Chichester Priory Park Arundel Singleton
Sunday 1 August - opening match at Midhurst (and a rather embarrassing visit to an Indian restaurant)
Your intrepid reporter would have been better placed to provide an eye-witness account of the opening match, had he not arrived at 7.45 pm for a match that had ended 15 minutes earlier. He is therefore rather dependent upon the scorebook for statistical detail and upon his memory of comments made by those who played.
The Midhurst ground has a unique setting, with the ruins of the historic tudor house of Cowdray on one side and (behind the pavilion) the Cowdray Park Polo Club (the "Home of British Polo") on the other. As those on horseback contested the final of the Aotea Cup (won by Jaeger leCoultre if you're interested, but you're probably not), a far more distinguished contest was being played out on the adjacent cricket field.
The splendid 2008 Tour Report (still available on the News pages) introduced us to the tourists who joined us from Cheddar Cricket Club. The authors of that report were similarly disadvantaged by not having a note of the names of the Cheddar players. Instead they devised the delightful sobriquets of "Mild Cheddar", "Farmhouse Cheddar" and the unforgettable "Full Fat Mature Cheddar". Sadly , the last of these was unable to tour this year (though not for the alleged reason that he had been arrested for driving an overladen HGV after making all his deliveries). In his place this year (though not quite filling the space entirely) was the talented Mike Sims (Reduced Fat Cheddar), who made an excellent start to the tour, scoring 84 and featuring in an opening partnership of 127 with the stylish Fraser Black. (Remember that your reporter did not actually see the game, so describes Fraser as stylish solely on account of his physical appearance.)
The stylish Mr Black His opening partner
The second Cheddar to feature, Andrew Grayshon (Cheddar Lite) fell just 84 runs short of emulating his teammate, but Romany nevertheless scored a respectable total of 237 - 8 in their 40 overs.
This proved enough indeed as the tourists restricted the Midhurst side to 171 - 8, to win the opening match by 66 runs. The wickets were shared, but John Randerson (our own, rather tame, Castleford Tiger) bowled tightly (ie bowled the only maiden over of the innings), taking 2 - 22 in 7 overs. Almost all of this was against the background of running commentary of the adjoining polo tournament - although the reports suggest that the commentator may have known as much about polo as did those playing cricket.
Another successful match at Midhurst - on and off the field. Our hosts were as accommodating and welcoming as ever (and yes, please, we'd like to come again).
From Midhurst, we drove to establish our base at the Bishop Otter campus of Chichester University. We have stayed there many times before, but the quality of accommodation has improved immeasurably in that time. The rooms are comfortable, modern and spacious. They even have those fancy key cards that you get in expensive hotels - allowing one member of our party to lock himself out of his room within three minutes of checking in.
A small advance party went into Chichester and rang back to say that they had found a suitable Indian restaurant in Chichester, "opposite Kwik Fit". This was easily located by the remainder of the 15-strong party, who duly arrived, sat down, visited the gents, started to order poppadoms etc, before noticing that the advance party was nowhere to be seen. Which other town or city has two Indian restaurants opposite Kwik Fit? On a quiet Sunday evening, the staff of the "wrong one" seemed rather crestfallen to see a dozen hungry cricketers move out to the one two doors away.
Later, in the Chichester clubhouse, the irrepressible Andy Barnes, due to captain Chichester against Romany on Wednesday, gave a clear warning to the Romany captain, Adam Bowen, about the impending Tuesday (B Team) match against Stirlands, known to be a strong side. UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES should Romany choose to bat first - always chase a target. Adam seemed strangely unimpressed at the time by the advice of such a wise and experienced cricketer. See Tuesday's report (below) for more.
Monday 2 August - Romany v Arundel - 81 not out
A warm - and rather forgiving - welcome awaited us on our first visit to Arundel the next day. Warm, because of the weather and the friendliness of the home side; forgiving because our unexpectedly long lunch at the adjoining hotel nearly caused an embarrassing delay to the game. (Some players were rumoured to have placed their order for lunch for the 2012 tour before leaving Arundel, on the optimistic assumption that it may be possible to produce a tuna sandwich inside two years.)
Romany batted first, eventually reaching 278 - 7, but with some stuttering on the way. The star of the show was undoubtedly Arundel's Denny Pease, who bowled 5 overs, taking 2 - 32. Nothing unusual in that, you may think, but how often do you see 5 overs bowled by an 81 year old? Huge scope for embarrassment - and Romany duly obliged. During the course of the match, Fraser Black was dropped by an 81 year old, Harwood Williams was caught by an 81 year old, Mike Sims (RFC) was caught off the bowling of an 81 year old, Joe Halstead was bowled by an 81 year old (to the reported amusement of his 81 year old grandfather) - and, in the second innings, Tim Gibbs bowled like an 81 year old, but that's another story. Matt Loughlin - another Cheddar - was a tad unfortunate to be run out at the non-striker's end on 49, a classic example of a straight drive being deflected by a slight touch from the bowler. He had looked impressive until then, showing a particular penchant for scoring over the heads of the slip fielders (Cheddar Slice, perhaps?). The middle order pulled Romany round. The Castleford Tiger earned his stripes in this match - 91 runs (to be followed by the first three wickets and a run out in the second innings), gently steering the innings round, before launching some strong hitting. Joe Halstead (31) and Andy Veal (the fourth Cheddar) (38) helped Romany to their final total.
Club President, Charles Hartley, enters into the spirit
of touring - the bottle of wine is behind his right leg
All ten Romany outfield players bowled during Arundel's reply, John Randerson's 3 - 9 in 5 overs being quite decisive, though Tom Haworth's later 2 -14 helped secure victory by 109 runs.
This was a most enjoyable first fixture, which we hope to repeat, though maybe with a packed lunch next time.
One further oddity to report. It is quite common to find that the batting side provides at least one umpire, but how often does a player stand as umpire for the next delivery (at the bowler's end) after being out? In the time that it took the new batsman to walk to the crease, Harwood Williams had left the field, removed his pads and other equipment and returned to the field to give the new batsman his guard.
Tuesday 3 August - a double header at Singleton and Stirlands
In our 2002 Centenary Tour, we arranged two fixture on each of two days, putting out full Romany sides in each case. Thus emboldened - and with exactly 22 tourists by the Tuesday - we arranged fixtures simultaneously at Singleton and Stirlands (at Birdham). This plan was only mildly disrupted by Tom Haworth's sudden need to make a business trip to London, leaving the Ten Men of Romany to take on the might of Singleton, as the eleven man team travelled to Stirlands. Elaborate plans were suggested to create two teams of eleven from 21 players - the first man out at Stirlands could jump in a car and drive the ten miles to Singleton to bat there too. A helicopter fleetingly appeared in the skies at Singleton, raising brief hopes of reinforcement, but the Stirlands eleven appeared to have got cold feet at the prospect of getting "a pair" in two matches on one afternoon - or worse, getting a duck at Stirlands and then having to filed for nearly two full innings, 10 miles apart.
Did the ten who played Singleton need reinforcements? No.
Should they have sent an extra player or two to provide reinforcement at Stirlands? Maybe.
Some debate took place after the match as to which was the A Team and which was the B Team. Let the results speak for themselves.
At Singleton, the A Team batted first. Mike Sims (RFC) set about the home side' bowling, scoring a splendid century, before "retiring" (if that is the word best used to describe a situation where his captain has to run onto the field, point out to the batsman that this is a friendly, mid-week tour fixture, and that it was about time he let someone else bat). Tim Gibbs then took centre stage, hitting an impressive 63. There was a moment of controversy as Henry Murray was adjudged LBW - by his umpiring cousin (Sam Ryan). Henry's protestations that the ball would have gone over the top of the stumps may be a little hollow, given that the moment of impact just happened to have been caught on camera by a colleague. Romany ended their overs on 220 - 9
Mike Sims (RFC) milks the adulation of an Henry Murray - going over the top? You be the judge.
adoring crowd after being retired on 102
In a week where - quite bizarrely - the Singleton Oil Field hit the national news, one might have expected the home side to strike lucky when batting. Despite a solid 50 from their young opening batsman, Singleton fell 47 short, to give victory to the Romany A Team. Sam Ryan impressed with 4 - 32, Andy Grayshon weighing in with 3 - 39. Stuart Murray (on the day following his 50th birthday - to date his only half century) had a memorable day. Driving down from Harrogate in the morning, he might have been forgiven for seeking a gentle game and an early night. By day, his bowling found new life, taking 2 - 13 in three overs, one of the wickets following an instruction to the batsman as to precisely how to hit the ball in the air to long-on. The batsman obliged from the next delivery. By night, our new 50 year old was delighted to be asked to show his ID in a (the?) local nightclub. None of his fellows has yet had the heart to tell him that there was a discount offered to those who could prove eligibility for Saga membership.
One slightly embarrassing moment in the Singleton innings. Abuse aimed (quite deservedly) at "Simmo" (RFC; 0 - 30 off 4 overs) seemed rather to surprise one of the Singleton batsmen. We understood this only when we learned that his name was Symonds, known affectionately as "Symo" (pronounced /Simmo") to his friends. Sorry, Symo. We meant Simmo.
Over at Stirlands, how were the B Team (with one extra player) faring? The good news is that we won the toss. Heeding the advice of the seasoned local cricketer of 36 hours earlier, surely we would invite the home side to bat first. The Romany team limbered up to take the field as the successful tosser returned to the pavilion - to announce that we were batting. To be fair, the Romany batsmen responded well. The stylish Mr Black hit a stylish 87, before returning to Leeds that evening - missing a third day of stockbrokering is quite unthinkable, with only the attractions of playing cricket in Sussex as compensation. John Randerson followed Cheddar Slice's example, being stumped on 49. A useful contribution came from Harwood Williams (33), followed by some huge hitting from Joe Halstead, as Romany amassed a creditable 242 - 7.
The captain's controversial decision to bat first was starting to look like a potential match-winner. Not much later, when the first Stirlands wicket fell at 202, that decision looked a little less so. An innings of 138* from an opening batsman is always likely going to swing a match, though Romany did well to take it to the last two overs, before losing by 8 wickets.
Wednesday 4 August - a full day game (apart from the bit with the torrential rain storm in the middle) at Chichester
Fresh from his display of tactical genius at Stirlands, Captain Bowen took his troops to Priory Park, Chichester, surely one of the most splendid city centre settings in which to play cricket.
With the BBC weather forecast covering every contingency over the preceding 24 hours, Andy Barnes, the home side's skipper, had thoughtfully arranged an alternative day of indoor cricket at the nearby university, should an outdoor game not be possible. This university is indeed the same one in which our accommodation was situated - even 50 year olds who had been to a night club until 3.30 am could surely manage the few steps from their bedroom to the sports hall. (Such thoughtfulness had perhaps not extended to addressing the question of how we would play indoor cricket in boots with spikes - our only cricketing footwear; it would be far too cynical to suggest that the whole arrangement was made to satisfy the owner of Chichester's largest sports shop - who, er, just happens to be Andy Barnes, the home side's skipper.)
In the event, such precautions proved unnecessary. Though the match was punctuated by a spectacular storm, the rain fell just in time for the home side to declare. Generously, our hosts allowed us to use the square well before it had fully dried out - leading to one memorable stop in the outfield by a Chichester player, reminiscent of that famous Colombian goalkeeper's backflip (of which Romany's very own Mr Beagrie would have been proud). By the time the rain fell, Chichester had reached 202 - 7 off 54 overs, restricted by some tight Romany bowling. There was some muttering from the home captain about the decision to bring back the opening bowlers for another spell after lunch - that tactic perhaps seeming a little contrary to the spirit of such a friendly fixture, but the Romany captain had already shown a propensity for ignoring his opposing captain's views (as to the decision to bat first at Stirlands, just to remind you, as it has not been mentioned for a few paragraphs). One might also take into account the fact that the opening bowlers were both 18 year olds, neither of whom had taken a wicket, and that they replaced the captain of a Yorkshire League team and a Leeward Islands international. The best bowling of the innings however was from Matt Loughlin, who took 3 - 29 off 11 overs.
Under the Duckworth Barnes rules, it was decreed that Romany's "revised" target would be 203 off 35 overs. Showing a generosity of spirit that had evaded the touring captain, Chichester used 8 bowlers, but Romany secured victory by 7 wickets with two overs to spare, each of Andy Veal and Harwood Williams scoring 51.
Tim Gibbs grapples with the Duckworth Barnes rules Sam Ryan bowling before/after lunch Loughlin bowls as Randerson realises that
his bus is about to leave
The customary tour fines session took place in the clubhouse in the evening, with catering supplied by a local Indian restaurant - awkwardly, the one that a team of hungry tourists had passed through three nights earlier. Rather worryingly, with his glass of lemonade, the 7 year old son of Harwood Williams proved that he could grasp the rules of several drinking games far more quickly than a number of tourists with university degrees.
The warmth and good humour of the Chichester club was evident throughout the day and evening, proving yet again how fortunate we are in finding such a base for our touring party.
Thursday 5 August - on to Slinfold, then home
As some tourists left for home, the remainder headed to Slinfold for the final game of the tour. Founded "prior to 1775", Slinfold CC is one of the very oldest clubs in the country. We have been privileged to play here on many tours, often on hard, dry batting tracks. Only the previous weekend, over 600 runs had been scored in a match, but the wet weather of the previous day had brought about quite a change.
Slinfold pre-match
Modesty forbids the author of this report (whose season's aggregate stood at just 5 runs at the start of this innings) from explaining just how devilish the wicket was for opening batsmen, but Romany rather struggled to 153 all out in 40 overs (Tim Halstead 40, Harwood Williams 38). It didn't seem like enough, but Romany's young bowlers, Sam Ryan (2 - 14) and Joe Halstead (3 - 18) tore into the Slinfold batting, reducing them to 44 - 7 (Harwood Williams also pitching in with 3 -18), before a recovery saw Slinfold just over 100, Romany winning by exactly 50 runs.
Thus ended another hugely successful tour. Romany have been coming to Sussex every two years since the 1970s and have played in some great matches in wonderful settings. The 2010 tour was right up among the most successful and enjoyable. Though all played their part in many ways, credit is especially due to Martin Grayshon for his organisation and his faith in the attraction and strength of the tour, such that we were able to play six most enjoyable games in five days.
TJH - August 2010