Dacre show their true worth
What is it about former first division relegation fodder? Last year Bishop Thornton felt that playing the game with appalling spirit was worth the few extra points gained and this year a mediocre Dacre outfit have shown themselves to be equally morally bankrupt.
Shedley lost the toss and was promptly inserted on a wet spiteful wicket at Dacre Banks. For the first 15 overs openers Pickles and Harford-Cross struggled against one of the best opening attacks in the division. However, their patience was to pay dividends when finally the second string emerged and it wasn't long before the innings had passed 100 without the loss of a wicket. When eventually H-C fell for 53, Steve Johnson deputising for the absent Cheese briefly gorged himself on the bowling with some sumptuous cover drives, however just when it looked like 230 was on the cards the innings slowed, partly due to the return of the opening bowlers with 8 overs to go. Rodney was there at the end unbeaten on 74no as KMCC finished on a nonetheless highly creditable 196-6.
The downfall of KMCC in this match however proved to be the loss of Rodney in the tenth over to milking duties as they became so short of bowling that Hinchliffe had to labour through his 12 overs on only one leg. With only Duncan and Tufnell to call on, 4 overs had to be bowled by A.N.Other - in this case H-C. The match however was reaching a climax with only a few overs to go and Dacre still by no means home with 8 wickets down. It was during H-C's penultimate over that all the trouble started - the Dacre no.10 (clearly a non cricketer) edged a ball into his pads and, before Dujon could make it round to catch the ball, shepherded it onto his own stumps. In consternation, surely at his own ineptitude, he attempted to accuse our unfortunate keeper of cheating and left the field amid a tirade of obsenities whirling his bat around like an enraged Dervish. The Dacre umpire at square leg desparate to get into the action after making no runs and being hammered when bowling, turned down a blatant, Ramprakash-esqe stumping several balls later that should have ended the game in KMCC's favour. However, the decision wasn't given and four balls from the end Dacre scraped home by 1 wicket. In the case of the Thornton fixture last year, the one positive to come from the game was that it wasn't going to be repeated the next year - the same cannot be said about this match.
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