Twickenham return to winning ways with emphatic 7 wicket defeat of Hornsey

Hornsey 69 a/o           (Sanjay Patel 23, Justin Scriven 4-35, Mark Ryan 2-5)

Twickenham 72-3       (Carlos Nunes 39no)

“This match” the legendary boxing promoter Don King once famously said of a forthcoming Evander Holyfield versus Mike Tyson fight “has the potential to be greater than life itself”.  Twickenham’s game at Hornsey at the weekend is unlikely to have prompted even the effervescent King to have repeated such a claim, but Jon Varney’s men were nonetheless under no illusions about the importance of the fixture.  Win, and their season would be firmly on course to have a happy end.  Lose, and the long-term pacesetters in MCCL Division Three could find themselves out of the promotion places and hoping that other results go their way.  No doubt about, a return to winning ways was an absolute necessity.  .

Although sun block and tanning lotion were very much the order of the day, Hornsey’s Tivoli Road ground nonetheless had a decidedly boggy feel to it.  The departure two weeks previously of the home team’s groundsman in a fit of pique had done little to aid the home team in getting a track cut and the game on – but, credit to the Hornsey guys, they had tried to make the best of a bad job, offering up a green but eminently playable surface.

The toss – as everyone realised – was nonetheless always likely to be highly significant.  The warm conditions ensured that batting was likely to get easier as the day went on.  A welcome return to form by Ts skipper Jon Varney in the coin-predicting department subsequently prompted a sigh of relief in the away dressing; Hornsey were to take first knock. 

The Ts subsequently set to work in earnest.  Paul Cassidy – presented with just the type of pitch that the big opening bowler must dream about – immediately dropped on to a nice length.  He quickly began to real off maiden after maiden.  Justin Scriven, bowling down the hill from the pavilion end, found it harder to find his rhythm, dropping the odd one short in his attempt to generate extra pace.  This didn’t, however, stop Scriven – when he got the radar working – from making an early breakthrough, Graham Allen being bowled for 3 in the third over of the day. 

The other opener, Duncan O’Connor, and number three Jez Cable made little attempt to take the attack to the Ts, contenting themselves with surviving.  The speculative off drives that O’Connor did play went straight to fielders, whilst Cable struggled gamely for over 20 balls to get off the mark.  The young number three appeared to have a wise head on his shoulders, coping admirably with the chirping of the Twickenham close fielders; only to suffer a moment of madness, wandering out of his crease to be well run out by keeper Carlos Nunes.  21-2 became 26-3 as Cassidy removed O’Connor thanks to a smart catch by Warwick Paull in the covers, and when Scriven trapped Struthers leg before for 1 and then had Chetan Patel caught behind without scoring Hornsey were in serious trouble at 30-5. 

Sanjeev Patel, batting at five, and Paul Holbrook again looked to steady the creaking ship, but scoring remained painfully slow.  Cassidy – having bowled 11 overs for just 6 miserly runs – was taken out of the attack and replaced by Warwick Paull.  Paull immediately carried on where Cassidy had finished and at the 30 over mark Hornsey had crept along at a snail’s pace to 40-5.  The situation got worse for the home side when Scriven (4-35 off 19) smartly caught and bowled Holbrook, and when Paull (2-8 off 9 overs) chipped in to remove both Fleming (2) and Coleman (2), Hornsey had slipped to 55-8. 

Skipper Varney realised how important it was to go for the kill, seeking to keep the pressure firmly on the Hornsey lower order.  Mark Ryan came on to replace Scriven, and the big Aussie wasted little time in making his mark, bowling Hornsey skipper Ian Gregory – a useful lower order bosher – for 1.  Ryan (2-5 off 2 overs) ended proceedings in his next over, as Patel slashed wildly to Al Storey at point for a well-grafted 23.

A total of 70 to win would normally be easy pickings for the Ts strong batting line up, but a green wicket and some recent batting wobbles ensured that complacency didn’t set in.  The early departures of Pete Carey – caught at square leg for 3 – and Warwick Paull, bowled by the dangerous Gregory for 4, subsequently prompted one or two jitters on the Ts balcony.  The nervous onlookers needn’t have worried.  Carlos Nunes has made quite an impact on MCCL Division Three this season, and, once again, he proved not only that he has plenty of ability but also that he has the temperament to bat in tough situations.  Nunes mixed rock-solid defence with aggressive stroke play, and he soon took the Ts to within touching distance of their target.  The departure of Damon Combrinck for a patient 10 couldn’t stop the Ts from cruising towards their total, Nunes ending on 38no (off 25 balls) as Dave Barton hit the winning boundary with well over forty overs left to play in the game.

Given that the Ts’ closest rivals – North Middlesex and Highgate – were also picking up maximum points, it remains ‘as you were’ at the top of the MCCL Division Three.  Saturday’s encounter with a struggling Ickenham on the Green nonetheless gives the Ts the opportunity to take another giant step towards Division 2 cricket in 2008.