by Matt Thornton

Saints A continued the stop-start season with a fine win over lower table neighbours Grant Thornton. With 2nd skipper Spencer Noyon running late as usual 3rd skipper DJ, stepped in for the toss, skillfully lost it, letting them play right into our hands by informing us we would be fielding. Perfect.

Phil Dodd opened up from the top end with some good wheels, but one or two short and wide ones were quickly dispatched to the boundary as Grant Thornton came out all guns blazing. The barrage continued from the other end as Spencer Noyon (finally arrived) bowled a good line and length, but still managed to get carted around, until he managed to surprised former Island and Cobo’s Mark Renouf, himself, and pretty much everyone on the pitch with a much, much slower ball which quite possibly slipped out of his hand like a greased piglet. The surprise continued when Spencer managed to catch the easiest of easy chances. No bowler was exempted from some very determined batting, though, that really was more edge and swipe than fluent cricket strokes. The first 9 overs all went for 10 an over, and by halfway it was felt a total of 190+ was on the cards.

There was some awful cricket on display from all concerned, from some sloppy wicketkeeping, to some lazy ground fielding, dropped catches, and ultimately some completely avoidable runouts from the oppo. Fitchet and Clark put on a good partnership but when Doddy accounted for Fitchet and Clark was run out, the rest of the oppo’s lineup put up little resistance and wickets tumbled at a steady rate, with some good tight bowling from Little John Vaudin and Ben Driver. Even Ross Kneller managed to pitch a few around the off stump to keep the batsmen interested. He collected one wicket as a huge moo to cow corner was skillfully caught by Phil Dodd; and it should have been two as the very next ball, a carbon copy of the previous, only Doddy this time couldn’t cling on as the ball swirled about in the wind. Glenn Mourant would have made Brocky proud by downing a couple of sitters until he finally claimed one off Noyon’s bowling for a big cheer. But he was still involved in the comedy moment of the evening when a skied ball dropped neatly in the middle of onlooking Mourant, Tapp and Eulencamp – all of them failing to call for the catch and preferring to run around in circles like headless chickens rather than going for the ball.

Credit to the bowlers however, as what should have been a big score was pegged back to 151, all out in the 19th, as Driver took 2 in 2 balls – Thornton finally clinging on to one for a stumping followed by a clean bowled – setting up the hat trick ball for the first delivery of the next game. With a revised batting order, Olly Tapp and DJ strode confidently to the middle knowing that the run rate of 7.5 was always gettable with some sensible batting. And they started incredibly sensibly reaching a miserly 10 off the first 3. Tapp was playing his trademark dab to 3rd man, giving Thornton a chance to feel bat on ball ostensibly for the first time in the season. That he was rusty was clear as he toed his first runs through the bowler’s hands for four. He eventually found the middle of the bat, including a hook for 6. Tapp at the other end was happy to stay off strike, but eventually found his rhythm and started to play some sweet pulls and cuts. He eventually snicked a thin one through to the keeper to depart for 28 to end the opening partnership.

That brought Glenn Mourant to the crease with the magic words “you can carry your bat here mate” which prompted Thornton to immediately attempt a horrible cross-batted heave and get bowled for 64. Mourant, Veillard and Kneller then saw the runs off with a few lusty blows between them, to get home with a couple of overs to spare.

Hardly a convincing win, but a good win nonetheless, and a little momentum ahead of Rovers next week.