Mid-Kent League Match - 46 overs per side, max. 12 per bowler

New Ash Green (19 pts) 160-6 declared (41 overs)
Tonbridge (11 pts) 141-9 (51 overs)
New Ash Green won by 19 runs.

Having received an early morning call from Tonbridge to inform us that the square was flooded following an overnight storm, prospects for play looked bleak. However, NAG opted to travel and see how conditions were on arrival, fortunately a few hours sunshine had made the pitch just about playable.

Tonbridge won the toss and invited the visitors to bat on a green wet wicket, Andy Payne and Vic Mayers made steady progress until disaster struck in the shape of a thunderstorm, forcing the players to leave the field for an hour! With the league rules permitting no reduction in length of a game that has already started things didn’t look good.

When the rain finally relented, NAG knew they had to push on and declare early to give themselves any hope of winning. Mayers was unlucky to fall LBW for 14 and Vaughan John soon departed having holed out at point, but Andy Payne, rediscovering some much needed form, continued to take the game to the Tonbridge bowlers until finally being caught on the boundary for 37.

The inform pair of Duke and Hampshier looked very good until Hampsheir fell to an incredible catch at gully for 8 to bring Andy Cox out to join Duke. With time against them they scored as quickly as could be expected on a very difficult surface, taking the score over the 100 until Duke’s cameo came to an end with another well taken catch on the boundary edge by Simmons. Hurst then joined Cox in the run chase playing some powerful straight drives, while Cox (31*) continued to find the gaps in the field and push NAG up towards a declaration target. Hurst departed to bring Hobbs in for a entertaining bash at the end including a pulled 6 over square leg, at which point Andy Stuart called a halt to proceedings and set Tonbridge a victory target of 161 from 51 overs.

NAG took to the field in bright sunshine with Shambrook and Hewitt opening the attack and both proving difficult to get away and posing both batsmen problems. Hewitt made the crucial early breakthrough with Vic Mayers taking a diving catch at mid-wicket. However, the Tonbridge batsmen Carr and Gower continued to make good progress, forcing NAG to turn to the new ball in the hope of making inroads.

Vic Mayers continued his recent good form and was very unlucky not to take a wicket beating the bat time and time again. Cox bowling for the first time in 4 weeks struggled to find any rhythm and bowled his first bad spell of the season, though he still managed to snap up the all-important wicket of Justin Carr.

With the runs still flowing it was again the turn of Hewitt and Shambrook to try and take the couple of wickets that NAG desperately needed. Unfortunately both men went for 10 in their first (and last) overs back, leaving the visitors now 90 for 2 and cruising. Hobbs came on and bowled tightly from the start and forced the games turning moment. With Gower nearing his 50 he went back to a Hobbs delivery and trod on his stumps. Cox then returned from the other end and looked like a different bowler and became almost unplayable. Cox picked up two crucial wickets while Hobbs continued to bowl tightly. With the Tonbridge middle order starting to stutter it was time for Mayers to see if he could open up the tail. He duly obliged and took two wickets in successive balls in his first over back and then picked up a third in his next over. With the game now finally starting to swing NAG’s way, the major problem became the failing light. Hewitt replaced Cox and grabbed another wicket and with Mayers forced off in the bad light it was left to Hobbs, Hewitt and then Shambrook to bowl the final few overs without run-ups to ensure the game was finished. NAG winning by just 19 runs with the hosts finishing 141-9 from their 51 overs.

It turned out to be a great game of cricket, when a result seemed impossible for much of the day, special credit must go to Tonbridge for their willingness to play despite their lowly position and their need for points. Actually playing a game of cricket was more important to them than just picking up 12 points towards their relegation battle and they were duly rewarded for their refreshing attitude by picking up 13 points (aided by the declaration). (Editor's note- My calculations make this 11 points, but it may be that a declaration gives the bowling side maximum bowling points, making 13.) New Ash Green once again snatched a victory against all the odds as their promotion hopes continue to grow week by week. (Another Editor's note - A win and promotion would be well deserved for the bold move of declaring early for the second time this season, this time with not a particularly high total to defend.)

Wye II v New Ash Green II
Saturday 10th August 2002

Kent League Match - 100 overs

Wye (20 pts) 159 all out (43.4 overs)
New Ash Green (4 pts) 48 all out
Wye won by 111 runs.

This was the day when the wheels really came off the New Ash Green promotion challenge. Having driven through the most spectacular cloudburst on the way to the ground only to find that Wye itself was bone dry things had initially looked good for New Ash Green, with the prospect of a potential win while promotion rivals only picked up points for an abandonment. Losing the toss was a setback, but when Pete Burke took a wicket with his second ball (after starting with a wide) things still looked good. For a while after that Wye's batsmen took some risks, flinging the bat hard at anything they thought was there to be hit, and although they gave some hard chances the runs started to mount up quickly. Pete Burke removed himself from the attack quickly, to be replaced by Paul Sumner. With the Sumner brothers in harness things began to turn round slowly. The run rate began to slow, and wickets began to fall, and as so often this season once they started to get into the wickets New Ash Green turned things round completely. A flurry of wickets just after drinks together with a spell of maidens with the score in the 120's looked to have turned things completely New Ash Green's way, and although the tail fought a disciplined rearguard action they could only take the total to 159. Mick Sumner took 5-78, Paul Sumner 2-33 and Pete Burke, returning to get the last wicket, 2-44.

In their current batting form New Ash Green had fancied their chances of getting anything under 200, but disaster struck early on. After a maiden each from the opening bowlers Matthew Quantrill and John Harding were both out edging behind in the 3rd over, and after 8 overs the score had advanced to 1-2, courtesy of a wide. Things improved after that, but only a very little bit. Darren Phillips looked solid but struggled to score any runs, but the rest looked very out of touch. Dominic Adolphe was convinced all day that he could hit his first ball for six and was bowled trying to do so, and Matthew Payne holed out on the boundary after looking good for a few balls. Paul Sumner, who top scored with 11 and Pete Burke at no. 11 looked comfortable for a little while, but although they took the score past the club's lowest of the season the task of adding nearly130 for the last wicket proved beyond them. 

New Ash Green III v Old Gravesendians
Saturday 10th August 2002

Central League Match - 40 overs per side

Match abandoned.

Another match abandoned as torrential rain prevented any work on preparing a wicket. More points taken from a top side are further fuelling third team promotion hopes!

Hollingbourne v New Ash Green
Sunday 11th August

Kent Village League Match - 40 overs per side, max. 9 overs per bowler

Hollingbourne (5 pts) 191 all out
New Ash Green (1 pt) 107-9
Hollingbourne won by 84 runs.

NAG won the toss and decided to put the league leaders in to bat on a wet wicket. Early wickets fell and Hollingbourne slowly moved to 91-5 after 22 overs. Paul Sumner and Andy Payne both bowled well, picking up wickets including a number of stumpings by John Harding. Phillips picked up a catch one handed off a full toss delivered by Andy Payne at short midwicket to dismiss a batsman who had not been given out stumped a few overs earlier, which could have given John Harding 5 stumpings in the game. Vic Mayers picked up two wickets as did Harding junior, Mark Klus got one. Special
mention for Charles Duguid who caught a one handed catch at deep square leg which would have been a flat six.

NAG's batting never really happened. Andy Payne fell for a duck in the first over, Duncan Shannon (16) & Keiron Hoddinott never got going, and it all end in a run out when they ran in to each other leaving Hoddinott short of his ground. This left the score 22-2 after 12 overs, not the start which was required. Mark Klus then was bowled by one that kept low, Phillips and Hoddinott C stuck around to see off the opening bowlers but never got the score moving and both were out, for 7 & 3. Charles Duguid was then run out for one. Vic Mayers (42*) and John Harding (15) got the score moving forward but it was never going to happen needing 100 runs from the last ten overs. John Harding was out, Paul Sumner was then caught in the deep for 6, Vic Mayers and Oliver Harding (0*) stuck around to deny Hollingbourne maximum points.