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Friday 20 June 2008

Match Report

Dr James Hull’s Drillers convincingly retained the Mike Gatting Six-A-Side Trophy at the late Sir Paul Getty’s idyllic ground in a Chiltern Valley on the Oxfordshire-Buckinghamshire border. Fortunately Wormsley boasts its own microclimate and was able to thwart dire weather forecasts by producing a mostly sunny backcloth for the 12 group matches and grand final.

Seven Test cricketers, including three captains (*), augmented the eight teams taking part (professionals in brackets). Group 1: HSBC (*Mike Gatting); Besso (*Jeremy Coney); James Hull Drillers (Tom Maynard and Mike O’Shea); Team Tavs (Paul Jarvis). Group 2: DBR (Norman Cowans); 3I (Peter Such); AON (Vince Wells); Diva Ski (*Charlotte Edwards). Reserve: Tim Munton.

The Drillers beat Team Tavs (41 runs), HSBC (45 runs), and Besso (3 runs) to meet AON in the final. Batting first the holders made 73 for 2 in their five overs, with Ryan Sylvester (29 retired not out) and Mike O’Shea (18 not out) the main contributors. Despite a flurry of sixes from Vince Wells (25) and Berkshire’s captain Bjorn Mordt (15), AON (60) were undone by three run outs and became the only team of the day to lose all five wickets.

Tournament Manager John Price ensured the smooth running of a complex operation. Umpiring duties were shared by Ray Julian, Milton Johns, Felix Francis and Barry Norman. Minor County scorers Lesley Hawkins and Sue Jones worked wonders in identifying nearly 50 players for commentators Andrew Green and Bill Frindall. Andrew Scarlett skilfully led the scorebox number shifting team of Gareth Bridges, David Mackney, Liam Paul and Matthew Robson.

Mike Gatting won the Champagne Moment Award, not for being the first into the luncheon marquee but for the novel trick of leaving one of his boots in the batting crease as he struck a boundary.  

Bill Frindall

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