CAIRNS FUDGE CC LONDON

So the wait was over. The first LPL game of the season was upon us vs newcomers The Centurions at Battersea Park. Pre game pitch reports described a fruity deck with nothing in it for the batsmen. On first hand inspection like most early season council pitches in London the football stud marks were still visible so it looked like fireworks were in store.

Centurions batted first and Donk and Matt Davies opened up the bowling. A solid start from the Centurions and on a bumpy surface must have calmed the nerves of the debutants in the LPL. Donk as usual struck in quick succession removing bats 2 and 3 and with Matt Davies keeping it tightish at the other end. Lam and Fargher were brought into the attack and equitted themselves well with Lam possibly the star of thee show chipping in with tight as hell figures of  7 -4-13-0. The Centurions recovered really well after their top of the order wobble and put on a battling partnership in the middle order. Jimmy F broke the partnership and backed up by some tight fielding Kenny also took out what proved to be the last remaining resistance from the Centurions with the score on a respectable 100ish. Griff (bowling with venom), Jimmy (minus bandana but in full flow) and Kenny (plenty of quick turn) sparked a big collapse with the remaining 5 wickets going for 20ish. Great effort in the field after a promising start from the Centurions. All out for 123.

Yarwood        7            0        38        2

Davis            3            0         12        0

Lam              7           4          13        0

Fargher         6           0          27        3

Kenny           5           0          20        3

Griff              3           0          13         2

Mark “Burt” Reynolds and Dean Yarrall opened The Fudge account and the scoring got off to a briskish pace. Despite a few lusty blows from Dean,  Ianson claimed both openers scalps with the score on 20 odd. Steve “Kenny” Kent and Paul Griffiths got the innings back on course and from the off bludgeoned the Centurions bowling to all parts. There was the occasional single, a few 2′s but the partnership was based pretty much on boundaries to the delight of the Fudge support in their first LPL outing of the season. Both Kenny and Griff kept a rapid scoring pace throughout and it was clear that once the batting point was secured that the 6 point winning bonus wasnt far off. Fairplay to the Centurions they fielded well and tried a few options but as Kenny departed for a quality knock of 52 bowled by King the result was not in doubt. This only allowed Will Mosenthal who had been padded up for a while the opportunity to add 2 runs to the score before he departed bowled by King again. Daf allowed Griff to finish things off with 15 overs to spare and a win by 6 wickets.

Mark Reynolds  2
Dean Yarral  13
Steve Kent 52
Paul Griffiths 44*
Will Mosenthal  2
Daf Howells 2*
Jimmy Fargher DNB
Zak Lam DNB
Dave Yarwood DNB
Matt Davies DNB

It was then off to the Prince Albert pub across the road for a fair few hours. Pork pies, backgammon, eurovision song contest, lager. A brilliant post game lash with the Centurion lads till late. A great addition to the league. God bless the LPL.

After an off season of nets at our new center of excellence at Bode’s school we were all set for our first game of the season at a new venue against new opposition: the regal Marble Hill manor house down in Twickenham vs The Rainmen. Very exciting for me personally as I have read the book twice however having played against them for The Sunday Times I knew they weren’t as bad as they are made out to be. We expected a testing first fixture in strange surroundings on an astro wicket. Format was 35 overs.

After a couple of pre match pints, Jimmy won the toss and decided to bat and make the most of the carpeted strip. Kenny and Drew opened up with Kenny playing the role of aggressor with Drew happy to nudge and nurdle into numerous gaps in the large outfield. Drew fell for 13 and Jimmy Ray entered the fray. Duncan eager to make a contribution from his umpiring stint gave Jray out caught (6) shortly afterwards after the ball apparently came off his arm. Kenny was hitting his straps though and was dealing in 2s and 4s and even though the Rainmen bowling was very tight (only 5 wides in the whole innings) Kenny looked comfortable playing some lusty blows to all corners. He was joined by Griff which helped the score accelerate to 64 off 10 overs. Griff as usual was also aggressive and with plenty of boundaries the score hurried on to 118 off 15 overs. Kenny retired on 50 and Jimmy F entered the fray. Jimmy did well getting Griff on strike and hit a few wristy 4s as the score continued to hurtle along rapidly. Griff by now was whacking it everywhere and soon approached his 50 eventually retiring on 54. Daf came out into the mix and made a brisk 15 before being caught at mid on. Duncan picked up where Griff left off and hit the first 6s of the match made more impressive by the size of the boundaries. He was ably supported briefly by Matt Davies with a rapid 4 and also Andrew Barclay another kiwi recruit making his debut. Andrew and Duncan pushed the score on past 200 in the 26th over and then upped the rate even further as both took advantage of the true bounce and showed an excellent display of clean hitting. Duncan retired on 59 and Bode did a great job of getting Andrew on strike with a quick fire 11*. Andrew eventually finishing on 31* and the score a pretty mighty 283 from 35 overs. A record total for the Fudge in London.

After tea Donk as usual took the new ball along with occasional bowler Jimmy Ray. As Jray kept it tight at one end, Donk was destroying the other taking a wicket maiden in his first over, a maiden in his 2nd and a double wicket maiden in his 3rd. Only one run off the bat in his 6 overs finishing with figures of 6-4-3-3. Marks off though for breaking another bail. Jray finished a tidy 4 over spell for only 13 runs and Matt Davies got a lot of away swing and was rewarded with his first wicket for the club with Daf snaffling one behind. To turn a a dire situation worse for the Rainmen Bode also got in on the act, bowling their No.7 reducing them to 20 odd for 6. Once Matt D had got his 2nd wicket caught by Griff at square leg the game went into a rather disappointing direction for the fielders and spectators.

Normally used to playing time games where the draw is a possible result, The Rainmen shut up shop. Think Paul Collingwood at the Cardiff test in the 2009 ashes x 4. Over after over passed with maidens galore and the Rainmen had only one intention: to stay in and not score. A glimmer of hope emerged when Griff got an outside edge from some rapid bowling with Daf taking his 3rd catch behind the stumps. But the Rainmen stuck to their task and finished on 69-7 runs off their 35 overs in the now chilly gloom of Marble Hill. It would have been good to get in the pub earlier and time games and blocking isn’t really the Fudge way but it was good to get the season off to a positive start. Cracking lash in the pub afterwards as well soon warmed the cockles. Thanks to Marcus for the fixture and all the best to the Rainmen for the rest of the season.

Result: The Fudge beat Rainmen by 214 runs.

Kenny ret 50
Drew 13
Jray6
Griff ret 54
Jimmy F 24
Daf 15
Duncan ret 59
Matt D 4
Andrew B 31*
Bode 11*
Donk (dnb)

Donk 6-3-3-3
Jray 4-0-13-0
Matt D 3-0-6-2
Duncan 3-1-2-0
Bode3-1-4-1
Andrew B 3-0-15-0
Jimmy F 3-0-3-0
Drew4-1-6-0
Kenny 3-1-9-0
Griff 3-2-4-1

>The final game of a very enjoyable 1st season in London was a tough encounter against reigning ‘Cairns Fudge CC London Indoor Tournament’ Champions Whalers CC in Chiswick. They looked a tidy side indoors and with 6 late Fudger cry offs 2 days before the game (2 the morning before the game!) we were up against it from the off.

Only 9 players available at the start of the game and some poor punctuality from the senior Fudge lads meant we started late as well. The Whalers were very accommodating however and put up with it all, even lending us a fielder when they won the toss and opted to bat 1st.

It was tough going from the off. On a good track, quick outfield and with some very impressive strokes, the Whalers pushed the score on very quickly. Andy Kemp bowled well however it was Zak Lam who got the key breakthrough. The onslaught continued however as 70 was reached with just 1 wicket down. Enter debutant Duncan Mallard, normally an opponent (Captain of the Corridors) however he turned honorary Fudger with 3 top order wickets which gave the lads some optimism of keeping the score to a respectable level. Dean Yarrall was also in the wicket mix and at one stage the Fudge looked to have regained control of the Whaler juggernaut. This went to pot unfortunately. With the score on about 160 with 8 overs to go, Daf Howells and Andy Laurence got a tonking and despite wickets from Captain Fargher and debutant Josh, the Whalers finished on 229-8 off just 35 overs. A big ask!

Andy – 4 overs, 0 for 18
Jimmy – 7-2-34-1
Zak – 5-0-36-1
Lawrence – 5-0-35-0
Yarrall – 4-0-30-1
Mallard – 4-0-26-3
Daf – 2-0-25-0
Josh – 4-0-21-1

Andy Kemp and his pal, (another debutant) Marcus opened up and they looked good early on as the score chugged along nicely to 30+. Unfortunately, a characteristic Fudge collapse ensued with Marcus bowled for 17, AK47 departing caught behind for 9, Josh going for a duck, Dean caught for 13, Duncan Mallard also out for a duck and Zak Lam caught out for 2. 40 odd for 6 is a pickle whatever standard you are and surely an embarrassing result was on the cards in our last game.

Daf Howells was at the crease and looked determined to restore at least some respect to proceedings. Despite the Whalers working out quickly that he only has 2 shots, Daf played them well enough to push the score on defending doggedly where necessary. Due to our lack of numbers and the Whalers were extremely kind in allowing 2 of our bats to go in again so Josh was allowed another go to right his earlier duck. From ball 1, Josh did indeed have a go and gave every ball good or bad a hefty whack. A dynamite innings of brutal hitting, Josh had a Whale of a time and to the delight of his team mates carried the score past the 100 mark as he hit boundary after boundary off the previously unplayable Whalers attack. Daf was nurdling and rotating the strike at the other end nicely however just as he was looking to push on himself he was run out for 32.

Josh continued his battery and it was a joy to watch as the score went 150+ with Jimmy Fargher and Andy Laurence adding 5 and 6 respectively. The Whalers gave all their lads a bowl and Josh was equal to all and although the final score was some way short of the target, it was a lot more respectable than what we threatened to offer early on. 182-9 off 35 overs, Duncan Mallard with 5* but star of the day Josh with an explosive 75*!

CFCCL scorecard
Markus – b Eberstein 17
Andy – ct off “ 9
Josh – ct off “ 0
Dean – ct off “ 13
Duncan – b “ 0
Zak – ct off Osborne 2
Daf – run out 32
Andy L – ct off Strang 5
Jimmy – b Strang 6
Josh – not out 75
Duncan – not out 5

Special mention to the architect of the Fudge collapse, Eberstein who took 5-18 and also Whalers skipper Dan Osgood with a fine 63*. Result: CFCCL lose by 47 runs.

>: After topping the table of the Last Man Stands 8 a side Cricket League 2, Cairns Fudge CC London managed to qualify for the play off final vs Nexus Visas. Having not won a game in the previous round of fixtures, a steep learning curve resulted in a string of impressive performances leading up to the final on the 9th August down in Wimbledon. See table below (CFCCL finished top despite what the league says!)

TO VIEW THE LEAGUE CLICK HERE

Winning the toss and choosing to bowl first, CFCCL toiled in the field with their opponents racking up a sizeable 156 from their 20 overs despite some spirited bowling and fielding. Star man with the ball Andy Laurence with 3-29.

In reply, Mark Reynolds (33) and Zak Lam set up a solid platform with Lam in particular playing exceptionally well for a retired 50 which included some monster shots to the long boundary. Simon Boden (2), Jim Butler (39) and Daf Howells (17) pushed the score into the 140s, keeping the pressure on and it began to tell on the opposition as Nexas Visas started dropping catches and bowling wides. Daf Howells and Jim Butler got out to the double play rule which brought Jimmy Fargher and Kristian Jensen into the mix. Eventually 7 runs were needed off the final over and in swashbuckling style, Fargher (9) creamed a 4 and a 3 in successive balls to win the game and the title.

Contributions from everyone, not just in the final but also from the many other players who turned out in the previous games. The much appreciated 1st prize was 8 Paintballing tickets per man which I am sure will be used in the coming months. Belated Mother’s day presents Im sure!
CLICK HERE FOR A FULL SCORECARD

Back row left to right:
Jim Butler, Mark Reynolds, Jimmy Fargher, Andy Laurence

Front row left to right:
Kristian Jensen, Zak Lam, Daf Howells, Simon Boden