Sunday 18 May 2025
West End Esher 217-6 (35 overs)
SCCC 172 all out (33.1 overs)
SCCC lost by 45 runs
35 over match
SCCC won the toss
Scorecard
Richard Seeckts writes:
Those too young to remember priest Laocoon’s 1184 BC warnings about Greeks bearing gifts should instead beware incoming midweek emails (signed Agamemnon) saying: “our team is the tradional (sic) medium/weak at best, and in recent years we have been blooding a few juniors as young as 13 as well as our ex Chairman who is now in his 70s.”
Falling for this Trojan horse trick, we released some handy Cryptics from the 15 available and kept the ‘festival players’, only to find our hosts included neither teenagers nor pensioners but more than a smattering of Saturday 1st XI men, the skipper of which opened the batting and biffed 68 while we scratched around to make up the fourth and fifth bowler overs. Any talk of free prescriptions and GCSE’s was entirely among the Cryptics.
Whatever, it’s always a nice day at West End, a friendly bunch who lay on fabulous burgers after the game and the bar offers real beer all day, consolation for those who fail with the bat.
Captaincy for the day landed on Toby, the penalty for arriving after other candidates showed indifference and before Scottie who, of course, was in Cobham when the coin went up. Into the field, Daddies Gossy and Grinders sending down the usual fare which now includes a wide from the former and some scarcely disguised leggies from the latter. Mixed results until the day’s Superman moment, a direct hit run out performed with speed and precision. ‘Great Scott’, as no-one shouted. Rory Goss pulled off an equally brilliant direct hit later, but the umpire wasn’t convinced.
Bowling and batting continued with Rory’s 7 overs for 18 the most economical. Andy Rayner and Jimbo G took some punishment and Scottie, bandit yet again with 2-16 (off 2) thanks to good catches by Gossy father and son. The silent sub-plot was whether Pup, keeping wicket for the 100th time, could concede the necessary 15 byes to take him to 700. He managed only 12.
Quick turnaround somehow resulted in the skipper taking his old man out to start the chase. “We’ll get ‘em in threes, son.” One improbable three as it turned out, before junior shovelled one to extra cover. Hugs cheerfully came and went and everyone else followed at regular intervals with eight scores between 7 and 20. Roly, Andy and Scottie sent some defiant blows into the nettles but the game was lost by the time Daddy Goss flogged 34 including a special last wicket stand of 25 with son Rory who remained not out.
To their great credit, West End used nine bowlers in making the game closer than it might have been. The Cryptics didn’t bat well enough to deserve a win and, this being Sunday cricket with a sepia tint, we enjoyed the barbecue and look forward to returning in 2026.