Sir Ian Terence Botham once said, "To me, it doesn't matter how good you are. Sport is all about playing and competing. Whatever you do in cricket and in sport, enjoy it, be positive and try to win"
Reigate Priory's cricket week saw a strong Llamas side, packed with Saturday 2's & 3's players take on the mighty Mogs. This has to be remembered as one of the most pulsating, high scoring games in recent Mogs history where each Mogador made every effort to win against a seemingly lost cause.
AJ convened a number of the senior players on the balcony to discuss his tactics before we tossed up. Whilst munching on bacon butties cooked by Ali and Charlie Lee, his strategy was clear, devilishly simple and proved in hindsight to be 99% spot on. 'We are going to bowl 1st and chase down whatever Priory set us'.
Having won the toss, the Mogs were in the field.
It is too painful to truly write down the words that accompany the bowling performances of our players. On a slow, dead track with the typical fast Priory outfield, every bowler was hit to all parts of the ground. No bowler was spared any pain.
The openers Luke Haughton and Jordan Bunyan took the Llamas to a huge score by lunchtime - with Haughton scoring a ton by the time we sat down to a refreshing cold meat (chicken) and keish (veg and meat option) salad buffet. With a delicious summer pie and cream desert and cold lager to wash down the food and the pain, we needed another plan to truly put the morning's play behind us.
It is at moments like this that you need your captain to step in. This time, no words were spoken.... No looks given.... He simply went to our changing room and returned a few moments later and placed a bottle of Chocolate Port on the table. Clearly a drink only associated as a gift from a dinner party guest that no-one has ever wanted to drink!
Our reaction was mixed, but we had nothing to lose.
Everyone had a few shots, and the impressive Haughton was even made to have a shot and formally apologise to the Mogs in-front of everybody for scoring a hundred. Off our team marched, almost certain that they would rip through the batting line up and cause an almighty collapse Priory had never experienced before.
Sadly, this was only the beer talking and Priory took the Mogs to the sword. The only bowling highlight was Andy Tharp's 2 wickets, costing 7 an over for his 11 over spell. Briggsy called in the batsmen when Haugton had made his 200 and we were set a task of 343 to win.
The skipper then had one final strategic instruction to each player. 'You can drink when you get out, but not before. I want you to do your best'.
Turner and Fisher padded up and took guard in the middle. This was a useful left & right hand combination, coupled with the interesting statistic that they were the most surgically operated players on the pitch (Fish with a recent hip replacement; Tina with 5 knee operations). With the Chocolate Port still having its effect, the openers put on a quick 50 partnership before Fish was caught at mid-on. Tina smashed a 41 ball fifty and was out to a very sharp catch at 3rd slip to the quick bowling of Ellis.
Toomb Raider and Springer Spaniel continued the fight. Both were hitting the ball cleanly and looked set for big scores. Sadly, both players perished to well-held catches and another promising partnership was obliterated by the Llamas.
Tea was taken. A marvelous array of sandwiches (meat, fish and cheese) supported by cakes and some left over summer pudding were served. The lack of mini sausage rolls and heavily-buttered malt loaf where the only missing ingredients to a near-perfect display. Score: 8/10.
Meanwhile, the ground was starting to fill up with what ended up being over 100+ spectators (Mogs and Priory alike).
On his 40th birthday, everyone thought it was set for Ben Fairclough. But the bowling of Hoady was too good for him and it wasn't going to be last time he had the better of Faceman (please see the curry report). Ben going for duck.
The South Nutfield pairing of Brown and Bellars (emergency replacement for Jimmy Honeyfield) added some useful runs. Bellars, in particular, scored quickly for a fluent 35. The Mogs were running out of batting and needed 140+ to get us over the line with 3 wickets remaining.
Hewitt and Tharp stood up like First World War generals in the trenches under enemy fire and decided to go over the top. Eggson Tharp smashing Briggs for 16 in an over with Robin Smith-type square cuts and pulls. Hewitt was doing the damage from the other end. 'If it's there to be hit, we have nothing to lose' coached the Skipper to Buddha. With 313 on the board after an outstanding high pressure partnership, it was game on.
Sadly Tharp immediately fell for a magnificent, high pressure 44. Dairy came in at 10 with what later transpired to be a broken hand, but only made 2. Joseph Lewis held one end up whilst the skipper got his 50, but Lewis fell to the umpa-lumpa bowling of Steve Hirst (a Mog would you believe it). Hewitt stranded on 58 not out.
The Mogs all out for 327. Sixteen runs short of a historic win.
In the bar afterwards, it was mentioned by a number of Priory stalwarts that no team in recent history had ever chased down a score of that size against them. The team were deflated and elated at the same time and Briggsy was one very relieved Priory skipper.
The Major's trophy was presented to Reigate Priory, and the curry house beckoned to regale stories of the day and what could have been. Sir Ian Botham would have been proud of us.
Author: Richard 'Tina' Turner
CURRY REPORT 23.07.2015 - VENUE: Spice Guru, Reigate High Street
(from our overseas correspondent Jonathan Richards)
How better to round off a near perfect day in the field of play, than with a lip-smacking, tummy-tingling, ring-stinging episode of indulgence and exotica and the traditional Mogador-Priory curry blow-out?
There was a sense of inevitability as a party of fifteen paced up from the ground, salivating at the prospect of sub-continental gastronomic delights. But Mr Akhmed and The Golden Curry's loss was the recently relocated Spice Guru's gain as the diners headed up Church Street to our new upper-floor Mecca.
We toasted absent friends but Colonel Cuzza's spirit guided us through the temptations of over-ordering. Captain Badger kept things simple for the waiting staff with huge and multiple orders for Cobra and poppadums and then set the standard by manfully heading directly for the (vinda)loo.
The Butcher of s'algar, having earlier been likened to an ocean salmon returning to the fons et origo for the purpose of spawning, addressed the assembled company, and the feasting began. The decibel level fell as the Dairyman devoured his dopiatza and birthday boy Ben blitzed bhuna and bhajis. Not a portion of peshwari nor a mosrel of Madras survived the onslaught, leaving some wondering whether default on payment and washing-up could have been an option worthy of consideration, so clean was the crockery.
Would that the brief fire evacuation siren had resounded a few seconds longer, as Mrs Lee's attempted opportunistic no-pay walk-out to the club-scene below (which was only frustrated by her being hemmed-in as tightly are tied her purse-strings) may well have had some following! In the end, perhaps it was a good thing that legs wearied by a hundred or more overs and weighted by kilos of curry were slow to move... otherwise we may have jeopardised relationships with the management - and we would all have missed out on what was to follow!
'Sweet' has more than one meaning; as a dessert course it comes in contrast to things savoury, and 'unsavoury' might well describe the sweet scoff-off between, in the Mog corner, B. Fairclough Esq and defending undefeated champion Hoady Hoad, representing the Priory.
There was no standing on ceremony and Priory prevailed in a messy but hands-free contest which may yet achieve Olympic status one day, Andy's winning time an unconfirmed 36.9325 seconds.
There were handshakes and man-hugs as the smiling management eased us homewards in the small hours; some headed back to South Nutfield, others to slide off to re-acquaint themselves with homely bathrooms and welcoming beds after a long and gratifying day. Vivat Mogadoria!
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