 5th Grade fail to capitalise on a good start
With the 5th Grade skipper gaining a promotion and Colts being captained by the “Cosmos” Weaver, Millar found himself in charge of a strong side for the round against Blacktown. What’s more, the unhealthy fascination that this grade had with various cars was transferred back to where it all began (4th Grade). (Note: The big red car that “Sticks” Kenner referred to was not the same red Ferrari that purred its way through the 2004/05 season under the careful guidance of Reynolds and Stobo.) Millar continued to be undefeated at losing the toss and the Stags were sent in on a deck that has fooled many an opposition captain into spending 80 fruitless overs in the field.
"Johnny" Mayur puts the Stags in a good position
You would have thought that with all the time Kenner and Sajdeh had spent at the crease together that their running between wickets would have improved – but it hasn’t. Therefore, it was a breath of fresh air to see “John” Mayur Kulkarni stride out to the centre strip to guide Sunny between the creases. It had immediate effects. With the captain’s words (hopefully) ringing in their ears that the runs come after the tea break if we have plenty of wickets in hand, the opening pair put on 85 without loss before the inevitable run out saw Johnny Mayur back in the pavilion just shy of a half-century.
Unfortunately, after being in such a strong position, Sajdeh, Martin and McKeith all followed within the space of a few overs and just 4 runs. Suddenly, at 4/89 we were not looking so good and the opportunity to capitalise after lunch was looking significantly reduced. Nevertheless, as Avendano sat in the pavilion regaling anyone who cared about his scar and why it means he can’t run, Wigham and Selby Jnr. (Matt) set about getting the [Jazz] team back on track.
Although Jono “Chief” Wigham looked out of sorts, he showed a level of maturity expected of some of the older members of the club as he stuck it out and was determined not to give his wicket away cheaply. Whilst in the end he added only 26, his efforts out in the middle did not go unnoticed by those watching from the comfort of the Beauchamp grandstand. In fact, a significant improvement in his athleticism in the field has resulted in many a run saved and run outs affected in the gully region.
Anyhow, that is enough praise for one of the younger members of the side – back to the game at hand. Selby made a traditionally entertaining 20-odd before his departure saw Cam Brown join Wigham for the briefest of moments. His dismissal brought Avendano to the crease and some onlookers would swear that he didn’t look as small standing next to Wigham as he did at the start of the season. These extra inches didn’t, however, help his running between the wickets and he failed to respond to a call from Wigham, ending up with them both at the one end and Wigham soon on his way.
To have your two top scorers dismissed unnecessarily by the simplest of run outs was disappointing and meant that the team failed to accelerate during the afternoon.
Avendano, whose cricketing strength currently comes from his good technique and lovely placement of the ball – but not from his ability to play big boundary clearing swipes, found himself incurring the wroth of the captain after trying to find the long-on fence but succeeding only in skying the ball back into the waiting hands of the bowler.
Falk and Lake soon followed, leaving the skipper stranded at the other end after a careful 20-odd. Extras had kept us in the game and we had amassed 188 by the time Lake edged a ball through to the keeper. As everyone knows, it is worth more than 188 at most other grounds but it is worth nothing if we can’t dismiss Blacktown for less than it.
Dave Millar
Gordon 188 (Kulkarni 44, Wigham 26, Selby 24), Blacktown (0/4) | 
