With the festive season on the horizon why not do your bit for your local cricket club whilst lavishing love in gift form on your nearest and dearest? Avoid the queues this festive season by doing your Christmas shopping online and making Elstow Cricket Club some money…. Through the hard work of Lee Gauntlett, the club now are signed up to Easy Fundraising. What this means is that when you’re trawling the internet for that extra special present, simply shop directly with the retailer as you would normally, but if you sign up to http://www.easyfundraising.org.uk/causes/elstowcc for free and use the links on the Easy Fundraising website to take you to the retailer, then a percentage of whatever you spend comes directly to Elstow C.C. and at no extra cost to yourself. Just think, for every iPad 2 you buy that’s more cricket equipment for an aspiring young local cricketer…. Everyone’s a winner at Christmas. Get clicking.
Last man stands heroics from Stuart Robson saw the indoor ‘A’ team home with four balls remaining in their opening fixture of the season to Ampthill ‘B’. Earlier the boys bowled and fielded like dervishes restricting their opponents to 122-5. Bowlers Robson and Tom Wisson got the best out of the new ball and the fielding was solid on all fronts. Captain Wisson and debutant Rani Thiarra picked up two wickets apiece; the former also clung on to take a superb low catch and then looked the pick of the recognised batsmen in the run chase to cap a memorable first game in charge of the indoor VI. Next up was a last ball defeat to Wisson’s former club, Eversholt. Both teams were evenly matched all the way through this enjoyable contest before a scrambled inside edge from Simon Avis settled matters in dramatic fashion. Eversholt’s victory was underpinned by opener James Garrett and captain Jake Nichols, both of whom looked in good touch and finished unbeaten. This was the second time Elstow’s batsmen had posted a low total (140 all out. 160 is a reckoned to be a par score at The Bunyan Centre….) in successive games and where last time their bowlers got them out of jail, this time the extras conceded tally proved fatal.
Elstow IIs lost their opening two games of the indoor season, firstly in a closely contested cracker against Brickhill Tigers and then more convincingly against a strong Ickwell team. A mere eight runs was the margin of defeat against Tigers chasing 131 to win. Despite the closely called run out of Geoff Couling when well set on 33 and the unlucky dismissal of Nick Lewis, it was with the ball the team let themselves down in two vital facets of the indoor game- that of running between the wickets and keeping the extras down. In the second fixture, superior bowling from Ickwell saw Elstow creep to 88-3 from their twelve overs. Captain Will Wisson was pleased how his side acquitted themselves in defending this total but the might of the opposition told in the batting too as they reached their target with an over to spare. The 2nds should recover from this inauspicious start as there is plenty of ability in the squad to see them have a good winter, however within the basement division lurks the danger of some useful looking re-elected sides that missed out competing indoors in 2010.
