This venerable and ancient team of cricketers (except Ben) never ever had any aspirations of winning the tournament. They just wanted play some cricket; toss a few balls, swing the willow and with a bit of luck take a few wickets and hit a few boundaries. It was all about being there and participating. This motley crew covered all ages, shapes, sizes, speeds and abilities, but they had plenty of experience. There was Ben, his dad, Kevin, Clive Rogerson, Glyn, John Harvey, Gavin, Andre, Edwin van Rensburg who arrived with a new head, coz he didn’t look the Edwin from last season and finally, Berne Lamprecht who was here to get his nickname back from his younger and taller brother, Bernard Lamprecht (Captain of the PCC Thoroughbreds).
It would be appropriate here to explain some of the intricacies of the scoring and rules. Six batsmen would each face one over of five balls (to save time). Each player would bowl one over and occupy each fielding position. Each time the batsman ran halfway up the wicket and back, he would score one run. 4’s and 6’s as normal. He would score 12 runs if he could get the ball into the Shambala Resort swimming pool or through a hole in a cardboard cut-out of Frank’s bottom! (Don’t ask). If he was out, he’d lose 5 runs. The bowler would be penalised 2 runs for each no-ball or wide and 4 runs and 6 runs for successive errors. The secret is not to give away extras or lose wickets.
The Carthorses’ first match was against the Little Blue Penguins. The Penguins won the toss and chose to bat. Glyn’s bowling was straight but slow enough for Sajai to take advantage and 17 was scored. Berne was slightly better at 13 and John was pretty tidy at 7. Clive’s arm was all over the place and his 3 wides gifted the Penguins another 14. 37 after 3 overs – not a good start. Edwin took a wicket with his first ball and held the Penguins back to only 5 in his over – much more like it. Ben did even better. He had Saju out twice and reduced the Penguins score to 51 (20 of which were Extras). A good score and easily defendable.
The Carthorses turn to bat. Glyn started well with an 8, but Berne could only manage 2 against Mike. John Harvey picked up the pace with a brisk 10 which included a 6, but with only 20 on the board after 3 overs, the Carthorses were struggling. Clive did not help with a meagre 4, whilst Edwin had a 7. In the final over, Ben started well with a 6 but was out on the penultimate ball for a score of 1 and a total of 32. The Carthorses lost by 19 runs. (Remember – Extras and wicket lose matches.)
The next match was against the Palmy Army. The Carthorses lost the toss and were asked to bat.
Glyn was out first ball via a top edge and caught behind. His score of -1 meant a trip to the icy duck pond. Berne got the Carthorses into positive territory with a meagre 3 against Guy (The Man of the Tournament) and John managed a paltry 5. So, 7 by halfway! Things improved with Gavin who made a healthy 11 and Edwin picked up the pace still further but was stumped of a wide on the last ball and lost 5 runs for a helpful 9. Ben cracked 13 off the last over with a belter of a 6 and a total of 40, but the loss of 2 wickets would hurt.
Palmy Army started with Mag who was kept in check by Glyn and some good fielding for a quiet 5. James was well caught by John off Berne but two 4’s and a wide keeps his score to 6. Cliff manages 8 from John and their halfway score is 19, so not much in it. Gavin is taken for 11 and Edwin goes got 12, both with 6 for wides. Ben keeps it tidy for the last over with only 7 taken, but the Palmy Army squeeze past with a score of 49 and a win by 9 runs. (The Carthorses gave 22 away in Extras!)
The third and final match of the divisional element was against The Lord of Beers. The Carthorses lost the toss and were asked to bat. Terry was much too fast and accurate for Gavin who managed 4 dot balls and was bowled on the 4th ball for a score of – 5. Off to the icy duck pond. Bernie could only manage 3 against Kirat and although John scored 7, he ran himself out and was caught off the last ball off Prem. Minus 3 and off to the duck pond. Minus 5 at the halfway and a disaster. Andre score 3 but was caught and bowled by Sergeant for -2. Off to the icy duck pond. Edwin managed only 2, but at least he wasn’t out and stayed dry. Glyn took the last over and ran himself out on the first ball from Aman, followed by 4 dots balls for a score of -5 and another trip to the duck pond. A total of minus 10 and a lot of cold, wet Carthorses. An awful performance. The Lords of Beers had this in the bag.
They sent in Terry against Gavin. Gavin starts with 2 wides and Terry hits out to Long-on where Berne drops him and the ball goes for 4. He scores 13. Aman smashes Bernie for 17 and the game is already won, unless a miracle happens. John restricts Raja to 7, but it’s 37 off 3 overs. Andre bowls Prem with a huge looping moon shot, but Prem avoids the icy duck pond with a 4 off the last ball and a score of 1. Edwin’s arm goes all wobbly and he gives away 12 in extras to Kirat for 13. The final over is full of action as Sergeant has his stumps demolished by John in an attempted runout and then gets caught behind off the next ball from Glyn. Sadly, it transpires that John has broken a finger in his hand and retires from the tournament. The Lords of Beer scored 48 and win by 58 runs. (The Carthorses gave away 22 in extras and 25 in lost wickets.)
Three losses mean a semi-final match against The Barmy Army. A win could lead to a match against the PCC Stallions for the 7th or 8th place trophy!!!! The Carthorses were required to bat first. Glyn managed a few singles against Pang, but was caught on the last ball. Off to the icy duck pond. Bernie fared no better and was bowled on the last ball for -1 and off to the pond. Clive returned to crease and scored 9 to bring up 6 at halfway, but the Carthorses were struggling. Edwin managed 4, but Kevin didn’t score against Bodhi and ran himself out. Off to the pond for a -5. Andre scored 5 without loss but a meagre score of 10 was not going to win any prizes.
The Barmy Army come to the crease and get 6 from Andre. Berne is equally economical with 5 off his over and then Clive ruins everything with a wayward 14 (12 extras). 25 at halfway and the Barmy Army are cruising. Edwin bowls a very good over for 1, but is followed by an absolute shocker from Kevin with 6 wides and 24 free runs. Glyn has a tidy over for 4, but it doesn’t matter. The Carthorses lose by 44 runs having given away 46 in Extras. More time in the practice nets is required.
So, the PCC Carthorses retired from the competition without any prizes and a sense of they should have done better. Their fielding was good and their batting had some good moments, but their bowling was below par. Better luck next time. Off to the nets for some practice.
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