Bright and clear.

It's hard to explain what happened in this game. It was just one of those games where the Village were really, umm, village. The scorecard is damning enough: a ten wicket defeat with the opposition only taking 20 overs is an old fashioned humping in anyones money. But even that doesn't really get to the bottom of just how bad it was.

It started promisingly enough. Bomb (39) and Pontin (21) took the Village towards a comfortable looking 80-0 with the drinks break approaching. What happend next has been the subject of much Guestbook debate, but what is certain is the facts. Bomb punched the ball towards mid-off and set off for a single, Pontin was run out by six feet. Bad call? Bad running? Who knows. Still, 80-1, we've been in worse places at drinks.

Bomb and Ek stolled out after drinks with little to worry about, it seemed. Until Bomb hit the first ball after drinks straight to a fielder and suddenly 80-0 had become 80-2. "Well that's not that bad" I hear you say.... Ek (2), Marcus (9), KP (12), Parp! (7), Space Cadet (1), Craft (2), Evans (0) and Pitcher (4) complete one of the most startling collapses in Village history.

80-0 had become 134 all out and we were deep in the poop.

Beard and Evans set about trying to make early inroads, wickets were the order defending a massively sub-par 134. Sadly, in order to take wickets you often have to catch the ball. Marcus missed a tough one, Parp! missed a steepler behind the stumps which, in his own words, was "not a drop because he didn't get anywhere near it". The fact that it would have smacked him on the head had he stood still rather than runnng round in circles has been somewhat overlooked in ths analysis though.

And so it went on. By the time the winning runs were struck it was not a moment too soon. Not a great day cricket-wise it must be said, but as ever Barton Road was immaculate, the tea replete with triangular sandwiches and scones and the opposition delightful. There are certainly worse ways to spend a Saturday.

GCP 01/06/2010