The eye of the Tiger wasn’t enough to see Twickenham home.

I normally start each match report with either a quote or an analogy
and this week will be no different.  A learned friend once said to me;
‘going home with this girl is about 3 per cent better than going home
alone.’  Well, leaving Brondesbury with a single point was about 3%
better than going home with no points.

Indeed, all the ingredients were there for the Ts to take the full
monty but sadly we lacked the finishing edge.  And, it was nominally
the strongest part of our game that let us down; the batting!  278–8
looks decent enough on paper, but at one stage Twickenham looked lined
up for well in excess of 300.  With Meredith and Housego making hay
whilst the sun shone, the Ts were going well, but a middle order
collapse caused the hand brake to be put on and as a result the Ts had
to settle for a sub-300 total.

Having lost the toss Carlos Nunes's side were asked to bat first on
what looked like a green top, helpfully aided by the previous week's
rain.  Despite the ball doing a bit early on Tom ‘the white Tiger
Woods’ Meredith and Clint ‘Sir Horsington Horsealot’ McCabe (don’t ask
- apparently a funny tour joke, I don’t get it myself) managed to see
out the first 10 overs and move the score to 40 without loss.
However, McCabe was subsequently dismissed for an unusually low 10, so
Meredith and Housego went about rebuilding until lunch. After the
interval, Meredith was dismissed LBW for a very well constructed 88,
which was not only patient but extremely well grafted. The relatively
quick dismissals of Nunes and then Parker meant that the Ts found
themselves 4 down and when Housego, who also batted very well for 60,
was also dismissed the collapse was well and truly on.

This then left old buddies Richards and Russell to try and use the
overs and rebuild things. Having been hopeful that Twickenham could
try to declare before the 60 over mark, this pipe dream was quickly
destroyed and plan B was put in to force.  Richards and Russell
proceeded to bat nicely together, and they put on a useful 90
partnership (which we are both convinced is a record of some sort)
before Richards was dismissed for 51 on 1st XI debut, having been promoted from the 2s. Russell continued with the tail to see Twickenham to 278 for 8.

Twickenham knew the key to this would be bowling well and taking early
wickets. Maaz ‘the mars bar’ stepped up to the plate, dismissing the
Brondesbury opener Will Vanderspar very early. However, a series of unlucky events
such as a no-ball wicket and a half chance that Clint put down in the
gully saw Brondesbury move into a strong position at 140 for 1. Ts are missing both opening bowlers and their second spinner. Skipper and keeper Carlos doing a sterling job filling in with the new ball!

However, the introduction of Clint into the attack saw the partnership
broken, followed by an outstanding piece of fielding from Maaz to run
out the impressive Paget who was going well on 78. With this began the Brondesbury
collapse. Twickenham did their best to stem the flow of runs and
ensure 4 points, but sadly were unable to do so.  Brondesbury were
subsequently able to squeeze over the 228 mark that was required for 4
points to leave Twickenham having to settle for just for the one. Honours even then for 2010 with a winning and losing draw from the 2 fixtures between the sides.

Although not a terrible performance the Ts, and in particular I, feel
that after the performances of weeks gone we could and should demand
more from ourselves. However, onwards we go!!  A lot was learnt from
Saturday and with the return of Rashid and JP Cronje, plus Warwick
Paull, Twickenham should return to the Green next week with the
strongest side for several weeks.

I leave you with this final thought. ‘No one or nothing is beyond your
reach, if you believe enough, it is possible’

Twickenham came to the Premier league as favourites for the drop and we
currently sit 24 points behind league leaders Eastcote (who, as memory
serves, we had on the rack at their home ground a few weeks ago too).
It is more than possible that with 7 league games to go Twickenham
could end up not just surviving but of making a serious push for a
Champions League spot.  Yes, you may say that there is more chance of
me becoming a Calvin Klein model than of us running Eastcote close,
but the point is that it is most certainly possible!!

Therefore if you love the club as much as I do, please do your best to
get down to the Green on Saturday to support the 1st XI against
Stanmore.  Every 10 point win that we can get our hands on is crucial,
and your support will be greatly appreciated.

As always your faithful friend David ‘Geoff McIntyre’ Russell

PS. Mr Stuart Amos, to you and your band The Big Tackle, a fantastic
set which was enjoyed by all. Great TEKKERS!!  Once again, a fantastic
effort to all those who made the Patch, it proved to be a superb night
enjoyed by all.

Well done to Mrs Amos to providing the entertainment.

Well done to Dan Housego on making your patch debut, a relatively
solid performance.