Twickenham 3s 233-5
Ploughmans 236-9

The sun shone and the runs flowed as the 3s got their season off to an entertaining start on Twickenham Green. Connor Finney's side ultimately came off second best (see here for the card), but everyone got a more than decent run out and that can only bode well for the start of the league campaign.

Ploughmans took first hit and immediately ran into trouble. The mercurial Mark Smith helped himself to three wickets in an impressive salvo with the new ball (3-19 off 7), whilst JP Bowman also got nicely into the wicket-taking groove (2-42 of 7). At 58-5 it looked like the visitors were in a spot of bother.

Duray Pretorius soon went about changing that. He made the most of being dropped on 0 to hammer the TCC attack to all parts. The only bowler who really looked like he was causing Pretorius any problems was Hamish Johnston, tweaking and twirling his way into Pretorius’s head. Johnston’s figures of 3-51 off 7 didn’t really reflect how well the young leggy bowled.

Pretorius goes ballistic
Pretorius, meanwhile ended on a mammoth 158no. His 95 run partnership with Archie Fiddes (0!) was a particular highlight of what by the end was an all out assault on the TCC attack. Well batted that man.

236 off 35 subsequently represented a decent challenge for the Ts. Just under 7 an over on a decent enough track with a quick outfield was certainly doable although if you’re climbing Everest you need to make sure you start out solidly and get to basecamp relatively unscathed.

Dan Hough and Steve Cowley certainly started in positive vein as 50 came up at faster than a run a ball. Cowley (27 in 24 balls) nonetheless fell with the score on 57 bringing Steve Watts to the crease. The global audience of 68 million watching round the world via Pitchvision (or was it actually just Tom Field? No matter …. ) were no doubt transfixed by the thought of watching Watts and Hough, two old stagers of the oldest of old skool batting. This had the potential to make a Tavare and Boycott partnership (anyone under 40, google them) look like Buttler and Stokes on steroids…..

Watts leads the charge
Back in the real world, Watts hadn’t, by his own admission, had the greatest of 2020s. His 2021 started with a lovely leg glance for 4 as the both of them mixed some nice drives with some decent running. They put on 88 before Hough hoiked his way out for 54; it was a decent catch by captain by Logan Cassin in the outfield, but Shropshire’s finest will have been disappointed not to have gone big.

Watts nonetheless kept things moving, plundering impressive sixes into the portable toilets and then onto the Hampton Road. Kev Cavilla looked in decent nick, but he came and went for a run-a-ball 8. That saw Sam Cliffe join the party. Cliffe got into the six-hitting fun, but he too fell victim to the run rate (now approaching 10 an over) and departed for 16. With Watts also now back in the shack (88 off 79) it was left to skipper Connor Finney and Hamish Johnston to try and manufacture 24 runs off the last two overs.

Finney moved the ball around nicely, whilst Johnston brought a bit of class to the party, caressing a ball through wide mid on for four. With five balls to go the Ts still needed 18 to win. Finney bombasted the next ball over mid-wicket for a belligerent six, meaning two big hits and the Ts were home. Finney tried to repeat the feat, but ultimately Cassin bowled a decent final over and the Ts found themselves three runs short.

A decent workout and a decent game. Well done one and all.