therefore provide a good standard to which Milton could compare to.
The Milton line-up was: 1. S. Allen, 2. J. Major, 3. S. Mohanraj, 4. A. Misra, 5. J. Amphlett, 6. A. Minto, 7. D. Clarke, 8. R. Carey, 9. S. Costan, 10. M. Barton, 11. D. Costan. With this being a fairly strong line up the toss took place which Jez lost, and subsequently Milton took the field with ball in hand. The pitch looked a dream batting track and one of the best Milton have played on in recent years, the task of bowling Sawston out was going to be a tricky one.
For the second match in a row the Milton bowling attack was led by Ryan Carey and Dan Costan and from the start both looked as though they would get wickets, and both did. With Dan bowling 12 overs straight through and picking up 3 well deserved wickets, and Ryan getting 1 as well as having 2 catches dropped 1 off the Sawston number 4 who was on 7 at the time but went on to get a superb 100. Carey went for 23 runs bowling two consecutive maidens for his 1 wicket which was a catch by Jez who had moved into a short cover position on the drive, Dan Costan bowled his 12 overs for 53 runs and also bowled two maidens for his 3 wickets. Dan got his wickets by, firstly pinning the Sawston number 2’s off stump, the second was a fine catch by Ali Minto and the third was a good take by Grinners who had began to move down leg before snaffling the ball which nicked the edge.
After the 15th over and the first set of drinks Sawston where only 51 for 2.
Ali Minto came on to replace a tiring Carey and was bowling at an absolutely rapid pace, he got an edge through to slip but this got dropped. Minto bowled accurately and very quickly and as a result only went for 34 off his 7 overs, bowling 1 maiden but not picking up any wickets. The Sawston batsmen where beginning to get a grip on the innings and therefore the match, especially when Ash came on to replace Minto, this over could turn out to be one of the most expensive of the season, as he got smashed for 3 big sixes and 2 fours for a combined total of 26 off one over. In his place Simon came on who went for 9 in his first over and the trend looked as though it may continue. Mark replaced Dan who had got through a mammoth spell in the roaring heat and had bowled with pace and aggression. Mark started expensively as well going for 11 in his first over, but began to gain more control as his spell went on. Simon got into his rhythm though and bowled well, giving the ball good flight, which provided too much of a temptation for the Sawston batsmen who often chased the ball as Simon picked up 3 wickets, all of which where caught behind by Grinners, who kept superbly.
The batting started out very nicely with Sam Allen, although still suffering from the shoulder injury, scoring a quick 20 with two boundaries in it, but he was dismissed via a catch. Jez put down a solid platform, but when Sam went the scoring rate slowed considerably and Jez followed Sam 3 overs later after getting bowled for 14. When Ash arrived at the crease the wind of change blew across the field as he began to score runs quickly, hitting boundaries for his first 3 scoring shots with two 4’s and a 6. Sandeep at this time was nudging the ball around the field cleverly and ticking his own score over. Ash quickly strode on to his 50 and hit 1 over for 21, hitting 3 sixes and he raced on to a superb match winning score off 71, a splendid knock which made up for “that over”, and a partnership with Sandeep of 127 which proved the most important contribution in the innings. John came and went for 7, and Ali Minto joined Sandeep at the crease and smashed a quick 24 before departing. Then Grinners smashed the ball over the top and guided another boundary down to fine leg, this shot proved to be part of his downfall, the Sawston team took 15 minutes to find the ball Dave lost his concentration and was pinned first ball back for 9. Ryan came and went within 2 balls, stretching in an attempt to manoeuvre the ball to leg side and nicking to the keeper, Simon went in and knocked a few runs off, as well as smacking one superb shot through point, a trademark cut shot.
The first ball of the final over with only 3 runs required to draw and another to win the Sawston bowler bowled a wide which Mark and Simon where also able to run a quick single with as well to make the scores tied, 5 dots followed and as it looked as though Simon was not going to get the winning runs he flicked one to the leg side which did not quite go for 4 yet as only 1 run was required it didn’t matter. Milton had chased a mammoth Sawston total of 254 to win.
A vastly improved batting performance on a much better pitch with the Milton top score being Ash’s 71 which was filled with boundaries, 7 4’s and 4 6’s with his last 3 scoring shots being 6’s. Sandeep although was not at his fluent best battled and played some nice shots for his 68 and hit 8 4’s in this innings. Ali Minto was the next top score for 24 with 20 of these runs coming via 4’s, and Sam also broke the 20 mark before getting out.
A brilliant match from 2 evenly matched sides, who will both no doubt be at the business end of the table come the end of the season, 3 50’s and 1 hundred demonstrate what a batting paradise this pitch really was. Wickets where hard to come by, although Milton could only really blame themselves for this with 5 dropped catches being the main reason Sawston where allowed to get to that eventual target of 253. A half decent bowling performance from the bowlers who as stated where not backed up in the field, but they did allow the Sawston score to get to 250 as a result of some expensive overs. Sawston cracked on in the second half of their innings as they gained a strong strangle hold on theirs and for large periods Milton’s innings as well.
Writers Man of the Match: Sandeep Mohanraj for a hard working knock of 69 which saw the Milton innings through.
jon
Sat 24th May 2008 vs Madingley
Milton I 166 for 2 (25 overs)
Milton powered to an impressive victory over Madlingley with some pesistent bowling and steady batting.
Milton lost the toss and were put into the field on a hot but windy day at The Sycamores. After a mixed start by the opening bowlers, some excelling quick bowling by Ali Minto and Mark Barton ripped throught the Madingliney top order, exposing a more inexperienced tail. Owen Howell was Madingleys top batsman on 41, removed after a stunning caught and bowled by Ali.
In response, Milton started solidly, Jon Amphlett and Ash Misra putting on 53 for the first wicket. Ash was batting stunningly, getting off the mark with 3 fours and a six. Madingleys heads were down and even after Sandeep chipped a simple one to mid-wicket, Milton kept the pressure on. Graemes quick 21 meant that Ash was just short of a stunning century, 96 not out, at the close. A great victory for an impressive looking Milton side.
jon
Fri 30th May 2008 Girton
Milton 156 all out
Girton 160 for 6
Milton suffered their first loss of the season on a damp wicket at Girston Rec.
After losing the toss, Milton were put in on a damp looking but drying wickets at The Rec. Girton opening bowlers Matt Hobbs and S.Pawley got some early exaggerated seam movement and Milton batsmen Sam and Jon struggled to make any meaningful scores in the first 12 overs. Then a flurry of wickets as both Jon and Sandeep were removed. This brough Graeme Newton to the crease, who confirmed his recent in-form status by knocking a quick 47. Apart from this however, Miltons middle order struggled to stay around and when Hobbs returned, Milton were cleaned up pretty quickly for a disappointing 156, Hobbs finishing with 6 wickets.
Girtons response started solidly enough, which forced Jez into making quick bowling changes to try to get a breakthrough. This came wihen Thornton lofted one to mid-off. Some good overs from Mark Barton and the returning Nic Seaman brought another couple of wickets. Simon Coston bowled well and there was an outside chance of a win for Milton when Nic and Simon combined to remove C. Cooke, shortly followed by the run out of Hobbs. However, Girton had enough left to see them reasonably confortably over the line with 3 overs to spare. A disappointing day for Milton; a bad toss to lose and a lackluster batting performance.
jon
Sat 7th June 2008 Great Chishall 1sts
Milton 1sts vs. Great Chishall 1sts
Milton 174 vs. Great Chishall 145
With the last game Milton played being a loss to Girton and the rained off game which proceeded that, this game took an extra dimension with Milton requiring a win on order to keep up the chase for promotion. The conditions seemed to favour the bowlers, with overhead conditions being overcast and the pitch slow and low due to the wet weather throughout the week.
The Milton line up was: 1. S. Allen 2. J. Major 3. A. Misra 4. G. Newton 5. J. Amphlett 6. N. Seaman 7. D. Clark 8. R. Carey 9. S. Costan 10. M. Barton 11. D. Costan A fairly batting orientated line up with only the specialist numbers 10 and 11 Mark and Dan being the only ones not considered being able to bat although Mark would dispute that and Dan would discuss his square drive for his single. Any score around 170/ 180 would be a good score and very defendable.
Jez lost the toss and Milton were put into bat on the damp Milton wicket, the first over was a great start with Sam getting off the mark and Jez scoring runs freely from the off with a 2 and then his first 4. Jez raced onto 30 in the first 9 overs before being pinned in the first over of the change bowler. During this quick innings Jez had played some exquisite shots, with repeated off drives right back past the bowler as well as his trademarked flick off leg stump for four. The score was 44 for 1 after 9 overs when he went. Ash entered the crease and continued where Jez had left off manoeuvring the ball around the field and dispatching the bad balls which came his way, but 5 overs later Sam got a leading edge and clipped tamely back to the bowler and after 13 overs went for 7. Ash and Gray lasted a few overs together before Ash fell on 23 at deep mid-wicket after attempting to play his favoured slog sweep for six with the Great Chishall fielder clinging on well. Gray and John then built a solid partnership of just under 50 before Gray fell for 20, out with a second caught and bowled from Great Chishall. Soon after John followed on 20 getting caught as well. Nick Seaman and Dave Clark were the last of the decent contributions from the Milton batsmen with Nick scoring a hard hitting 30 and Dave doing what he does best at the end of an innings and knocked the ball around intelligently as well as departing the bad balls. The last 3 wickets fell for 1 run with Ryan, Mark, Simon all going with the score on 173 before Dan played a supreme square drive which was stunningly stopped by a diving Great Chishall fielder but otherwise looked destined to race away, like a cheetah chasing a antelope for four.
During this time a bench had been dedicated the memory of Sam Allen getting runs. May Sam getting above 10 rest in peace, lol. Only joking mate, the runs will come, not very quickly but maybe eventually, lol. Love it!!!
The Great Chishall innings started with the pitch being in a similar condition to when Milton’s innings had begun although it did have a degree of damage on it due to the natural wear and tear that a pitch has to deal with throughout a cricket match.
With the return of Carey after a brief spell on the side lines due to pulling up in training with a shoulder injury, the usual opening bowling attack of Costan and Carey took the new ball with immediate consequences for Great Chishall. Dan bowled a maiden to start the Great Chishall innings and then after a wide and a no ball Carey picked up the first wicket of the Great Chishall innings with the Great Chishall batsmen going on the drive, yet only chipped it to John at point and he held a straight forward catch to his left hand side. In the next over Dan picked up the next wicket with the remaining Great Chishall batsmen chipping to the other Costan cousin Simon for Dan’s first wicket. Ryan’s next couple of overs went by without any real problems for any one and Dan bowled a maiden before in his fourth over picking up another wicket, this time the batsmen nicked the ball behind to Dave Clark who held a simple catch. Nick replaced Carey and set about his task well, causing problems for the Great Chishall batsmen, and Mark replaced Dan to pick up a wicket in his second over with yet another catch by Dave behind the sticks. The Great Chishall captain A. Gent had begun to build an innings though and in Marks third over dispatched him for 2 6’s and a four. Simon came on to bowl at Mark’s end and picked up a wicket for himself, a LBW which was actually given. Ash was bowling at this time from the Tesco end and was turning the ball around corners, with none of the Great Chishall batsmen or any of the Milton side themselves having any idea what he was going to bowl next. With this came the problems though, after some dodgy umpiring decisions Ash began to get a little angry, twinned with his normal exited behaviour the Great Chishall players began to take some offence. Dan came back on and cleaned the tail of Great Chishall up finishing with fine figures of 4 for 23. Great Chishall were angry at the result in this match but this could also be due to the fact that Milton have thrashed them both times we have played them, with both matches having Great Chishall in semi-decent positions before Milton had battled back to defeat them. As in last time when Milton had the giant trophy to take home, Milton this time had 20 hard worked and hard won points to take home, and keep the chase for promotion alive.
Another good match from two sides battling for a second successive promotion. A superb performance from the Great Chishall captain who bowled 12 overs and picked up 3 wickets before going on to make 53 with the bat as well. He without argument was the one thing which kept Great Chishall in the match, but on this day he was just not capable of being able to claw his side to victory as the Milton machine rode on to another victory. With the bat though Milton had a mixed afternoon with 6 batsmen getting to twenty yet none getting above 30, more batsmen will be required to go on to bigger scores if Milton are going to gain promotion. In the field Milton fielded half decently with 6 wickets being taken via catches, although extras do need to be rained in after 28 were given to Great Chishall, with 10 byes and a combined 15 wides and no-balls.
Writers Man of the Match: Dan Costan for fine figures of 9-3-26-4 and cracked the Great Chishall batting open before finishing off the tail.