Barnards Green cricket Club Match Reports.

Hewell vs Barnards Green “Singles”	Rushwick
	vs Barnards Green 1^st XI
Barnards Green ‘singles’ ended their league campaign with an emphatic and entertaining victory over Hewell by six wickets. With an early start and three players lost on route the Green were asked to field with seven men. With a full complement of fielders and more importantly bowlers the Green suffered as the Hewell batters made the most of the short boundaries. The ‘tour weary’ Brown removed Sutton and then saw Finney put down first ball. Finney then bludgeoned 26 runs off ten balls before becoming the luckless Mike Genever’s only victim. Genever and Spiers bowled unchanged for 24 overs and saw chance after after chance put down. Pannel profited for 64 runs but it was Williams’ belligerent 78 that did the damage. He prospered with his attack at all costs attitude the pair added 122 runs until they found a fielder that could catch. Hewell could not prosper during the final ten overs as Ian Bryant 3 for 20 and Phil Harris 2 for 18 restricted the home side to only 34 runs but still the Green faced a score of 227 to record victory. Whether it was tactical or sheer good fortunate but with Freeman and C Genever back in the pavilion after five overs it needed the middle order to score the bulk. Phil Spencer decided that the short boundaries were to his liking and proceeded to play a brutal innings of 51 off only seventeen balls, such was his brutality on the bowlers his fellow players saw little off his innings as they were scattered in adjoining fields searching for lost balls. Steve Metcalfe got in on the act and the pair added 83 runs in seven overs. Spencer’s dismissal to a ball that kept low brought youngster Mike Genever to the wicket. Having nagged the skipper all season to bat up the order he produced an innings of great maturity and saw his side through to the end. Metcalfe continued his recent good form and unluckily played on for 80 but by this time the score had reached 200 in the 22^nd over. Mike Genever completed a superb 50 no and a cameo 13 no by Rich Birch ensured that the Green finished the season on a high with this six wicket victory. Barnards Green 3^rd XI Vs Feckenham On Saturday the Green 3rds XI entertained bottom of the table Feckenham in the final league game of the season. The visitors won the toss and put the Green in to bat. Skipper Robin Longmore was forced into opening himself along with Lee Dyment and after a lively start from the Feckenham opening attack, Longmore opened his shoulders and started to despatch the ball to all parts on a damp track offering assistance to the bowler. With the score on 77 he edged a long hop to the keeper and departed for 46. Dyment (38) and Dave Bayliss (28) found the going difficult, but Julian hall livened proceedings with a solid 40 and Andy Tandy on loan from the social XI scored an excellent 19 with Dave Price bludgeoning a quick 11 in a few balls at the end leaving the Green on 232 at tea. After a pork pieless tea, Feckenham took to the wicket and whilst opener Houghton looked to hit the bad ball, Skipper Daniels was more circumspect. Skipper Longmore introduced himself to lollipop the ball up to try and get some interest from the opposition and soon had Houghton LBW for 42. Daniels should have gone soon after, but the stumping chance went begging. Further wickets for Longmore who finished with 6 for 56 followed and Bob Rogers and Jamie Longmore both picked up a wicket a piece, but Feckenham could not be broken from their comatose stance of batting out for a draw and the game petered out for a boring draw with 8 wickets down. Many thanks to match day sponsor David Whyman map sales who could no doubt have helped Feckenham who had lost their way from the start of their innings!	Barnards Green 1^st XI approached Saturdays visit to Rushwick just 1 point behind second placed Belbroughton, level with Lye. With this in mind Green skipper Tim Williams had no hesitation on electing to bat first on a wet track and try to gain a maximum haul of 24 points. The Green started slowly on a difficult wicket, but Tim Clarke, promoted to open and Judd Doughty both ensured that an early tumble of wickets was not going to happen. Clarke eventually fell for a very stubborn 9. This bought the in form Dan Flynn to the wicket. He immediately upped the scoring rate, being particularly brutal on anything full or short. This encouraged Doughty to play some more shots of his own with some excellent aerial hits and playing particularly strongly off his legs. When Doughty fell for an excellent 33 the Green suddenly collapsed with Richards, Smedley and Drinkwater all falling for 0. Chris Hill joined Flynn and the pair started to repair the damage. Flynn continued to dispatch the loose ball and moved close to another hundred. However when on 86 he was adjudged leg before. His innings contained 13 fours and 2 sixes. This then saw a second collapse, with only Hill of the later batsman looking capable on the almost impossible track. The Green was dismissed for 156, with both Turner and Douglas turning in excellent performances with the ball and claiming 5 wickets each. The Green started well when Tim Williams had Dobson brilliantly caught at point by Tim Clarke. However Rushwick recovered well and it took the introduction of Clive Churchill, fresh from a successful tour, to gain the next wicket. Bishop again fell victim to a Clarke catch at point, this time diving forward. Churchill then bowled Jones before Ingles was well caught at short leg by Drinkwater, again off Churchill. Ian Scullion then got in on the act, dismissing the dangerous Watkins, clean bowled and then having Lane brilliantly stumped by Glendinning. The Green had reduced Rushwick to 46 for 6. All of the Rushwick tail put up some resistance but a good catch by Richards saw the end of Colley and a third wicket for Scullion before Flynn came into the attack to remove Wills, again smartly taken by Drinkwater, this time at silly point. Long then attempted a single to Hill at square leg. Hill steamed round, stopped the ball with his boot, before swooping in and gaining a direct hit to run out Long and to send the Greens players and supporters into raptures! Flynn finished the game by bowling Turner, to give the Green maximum 24 points, and were left to hear how other results went. Due to Belbroughton gaining a victory the Green had to settle for 3^rd place, just 1 point behind and only 20 off the champions. Main Index