<p>A bright afternoon greeted the team as they arrived in sunny Guildford - the opposition were already warming up and it was clear that the Mogs only idea of exercise was taking the lid off something cool and fizzy.</p>
<p>As the team assembled they were greeted by Abbo's younger brother... Only to discover that this dark destroyer was actually Abbo! Removing his goatee for the first time since he was 13 years old apparently proved a profitable activity too as Abbo recalled how he had uncovered over £20 in loose change, a front door key and half a Camberwell carrot.</p>
<p>So the bar called for a few cheeky sherbets and with the prospect of no work the following day our esteemed captain promptly lost the toss. Happily this turned out for the best when after examining the (rather hard) ground, Guildford bizarrely chose to field first - spurred on by their boy-band hairstyles and conscious of the weight of their flamboyant bling in the heat. </p>
<p>Ferns and Trig opened the batting and made a half century in quick time. Pocket Boycott was hitting fours from the word go, and the team were wondering whether he'd had three shreddies for breakfast. Sooner rather than later though, Ferns decided to emulate Katich and leave a straight one, bowled out for 19. Shouts of reverse swing from the opener were dismissed quickly and led Fluffy to the wicket. Fairclough wasn't going to hang about, quite literally, and managed a spectacular single run before being caught out. Trigger was then tempted too much by the short boundary and lofted a skier to mid-wicket.</p>
<p>Wickets continued to tumble with Tharpy managing a mighty 11 runs before a dubious lbw call that was initiated after a whispered appeal by the bowler 10 seconds later. Eggy's lower lip went into uncontrollable spasms, leading to several hours of Faircloughesque sulking and the rapid inhalation of several cigars.</p>
<p>Action was scratching around and never ever looked like scoring a conventional run. A truly remarkable display and came close to winning the auspicious title for longest innings for only 40 runs. This was always going to be a tall order as it is currently held by Peter Furner (MOGS vs Coldharbour, 12,109 balls faced, 7hrs 13 mins, 40 singles).</p>
<p>Fortunately for the MOGS, Huge was biffing it around and made a quick 48 playing the occasional straight shot. A declaration after 40 overs was made and a score of 207 looked competitive and gettable. </p>
<p>After an extensive tea for the team and more wine for the single supporter, it was our turn to field. Happily the Guildford youngsters offered little resistance. Pilau was bowling a marvellous line and length and the batsmen couldn't get a whiff of his balls (***text removed for legal reasons***). Abbo had 4 overs and looked fairly menacing but during a fielding moment, he started performing a 'Rock Steady Crew' number from the 1980's, body popping and break dancing on the pitch, ultimately having to go and receive medical attention for a side strain. Jimmy and Briggsy did their best but the Guildford batsmen were not interested in getting the runs - survival and getting the draw was on their minds. The spins twins of Hewitt and Turner took control. Trig bowled a mix of jaffas and complete filth to get a quick 3 heads, with Huge bowling on the button but to no avail. Pilau came back on and mopped up the last batsmen.</p>
<p>The Youngsters from Guildford left soon after the game to drive their souped-up Nova's around town, leaving the Mogs sampling the hospitality of an otherwise empty pavilion.</p>
<p>Statistics:
O M R W
Pilau 8.3 4 7 3
Abbott 5 2 22 2
Honeyfield 5 2 11 1
Briggs 3 0 13 0
Hewitt 5 3 6 1
Trigger 6 1 15 3</p>
MWCC Stats