2nd XI cut it fine against Ruislip

Tring Park 2nd XI won this game by a whisker. At the beginning of the final over numbers 10 and 11, Paul Orton and Dan Boniface, were at the wicket with five runs needed for victory. Nothing was scored from the first three balls, but Orton pulled the fourth ball through mid wicket for four to bring the scores level. With the field up, he then lofted the next ball over mid on for another four to secure a win by the slenderest of margins: by one wicket and with one ball to spare.

Perhaps the fate if this match was decided earlier in the day, when Ruislip number three batsman, Stephen Windsor suffered a knee injury and took no further part in the game. He had scored 53, was due to the open the bowling and, of course, Ruislip fielded the whole of the Tring Park innings with ten men.

After 41 overs Ruislip had scored 169 for 1 when Tring Park captain, Toby Wastling, introduced himself to the attack. For the second week running he had early success by removing the opposition’s top scorer, when he had Mark Ayling caught at the wicket by Matt Bowyer for 79. Is he under bowling himself? Should he be introduced to the attack earlier? Is your correspondent nepotistic? He took wickets in each of his next two overs and again in his fifth. With the exception of Boniface who bowled six maidens and conceded just 23 runs from 13 overs, none of the bowlers were able to keep a lid on the scoring as Ruislip closed on 246 for 7.

The Tring Park innings was rather strange with six players getting to 23 at least, but none getting to 40. If or one or two had managed to convert their start, the very tense last over would probably have been avoided.