Sat 7th May 2011

Sway triumph over Trojans

HCL RD1S: Sway 81-4, Trojans 80ao. Sway won by 6 wickets

With the first game of the season commencing  captain Adam Clark did his first job right by winning the toss. With the weather looking unpredictable and being unsure of how the newly turned track would play he elected to bowl. That decision quickly proved to be wise, as John Grasham struck early bowling both openers cheaply leaving Trojans struggling on 13-2..  The normally consistent Rob Steadman was showing evidence that he had an enjoyable Friday night at his Rugby presentation as he struggled with his run up and rhythm, however, he surprised the Trojans no.4 with a good nut leaving them 3 down with only 19 on the board. Sway talisman Nilantha Attapatu came on for Steadman and struck with his very first ball, the catch taken by Terry Patch at mid on.  Steve Thisleton replaced Grasham at the Pavilion End and after a dodgy couple of overs started hitting an attractive line and length. This pressure soon brought ample reward -  picking up 4 wickets including that of their top scoring captain Matt Ball for 26 who was caught by the Sway skipper at his regulation mid-off dolly catch position. Trojans never really got going and Sway rattled through the remainder of the Trojan batting line up dismissing them for just 80 after 25 overs.  A high standard bowling a fielding performance set the game up nicely for Sway

With the bad weather predicted to come, Alex Hall and Clark were unsure whether to push for an early finish or play it safe and bank on the rain not coming. Hall however didn’t need to evaluate the situation for very long as he was dismissed 3rd ball for his first duck in 47 innings, getting squared up and caught at first slip from a rare decent delivery from Broomfield. Clark then went on to 12 before being bowled having clipped his back pad and leaving a gap in his forward defence which was greatly appreciated. Attapatu came to the crease and struck some classy shots around the ground. Grasham, however, was struggling to get going and was dismissed for a duck and Barry Jones went cheaply soon after. Sway were now under pressure and Australian Jackson Rogers came to the crease on his Sway CC debut. Showing good concentration and shot selection Rogers went onto 14 not out and with Attapatu 32 not out guided Sway home for an impressive 22 point victory. Sway 1sts host Ryde this week who also had a convincing win Saturday.

 

Alex Hall - a duck at last !!!