Walsall Health 103-7 (35 overs) def. Darley Abbey 101 all out (34.4 overs) by 3 wickets

The Elf made the long journey East to Derbyshire this week for their final game of the season away at Darley Abbey.

The Elf were fielding first and had to borrow two players from the home side for the first couple of overs whilst Tom Davies and Greg Philpott trundled their way up the A38 and also got lost in Darley village finding the ground. One word……#VILLAGE

The opening partnership of Jack Portsmouth and Dan Armstrong (both on loan from Rushall CC) bowled an exceptional first ten overs between them, giving the opposition absolutely nothing to hit and in his 5th over Dan ‘Stretch’ Armstrong bowled U Scotton for 12 with a well disguised slower ball. A big hand here to Portsmouth whose 5 overs went for just 6 runs to really turn the screw.
Sam Stephens and father Dave came on at first change and it was Stephens junior who got the second wicket thanks to a smart grab by Nathan Reeves at point.
Stephens was ruing his wicket in the next couple of overs after his impressive figures took a hammering when Goyal cut and drove Stephens to a well made 18 before Dave managed to trap him plumb in front.

The next wicket was the most vital of the innings. The home side’s number 3 I.Scotton who had made 25 before he hit the ball through the covers and Ian Chuck was on the prowl. The Kolpak player wasn’t even looking the correct way but he swooped on the ball and even ushered ‘Don’t even try it’ to the batsman before throwing to Gort and Scotton was run out.

Dave Stephens then picked up the fifth wicket of the innings, bowling Dobson  for a quack. On at second change was Chris Hall, he picked up the wicket of Billings in a wicket maiden after a catch from Portsmouth.
Dave Stephens then picked up his third wicket of the day to overtake the yet to bowl Davies in the season’s list when Harrison was sent packing, stumps shattered.

Davies came on with 10 overs to go and managed to pick up a wicket with this third ball of his spell when Andy ‘the guillotine’ Gorton was razor sharp behind the sticks and stumped Hodgson for eleven.
Davies was then on the end of another LBW decision when he appealed for a shout that cannoned into the pads, scaring the teenage umpire into raising the finger but the away side rightly called back the batsman after he has middled it into his pad. Much to the chagrin of Davies who must wish that the LBW rule was no longer enforced in cricket.

Chris Hall got Steel out for his second of the day and after a bit of tap bowling at full pelt and on full tilt Davies got his 23rd nut of the season after a good catch from travel partner Philpott at point.

After a good munch in the sun, The Elf set about chasing their low total in the afternoon heat.

Andy Gorton and Alex Nunns opened the innings but Nunns had a rare failure with the bat and was caught at slip for three.

Record setting Chuck then played on for the same score before Nathan Reeves was caught and bowled for one by Scotton before the score had reached 20.

Greg Philpott entered the fray and settled the batting side’s nerves with a good partnership, whilst also facing a lot of balls to steady the ship before being stumped with the score on 35.

Sam Stephens came in against his old side and played a really good knock with Andy Gorton who over 20 overs put on an extremely good 50 run partnership. In doing so Andy Gorton became only second man in Elf history to reach 5,000 runs for the club. What an achievement by a man who encapsulates everything The Elf is about showing his class by getting to the milestone where only one man has been before. BIG HAND/EVERYTHING DANGLING.

Gort left the fray with the score on 87 and Jack Portsmouth scored 7 before his was out with the score on 100. A mini collapse ensued and Dan Armstrong who had taken his pads off before the end (VILLAGE) went in and was out for a quack and Dave Stephens had to see the side home in the 35th over.

A good win for The Elf against a strong side to finish the season which has been up and down for the lads but they have finished the season with two wins to have some momentum going into new season.

Everyone has played their part in getting games/teas on and even grounds open in Nicka’s case. A big thank you to everyone involved in this season and everyone who has donned a shirt to play for this ever growing club. The Spirit of the Elf well and truly lives on.

 

 

 

Batting		Runs
Gorton, A	Stumped b Hodgson	35
Nunns, A	c slip b Scotton	3
Chuck, I	b Goyal	3
Reeves, N	cb Scotton	1
Phillpott, G	Stumped I Scotton	6
Stephens, S	not out	28
Portsmouth, J	b Hodgson	7
Armstrong, D	c b A Scotton	0
Stephens, D	not out	1
Extras		19
Walsall Health		103

Bowling	Overs	Maidens	Runs	Wickets
Portsmouth, J	5	1	6	0
Armstrong, D	6	1	8	1
Stephens, S	7	0	26	1
Stephens, D	8	1	28	3
Hall, C	5	3	12	2
Davies, T	24	0	19	2

 

Sportsman CC 251-9 (40 0vs) defeated Walsall Health CC 145-9 (40 ovs) by 106 runs

The Elf hosted their penultimate home game of the season this week against Sportsman CC who they lost to in their opening fixture.

Rob Hewlitt won the toss and decided to bowl on what was a damp track on an overcast day.
Without the usually reliable Dave Stephens to open up proceedings, Hewlitt turned to Dan Armstrong and Tom Davies but they were in for a bit of a surprise from the Sportsman opening batsman.

Kris Ali was taking no prisoners today. The Sportsman opener who moonlights in the Caribbean over the winter smashing boundaries, put the two usually strong openers to the sword. Swashbuckling his way to the team being 93-0 after 8 overs. Even Dan Dunn who replaced Davies after he was dispatched to the boundary on several occasions, could not break the dead lock.

Ian Chuck and Chris Hall became the 4th and 5th bowlers before the overs tally had reached double figures but they proved their worth showing all their experience and class by limiting the opposition and most importantly, delivering some wickets.

Chally, managed to dislodge ‘Vijay’ for 23 in his second over but Ali was still going along nicely. After a maiden by Chuck, Hall steamed in for his third over and produced the prize wicket. The ball pitched on a good length and just nipped back a touch and cannoned into Ali’s pads, Hall turned around to the umpire and with the other eleven Elf members raising the decibel level beyond recognition, the umpire had no choice but to raise the finger. A sensational moment in the match which got the lads back in.
A report from Monday evening’s ‘Midlands Today’ suggests that windows were shattering in the Aldridge area approximately 2.30pm due to high decibel levels.

Davies and Dunn were brought back on and delivered with three more wickets. The away side’s number 3 was run out by Alex Nunns who stayed calm under pressure and casually knocked the bails off from a close range instead of panicking and shying from further away.

Davies dismissed Khan for a quack and Dan Dunn got S Mangat caught on the boundary by Dan Armstrong 4 runs shy of his 50.

JP returned to action and duly delivered a long overdue wicket when he picked up Patel with the score over 200 after a good catch from Chuck at long off.

The next 4 overs belonged to man of the match Chris Hall. Hall picked up the Elf’s first ‘Michelle’ (five-for) of the season by bowling two more batsman and picking up another prized LBW not quite on the same level as the first but a five wicket hall none the less. Chall finished, 8 overs, 0 maidens, five for thirty-eight. BIG HAND.
Off the last ball of the innings some village fielding by Davies allowed the side from Harbourne to creep over the 250 mark.

The Elf began their chase with Chuck and Nunns setting a solid start, at one point in the fifth over when the rain began to fall they were ahead on Duckworth Lewis!

Chuck was the first to depart when Gort triggered him for 17, Chuck obviously took the decision well and came back to the changing room a smile on his face…

Nunns was the next to depart for a well made 29. After seeing off a lot of deliveries from Kris Ali who was bowling at some lick.

Andy Carrick playing his second game for the Elf produced a solid knock at number 3, also seeing off deliveries from a sharp bowler and not giving the opposition many chances.

Nathan Reeves played two outstanding defensive shots to Ali but the first ball of his next over was an absolute jaffa and dislodged his bails, no shame in getting out to that.

Skipper Hewlitt was next in and pushed the run rate on a bit and scored a quick time 21 before he chipped Sohail to mid off playing a knock down 9 iron when he should have got the 7 iron out and found the green, instead found the hazard.

Andy Gorton was in at 6 and made nine before Chuck sought revenge for his dismissal and triggered Gort . Chris Hall was in at the all-rounder’s position of 7 and unfortunately played on to Khan for a duck.

Jonathan Preece joined the solid Carrick whose knock went a long way to becoming Chris Hall’s new favourite member of The Elf with a few expert forward defensive strokes. Chall was seen nodding his head and miming a perfect block whenever the Yorkshireman’s name was mentioned.
Unfortunately Carrick was bowled for a well made 15.

Dan Dunn managed to get off the mark and played the shot of the day, a lofted drive through the covers for four.
JP was dismissed LBW for 3 and Tom Davies, big bat in tow slogged his way to a run a ball 7 before Dan Dunn had the most ‘village’ moment of the day when with the penultimate ball of the match, he charged down to Vijay who was attempting an leg spinner. Vijay didn’t manage to pitch the ball on the cut strip but Dunn somehow spooned the ball to point for the easy catch. One word….VILLAGE.

Dan Armstrong finished with a strike rate of 200.00 after putting his outside edge to good use in the final ball. Not before he had taken all his kit off thinking he was not required to bat…..VILLAGE.

The Elf came back tremendously after being battered for the first 10 overs or so and showed they never give up any cause.
They play their final home game next week against Lapworth.

Shower Club update – Only a disappointing 6 for shower club this week with skipper Hewlitt providing some Cracked Black Pepper ‘Original Source’ to freshen up the lads’ weary bodies.

Batting		Runs
Chuck, I	lbw b Mangat	17
Nunns, A	b Ali	29
Carrick, A	b Khan	15
Reeves, N	b Ali	1
Hewlitt, R	b Munir ct Chandramani	21
Gorton, A	lbw b Khan	9
Hall, C	b Khan	0
Preece, J	lbw b Khan	3
Dunn, D	ct Underwood b Chandramani	9
Davies, T	not out	7
Armstrong, D	not out	2
Extras		32
Walsall Health		145

Bowling	Overs	Maidens	Runs	Wickets
Armstrong ,D	8	1	52	0
Davies, T	8	1	52	1
Dunn, D	8	1	62	1
Hall, C	8	0	38	5
Chuck, I	4	1	15	1
Preece, J	4	0	30	1

 

Walsall Health 131-8 (40 overs) lost by 80 runs to Rushall CC (211-8) 40 overs.

 

On a sunny August bank holiday weekend, the two clubs who Tim Oliver played for met for a match in his honour at Rushall cricket club.

The Elf fielding first and got off to a good start when Sam Stephens steamed in and picked up two wickets for 5 runs.
Elf Legend Jonty Nicholls chipped in with his obligatory wicket when the home side found themselves on 27-3.

A big partnership between Rushall batsmen Plant & Everall then ensued. Elf bowlers Chris Hall and Neil Slym were dispatched to the boundary on a few occasions.

Late to the game Tom Davies who turned up at 1.30 thinking it was a 2pm start (one

word….VILLAGE) was on the field and got batsmanEverall bowled for 68 after the Rushall opener lost his ninth life.

With the score on 121 in the 30th over The Elf were looking at defending a total lower than 180 but Rushall batsman Wall came in and bludgeoned his way to a 50 in 9 overs including dispatching usually economical Davies over the boundary on three occasions.

Chris Hall came back into the attack and picked up two wickets, first the wicket of Plant who was caught well in the deep by Chuck and lastly of Elf and Rushall legend and father to Nathan, Gary Reeves.

Sam Stephens changed ends and came up the hill for another over and managed to get Dunn and Edwards out in consecutive deliveries. Dan Dunn picking up ANOTHER duck. *sharpens scriber for the Duck award trophy*.

All in all Rushall posted a very defendable total of 212 for victory off 40 overs.

After the lads had demolished Nicka’s scrumptious tea. Chuck and Elf legend Aftab Nawaz entered the fray to begin the chase.

Aftab was caught behind for a solitary run and he was soon caught up in the changing rooms by Chuck who spooned a catch to midwicket off the bowling of teenager Dunn.

Nathan Reeves managed to get as many runs as his dad on this occasion putting ‘the shot’ to good use in slapping two boundaries before he became younger Dunn’s second victim.

A good partnership of 44 then settled the dressing room between Andy Gorton and Sam Stephens before Stephens was brilliantly caught behind by Peach off the bowling of chef Dunn for32.

Andy Gorton then became the victim of an identical dismissal to another superb catch by the Rushall keeper.

Two former skippers of the Elf, Dave Preece and Rich Fell came together at the crease but it didn’t last long until Preece was bowled by Portsmouth.

JP strode out the middle and hit some good shots on his way to another sterling red inker. Rich Fell was bowled by Dan Dunn for 19 and Dave Stephens rounded off the wicket column when Dunn the younger got his fourth scalp of the day.

It truly was a fantastic day’s cricket and all the boys raised a glass in honour of a club legend after the game. They even dived in to the a la carte menu on offer on the grill post game with Rich Fell doing his best burger flipping impression in keeping the lads’ stomachs topped up as they drink into the night in memory of the great man.

 

The Elf between their autumn fixtures next week at home to Sportsman who defeated them in the season opener back in April.

 

Written by Tom Davies

Batting		Runs
Chucky	c.  b. D Dunn	9
Aftab	c at wicket b. T Wall	1
S. Stevens	c at wicket b. A Dunn	32
Reeves, N	b. D Dunn	8
A, Gorton	c at wicket b. A Dunn	29
D Preece	b J Portsmouth	7
R Fell	b D Dunn	19
J Preece	not out	3
D Stevens	c D Dunn	3
C Hall	not out	4
N Slim & J Nicholls	dnb
Extras		16
Walsall Health		131

Bowling	Overs	Maidens	Runs	Wickets
Stephens, S	6	2	27	4
Stephens, D	6	1	15	0
Nicholls, J	4	1	6	1
Slym, N	4	0	32	0
Hall, C	8	1	44	2
Davies, T	8	0	43	1
Preece, J	4	0	34	0

Walsall Health CC (92 all out 33.1 overs) lost to Wall CC (93-6 32.1 overs) by 4 wickets

On a damp on dreary afternoon in Aldridge, The Elf took on Wall in one of their final games of the summer.

Stepping in to skipper the side in absence of Captain Hewlitt was Dave Stephens whose opposite number won the toss, looked up at the sky and said “you can have a bat” to DS and to the disappointment of the home dressing room.

Ian Chuck and Alex Nunns opened up proceedings for the hosts and Chuck got well into his stride crashing the ball to the boundary on four occasions in the early stages of the game. In doing so the Elf’s Kolpak player nudged his way past Gort’s record of most runs in a season with still four games to go. What an achievement by a talented young batsman. I think we can all agree this deserves a BIG HAND.

Chuck was first to depart when he played on for 16 off the tiresome bowling of Johnston. Nunns was next to depart for his first single figure score for The Elf to an outstanding catch by Wall player Caddick.
At short cover Caddick lept to his right and plucked the ball out the air with one hand, it was a special catch as it was going to take something special to remove The Elf’s in form batsman.

Andy Gorton was in at his unusual spot at number three but Nathan Reeves was in and out for two.
Gort was looking like he was going to give his best impression of Tom Hanks in Castaway when all his new partners kept giving their wickets away.
Younger brother Leo Chuck fresh from being ‘In The Navy’ did his best to get the ball off the square but middled all his shots to a fielder until on about the fifth occasion he holed out to mid on. He certain wasn’t the only ‘village’ person on the home side’s batting line up this week.

Greg Philpott managed to avoid another duck with a nice shot into cow corner for  a boundary to the ultimate disappointment of Dan Dunn watching from the side.
Skipper for the day Stephens was in and out to the excellent bowling of left armer ‘Bull’ who managed to get Philpott but also N.Larkin in at 8 for two and a quack respectively.

Matt Wright wasn’t in for long either when Phelps created a splash and bowled him for a duck.
On loan from Rushall for the day, youngster Dan Armstrong managed to get a single before he was caught off the bowling of Thomas.

At 61-9 the Elf were wondering what had gone wrong out there until Tom Davies in at 11 gave his best ‘Wilson’ impression to Gort’s Tom Hanks and the last wicket pair put on 31 to move the Elf towards 100 before Davies was bowled for 13 off the bowling of Rahman leaving the excellent Gort stranded on 26 not out.

The Elf started their defence of the low total in good fashion. Nathan Larkin bowled Rahman round his legs for 2 and Dan Armstrong put in an excellent show at the other end getting the scalps of Buxton and Edwards for 13 & 9. At this point The Elf were sniffing at victory on Duckworth Lewis with the rain starting and the visitors on 29-3.

Davies and Stephens replaced the opening pair but a few good strokes from Phelps pushed the side from Staffordshire over the 50 barrier.
Davies managed to clean up Phelps for 11 with a nose dive of a yorker. Stephens then picked up Johnston LBW with the score barely over 60 and the Elf again though they could snatch victory from the jaws of defeat.
Davies got his second of the day and 20th of the season when he bowled Hatton with the score on 68.

Unfortunately Caddick who took the belting catch earlier managed to steer his side home with a good knock of 21 not out and the away side reached their low total in the 33rd over.

It was a good display in the field from the boys who showed great character and the spirit of The Elf by pushing a strong side all the way.

Next week they travel to Rushall to play for the Tim Oliver memorial trophy.

Written by Tom Davies

Batting		Runs
Nunn, A	c. b Hatton	3
Chuck, I	b P Johnson	16
Gorton, A	not out	26
Reeves, N	b P Johnson	2
Chuck, L	c. b P Johnson	0
Phillpott, G	b Bull	5
Wright, M	b Phelps	0
Stephens, D	b Bull	2
Martin, N	b Bull	0
Armstrong, D	c. b Thomas	1
Davies, T	b Rahman	13
Extras		24
Walsall Health		92

Bowling	Overs	Maidens	Runs	Wickets
Martin, N	6	0	12	1
Armstrong, D	8	0	25	2
Davies, T	8	4	16	2
Chuck, I	2.1	0	10	0
Stephens, D	8	1	22	1

Walsall Health 115-3 (27.2 overs) beat Highwood Park 114 all out (40 overs)

 

 

Batting		Runs
Preece, D	c.  b Stamps	18
Gorton, A	run out	1
Nunns, A	not out	61
Reeves, N	c.  b Stamps	0
Fitspatrick, G	not out	18
Hewlitt, R	dnb
Stephens, D	dnb
Hall, C	dnb
Wright, M	dnb
Nicholls, J	dnb
Davies, T	dnb
Extras		17
Walsall Health		115

Bowling	Overs	Maidens	Runs	Wickets
Stephens, D	8	5	9	2
Davies, T	8	2	24	2
Nicholls, J	5	1	20	2
Hall, C	8	3	9	0
Wright, M	7	1	33	3
Preece, D	4	0	15	1

Walsall Health (200 for 8 after 40 Overs) Beat Coventry Willow (128 all out after 35 Overs)

 

After two character building games, the Health travelled to Coventry Willow, pumped up to deliver back to back victories for captain Rob Hewlett. A welcome return to the side for two exceptionally talented cricketers, Sam Stephens and David Preece  gave the Health much needed strength in depth, for what has always been a tough away fixture.

 With a top 3 of Preece, Chuck & Stephens, hopes were high for a solid start to the innings. However, after record chasing Chuck and Sam departed early, cool heads & composure were now required. Sam Stephens, devastated by his early dismissal, was taken for a “Tim Oliver style” walk around the boundary by long-time friend and fellow assassin Chris Hall. No moping from this corner, just 5 simple words from Sam… ‘They will pay for that!’

 Meanwhile David Preece & Fitzy set about steadying the ship. Fluent stroke play and exceptional running between the wickets, kept the score ticking along nicely. David meant business today, looking back to his brilliant best, whilst Fitzy delivered his first 50 for the club, in the partnership of the season so far. Both men relishing their duty in steering our ship to calmer waters.

 After Preece and Fitzpatrick were out, with the score well past the hundred mark, we all felt a total of 200 was within reach. Cue carnage. Skipper Hewlitt decided to smash the greenhouse of No27 with a big six. Then enter Rich Fell, to hit a six so big, nobody knew where the ball had gone. It was later reported by Ian Chuck, he had found the missing cherry on his way home…. on the car park of Corley Services. Dave Stephens weighed in with a blistering 24 n.o to take us past the 200 target we wanted.

 After a highly nourishing tea of a packet of crisps and a Jaffa Cake, the Health set out to demolish the Willow top order.

 Sam Stephens opened up, using the John Nicholls feather to mark his run up,  paying homage to a club legend. Sam was in no mood to dish out donations. Steaming in for 6 overs, conceding just 6 runs, scaring the life out of the Willow opener with a throat ball, who perished to a Hewlitt diving catch. Vintage Sam. At the other end, Father Dave, rock solid as ever picked up 3 wkts, two of which, caught behind by Fitzy, who gave an exhibition of quality glovework, to complete an excellent individual game.

 Chris Hall then replaced Sam, with one intention in mind, turn the screw. After a week of soul searching & retirement rumours, Hall responded with a spell of 8 overs 2mdns 3-15. Normal service is resumed. Clearly, when 3 bowlers, bowl 22 overs, concede 52 runs, & take 7 wkts, its game over.

 With Captain Hewlitt, purring at mid-off, Rich Fell assumed the finisher role, wrapping up the game with 2 wkts, to back up an excellent contribution with the bat. Nathan Martin, again trying hard from the other end, looked up to the skies for divine intervention. He was last seen asking Matt Cottle for the Samaritans phone number. 

 

With Willow all out for 128, our fielding gets the final mention.  A cool run out from Chuck, a catch from Philpott, and 3 catches each for Hewlitt and Fitzy were all very good. But the highlight, Nathan Reeves, sprinting around the long on boundary at 100mph, crashing into the fence trying to save a four. A fearless effort from a whole hearted cricketer who always sets the right example in the field. An outstanding performance from everyone.

 

Written by Chris Hall

 

Batting		Runs
Chuck, I	b Asif Khan	7
Preece, D	cb  Imran Rehman	62
Stephens, S	c  b Asif Khan	0
Reeves, N	cb A Khan	4
Philpott, G	lbw A Khan	3
Fitzpatrick, G	c Cotie b Ahmed	55
Hewlitt, R	b Imran	10
Fell, R	c A. Khan b Qais	17
Stephens, D	not out	25
Hall, C	not out	0
Martin, N	dnb
Extras		16
Walsall Health		200

 

 

Walsall Health CC 183-6 (40 ovs) beat Lichfield Nomads 163 All Out (37.5 ovs) by 20 runs

 

The Elf defeated Lichfield Nomads this week in tense encounter that lifted them to four wins for the season.

On an overcast day, captain Hewlitt won the toss and decided to bat first. In went usual opener Ian Chuck but he was partnered for the first time by Alex Nunns for his second game of the season.

Nunns & Chuck put on a steady opening stand to put the Elf in a good position before Nunns was bowled by the pacey Hopton for 27 hard fought runs.

In at number three was Elf veteran Dave Stephens who after the longest duck in Elf history last week, didn’t hang around trying to get off the mark, spooning a catch to mid off who dropped a dolly and DS had a reprieve. The first of many.

DS then managed to give catching practice another two times before he was bowled by Fearon for the second 27 of the innings.
Back from AWOL duties, Nathan Reeves was in at four and he got fourteen important runs, including one of the biggest sixes in Elf history before he was bowled by Hoddy.
Captain Hewlitt suffered the same fate a few overs later when the same bowler dismissed him for eleven.

As usual, in amongst the scattered batting card Ian Chuck made his way to another half century and left himself 21 agonising runs short of Gort’s highest runs in a season total before he was triggered plumb in front for a well made 56.

Down the order to 6, Gort arrived for some ‘tick tick boom’ and he duly delivered in an excellent partnership with JP Jonathan Priest who also made 7 before he was triggered.
Gort eventually walked off 27 not out which included 5 boundaries with Dan Dunn who upped the village stakes this week by raising his bat to the gallery after he finally got off the mark for the season.
The Elf managed to set Nomads 184 for victory.

Messieurs Stephens and Dunn opened the bowling for The Elf and by the time their spells had finished they had put the home side in a strong position. Younger partner Dunn got a perplexed Fearon bowled around his legs for 1. Stephens then chipped in for a couple of wickets, firstly getting Westwood caught by Davies for 8 and trapping Hutton in front of all three for 1. At this stage the Elf had Nomads on the ropes at 28-3 but carnage was soon to ensue.

Davies and Hall came on at first change but were unable to get a breakthrough with several catches either dropping short or being dropped the partnership of Stanley and Taylor made its way past 100 before the Elf got the wicket of Stanley for 30 when Nunns took a catch in the covers off the bowling of Chuck in the 31st over.

By this time the hashtag #hewlittout was trending on Twitter and home skipper was not helped by Taylor had made his way into the seventies at this point and looked to guide his team home. However, with the visitors only needing 24 off four overs Davies in for his seventh over turned the tide.
The first ball was a little off cutter which deceived Taylor and sent his off stump back for an excellent 75.
Davies then managed to dislodge the dangerous Vale for 13 when Chris Hall took a superb diving catch at fly slip to turn the game on its head for The Elf.

From 160-4, the Elf had got Nomads 163-8 by the end of Chuck’s next over. He picked up Ralph lbw for 1 and also bowled Forster for his 50th wicket for The Elf.
Davies managed to see off proceedings when he bowled Pickering for 1 and duly gave his opposing number a send off of village proportions to see the Elf snatch victory from the jaws of defeat.

It was a good performance from the home side this week who stuck at the cause and never gave up. A lot of good performances to boot which should not go unnoticed well done all concerned.
Thanks to JP, Dan Dunn and Nathan Reeves who all fielded for the opposition after Brannigan went down in his third over and could not continue.

The Elf travel to Coventry next week to face Willow in their usual start of the summer holiday opponents.

 

Written by Tom Davies

 

Batting		Runs
Chuck, I	lbw Fearon	56
Nunns, A	b Hopton	27
Stevens, D	b Fearon	27
Reeves, N	b Hoddy	14
Hewlitt, R	b Hoddy	11
Gorton, A	not out	27
Preece, J	lbw Taylor	7
Dunn, D	not out	1
Hall, C	dnb
Wright, M	dnb
Davies, T	dnb
Extras		13
Walsall Health		183

Bowling	Overs	Maidens	Runs	Wickets
Stephens, D	8	2	23	2
Dunn, ?	8	2	16	1
Davies, T	7.5	0	25	3
Hall, C	5	0	33	0
Wright, M	3	0	28	0
Chuck, I	6	0	23	356

 

 

Walsall Health 180-9 (40 ovs) lost to Moseley Arms Fitmen 181-6 (40 ovs) by 4 wickets)

 

The Elf suffered an agonising defeat in the British Summertime this week, losing on the final ball of the match to usual July opponents the Fitmen from Moseley.

In scorching conditions, skipper Hewlitt lost the toss and was asked to bat first by his opposite number. This looked a strange decision when on a baking hot day and a decent surface the skipper would choose to bowl but once both of the Fitmen’s openers had bowled a few deliveries it was evident as to why.

The Elf were in a terrible shape when Ralph and Healy dismissed Chuck and Gort respectively for 2 (Gort getting triggered by ‘Trig’ in amongst the chaos).
Dave Stephens up the order to 4 saw off a lot of the deliveries from the pacey Ralph to no avail, eventually getting caught for the longest Duck in Elf history.

Rob Hewlitt came to the crease to join Alex Nunns who finally made his Elf debut after months of helping Rach with the drinks and what a fantastic debut it was. The Skipper and Nunns piled on the runs in the baking heat once the openers had finished their spells.
Nunns played some quality shots on his way to a classy 72 until he was trapped in front off the bowling of Shereef (who did like it).
Like a bus, when you get one, you usually get another and today was no different with this partnership. Hewlitt was out next over for 44.
Having looked good on 131-3 the Elf were in the middle of a mini collapse when after the strong partnership both Greg Philpott for 10 (another LBW) and Nath Martin or ‘Larkin’ was out for 4. Larkin was bowled by the excellent Ralph who also picked up JP in his next over for a quack.

With the score on 147-8 Tom Davies and Chris Hall came together for an excellent lower order partnership of  32 before Hall was bowled in the last over for 22. Not before he had hit a few meaty blows to the boundary to set a target for the visitors to chase.

The Elf set about their bowling display in typical fashion with Larkin and Stephens but opening bat just down as ‘Mo’ certainly wasn’t larking about when he played some fine shots straight into the gaps to get his team into the 40s for no loss.

Usual first change bowlers Hall & Davies came on and grabbed a wicker a piece. First Hall picked up his opposing number ‘Hall’ for 13 when Dave Stephens took a ‘no look catch’ in the low summer sun at square leg.

Tom Davies was extremely unlucky to not pick up ‘Mo’ in his third over when he spilled a hard and low caught & bowled chance.
The next over though was not too dissimilar to the Flintoff vs Ponting over of the 2005 Ashes between Davies and Tahir.
With the first bowl of his over Davies bowled a delivery which cannoned into Tahir’s front pad in front of all three wickets, no edge to be seen but also no raised finger to a shell shocked Davies who once again was on the receiving end of a bad decision.
Davies then ran in with steam coming out of his ears and bowled 5 wides trying to bowl to fast but then came back with the right answer. Two balls later Tahir played on to his stumps to send the fiery Elf bowler into raptures, quite village really but great to see.

Into the attack came Ian Chuck and Elf Legend Jonty Nicholls who managed to get 3 wickets between them, two for Chuck and one for Jonty. Chuck getting an LBW and the other two wickets were bowled.

With the score on 94-5 the Elf looked odds on favourites but batsman Mo really was producing for his team. He reached his century when the score had barely hit 130, it was without a doubt the best knock of the season so far with some superb shots into gaps.

With ten overs to the Elf seemed dead and buried but bowling from Chuck & Hall managed to peg the visitors back when it all came down to Dave Stephens; last over with 5 required for victory.
The first ball was a dot ball to the Elf players’ delight but the second went for two, unfortunately for the Fitmen Mo was not on strike. DS then produced another dot ball before Green spooned the fourth ball of the over to Nunns at Gully and the Elf sniffed a victory.
In came ‘Raj’ who somehow managed to get bat on ball and scramble one leaving ‘Mo’ the hero of the hour for his team needing two for victory.

Hewlitt set the field but Mo managed to run home for the second to give his team a victory that without him would not have been possible.

The changing room after the game was a sorry sight for the Elf lads who fought valiantly against a side who had one very good bowler and a class batsmen to get them over the line.

Next week the Elf face Lichfield Nomads for their fourth home game in a row.

Man of the match – Alex Nunns for 72 on debut.

Dai Watch – The Welshmen this week was not on usual scoring duty but was on sleeping duty when Fitzy caught him catching some Zs in the summer heat.

Rach’s pop scene – This week Rach was in fine form with the jugs when she decided to disobey all orders from the clubhouse and washed out the dirty jugs and cups despite being told otherwise.

AOB – Matt Wright was on full 12th man duties this week after he stopped/started a potential scuffle when defending Davies after his mini meltdown.

Written by Tom Davies 

Batting		Runs
Gorton, A	lbw Ralph	2
Chuck, I	b Healy	2
Nunns, A	lwb Shereef	72
Stephens, D	c  b Sunny	0
Hewlitt, R	c  b Mo	44
Phillpott, G	lwb Shareef	18
Larkin, M	b Ralph	4
Preece, J	b Ralph	0
Hall, C	b Sunny	22
Davies, T	not out	5
Nicholls, J	not out	0
Extras		19
Walsall Health		180

Bowling	Overs	Maidens	Runs	Wickets
Stephens, D	5	1	18	1
Larkin, M	5	0	34	0
Davies, T	8	1	35	1
Hall, C	8	0	35	1
Nicholls, J	6	0	26	1
Chuck, I	8	0	35	2

Oak n Ash 214-5 (35 ovs) beat Walsall Health 174 All Out (34.4 ovs) by 40 runs

On a day in which Andy Murray won his second Wimbledon title & Lewis Hamilton won the British Grand Prix there were more triumphs for British Sport, especially for Walsall Health CC. Dave Stephens became one of the few to complete the double of 100 wickets and 1,000 runs along with captain Rob Hewlitt who reached 1,000 runs with a maximum.

Before all of the historic feats were reached, the Elf suffered an embarrassing blow when Aldridge Cricket Club was ‘triple booked’ which resulted in Nicka Dunn driving back from Alton Towers to unlock Rushall CC to save the day from Oblivion.

That was the first BIG HAND of the day but the second and most important big hand went out to the team of Rachel Gorton, Alex Nunns and Gail Bradley who valiantly rushed around Morrisons to put together a make-shift tea at a moment’s notice, it really was a top effort and should not go unnoticed.

Skipper Hewlitt opted to bowl first on a day of light drizzle. Stephens opened the game with a swinging delivery which did for B Cotton for a golden quack. Matt Wright was on at first change and he picked up the wicket of Mansfield who after looking in good shape, spooned a delivery to Tom Davies and shortish deep-backward square leg who took the catch. In Wright’s next over, dangerous looking batsman J Cotton edged to Gort but the ball just fell through his fingers. Cotton went on to make 76 before Dave ‘Priest’ put an end to his innings with a caught and bowled. Tom Davies picked up the next wicket of Finn for 7 which DS took a steepling catch and Mid On. Stephens took the fifth wicket of Price before the visiting side amassed 214 off their 35 overs in a ‘village mix up’ meant the game could not be started until later than 2.30.

After both sides had scoffed the last minute tea (which was excellent by the way) The Elf set about their run chase just after half past five. With Andy Murray’s Wimbledon win still on the TV in the clubhouse, two more sporting conquests were to be reached in the second half of the fixture. Gort and Chuck opened the innings and put on 42 before Gort was given out LBW for 17. Greg Philpott was next in and despite having about half an hour of throw downs from Gary Fitzpatrick, left a straight one and was bowled for his fourth duck of the year, much to Dan Dunn’s delight.

Fitzpatrick himself then joined the fray and played some good shots before he was run out by Chuck for 16 when he deserved much more for his efforts. Stuart Slater was next to arrive and was unluckily caught by the catch of the day at slip off the bowling of Kellerher for 3.

Skipper Hewlitt was the next man in and with his third scoring shot, he smacked a six over mid wicket to reach the 1,000 run milestone. Hewlitt was caught for 26 later on. Dave ‘Priest’ was next to arrive but only managed four singles before his stumps were sent flying by Finn, not Stephen.

Ian Chuck had steadily made his way to another half century before he danced down the track to Price, missed a straight one and was stumped. Jonathan ‘Priest’ was the next to bat and he certainly wasn’t delivering the goods and became a victim of changes when he was bowled first ball by Price to leave Tom Davies facing a hat trick which he duly defended.

Davies got off the mark to the apparent shot of the day when he smacked a ball through the covers with an eloquent  cover drive. He was out next over when he chipped Price to short cover.

Matt Wright limped out at 11 to help Dave Stephens  to his 1,000th run. Wright himself finished 9 not out before Stephens was caught off the penultimate ball for 28.

The Elf played well in a game that has proved to be tough down the years against a strong outfit but despite their best efforts the total was just out of reach.

The Elf play their next game at Aldridge (hopefully) against usual July opponents Old Moseley Fitmen next week.

Written by Tom Davies

Batting		Runs
Gorton, A	lbw Kelleher	17
Chuck, I	st b Price	55
Philpott, G	b Kelleher	0
Fitspatrick, G	run out	16
Slater, S	c  b Kelleher	3
Hewlitt, R	c  b Price	26
Preece, D	c  b Price	4
Stephens, D	c  b Price	28
Preece, J	b Price	0
Davies, T	c  b Price	5
Wright, M	not out	9
Extras		5
Walsall Health		174

Bowling	Overs	Maidens	Runs	Wickets
Stephens, D	7	0	27	2
Davies, T	7	1	32	1
Hewlitt, R	4	0	31	0
Wright, M	5	0	31	1
Preece, D	4	0	35	1
Preece, J	2	0	15	0
Chuck, I	6	0	31	0