London Erratics Cricket Club

Founded 1974 for recreation and refreshment

Sunday 3 June 2007
London Erratics v Balliol Erratics
at Balliol College, Oxford

A good day for Alex Padmore and the Old Boys
Click on (Þ) symbol for photo images
LONDON ERRATICS — batting 4s  6s 
Rivington caught 4    
* Dunabin c & b 1    
† Khawaja bowled 32 5   
Berrigan b Head 19 3   
Eltringham caught 36 4   
Evans bowled 6 1   
Poulter bowled 0    
Bush c & b Head 11 2   
Cobb bowled 1    
Padmore caught 0    
Heller NOT OUT  0    
126 all out
Fall of wickets:  1(Dunabin)–7, 2(Rivington)–8, 3(Khawaja)–48, 4(Berrigan)–89, 5(Eltringham)–105, 6(Poulter)–106, 7(Bush)–122, 8(Cobb)–123, 9(Padmore)–125, 10(Evans)–126
When FC London asked to reschedule, the Erratics were grateful to Jim Head for at short notice offering a game against the Balliol Erratics — a most welcome opportunity to resurrect a fixture last played in 1994. For this nostalgic game, match manager James Rivington handed the captaincy over to Chris Dunabin, one of the two ex-Balliol men in the side.
The London Erratics won the toss and elected to bat, on a hot day and on the usual batsman-friendly Balliol pitch — somewhat more hemmed in than when we last played there by the new bland student accommodation where once were tennis courts. James and Chris opened, against tidy but unthreatening medium-pace inswing. Chris lost patience first, going for a big drive to a ball that wasn't quite there for it, and had time to turn at the bowler's end, watch and pray for the probable three-way collision; but the bowler leapt, Aussie-rules fashion, above the converging pack and hung on. Next over, James was surprised by one that stopped on him and gave an easy catch to cover.
But the cream of Erratics batting was to come. Nasir Khawaja (Þ) immediately looked in full control, with a series of flashing cuts and drives; Brian Berrigan (Þ) played a supporting role. However, with the total just short of 50, Nasir uncharacteristically played across a straight one and was bowled. Matthew Eltringham took on the aggressor's role (Þ) , saw off the opening bowlers, and had moved the score on to 89 when Brian — unusually restrained (scoring just 19 out of 81 while he was at the crease) — was bamboozled by one of Jim Head's leg-breaks (Þ) .
Meanwhile, Balliol's opening bowler Tim Trudgeon, now withdrawn from the attack, maintained a running commentary from deep square leg, surpassing Henry Blofeld in garrulity — the burden being that he could have bowled, batted and fielded every ball better than those who did so. Is it a surprise that he did so in broad Australian? (Sorry Brian.)
Hopes of a competitive score of 180 or more were being revised downwards. Soon, Matthew, having used the aerial route profitably, tried it once too often and holed out. Tony Poulter came to the wicket after a four-year lay-off in China and Australia. Trudgeon, recalled to the attack, greeted him with a head-high beamer (Þ) . Chris, now umpiring, having inquired after Tony's health, called "over" first, and "no ball" only thereafter, much to scorer Rob Waller's confusion (Þ) and perhaps Tony's — since the extra ball, an inswinging yorker, speared through the gate and nicked leg stump.
Michael Evans was playing an uncharacteristic anchor role (Þ) . Bill Bush played his natural game (Þ) , hoping to pepper the square leg boundary before the opposition got wise and put all the field there; but he miscued a leggie back to bowler Jim (7-1-29-2). The rest of the innings — including debutant Patrick Cobb and Alex Padmore (Þ) — subsided rapidly, with the self-confident Australian taking six wickets. Would 126 be enough, especially as, with the innings closing at 4.15, Balliol wouldn't be under any time pressure?
BALLIOL ERRATICS — batting
1   b Padmore 3
2   b Padmore 22
3   b Padmore 0
4   b Padmore 0
5 JH lbw b Berrigan 7
6   b Padmore 6
7   st Khawaja b Heller 7
8   run out 18
9   c & b b Dunabin 7
10   c Berrigan b Heller 16
11   not out 8
111 all out
Fall of wickets: 1–10, 2–20, 3–20, 4–30, 5–41, 6–43, 7–73, 8–81, 9–94

LONDON ERRATICS — bowling
Padmore 10 6 9 5
Eltringham 7 1 30 0
Berrigan 8 4 9 1
Cobb 6 0 18 0
Heller 4.4 0 22 2
Dunabin 4 0 20 1
Matt Wood, Balliol's captain, in the spirit of the game but perhaps also confident of victory, mixed up his batting order. Alex, having added line and length to the pace he has developed over several seasons, took three quick wickets, all bowled by full-length inswingers. But Jim — whom we know well as a prolific scorer — joined the surviving opener and looked set to accumulate patiently. Chris took a sharp catch diving low to his left in the gully off a rare full toss from Alex, only to hear it called "no ball". Then Alex struck again, dismissing the opener and the number 6, both in the same fashion, reducing Balliol to 41 for 5 and giving him stunning figures, deserving of an Oscar nomination.
Balliol were showing signs that their ambition might be limited to holding out for the draw — though it was known they had at least two dangerous batsmen, Jim at the crease and yet to come the Australian (reputed to have played for the University). Brian had replaced Matthew, who had bowled quite well without reward, and he immediately settled into his normal tight line and length. Time to mix up the bowling; so Patrick replaced Alex, but the batsmen treated his flighted leg-spin with great respect.
In what might have been a turning point, Jim fenced at a short ball from Brian. Nasir appealed confidently; but the umpire heard and saw nothing, and Jim — to no-one's surprise — kept his counsel as to whether he might or might not have touched it. Soon after, however, Brian drew Jim forward and squeezed an inswinger through to hit his back leg; Jim's manner indicated that it would have comfortably missed leg stump, but this time the umpire shared Brian's contrary conviction.
The seventh-wicket pair proved even more adhesive than their predecessors. The run rate required, albeit still modest, was rising, and it now seemed a question of whether and how the visitors could take the last four wickets. Chris had been restrained from bringing himself on by a captain's natural diffidence, but urged on by James he replaced the unlucky Patrick's leg-spin with his even loopier and more alluring version. But Richard Heller, replacing Brian, made a key breakthrough, assisted by a sharp stumping from Nasir that removed the home skipper. This brought Tim the Aussie to the crease; he wasn't interested in a draw, and his first two shots suggested he could turn the game upside down in an over. But Nemesis struck: he went for a big drive to a half-volley from Chris, didn't quite get hold of it, and Chris took a sharp return catch low to his left — eight down for 81.
The No. 8 was suckered out: his partner cut hard, Chris couldn't quite hold on in the gully, and the non-striker called for a single — ignoring a cricket maxim older than W G Grace, and letting Matthew and Nasir combine for a neat run out. One wicket to go, but Balliol still had time on their side and, with the draw specialists dismissed, looked as close to winning as at any stage. Chris might have had another with a flighted half-volley, but the visitors weren't holding all their catches. Finally, with Balliol on Nelson (111), old boy Richard induced a false stroke, Brian accepted the catch at extra cover, and the London Erratics had won by 15 with five overs to spare — and Balliol nostalgics had time to check whether the graffiti in the Lindsay Bar had changed in 40 years, on a day they might otherwise have had to spend gardening. And happily this fixture has been pencilled in for next year.
[CD]
Erratics won 15 runs
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